Floor Statements

Mr. President, on November 29, 2006, Idaho Governor James Risch presented Idaho's petition for our Roadless Areas to the Roadless Area National Advisory Committee here in Washington, DC. I strongly support this collaborative and comprehensive petition.

The Idaho Roadless process was of a thorough and collaborative nature.

Every effort was made to involve county commissioners, members of the public, and a diverse array of participants. Idaho leaders and agency representatives have done an excellent job of including everyone who wished to provide input.

In this case, we have had decades of uncertainty. This petition, as set forth by Governor Risch, has potential to resolve these disputed and difficult issues in a collaborative manner.

The petition is the result of thoughtful hard work intended to reach consensus on a very tough issue. Such decisions seldom provide any one group or individual with everything they had hoped or negotiated to achieve. In this case, it appears to be a fair petition and sets a path forward that will encourage all parties, including those who are in support and in opposition, to resolve their differences and establish Idaho's future road management policy. This is a beginning, not an end.

I commend Governor Risch and his team for their efforts and render my support in behalf of their earnest and diligent effort.

Mr. President, I rise today with my colleagues--Senator Lincoln from Arkansas, Senator Charles Grassley from Iowa, and Senator Max Baucus from Montana--to introduce the Endangered Species Recovery Act or ESRA. Nearly a year ago, Senator Lincoln and I introduced the Collaboration for the Recovery of the Endangered Species Act, or CRESA, an earlier bill to amend the Endangered Species Act or ESA. This new bill, which does not amend the current ESA, builds on ideas set forth in CRESA. It creates new policies that finance the recovery of endangered species by private landowners. ESRA makes it simpler for landowners to get involved in conservation and reduces the conflict often emanating from the ESA. It will be an important codification of much-needed incentives to help recover endangered species.

Over 80 percent of endangered species live on private property. Under the current law, however, there are too few incentives and too many obstacles for

private landowners to participate in conservation agreements to help recover species under the ESA. ESRA, like the voluntary farm bill conservation programs that inspired its creation, will make it more attractive for private landowners to contribute to the recovery of species under the ESA.

This bill resulted from effective and inclusive collaboration among key stakeholders most affected by the implementation of the ESA. Landowner interests include farmers, ranchers, and those from the natural resource-using communities. For example, some current supporters of ESRA who contributed invaluable advice are the American Farm Bureau, the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, and the Society of American Foresters. This could not rightly be called a collaborative project without the vital and necessary input received from the Defenders of Wildlife, Environmental Defense and the National Wildlife Federation--key environmental groups that made significant contributions. And they further understand that landowners must be treated as allies to ensure success in the long-run for the conservation of habitat and species. Finally, while the genesis of this bill has many roots, a passionate catalyst was James Cummins of Mississippi Fish and Wildlife Foundation, whose passion for the outdoors provided inspiration to move these ideas forward.

This collaborative expertise worked together to craft the ESRA, which provides new tax incentives for private landowners who voluntarily contribute to the recovery of endangered species. The tax credits will reimburse landowners for property rights affected by agreements that include conservation easements and costs incurred by species management plans. For landowners who limit their property rights through conservation easements, there will be 100 percent compensation of all costs. That percentage declines to 75 percent for 30-year easements and 50 percent for cost-share agreements not encumbered by an easement.

It is worth noting that this is the same formula that works successfully for farm bill programs such as the Wetlands Reserve Program. Private property owners are appropriately rewarded for crucial ecological services that they provide with their property. The public benefits from those actions which ensure biodiversity; instead of placing the financial burdens on the landowner, we ought to find appropriate ways to compensate them. While the primary returns from this investment are protection and recovery of endangered species, the public will also undoubtedly gain additional benefits such as aesthetically pleasing open space, combating invasive species and enhanced water quality.

The legislation provides a list of options that give landowners a choice, and this is a crucial element for the success of this proposal. For some landowners, a conservation easement will be the most attractive option. Easements are flexible tools that can be tailored to each landowner and species' interests. An easement restricts certain activities, but it still works well with traditional rural activities such as ranching and farming. For agreements without easements, there is flexibility to do what is necessary for the concerned species without the need to sacrifice property rights into perpetuity.

The tax credits provide essential funding that is necessary to respect private property rights. Wildlife should be an asset rather than a liability; which is how it has sometimes been viewed under the ESA. With wildlife becoming valuable to a landowner, those who may been reluctant to participate in recovery efforts in the past will be more likely to contribute with these incentives. When people want to take part in the process and do not fear it, the likelihood of conflict and litigation is reduced. For years, this type of conflict has proven costly not only in dollars to individuals and the government, but also in terms of relationships between people who share the land and natural resources. With a new trust and new model for finding conservation solutions, we can do more and better conservation work.

Provisions have been made to accommodate landowners whose taxes may be less than the tax credit provides. Partnerships in the agreements will allow any party to an agreement to receive a credit as long as they pay or incur costs as a result of the agreement. This language will allow creative collaboration among governments, landowners, taxpayers and environmentalists, further increasing the number of people involved in finding new solutions for conservation.

Furthermore, this bill also expands tax deductions for any landowner who takes part in the recovery plans approved under the ESA, and allows landowners to exclude from taxable income certain federal payments under conservation costshare programs. This will allow both individuals and businesses to deduct the cost of recovery work without bureaucratic obstacles.

This bill not only sets forth the financing for private landowners, but it also makes it easier to implement the agreements. Landowners will receive technical assistance to implement the agreements. Also, to remove some legal disincentives to recover species, liability protection may be provided to protect the landowners from penalties under the ESA. This removes the fear of trying to help species; currently, more species usually just means more liability for a landowner.

As a result of these incentives, I expect to see a phenomenal increase in the number of success stories. These stories will sound familiar to those creative collaborators working on the ground now where we have learned that the types of tools provided in this bill can work if consistently offered.

The Endangered Species Recovery Act is very exciting to those of us who value protecting our natural resources. It provides collaborative, creative ways to balance resource conservation with economic uses of our natural resources and preserving rural ways of life. I look forward to working with my colleagues in the Senate and House to move ahead with this legislation which will allow better, more effective conservation work for future generations.

I am deeply grateful to my colleagues from Arkansas, Iowa and Montana for their essential expertise and support to create ESRA. I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, in early 2007, the Army Corps of Engineers will see one of its finest employees retire after 28 years of exemplary service to individuals, communities, and agencies that the Corps serves.

Brayton Willis has lived in Idaho since 1999, serving as the project manager in the Walla Walla District's Boise office. He served in the U.S. Marine Corps and later graduated from Northeastern University with a degree in civil engineering. His career began in Massachusetts where he worked on one of the first environmental impact statements required under the Clean Air Act.

Brayton has worked for the Corps of Engineers in Arizona, Washington and South Carolina, in addition to his work in Idaho. Over the course of his career, he worked at two of the Nation's nuclear facilities providing environmental restoration support to the Department of Energy. He found time to use his expertise in a volunteer capacity as well, helping local communities in California and Puerto Rico assess damages after natural disasters. In Idaho, in particular, Brayton specialized in flood control and issues related to environmental improvement in urban and suburban flood-prone areas. He also worked with local communities to address the critical issues of water and wastewater management and actively sought to involve community stakeholders in flood control and environmental improvement. Brayton preferred to approach flooding and its implications in a preventive manner, before disaster happened. He worked under the firm belief that this method was the most effective and efficient use of taxpayer dollars.

Brayton's work reflects the complementary ideals of caring for communities and the environment. Increased population growth in the West means greater and more sensitive interface between the environment and people. If managed effectively and proactively, the result can be positive for the environment and hold far less risk of disaster for the residential population. Brayton understands this and implemented it in his almost three decades of employment in the Corps. I congratulate Brayton Willis on his retirement and wish him and his wife Debbie well in future endeavors.

Mr. President, on January 1, Idaho sportsmen and women and wildlife will lose a great agency friend in the Idaho Department of Fish and Game. Steve Huffaker, 22-year veteran of Fish and Game, and director since 2002, will be retiring after a full and successful career with this important agency.

Steve has been my great friend and supporter on many issues including wolves, elk, slick spot peppergrass, sage grouse, and cooperative conservation agreements with landowners. His enthusiasm for the Collaboration for the Recovery of the Endangered Species Act and the Owyhee Initiative has been instrumental as I seek the support of others on these important land management policy initiatives. Steve also provided expert advice and recommendations with regard to Federal implementation of these initiatives. He served as an invaluable resource for considerations of wildlife habitat in designations in several State and Federal conservation programs. Steve has been a staunch supporter of my Elk Collaborative; he has worked closely with my staff on these and many other issues over the years. He led the charge to delist grizzly bears, restored confidence and trust with agricultural interests, and remained determined to keep me informed of his activities, ideas, and beliefs. Steve's strengths include a positive demeanor and clear and tough but fair and reasonable stance when he was called upon to defend his position and decisions.

During his years at Fish and Game, Steve served as both Fisheries Bureau chief and Wildlife Bureau chief. He oversaw the agency during a time of constant and frequent change. State management of wolves, fee increases, access issues, conservation, and troubled agency relationships with sportspeople, farmers, and ranchers were some of the challenges that Steve met head-on, and today Idaho is better off with his years of leadership. Now, he will have the time to privately enjoy the fields, streams, and mountains of Idaho that he took such good care of over the years. The man who will be ``taking his grandkids fishing'' will be sorely missed, and his boots, hard to fill. I wish Steve health, success, and successful hunting and fishing, in his well- deserved retirement.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, today I introduce the Improving No Child Left Behind--INCLB--Act. As a father and a legislator, I am committed to advocating for public education in Idaho and throughout the Nation. Ensuring that every child receives a good education is one of my top priorities. President Bush's sweeping education reforms included in the No Child Left Behind Act have had measurable positive effects on many students across the country, and I support the law's objective of ensuring that every child achieves his or her potential.

However, given time to observe the implementation of the law, it is now appropriate to review opportunities for needed improvements to the underlying program. After conferring with a number of organizations in Idaho and at the national level, I have identified implementation concerns that seem common to various stakeholder groups. In response, I have created the Improving No Child Left Behind Act. This bill contains a number of workable, commonsense modifications to the law. These provisions preserve the major focus on student achievement and accountability and, at the same time, ensure that schools and school districts are accurately and fairly assessed. The act ensures that local schools and districts have more flexibility and control in educating our Nation's children. The goal of the act is expressed in its name: to improve No Child Left Behind.

The bill does a number of things: INCLB would allow supplemental services like tutoring to be offered to students sooner than they are currently available; INCLB would provide flexibility for States to use additional types of assessment models for measuring student progress; INCLB grants States more flexibility in assessing students with disabilities; INCLB would ensure more fair and accurate assessments of Limited English Proficiency--LEP--students; INCLB would create a student testing participation range, providing flexibility for uncontrollable variations in student attendance; INCLB would allow schools to target resources to those student populations who need the most attention by applying sanctions only when the same student group fails to make adequate progress in the same subject for two consecutive years; and INCLB would ensure that students are counted properly and accurately in assessment and reporting systems.

Taken together, these provisions reflect a realistic assessment of both the strengths and weaknesses of No Child Left Behind. While there may be many issues that divide us, our responsibility in education is clear. We must promote successful, meaningful public education for our children. The INCLB Act will ensure that INCLB continues to be an avenue to success for educators and students throughout Idaho and the Nation.

Mr. President, today I introduce the Improving No Child Left Behind--INCLB--Act. As a father and a legislator, I am committed to advocating for public education in Idaho and throughout the Nation. Ensuring that every child receives a good education is one of my top priorities. President Bush's sweeping education reforms included in the No Child Left Behind Act have had measurable positive effects on many students across the country, and I support the law's objective of ensuring that every child achieves his or her potential.

However, given time to observe the implementation of the law, it is now appropriate to review opportunities for needed improvements to the underlying program. After conferring with a number of organizations in Idaho and at the national level, I have identified implementation concerns that seem common to various stakeholder groups. In response, I have created the Improving No Child Left Behind Act. This bill contains a number of workable, commonsense modifications to the law. These provisions preserve the major focus on student achievement and accountability and, at the same time, ensure that schools and school districts are accurately and fairly assessed. The act ensures that local schools and districts have more flexibility and control in educating our Nation's children. The goal of the act is expressed in its name: to improve No Child Left Behind.

The bill does a number of things: INCLB would allow supplemental services like tutoring to be offered to students sooner than they are currently available; INCLB would provide flexibility for States to use additional types of assessment models for measuring student progress; INCLB grants States more flexibility in assessing students with disabilities; INCLB would ensure more fair and accurate assessments of Limited English Proficiency--LEP--students; INCLB would create a student testing participation range, providing flexibility for uncontrollable variations in student attendance; INCLB would allow schools to target resources to those student populations who need the most attention by applying sanctions only when the same student group fails to make adequate progress in the same subject for two consecutive years; and INCLB would ensure that students are counted properly and accurately in assessment and reporting systems.

Taken together, these provisions reflect a realistic assessment of both the strengths and weaknesses of No Child Left Behind. While there may be many issues that divide us, our responsibility in education is clear. We must promote successful, meaningful public education for our children. The INCLB Act will ensure that INCLB continues to be an avenue to success for educators and students throughout Idaho and the Nation.

Mr. President, in recent weeks, many of our thoughts have been turned to Helen Chenoweth-Hage, her memory, and her family.

As you know, Helen was laid to rest in October after a tragic automobile accident took her life. We honor and remember this remarkable woman, and I feel privileged to share with you some of my memories and thoughts about her and the time that we served together in the U.S. House of Representatives.

There will never be another public servant in Idaho like Helen. I served alongside her in the House of Representatives and worked on many issues with her, from fighting Federal mandates in north Idaho to fighting for our military at Mountain Home Air Force Base and Gowen Field in Boise. She stood firm in her convictions and beliefs, honoring the promises she made to those who put her in office. Helen knew, without a doubt, what she believed in, and she lived those beliefs in word and deed unwaveringly.

She worked very hard to make sure she had an understanding of what was at stake. When she started her congressional career in 1995, she read every piece of legislation that was coming up for a vote on the House floor. She felt she owed it to those who sent her to Congress. She surprised more than a few committee chairmen by showing up at hearings being held by committees she didn't serve on, simply because of her desire to know more and understand an issue.

One of her most-oft repeated matras was ``Love many, trust few, and paddle your own canoe.'' And that is exactly what she did--she was not someone who would check the wind before deciding what to do. She listened, asked questions, read documents, studied the issues, and talked with experts and plain folks. She took all that information she gathered and then made her decision. At her center was a very principled, gracious woman--one who was strong in her beliefs and kind to all those around her, regardless of theirs. In many ways, she mirrored the principled center many of us admire about President Ronald Reagan.

Idahoans have lost a true champion for smaller government and personal freedoms. Helen brought Idaho into the national spotlight. She stood tough on the issues and spoke out often, even after she left the House of Representatives in 2001. She could always be counted on to call out hypocrisy in government and placed her reputation on the line many times to hold to her beliefs on what was best for Idahoans.

Perhaps the best way to remember Helen is to quote her own words in an interview done with Reason Magazine in October 2000. When the reporter asked how she would like to be remembered, this is what she said:

That I have been true to real Republican principles. It's

been people like Tom Coburn, Mark Sanford, and myself who

have constantly said, `Let's not forget who we are and why we

are here.' And that is to protect individual rights, American

sovereignty, and private property. If there is not a force of

law and justice to protect private property, then we have

lost the basis of our freedoms.

She said something else in that interview that strikes a resonant chord with me, in particular. When asked what the greatest threat to American Liberty was, she said:

Too much federal and state government. The lack of respect

of people working in government for individuals. An idea that

certain people who occupy powerful positions in the

administration can make better decisions about an individual

and their life choices than can that individual.

Helen will always be remembered as a champion of the individual--the rugged, self-reliant American that is in all of us--and I thank her for that.

Mr. President, last month, the State of Idaho lost one of its distinguished citizens. Ralph Ray Harding, who served our State as the 2nd District Congressman for two terms in the 1960s, passed away on October 26 in Blackfoot. He left behind a legacy of public service and community involvement, as well as a remarkable family. Senator Craig and I want to take this opportunity to commend his life and send our condolences to his family and friends.

From his humble beginnings in Malad, Ralph made the most of his opportunities, graduating from college, eventually with a master's degree from ISU. He maintained a strong connection with that university, serving as a special advisor to the president for nearly a decade. He also served our country in the military as a U.S. Army lieutenant and was a life member of the American Legion and the Air Force Association.

He was first elected to public office as a member of the Idaho House of Representatives and was then elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, the youngest Member of Congress serving during the Kennedy administration. As a Member of Congress, Ralph worked to ensure women received equal pay, supported civil rights legislation and authored a bill to establish the Peace Corps. But his service didn't end when he completed two terms in Congress.

Ralph continued his community involvement in many ways. He was the cofounder of the Danny Thomas Memorial Golf Tournament, which has helped raise millions of dollars for cancer research and is still raising funds each year. He looked for ways to improve every community and venture he encountered. He was one of the friendliest people you could ever meet and remained in contact with friends from all over the world through his life. He was active in his church, spending time at the local LDS temple and teaching Sunday School each week. Retirement was not a word that meant much to Ralph--he had too much energy with his activities with family, friends, and other interests to take it easy. At 77, he remained active and full of life up to nearly his final day.

Ralph was devoted to his family and his Nation, and he will be deeply missed by all those who knew him. Idaho is honored to have counted him as one of her native sons. During this time, our thoughts and prayers go out to his wife Willa and his children, grandchildren, and great- grandchildren.

Mr. President, today I honor a dedicated and passionate teacher in my home State of Idaho. In the late summer of 1963 J. Kent Marlor first stepped onto the campus of Ricks College in Rexburg, ID, as a brand new 26-year-old teacher. During that first year, he taught economic history and political science and took the role of debate coach. When asked of his years at Ricks, he said, ``I don't know how I did it the first year I came here . . . I've had chances to go to a number of different places over the years, but have always wanted to stay here [because] I love Idaho. I love the wildlife and the smallness of the school . . . You know all the students [and] the faculty [and] the spirit that has always been here is a great thing for me.'' On August 24, 2006, he retired after 43 years teaching thousands of students in the political science department. He retired as the longest serving instructor in the 118-year history of the institution.

Kent is a man well loved by those with whom he has come in contact. He has touched the lives of many of his students and has been able to help them gain confidence and direction in their fields of study. He is a mentor to many and will be missed by faculty and students alike at Ricks College, which became Brigham Young University-Idaho in 2000.

During an interview with the Rexburg Standard Journal, Marlor said, ``Success of a teacher is really measured in the success of his students.'' The newspaper reported that Marlor's students are now judges, doctors, attorneys, legislators and editors.

I have had firsthand experience with the fruits of Kent Marlor's educational efforts. Over the years, at least 10 of my Senate interns have been his students as well as several current and former members of my staff. When talking about his former students, Marlor said, ``My reward for being a teacher comes when I see what my students have accomplished.''

Before his long and distinguished teaching career, Marlor served his count in Naval Intelligence and at the National Security Agency. He has also served as president of the Idaho Wildlife Federation and the chairman of the Idaho Fish and Game Advisory Committee. At his side in many of these meetings was his wife of over 50 years, Sharon. Together they raised six children who have also been very active in education and in their communities.

Even though he has served in our Nation's Armed Forces, intelligence service, and in various community organizations, his most gratifying service has come with the Teton Peaks Council of the Boy Scouts of America. Over the years, Kent and Sharon earned their spot in the Boy Scout Hall of Fame by organizing countless campouts, merit badge camps, Eagle Scout projects and Courts of Honor. In recognition of his efforts, Kent was honored with the Silver Beaver Award in 1982. Sharon was honored with the same award in 1989.

Kent loves the outdoors. His love of fishing is legendary in the Upper Snake River Valley. There isn't a lake, reservoir, river, stream, creek, ditch, or puddle that hasn't been explored with his beloved rod and reel at least once in the last 40 years. It is my understanding that Scout troops who go on extended camping trips with Kent don't take much food with them. Wherever they go, Kent is sure to provide plenty of fresh trout for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Kent taught his Scouts to appreciate the beauty around them as well as how to conserve it for future generations.

I wish Kent and Sharon Marlor many happy years in retirement and thank them both for the contribution to education and the youth of Idaho.

In adopting this provision, it is our intention that the regulatory agencies utilize Section 702 with care and precision. Specifically, we do not intend that the regulatory agencies use it routinely in connection with corporate applications, notices or requests to impose financial or other conditions on bank directors or officers that contain a personal guarantee against loss by the institution. In particular, it is not our intention that the regulatory agencies use it routinely to require directors or officers of insured depository institutions to enter into capital maintenance agreements with the agencies as a condition of granting a charter or providing deposit insurance. Nor is it our intention that the regulatory agencies use it routinely to require bank directors or officers to maintain the capital of a troubled insured depository institution without the director's or officer's agreement.

In utilizing their authority under Section 702 to enforce agreements to protect the deposit insurance fund, banking agencies should be mindful of the fact that our national banking policies should encourage the participation of highly qualified people on the boards of depository institutions. Creation of an environment where the threat of personal liability may cause bank directors to resign or keep well- qualified people from becoming directors in the first place would be counterproductive. We intend to monitor closely how this provision is applied by the regulatory agencies to ensure that such an environment does not result.

That is correct. I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record a copy of a joint letter from the regulatory agencies confirming this.

Mr. President, I would like to call my colleagues' attention to the efforts of Liz Claiborne, Inc., and Redbook to designate September 21, 2006, It's Time to Talk Day. What they want us and the Nation to talk about is domestic and dating violence, and they have partnered to encourage national dialog on the subject of this pervasive and terrible crime.

We are not the only ones talking about it: talk radio, government officials, domestic violence advocates, businesses, and schools across the Nation are taking time today to focus on the issue that will affect nearly one- third of all women in their lifetime and many men. Bringing the crime of domestic and dating violence to the level of a simple conversation can start a chain reaction that will save a relationship and may, very well, save a life.

Some of you may know that I am especially concerned about teen dating violence, a crime that exists in every community regardless of race, socioeconomics, rural or urban. A young Idaho woman in an abusive dating relationship died 6 years ago. Since that time, I have pushed to include

dating violence as a definition of domestic violence under Federal law. My efforts would be fruitless without the help of citizens and organizations nationwide. Liz Claiborne, Inc. is one of the organizations that has taken a leadership role in educating teens about teen dating violence through its ``Love is Not Abuse'' curriculum designed for 9th or 10th graders. I have been pleased to support those efforts to promote this curriculum throughout the country this past spring.

I commend the company not only on this endeavor but its newest effort to partner with the National Domestic Violence Hotline and create the first-ever National Teen Dating Violence Hotline. The hotline will be operated by the National Domestic Violence Hotline and will focus on teens and young adults up to the age of 24. Although there are national hotlines for adults, teens have special needs and require a different approach to dealing with their issues and privacy concerns.

Time to Talk Day should not be the only day to talk about how we can prevent domestic and dating violence. We must work hard to educate our children how to live in healthy relationships to prevent the cycle of violence from being repeated in the future.

Mr. President, I want to thank my fellow Banking Committee members for working with me to reauthorize and reform the Export-Import Bank that reflects broad bipartisan agreement among our Committee. I am especially appreciative to Chairman Shelby, Ranking Member Sarbanes, Senator Bayh, and their staffs for all their diligence and hard work.

The Export-Import Bank is the official export credit agency of the United States and the current authorization ends on September 30. Financing is a key element in global trade competition and extending the Bank's programs for five years is a vital and integral component in supporting the export of American-made goods and American provided services for both small and large companies.

At the same time we need to ensure that the Bank's support for transactions not only helps U.S. exports but does not negatively impact domestic companies. The current system still has problems, which has been demonstrated on loan guarantees involving semiconductors, steel, ethanol, and soda ash. This legislation seeks to improve the process by making it more predictable, transparent, and by involving interested stakeholders in the process. First, it would require the Bank to maintain a list of sensitive areas where export financing is unlikely to be provided. Second, it requires detailed information to the public regarding the proposed financing at an early stage and in an adequate way so that input can be brought to bear by those who have the expertise on the specific proposal and industries involved. Third, it establishes protections against circumvention of U.S. trade remedy orders.

There is also a lot of concern that the Bank has not met its 20 percent small business mandate and this legislation builds upon structural changes to make sure the small business community has an advocate to advance its needs and address its concerns. First, it establishes a Small Business Division, headed by a Senior Vice President who reports directly to the Bank President. Second, it establishes a Small Business Committee, chaired by the Senior Vice President of the Small Business Division. Third, it requires Ex-Im to authorize banks to process medium-term transactions on behalf of Ex-Im to facilitate the approval of such transactions.

Additionally this section would also require that Ex-Im's Senior Vice President be notified of any staff recommendations for denial or withdrawal of an application for support involving a small business at least two days prior to a final decision. I would like to thank Senator Hagel for his work to make sure that Ex-Im does not deny small business transactions without giving the Senior Vice President for small business an opportunity to advocate on behalf of the small businesses.

Due to Senator Hagel's efforts, Ex-Im has pledged that it will further strengthen this notification provision by administratively granting the Senior Vice President of the Small Business Division the authority to request an additional two days to review notices of staff recommendations for denial or withdrawal.

Finally, the legislation clarifies that case-by-case decisions on whether to award tied aid credits shall be made by the Board of Directors of Ex-Im, subject to a veto by the President of the United States. It is very troubling that no tied aid has been approved since the last reauthorization.

I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, I want to thank my fellow Banking Committee members for working with me to reauthorize and reform the Export-Import Bank that reflects broad bipartisan agreement among our Committee. I am especially appreciative to Chairman Shelby, Ranking Member Sarbanes, Senator Bayh, and their staffs for all their diligence and hard work.

The Export-Import Bank is the official export credit agency of the United States and the current authorization ends on September 30. Financing is a key element in global trade competition and extending the Bank's programs for five years is a vital and integral component in supporting the export of American-made goods and American provided services for both small and large companies.

At the same time we need to ensure that the Bank's support for transactions not only helps U.S. exports but does not negatively impact domestic companies. The current system still has problems, which has been demonstrated on loan guarantees involving semiconductors, steel, ethanol, and soda ash. This legislation seeks to improve the process by making it more predictable, transparent, and by involving interested stakeholders in the process. First, it would require the Bank to maintain a list of sensitive areas where export financing is unlikely to be provided. Second, it requires detailed information to the public regarding the proposed financing at an early stage and in an adequate way so that input can be brought to bear by those who have the expertise on the specific proposal and industries involved. Third, it establishes protections against circumvention of U.S. trade remedy orders.

There is also a lot of concern that the Bank has not met its 20 percent small business mandate and this legislation builds upon structural changes to make sure the small business community has an advocate to advance its needs and address its concerns. First, it establishes a Small Business Division, headed by a Senior Vice President who reports directly to the Bank President. Second, it establishes a Small Business Committee, chaired by the Senior Vice President of the Small Business Division. Third, it requires Ex-Im to authorize banks to process medium-term transactions on behalf of Ex-Im to facilitate the approval of such transactions.

Additionally this section would also require that Ex-Im's Senior Vice President be notified of any staff recommendations for denial or withdrawal of an application for support involving a small business at least two days prior to a final decision. I would like to thank Senator Hagel for his work to make sure that Ex-Im does not deny small business transactions without giving the Senior Vice President for small business an opportunity to advocate on behalf of the small businesses.

Due to Senator Hagel's efforts, Ex-Im has pledged that it will further strengthen this notification provision by administratively granting the Senior Vice President of the Small Business Division the authority to request an additional two days to review notices of staff recommendations for denial or withdrawal.

Finally, the legislation clarifies that case-by-case decisions on whether to award tied aid credits shall be made by the Board of Directors of Ex-Im, subject to a veto by the President of the United States. It is very troubling that no tied aid has been approved since the last reauthorization.

I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.