Floor Statements

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

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 6652, as stated, authorizes the conveyance of certain water facilities owned by the Bureau of Reclamation to the Kennewick Irrigation District in Washington.

Before transferring the water facilities and associated lands, the legislation wisely requires an assessment be completed under the National Environmental Policy Act.

The bill also requires the Department of the Interior affirm that the transfer won't have a negative effect on the environment or harm Tribal trust resources before the transfer can take place.

Mr. Speaker, these are important safeguards. I applaud Congressman Newhouse for agreeing to them.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. Speaker, S. 1520, known as the Modern Fish Act, expands opportunities for recreational fishermen by encouraging the use of multiple fisheries management tools. Importantly, S. 1520 keeps the core conservation provisions of the Magnuson-Stevens Act intact by making it clear that fisheries managers can use multiple tools, but annual catch limits cannot be exceeded.

This bill encourages managers to think about how to manage fisheries in a way that benefits both conservation and fishing access.

I applaud Senator Wicker and Senator Nelson for the hard work they have undertaken to get this bill across the finish line. This bill is a major improvement from the version that was introduced in the House earlier this year, and I commend my colleagues in the Senate for getting it to a place where all of us can support it.

This year, we have seen progress on recreational fisheries issues, driven by advancements in technologies and data collection systems. While the recreational fishing industry is vital to the economy of the United States, the last thing we want is another tragedy of the commons or policies that undercut that progress.

The changes made to S. 1520 meet the demands of the recreational fishing industry while also ensuring access to sustainable fisheries.

I am thankful for the good faith effort shown on both sides of the aisle and for a bipartisan bill that does not compromise the sustainability of our Nation's fisheries.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. Speaker, again, S. 3530 renews the Museum and Library Services Act to enhance the ability of libraries and museums to address community needs, including workforce development, literacy, and accessibility for individuals with disabilities.

The bill is supported by the American Library Association and the American Alliance of Museums. This legislation strengthens the use of data-driven tools to maximize the effectiveness of services; provides technical support and assistance to help the libraries and museums with data collection responsibilities; authorizes the 21st Century Museum Professionals Program to recruit museum professionals from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds; enhances collaborative efforts with Federal agencies to fully meet the needs of Americans; and increases services for Native Americans.

It is vital to ensure that our libraries and museums have the necessary resources to modernize their services and continue to solidify their role as technological hubs of our communities and as access points in our communities throughout this country.

Libraries and museums ensure access to information for millions of adults and children across this country, and I am thrilled that we have the opportunity to promote their growth, expand their services, and safeguard these critical institutions for generations to come.

I am proud to have introduced this legislation with Congressman Hurd from Texas who introduced the companion legislation in the House and fully support the passage of S. 3530, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption of the legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. Speaker, I also rise in support of S. 943, the Johnson-O'Malley Supplemental Indian Education Program Modernization Act.

The abysmal conditions and status of education attainment and achievement of American Indian children and students continues. This educational gap for American Indian students continues to lag behind all other students in this country.

This bill would require the Department of the Interior to annually update the count of American Indian and Alaska Native students so the Department can more accurately distribute Johnson-O'Malley funds which supplement Indian education. The bill would also require grantees to report how funds are being used, helping to ensure Federal dollars support Native students' education.

The Federal Government has a responsibility to provide parity in resources to Native education. Currently, the Department is prevented from updating the count because of an effort, from over 20 years ago, to cut spending through the use of block grants.

Congress, at the time, determined one way to reduce funding for Indian education was to freeze efforts to count the number of Native students. As a result, the Department of the Interior continues to use the 1994 number of 272,000 Native students, even though it is estimated, based on Census reports, that there are now more than 750,000 Native students. This policy is just another in a long list of the second-class treatment of American Indians by our government.

I want to thank my colleague, Betty McCollum, for introducing this version of the legislation and my Republican colleagues, Tom Cole and Don Young, for providing bipartisan support. My hope is that the passage of this bill is a first step, however small it may be, to righting a wrong to American Indian students.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support S. 943, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor of University of Arizona-led NASA mission of spacecraft OSIRIS-REx and its successful arrival at the asteroid Bennu. Launched two years ago, the Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) mission is the first of its kind with a goal of returning a sample of the asteroid to Earth. Over the next year, the spacecraft will fly within close proximity of Bennu, map its surface, and use highly specialized instruments to collect a small sample from the asteroid that will be returned to Earth in 2023. This mission will aid scientists in investigating the most fundamental questions of our universe--namely how planets formed and how life began. Further, OSIRIS-REx will improve our understanding of asteroids that have the potential to impact Earth.

OSIRIS-REx will also determine Bennu's physical and chemical properties, which will be critical to know in the event of an impact mitigation mission. Asteroids like Bennu contain natural resources such as water, organics, and precious metals. In the future, these asteroids may one day fuel the exploration of the solar system by robotic and manned spacecraft.

I am extremely proud that Tucson is once again a key player in a critical NASA mission, just as it has been with many others throughout our Nation's history. OSIRIS-REx is an $800 million University of Arizona-led NASA mission and it's traveling to Bennu because its regolith may record the earliest history of our solar system. Discovered in 1999, Bennu is relatively close to Earth with an orbit that crosses ours every six years. These close encounters give Bennu a high probability of impacting Earth in the late 22nd century. Data collected from this mission will help predict Bennu's movements and identify ways to deflect asteroids in the future. Among all the asteroids in space, Bennu was also selected because it is large enough that a spacecraft can safely come in contact with it to collect samples. Its diameter is wider than the height of the Empire State Building. By contrast, however, Bennu will be the smallest object ever to be orbited by a spacecraft.

The most unique aspect of the OSIRIS-REx mission is the large and pristine sample that will be brought back to Earth, which will allow scientists to research the origins of our universe and galaxy and help us answer some of the most profound and fundamental questions that have intrigued mankind since our beginnings. The OSIRIS-REx mission is funded by NASA and its science is led by the University of Arizona (UA). I would like to once again congratulate Dr. Dante Lauretta of the UA Lunar and Planetary Laboratory for his leadership as principal investigator and, along with his team, for bringing this exciting mission to the launch stage. I understand that Dante has been working on this concept for the last 15 years, and I greatly look forward to celebrating even more milestones with his team as the mission progresses. This mission is the latest in a long list of achievements by scientists at the University of Arizona in my home district. In fact, UA scientists have collaborated in every single American mission to the Moon and Mars since 1964, including serving as the lead on the Phoenix Mars Mission.

The University of Arizona will house mission science operations control, as it did for the Phoenix Mars mission, continuing to involve undergraduate and graduate students in the research over--150 students so far, which will help cultivate the next generation of STEM leaders-- many of whom will be from my home state of Arizona. I wish the OSIRIS REx team the best of luck in their historic mission and congratulate them in their profound success.

Mr. Speaker, it is with much regret that I and my colleagues from Arizona ask for a moment of silence for our dearly departed former colleague, Ed Pastor, who retired after more than two decades of service to this House.

Our sincere condolences to his beloved wife, Verma; his daughters, Yvonne and Laura; his grandkids; and his mom, whom he cherished and spoke about often.

A Member's Member is how Ed was described. He respected this institution. He treated his colleagues with good humor and with honesty.

His advice and calmness will be missed, but in Arizona, as elsewhere, he will be memorialized as a giant in the history of our State.

Ed Pastor will be missed. He contributed much, he gave much, and he respected the people whom he worked with and this institution that he loved.

With much regret, a moment of silence for our departed colleague, Ed Pastor.

Mr. Speaker, given the fact that the Endangered Species Act is under unrelenting attacks by the Trump administration and House Republicans, it should come as no surprise that, after being out of session for more than 6 weeks, the first rules bill to go to the floor is one that continues those attacks on ESA, eliminates judicial review, takes the American people out of the public rulemaking process, and makes it easier to kill wolves.

However, one must ask my Republican colleagues: Seriously? Do we not have more pressing issues to address?

Children are still being separated from their families.

Wildfires are blazing across California.

There have been 311 mass shootings in our country this year.

We have more Federal troops on the southern border than we have in Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq, all patiently sitting around and looking for Poncho Villa's ghost to come around.

The UN released a climate change report finding that we are in a much more dire state than we thought. In fact, today would have been a great day to permanently reauthorize the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which my Republican colleagues have allowed to expire twice on their watch, a bill with 240 bipartisan cosponsors. Instead, we are talking about killing wolves, a bill introduced in September with three cosponsors.

In this Congress, Republicans have introduced more than 100 bills, amendments, and policy riders to remove or block ESA protections for individual species or to weaken important provisions of a law that is not only hugely popular with the American people, but also conserves our biodiversity.

The bill before us today, H.R. 6784, is a piece of legislation we have seen time and time again to undermine wolf populations in the United States, but this would deliver an even more devastating blow to the continued recovery of gray wolves across the lower 48.

Congress should not be making decisions on which species to list or delist. What we need to be doing is properly funding the Fish and Wildlife Service to implement measures to strengthen ESA and protect species and their habitats from permanent extinction, given the fact that we are facing an ongoing extinction crisis.

The ESA has a near perfect record of saving imperiled species. Even in the face of massive population growth, haphazard development, and pressure on ocean and coastal resources, over 99 percent of the species receiving protection are still surviving today.

ESA works, and 90 percent of the American voters would agree with me.

However, despite its incredible public support and impressive track record, the Trump administration and House Republicans continue to attack this historic environmental law and the species that it protects. These attacks on one of the most successful and popular conservation statutes in the history of the world are old, they are tired, and they are not fooling anyone.

I can say with some confidence that these types of attacks on ESA will not be legitimized in the next Congress. Science, budget allocation, and protection and conservation will return as the prominent criteria for ESA policy--not just the resource extraction, industry's singular agenda.

I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate the Pascua Yaqui Tribe on its 40th year anniversary of being federally-recognized.

The Pascua Yaqui tribe descended from the Uto-Aztecan people, who occupied a large area of the Southwest regions and west coast of Mexico. Yaqui culture and spirituality are important elements to the tribe. The Pascua Yaqui tribe is best known for the deer dancer and Pascola, along other cultural ceremonies and Yaqui symbols such as ``Our Father Sun;'' the Tribe has successfully preserved its cultural relations through valued oral lore throughout the years. Today, the tribe has communities spanning across Southern Arizona surrounded by richly vegetated and scenic desert lands.

The Pascua Yaqui Tribe provides unique insight that adds diverse cultural heritage to Arizona's desert community. The tribe is well- known for its design and manufacture ceremonial paraphernalia such as artistic Baskets, reed crowns, wood mask carving, rattles, stuffed-deer heads, and notable arts unique to the Pascua Yaqui Tribe. At present, there are about one hundred hamlets and villages within the Yaqui territory, assigned for political, religious, and ritual purposes. The linguistic classification of the Tribe is a surviving language derived from the Cahita ethnicity, one that the Yaqui and Mayo people still preserve. The Yaqui were, and part still remain, settled agriculturists, depending on summer rainfall due to the desert lowlands.

Mr. Speaker, please join me and all of Arizona's Third Congressional District in expressing our sincerest congratulations to the Pascua Yaqui Tribe on their 40th anniversary as a Federally-recognized tribe. I am grateful for the Pascua Yaqui Tribe's dedication to their culture and representation of the Southwest Native American roots.

Mr. Speaker, the Miss Indian World pageant was initially held in 1984 open to young Native American women ages 18-24. The purpose of the pageant is to provide young Native American women an opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge of their tribes and cultures, and serve as a cultural Ambassador of Native Americans. Unlike other pageants, the Miss Indian World pageant is a four-day competition, where contestants are scored based on public speaking, traditional talent, interviews, essay writing, and dance. On April 28, 2018 in a sold-out crowd with over 3,600 Native American Pow-Wow dancers, Taylor Susan was crowned the 35th Miss Indian World.

Ms. Susan is from the White Mountain Apache and Walker River Paiute tribes and is no stranger to Native American pageants. She served as Miss Indian Arizona in 2015, and Miss Native American University of Arizona in 2014. Shortly after she was crowned Miss Indian World, Ms. Susan received her bachelor's degree in political science with minors in chemistry and theater from the University of Arizona. Go Wildcat.

I would like to congratulate Taylor Susan for being crowned the 35th Miss Indian World and wish her the best of luck as she travels around the world to represent Native Americans.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to this amendment that seeks to eliminate the Ironwood Forest National Monument, which is in my district. The fact that it is in my district is secondary to the callous disregard to the public input, the wishes of the people of southern Arizona, the history of the area, and the biodiversity that this amendment attacks.

This amendment effectively repeals the monument, returning the lands back to multiple-use status, and opening them up for unfettered mining and other harmful activities.

The sponsor of the legislation says that it is necessary to restore access for recreational shooting and to generate revenue for local schools, which I understand is a nod to the potential revenue garnered from future mining operations that he envisions will pop up once the monument is eliminated. He speaks for the mining industry, not Arizonans, and certainly not my constituents.

A recent poll found that 73 percent of the people of Arizona oppose eliminating protections for national monuments. Arizonans don't want mining in their monuments, but that doesn't seem to matter to the sponsor of this amendment, who will seemingly do whatever it takes to roll back public lands protections.

I also take issue with the sponsor of the amendment's notion that this amendment is about protecting access for recreational shooting. When the monument was established, recreational shooting was allowed, as it is on a large percentage of public lands. Unfortunately, some bad actors forced local land managers to rethink access for the entire shooting community. People were shooting up endangered cacti, leaving bullet hole-ridden sofas and other trash throughout the desert. Those were used as targets.

One of the great things about living in Tucson and southern Arizona is that we are surrounded by public lands. Our protected desert landscapes support wildlife and an abundant biodiversity to a wide range of recreational activities.

Unfortunately, this amendment views these rare landscapes as commodities, only available for extraction of resources and nothing more. It is kind of a corporate radar approach and mentality to our shared public assets and lands: use them, abuse them, discard them, and see how much we can make out of them, in terms of money.

The spirit of conservation and preservation is very important to the people of southern Arizona, and this is one of our special places. This amendment is an attack on the people, its history, and our traditions in southern Arizona. This amendment is an attack on the Antiquities Act, and this amendment is an attack on our public lands.

This monument was created in the year 2000 by President Clinton after the Pima County Board of Supervisors, the elected officials for the county, petitioned for it; the Tohono O'odham Nation petitioned for it; the people of southern Arizona petitioned for it; and that monument was created.

The vice chairman of the Tohono O'odham Nation, Mr. Verlon Jose, said, today: ``The Tohono O'odham have lived in this region since time immemorial, and the Ironwood Forest National Monument has tremendous cultural and historical importance. More than 200 important archeological sites with remains from our ancestors are within the monument, including two areas listed on the National Register of Historic Places. We must oppose misguided efforts to withhold funding from Ironwood, as it would have a devastating effect on efforts to protect this national treasure.''

Mr. Chairman, the issue here today is about trying to relive and undo a decision that was made with public participation, public input, the support of local elected officials, the support of affected Tribes, and do it for the specific interests of a mining company that feels they have a right, even though it is a foreign-owned company, to come in on our public lands, withdraw minerals, pay no royalties, and exploit the area.

The Ironwood Forest National Monument is a landscape treasure. It is a rare treasure, and it needs to be maintained. I urge a ``no'' vote on this amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

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

Mr. Speaker, this bill designates a 13-mile segment of East Rosebud Creek in the Custer National Forest as a wild river under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act.

This segment was nominated for designation in 1989, so 30 years later it finally comes to Congress, and we are moving forward with the recognition and protection it deserves.

The bill contributes to a proud legacy of preserving free and flowing rivers for future generations, and I want to extend my congratulations to the sponsor of the legislation and the entire Montana delegation for their fine work.

I know there are several bills that have been introduced by Democrats that seek to designate wild and scenic rivers in their districts. I hope we can move those along as well by working together to make sure these places also receive the appropriate attention as this particular one did.

For now, Mr. Speaker, I am happy to urge my colleagues to join me in supporting the legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Lynch), who is the principal sponsor of the legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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

At the markup of H.R. 3777, we voiced our concerns that the conveyance authorized by this bill does not include any standard requirements such as, if it is sold, fair market value; if it is conveyed, a reversionary clause. Unfortunately, the majority rejected our amendment to include a reversionary clause.

We recognize that this property was identified as suitable for administrative disposal, but that designation doesn't mean that it is worthless. We are not being greedy or unreasonable, just mindful of history and precedent.

With that said, we recognize how important this conveyance is to the county, and we will save this particular fight for another day.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. O'Halleran), the sponsor of the legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I just want to take a moment to acknowledge the Gila River Indian community, their leadership, which has worked tirelessly and in very good faith with the Federal Government in addressing the issues that led to these claims against the United States.

I would like to congratulate them on this hard work and their persistence, and I am happy that the passage of this bill will finally implement a final part of their settlement.

I also want to take time to thank my colleague and friend from Arizona (Mr. O'Halleran) for his leadership on this issue.

Mr. Speaker, I urge support of the legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. Chairman, my amendment would fully fund the Department of the Interior's Office of the Inspector General.

By my count, there are at least 14 Federal investigations that are either underway or completed into the current Secretary alone. That is more investigations than the last four Interior secretaries combined. Still more issues with the Secretary are under preliminary investigation. Even more have not been announced to this date. Interior's Office of the Inspector General is doing most, if not all, of that work.

Funding and staffing shortfalls resulting from flat funding or small cuts have caused the Office of Inspector General in recent months to forgo investigations altogether. Investigation requests from Congress and from tips originating within the Department of the Interior have either been rejected or are awaiting resources to be freed up in order to address them.

The Office of Inspector General is also referring a growing number of hotline complaints to the Interior Department for investigation, creating a situation in which the department is investigating itself. Half of those referred complaints involve allegations of ethics violations, sexual harassment, prohibited personnel practices, law enforcement misconduct, and reprisal. Untrained supervisors conduct many of these investigations without following standard protocols and without collecting sufficient evidence. Specially trained, experienced noncriminal investigators are needed to keep these investigations within the Office of Inspector General.

The Office of Inspector General's independence from the office they are examining is essential to their ability to conduct thorough, unadulterated investigations, inspections, or audits. Now is not the time to revert to the pre-Watergate days when an agency was in charge of investigating itself.

This amendment would provide five additional investigators to focus on administrative issues and up to six investigators in field offices which also lets the Office of Inspector General's criminal investigators focus on criminal misconduct instead of being pulled away to help in other areas.

There are particular risks that are being unaddressed because of current funding levels. The Department of the Interior paid out $10 billion in financial assistance and contracts in fiscal year '16 and '17. During that time, there was about a 16 percent drop in audits. Contracts and financial assistance are some of the highest risk areas in terms of the potential for waste, fraud, and abuse.

My amendment would also provide five new auditors for the Office of Inspector General which are needed to address contracts and financial assistance which is responsible for a disproportionate share of the Office of Inspector General's 20-1 return on investment.

I want to emphasize that. For every dollar we spend on the Interior's Office of Inspector General, according to the Partnership for Public Service, the taxpayer gets $20 back.

This amendment will help ensure that this scandal-ridden administration doesn't monopolize the Office of Inspector General's best people who are supposed to be rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse in the agency. If there was ever a time to fully fund the Office of Inspector General, it is now.

Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Chairman, the figures in the delayed investigations, the deferred investigations and the need for additional auditors were all in the $5 million indication by the Office of Inspector General that that was what was needed in order to be able to comply with the demands of their office and the demands that the public and Congress have for assuring that all the agencies are running under the protocols, the procedures, and the laws that we insist they do so on.

Mr. Chairman, $2.5 million that is being requested in this amendment would bring that total to $5 million, which is the amount that the Inspector General has indicated is needed.

Mr. Chairman, I ask for a vote of approval on this amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.