Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a true public servant and transportation visionary. William E. Reichmuth is retiring from his three year tenure as the executive director of the Transportation Agency of Monterey County, known locally as TAMC. This position tops a thirty-eight year career of public service that began with the United States Navy's Civil Engineer Corps where he reached the rank of Captain and received the Navy Commendation Medal. Bill later held public works and engineering posts with both the U.S. Army and the City of Monterey. Throughout this career, Bill has been both a model to his profession and a leader in his community.

Bill has overseen numerous key public works projects and innovations. As the City of Monterey's public works director, Bill oversaw the redevelopment of the City's two commercial wharfs that are at the heart of its fishing and tourism industries. He also helped craft Monterey's contract to manage the Defense Language Institute's base operations, saving the Army millions of dollars and thereby helping to ward off efforts to close or relocate the Institute in the latest base closure round.

On the transportation front, Bill has been on innovation's cutting edge. He has shepherded the design of the Monterey County portions of a coastal trail project that will one day link Monterey and Santa Cruz in a continuous bike and pedestrian path. Though neither of us could be mistaken for Lance Armstrong, I share every bit of Bill's contagious enthusiasm for the bike trail's recreational and economic development potential. Bill also played a key role in facilitating TAMC's purchase of the Monterey Branch Line from Southern Pacific Railroad. This will give our region new transportation options. And while Bill has set the pace on alternative transportation, he has paid great attention to road and highway needs that are crucial to a rural community such as Monterey County. Under his leadership, TAMC has advanced projects to ease the highway congestion that affects the region's agricultural produce, many visitors, and residents alike. He has made a special focus of safety; for example, improving the entrance into Monterey's Ryan Ranch office park.

Bill has been an active member of his professional community, serving in a variety of leadership posts with the American Public Works Association and the California Society of Professional Engineers. He also serves as a lector at the Carmel Mission Basilica. Finally, no description of Bill's life and work is complete without reference to his other transportation passions, namely an addiction to cars. Bill loves sports cars; especially new sports cars. I am told that something as little as a needed oil change is enough to prompt Bill to trade up to the latest model of Porsche. Bill is an amateur racer and has served as the president of the Sports Car Racing Association of the Monterey Peninsula.

Mr. Speaker, I know that I speak for my colleagues when I applaud Bill Reichmuth's career of public service and wish him a happy and speedy retirement.

Mr. Speaker, in my opinion, the most significant threat to our national security in the 21st Century is from failed countries. Nearly 2 billion people live in countries that are in danger of collapse. According to the 2002 U.S. National Security Strategy, the United States is now threatened less by conquering states than we are by failing ones.

Stop and think about our recent defense and foreign policy obligations--Somalia, Haiti, Bosnia, and Kosovo--and our current engagement in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Sudan. These are all failed states and their instability imperils U.S. national security.

The U.S. defense and foreign policy apparatus formally acknowledged the threat of failed states when the National Security Council directed the State Department to establish a Coordinator for Stabilization and Reconstruction to incorporate ``lessons learned'' from previous stabilization operations so that future

U.S. engagements will save lives--both U.S. and indigenous and use U.S. resources judiciously so that failed states don't deteriorate.

In December 2005, the Defense Department issued a directive, 3000.05, that places Stability Operations on par with Combat Operations. These are significant first steps and I commend the Administration, however, much more needs to be done. The first improvement I would recommend is that the State Department not Defense Department be the lead agency for planning and implementing the overall strategy for rebuilding a failed state.

I commend my colleagues on the Subcommittee who have done the best they can with an allocation this year that is $2.4 billion lower than the President's request. Those budget constraints prohibited them from funding the Conflict Response Fund, which would allow State Department reconstruction officials to immediately draw down such resources as necessary to rapidly initiate programs like democratic and electoral reform economic and infrastructure development so that the indigenous population sees tangible improvements.

The second improvement I would recommend is stronger support from the State and Defense Departments for the Master's degree in Stabilization and Reconstruction, being offered by the Naval Postgraduate School in my district. This is the only school in the country where U.S. military and foreign officers are being educated with U.S. civilian agency personnel and the NGO community so they can better understand their respective roles in the classroom rather than the battlefield.

I am glad we are gaining a better understanding of the threat of failed states, so that we can confront the challenges of these threats to U.S. national security.

Mr. Chairman, thank you very much for yielding.

I rise in strong support of the McGovern amendment and in incredibly strong appreciation for the great job that Chairman Kolbe does on this committee. I do not think there is anybody that knows these issues better than he does, but I am just in disagreement with the approach here, and I do not think it is Mr. Kolbe's approach. It is the administration's approach and it comes under Plan Colombia.

The problem that we have, and as I say, I am speaking from some experience having lived in Colombia several years as a Peace Corps volunteer in the 1960s, is if you do not deal with people on the ground, who are struggling with the culture of poverty, you cannot wipe out an agricultural crop by just bombing it. You wipe it out by creating economic opportunities that are alternatives to coca growing. You do not have to retain as much money as you can get from growing coca, because what you do is you build infrastructure, school and health care, and just like this community, most people will do things as long as people will have a better life, as long as there are resources there.

I think what America fails to look at, whether it is in Iraq or other areas, is how poorly we do at developing post-country capacity, and that is what this amendment is all about. It is the use of money to better build host country capacity to sustain themselves other than having to grow illicit crops.

Alternative development programs have enabled Colombians to move to

alternatives, and when they did, they were very successful with it, but we are not putting enough effort into it.

Colombia is a huge country. It is the second most biodiverse country in the planet. It can grow just about anything. You just have to put energy and get people access to places to grow, and in this case, because we are not doing enough in the alternative, they are going to go into growing more coca, as Mr. McGovern's pointed out.

After 6 years of sustained, robust U.S. assistance, 40 percent of the Colombians still remain underemployed in a formal Colombian economy.

So I rise in strong support because I think this is moving money to what we really need to invest in which is investing in host country capacity.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of the McGovern amendment. I was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Colombia. I know first hand that Colombians, if given the skills and opportunities, can develop a sustainable economy in rural areas. They don't need a continual hand- out.

That is why I am very appreciative to the Chairman for increasing funding for alternative development and institution building in Colombia. These tools will help Colombians help themselves. Alternative development programs lay the ground work for sustainable development and an economy based on legal crops.

Alternative development programs have enabled Colombian farmers to grow more specialty coffee, supported the growth of agricultural cooperatives, increased market access and taught marketing promotion to small growers. For the last six years under Plan Colombia I, and now with this installment of Plan Colombia: II, over 80% of US assistance goes toward military/police and aerial fumigation and only 20% goes toward economic and social assistance.

This is not a winning solution for peace and sustainable development in Colombia. After 6 years of sustained and robust US assistance, 40% of Colombians remained underemployed in the Colombian formal economy. I suggest we need a new paradigm for Colombia, one that brings greater parity between economic and military assistance that will enable a legal economy to flourish in rural Colombia.

The McGovern amendment recognizes this gross imbalance and shifts $30 million from, the Andean Counterdrug Initiative to the Emergency Migration and Refugee Account.

Data from the ONDCP proves that our drug fumigation policy is not working. If Plan Colombia I had been successful, the street price of cocaine would have skyrocketed, and purity would have decreased. The opposite has happened.

The McGovern amendment recognizes this flawed policy, and redirects a modest amount--$30 million out of a $384 million allocation--to an account that is desperately underfunded. ERMA provides funding for emergency humanitarian needs such as water, shelter and medical care for refugees under siege in places like Darfur, Congo, and Northern Uganda. The McGovern rights an egregious wrong on both accounts. I urge my colleagues to support the McGovern amendment.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of the McGovern- Lewis Amendment that would eliminate funding to the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation (WHINSEC), the successor institution to the School of Americas (SOA). I believe U.S. training of international military and police forces can further U.S. national security interest particularly in the field of civilian control of the military and promoting human rights. But WHINSEC has gone about training and educating Latin American military in exactly the wrong way.

The egregious human rights abusive by WHINSEC graduates in the 1980s and 1990s compelled the Defense Department to revise the curriculum and change the name of the school. But WHINSEC continues to fail the grade for adherence to human rights and the rule of law by its students. I support the McGovern amendment to send a message to our U.S. military leadership that Americans demand that their tax dollars be spent to uphold accepted norms of human rights behavior, much like Americans rejected U.S. torture practices abroad.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commend the efforts of all fundraising efforts for the MLK Memorial and in particular the ``Santa Cruz Foundation For The Dream.'' As you know, Congress has approved the design and building of the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial on the National Mall in Washington D.C. Congress has vowed to financially assist as much as they can for the construction of the memorial, but substantial monetary donations by American people are still necessary to commence construction of this Memorial.

The MLK Memorial has drawn the attention and efforts of Americans nationwide. Celebrities, such as Morgan Freeman and Halle Berry have volunteered their time and services in fundraising efforts by participating in Public-Service Announcements that intend to educate and initiate the public's involvement in the Memorial's construction. Furthermore, such corporations as Toyota and Tommy Hilfiger Inc. have become highly involved in fundraising by special endorsements and hosting a celebrity golf tournament raising $1.5 million for the memorial. In addition to these celebrity and, corporate efforts, our local efforts should be recognized too as key contributors to the MLK Memorial.

Led by the ``Santa Cruz Foundation For The Dream'', the people of Santa Cruz County have embarked on a tireless effort to raise consciousness of Martin Luther King, Jr. teachings. Additionally, they have been working extensively on obtaining funds for the Memorial. This foundation has initiated a movement to incorporate a conscience- awareness program in area schools ``Kids for King.'' Building from these efforts, the foundation hopes that local governments, businesses, families, and individuals will participate in the collective effort of raising funds and awareness for the Memorial.

In recognition of Santa Cruz County's efforts, I support including on the Founding Members Wall on the Memorial, an acknowledgement for ``the People of Santa Cruz, California''. With Santa Cruz County's continuing efforts in the memorial effort, I am hopeful this founding members acknowledgement will occur.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Jennifer Tobias and Stanford University's Green Dorm team for winning the Environmental Protection Agency's 2006 P3 award.

Tobias and her colleagues designed a sustainable facility for research, housing, and community space. The building forges together practical functionality while eliminating carbon emissions, closing the water cycle, and optimizing material resources.

This national competition, sponsored by EPA's Office of Research and Development, enables college students to research, develop and design scientific, technical, and policy solutions to sustainability challenges. Sustainable solutions are environmentally friendly, efficiently use natural resources and are economically competitive. The P3 award includes funding up to $75,000 that gives the students an opportunity to further develop their designs and move them to the marketplace.

I commend Jennifer and her colleagues for their innovative project design, and I hope they continue their important research and development on sustainable solutions to human endeavors. Jennifer and her colleagues are role-models who demonstrate that environmental and economical interests can be brought together in tomorrow's designs.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor a tremendous public servant. Mr. John J. Robotti will retire this month after 65 years of service to our nation. Beginning with his enlistment as a soldier in 1941 until his retirement as a civilian in 2006, John has made public service his life's work. I must say that it is truly remarkable to find a person retiring at age 85. I am proud to note that most of those productive years were spent in my Central California District.

John was selected for Officer Candidate School in 1943. His tours of duty included Europe, Asia, and the United States. In 1950 he met his wife, Marion, in Paris, France. They were married in Palo Alto, California in 1953, and now reside in Carmel. In 1960, he was the Executive Officer for the Squaw Valley Olympic Games, which are still remembered as one of the most successful games ever held. The following year he retired with the rank of Major from 20 years of active duty while stationed at Fort Ord, California. He served as Chief of the Consolidated Supply Section of G4 at that time.

John began his civilian career immediately as the G4 Logistical Services Officer at Fort Ord. He went on to act as Administrative Officer, Chief of Maintenance, and Housing Manager at Fort Ord. He retires as Director of Logistics at the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, the premier language training institution in the world. In all, his civilian career spanned 45 years.

During his civil service years, John received exceptional evaluation ratings and numerous recognitions. He received the Meritorious Civilian Service A ward in 1991, the Achievement Medal for Civilian Service in 1994, the Exceptional Service Award in 1995, and in 1996 he was given a 55 Year Award for Federal Service.

Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to applaud John J. Robotti, a person who has served his country with great distinction for so many years. I join with all his friends and family in honoring this talented man and his many achievements.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the memory of my close friend Stephen Magyar. Steve passed away in Monterey on March 29 after a long life full of accomplishments and service to his community. He was known as an outgoing and friendly man, the first to greet you on the street and always ready to tell a good story or funny joke.

Steve grew up in Detroit and stayed there until he enlisted in the Army to fight in the Second World War. He left the snow of Detroit to serve in the heat of the Pacific at Christmas Island. After the war he was stationed at Camp Callan north of La Jolla, CA, where, after being pressured to go on a blind date, he met a girl named Peggy. This girl became the love of his life for the next 62 years. His last stop as an active duty member of the U.S. Army was in my district at Fort Ord.

He retired from the Army 20 years later and moved on to his own business, the Stephen G. Magyar Co. The company started out of his garage in 1947 and he was always proud to say that his first customer was Bing Crosby. Steve left his business to work for Mary and Robert Littlefield in building their Monterey Savings and Loan branch office at the former Jefferson Hotel in downtown Salinas. Always a quick thinker and great decision maker, Steve came up with an idea to get some customers in the door. He decided to raffle off an airplane, and the idea worked. He had traffic backed up for blocks in both directions as drivers stopped to look at the plane in the parking lot.

Involved throughout his community, Steve was able to make quite an impact. He also looked into public service through involvement in the State senate, but was defeated by someone I must admit I would have voted for, my father Fred Farr.

Today I extend my condolences to his wife Peggy, his two sons Rodger and Jeff, and cherish the memory of this great man.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in honor the memory of my high school classmate, M. Michael Meheen. Mike passed away late in the evening of April 11th at the age of 67. Mike was born in Iran and moved to Carmel, my hometown, in 1953. He graduated from Carmel High School a couple years before me in 1957. Mike then went on to graduate from Oregon State University and completed his doctorate at Hastings Law School.

Mike came back to our district and went on to have a successful law career for over 40 years. He primarily served on the Monterey Peninsula and worked in family law. It is no wonder that he focused on helping families, as Mike loved his family above all else.

His other loves included fast expensive cars, large dogs, the 49ers, travel and his fruit tree orchard. In addition to these hobbies, Mike was actively involved in his community. He was a long time member of the Pacheco Club, spent many years coaching Carmel Youth Soccer, and taught Business Law at Monterey Peninsula College.

The Carmel and Monterey communities will most definitely miss the presence of this wonderful man, as will the family he held so dearly. Mike believed in living every moment to the

fullest. His energy will be remembered and missed.

Mr. Speaker, at the start of the summer season we recognize the contributions of the travel and tourism industry by celebrating National Tourism Week.

Over the last 22 years, our Nation has celebrated National Tourism Week, and rightfully so. This industry ranks first, second or third in nearly 60 percent of the country.

Not only is tourism a dominant industry in the U.S. economy, but it is an industry that is present in every Congressional district. From sea to shining sea, to purple mountains majesty, every corner of the U.S. contributes to the travel and tourism industry--Hawaii, Alaska, Maine, Florida, California, and everything in between.

The travel and tourism industry boasts heavy-hitting statistics on expenditures, revenues, and jobs (the 3rd largest retail sales industry in the Nation; has generated a trade surplus for 16 consecutive years; supports 8 million jobs; in 2005, expenditures reached $1 trillion.). But that's not all. The travel and tourism industry produces something that cannot be quantified. There is no better way to understand and appreciate a culture than to travel to that land and experience it. When people come to the U.S., they experience our culture and hospitality first hand, and almost without exception, their view of America changes for the better. In today's world, this element is priceless.

As co-chairs of the Congressional Travel & Tourism Caucus since 1997, Congressman Foley and I have worked hard to educate our colleagues about the significance of this industry and all that it offers to our country. The caucus is over 100 members strong and continues to grow as more of my colleagues truly comprehend the magnitude of tourism.

Travel is an integral part of the human experience, and I am pleased that we are honoring the travel and tourism industry by putting forth this resolution celebrating National Tourism Week.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the Monterey History and Art Association on its 75th anniversary. During those 75 years, it has played a crucial role in preserving the colorful heritage of California's first Capital by protecting the historic buildings, artifacts and mementos of the people who made Monterey County their home.

MHAA's diligence has resulted in the restoration and safeguarding of many elements of Monterey's past, including ownership of Casa Serrano, the Fremont Adobe, Perry-Downer House, Doud House and the Mayo Hayes O'Donnell Library, as well as the Maritime and History Museum, all of which have contributed to Monterey's reputation as the best-preserved city in the West.

The Monterey Peninsula represents a diversity of cultures, communities and creative ideals. As cultural tourism increasingly becomes a leading inducement for visitors, MHAA's efforts serve to provide important economic benefits to the Monterey Peninsula.

Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to congratulate the Monterey History and Art Association for its 75 years of protecting the heritage of California's first Capital, and I commend its efforts in the preservation of the buildings and mementos of the cultures that have contributed to making Monterey the magnificent historic City that it is.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the great role that the Santa Cruz County coastline and its surfers have played in the history of the great sport of surfing.

In 1885, three Hawaiian princes visited the city of Santa Cruz and rode the waves at the mouth of the San Lorenzo River on redwood surfboards shaped at a nearby lumber yard.

This was the first recorded instance of surfing on the U.S. mainland in modern history. By 1936, Santa Cruz had its own surfing club, one of the first outside of Hawaii. With the development of new surfboard technologies in the 1950s and 1960s and the wetsuit by Santa Cruz's own Jack O'Neill, the sport spread across the U.S. and the globe. Surfing is now deeply embedded in American popular culture.

Enjoyed by millions of people around the world, surfing is perhaps the most widespread American sporting export. Surfing is hugely popular in such far flung places as Australia, Brazil, Europe, and even Israel. While the birthplace of surfing is Hawaii, the spread of the sport began through its popularity in Santa Cruz. Outside of Hawaii, no place on earth has a deeper history in the modern revival of surfing than our little coastal community of Santa Cruz.

Due to this rich history, Santa Cruz established the world's first surfing museum in May of 1986. Over the past 20 years, the museum has become a symbol of the local and the worldwide surfing community. Just as the Monterey Peninsula is home to the Steamer Lane of Golf, Pebble Beach, so Santa Cruz is home to the Pebble Beach of surfing, Steamer Lane. Though it should be noted that the only `greens fees' at Steamer Lane are cold water and heavy crowds.

Though another California town recently secured the trademark rights to ``Surf City'', the long history of surfing in Santa Cruz is proof enough that Santa Cruz is the heart and soul of surfing, and the foundation upon which it continues to ride.

Mr. Speaker, look, this bill makes no sense at all: drilling for dead dinosaurs and making that more valuable than liveable wildlife is just crazy. Even the Governor of California opposed offshore drilling last week. All the people of California oppose drilling in ANWR. I strongly support a ``no'' vote.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to H.R. 5429, legislation to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling. It's the same bad idea now as it was the last 12 times we voted on and defeated this issue.

The House Leadership just doesn't get it. Last week on a bipartisan basis we defeated an amendment to develop and drill for gas on the outer continental shelf.

We cannot drill our way out of high gas prices with this bill or any other piece of legislation. It just isn't possible.

We are missing an opportunity here; today's misguided attempt continues to bumble along searching for 19th century answers to 21st century problems. We need 21st century solutions such as conservation and using renewable and alternative sources.

Mr. Speaker, the legislation before us today has been touted as a ``fix'' to high gas prices by the proponents of this legislation. It will not lower prices now or later.

Even the Bush Administration's own Energy Information Administration (EIA) estimates that at best the addition of oil from the Arctic Refuge to our supplies would maybe, and this is a big maybe, lower the price of gas by a penny . . . 20 years from now.

On the other hand, if we were to pass meaningful increases to our CAFE standards and increased average fuel economy by 3 miles per gallon, consumers could be saving as much as $25 billion a year in fuel costs within a few short years.

During his State of the Union Address, the President acknowledged our addiction to oil.

I hoped that this would mean Congress could move forward to discuss real energy solutions, solutions that protect our national security, our citizens, and our environment, as I continue to believe that we can do. Instead as we go into the summer driving season, the only ideas that have had a voice on this floor is for drilling in our oceans and our pristine areas.

Mr. Speaker, when are we going to move past this divisive debate to discuss real energy solutions for the 21st century?

I urge this leadership and this administration to develop meaningful legislation based on new technologies that lead us to energy independence. I oppose this legislation and urge my colleagues to do the same. H.R. 5429 continues the Republican energy solution of postponing real action.

Madam Speaker, as a Member of Congress who's served in the Peace Corps, I've always considered myself a man of peace.

I strongly support current U.S. law that prevents any funding from going to Hamas, which he State Department has rightly classified as a Foreign Terrorist Organization. A Hamas controlled Palestinian Authority is antithetical to a peaceful Middle East or a two-state solution.

On May 23 the House approved H.R. 4681, the Palestinian Anti- Terrorism Act of 2006. If I was convinced that passage of this bill would foster peace in the Middle East, I would have voted for it. Unfortunately, I felt compelled to oppose the bill because I do not believe it will help Israel, our only democratic ally in the region, or improve grassroots efforts to reach a peace agreement. In particular, H.R. 4681 would make it nearly impossible to fund non-governmental organization (NGO) reconciliation programs that work to build peace. By funding NGOs that work towards reconciliation and peace we undermine the ideology of hate that Hamas perpetuates. The Senate version of this bill, S. 2370, specifically includes an exception that allows for funding for coexistence and reconciliation activities: ``(2) ASSISTANCE TO PROMOTE DEMOCRACY--Assistance to promote democracy, human rights, freedom of the press, non-violence, reconciliation, and peaceful co- existence, provided that such assistance does not directly benefit Hamas or other foreign terrorist organizations.'' If the joint House- Senate conference agrees to include the above Senate language in the conference report, I will support H.R. 4681.

A secure Israel and a two-state solution are the cornerstones to achieving peace in the region, and grassroots conflict prevention is the critical first step of the foundation for peace.

Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the requisite number of words.

I rise in support of the Blumenauer amendment. But before I do that, I want to really compliment Chairman Walsh. He did everything possible, with the bad figure he was given, to work out this account and to put some more money into it. But I think that the problem is so severe that we need this time to discuss it.

In essence, what Mr. Blumenauer has showed you with his map is that there are about 10 of these sites in every congressional district in the United States. It just averages out to that.

And what are they? Well, they are called UXOs, unexploded ordnances. Those are very serious things. Ordnances were developed to harm people, seriously harm people.

They are also called Former Used Defense sites. And those could just be toxic wastes or other things. It is where the defense, back in the early wars and on the coastal areas, particularly Pacific coast, you had lookout areas and stuff like that. And there is a bunch of stuff in the ground, and that has to be cleaned up.

And then you also have military munitions response, MMR sites across this country.

Mr. Blumenauer is a true leader in being able to point out that this is sort of a huge Superfund, a Love Canal that might be in every congressional district. And I know it is just a matter of time before local newspapers who are starting to look at these maps and wondering where these things exist, and we in Congress are going to be hit right between the eyes and saying why didn't you do something about it if you knew it existed? And we know it has existed because it is a fact.

The geography is there. The sites are there. They have been on a list for a long time. And they cause problems. And of the ones that they are talking about, UXOs are the most serious problems of all. I know, in my own district, people have lost limbs from picking up boxes that they didn't know were explosive. Young kids, that they didn't know that there was an explosive device in it and dropped the box and blew off their arms and legs. So not enough attention is being paid to sort out these messes left behind by the services.

In fact, in our hearing, I am a member of the committee, in our hearing on April 5, the Assistant Secretary of the Army, Keith Easton, testified that it would take approximately $350 million just to clean up the former military base, Fort Ord in California, a base in my district, which was closed in 1991. Yet, the Army has only requested $45 million for clean up activities covered by the 1990 BRAC account, of which $6.6 million would be allocated for Fort Ord. That means $6.6 million out of what is needed is $350 million. We are going to have to adjust some monies around here. And the priority in his amendment is let's do what we know has been caused by former base closures before we try to clean up all of the new ones, those that just closed this year.

So clearly, there is a disconnect between what our cleanup obligations are, and what are services budget has been made. And this cannot continue.

So I applaud Mr. Blumenauer in bringing this amendment. Nonetheless, billions of cleanup obligations are still pending and must be addressed. So if we don't deal with it today and don't get it adopted, we are going to be back here next year, and a lot of the Members in this House are going to understand that these sites are in their district and they are going to want to support this amendment. So I say this is either going to be done now or it can be later, but we have got to get to it.

I applaud Mr. Walsh for the effort he has made in trying to beef up the account, but I don't think it is enough.

Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Mr. Chairman, this amendment provides $1.82 billion for veterans, particularly in the health care field. It is in 10 separate areas: mental health and prosthesis, patient workload backlog, research for prosthesis, nursing home beds for long-term care, priority 8 veterans health care for those veterans who earn as little as $27,000 a year, improving the VA casework backlog that currently takes more than 6 months, money for VA hospital construction, medical administration, the VA IG's office, and unproven efficiencies.

Now, why should you be supporting this amendment? Well, Mr. Chairman, next week we will all be going home for Memorial Day recess. And on Memorial Day, we will all, as Members of Congress, get up and tell our veterans all the things we are doing for them. You ought to tell them about this amendment because this amendment does what veterans have asked us to do.

The figures that I have proposed here are the independent budget recommendations for mental health, prosthesis, medical and prosthetic research accounts, and staffing levels to improve timely care. The independent budget was brought to the committee, and I want to applaud the chairman for allowing four veterans organizations to bring this, including AMVETS, Disabled American Veterans, Paralyzed Veterans of America, and Veterans of Foreign Wars. They provided our committee with a budget of what they thought needed to be done. And their budget estimates, according to the committee, were more on mark than the administration's figures last year.

So when you go home to the vets next week, you have a chance to tell them you supported the Farr amendment to add $300 million for mental health and $300 million for prosthetics. You can tell them that you have voted to add $119 million for additional staffing for increased patient workload. You can tell them that you voted for $48 million to pay for inflation in the medical and prosthesis research account.

This amendment is also because the adequate funding for vets has not been made by this bill. So we are helping this bill by adding also for the veterans nursing home beds. The current law requires that we provide 13,391 beds. We only have enough money for 11,100 beds. That is almost 3,000 beds below the level authorized in 1998. So we add $471 million for nursing home care to bring nursing home beds back into compliance with the law.

This amendment would also allow 214,000 priority 8 veterans. Who are priority 8 veterans? Those are veterans who make as little as $27,000 a year. You could claim poverty for the earned income tax credit at that salary, and all we are saying is we are going to make them eligible for the VA health care.

Every Member in this body should support this amendment because every Member has veterans who have been shut out of the VA's health system.

This amendment also pays for the backlog. It adds $73 million to provide increased funding for general operations expenses to help reduce the claims in processing. Every Member has district offices that are working on veterans' cases, 74,000 vets who are waiting more than 6 months to have their claims processed and much longer in some cases. As of last week, that number increased by over 21,000 to 95,000 vets who are waiting just for an answer.

This amendment also restores money for three high-priority projects, hospital construction. Three hospital construction projects in Denver, Colorado; Madison, Wisconsin; and Columbia, Missouri, were cut in the base bill to provide allowances for other accounts. Congressman Beauprez of Colorado sent a letter to the Appropriations Committee earlier this month supporting the Colorado project.

Where does this money come from? We do this by an offset. Mr. Chairman, since the Republican leadership enacted the tax cuts in 2001, we have learned from all the reports and all the

papers that the rich have gotten richer. Our progressive tax system is becoming less progressive. Time and again the majority has prioritized the needs of people making more than $1 million a year ahead of the key investments such as health care for our veterans. As a result, our veterans will continue to wait too long for care. Many will not get the mental health assistance they need. Prosthetic research and services will be underfunded, and so-called ``wealthy'' lower priority veterans, those making as little as $27,000 a year, will continue to be denied access.

This is going to be ruled out of order, and I hope the Members will insist that we get this funding.

Point of Order

Mr. Chairman, let us be very clear what is going on here. This is an election year. Everybody in this House is up for election.

The Governor of California and the President of the United States, who is the former Governor of Texas, have not supported the idea that we ought to open up oil and gas drilling under the guise of just doing gas drilling off the coast. Why? Because they represent States and a Nation that knows that one of the biggest industries in this Nation is tourism, and tourism is jobs. I can assure you, the people do not go visit the coasts of Florida, the coasts of California to watch oil wells. That is not what draws tourism to the coast. It is not what makes those coastlines the biggest economic engines in the United States.

This is not about trying to respond to the high gas prices. This is a giveaway. The oil companies tell you they are not interested in offshore drilling because there is a lot of expense that goes into it and it takes years and years. So just be mindful, what is this? This is a play to the oil companies.

Let me just tell you what the Governor of California says, the biggest gas guzzling State in the Nation, ``The current movement to lift the ban is nothing more than a weak attempt to cater to oil interests in the face of high gasoline prices. I encourage you to move your focus instead to reducing our consumption of fossil fuels and supporting the development of alternative fuels such as ethanol in order to diversify our energy portfolio.''

Let us be creative about how we diversify the energy portfolio. Let us not use the dinosaur effect that we are just going to go after oil and gas wherever it was. These same people will tell you if there is oil right under this Capitol, drill for it. My God, can we not in the leadership of the United States Congress respect the fact that it is just not about oil and gas, it is about a lot of other values in this country?

The provision in the bill is a bad one, and I strongly support the amendment to take it out.

State Capitol,

Sacramento, CA, May 10, 2006.

California Congressional Delegation,

House of Representatives,

Washington, DC.

Dear California Congressional Delegation: I strongly oppose

any efforts to end or weaken the federal moratorium on oil

and gas leasing off the coast of California and I will fight

any effort to expand offshore drilling as long as I am

Governor. This current movement to lift the ban is nothing

more than a weak attempt to cater to oil interests in the

face of high gasoline prices. I encourage you to move your

focus instead to reducing our consumption of fossil fuels and

supporting development of alternative fuels such as ethanol

in order to diversify our energy portfolio.

The moratorium has been in place for twenty-five years and

enjoys widespread support from the people of California,

including bipartisan support from elected leaders. It has

been widely recognized by an overwhelming majority of

Californians that there are better ways to address our energy

needs without populating our waters with oil platforms and

adding additional scars to our beautiful coastline.

The actions taken today by the House Appropriations

Committee is extremely disappointing. As a result, the

federal FY07 Interior Appropriations bill that you will be

asked to vote on as early as next week ends the twenty-five

year bipartisan Congressional moratorium and the protection

it guarantees California's coast. Moreover, the bill's

provisions would allow drilling to begin just three miles

from our coast. Rather than watching the sun set on the

western horizon each day, millions of Californians and

visitors will now see grotesque oil platforms in plain sight.

I urge the Delegation to oppose these provisions and work to

defeat them during the House debate. California's beautiful

coastline is an integral part of our culture, our heritage

and our economy. Putting it at risk would be an absolute

travesty.

The price of gasoline has risen dramatically in California,

but reducing our use of fossil fuels and diversifying our

energy supply would have a much greater and more direct

impact on prices than drilling off shore. California has gone

to great lengths to do just this. We have dedicated $6.5

million to the Hydrogen Highway initiative to build hydrogen

fueling stations and expand research for cleaner, reliable

fuels; we have implemented new car standards that will reduce

emissions by thirty percent in the next ten years, cutting

ozone-forming pollutions by five tons per day by 2020; we

have invested $165 million to get gross polluters off of

California's streets; and finally, we have created incentives

to reduce gasoline consumption by making more people eligible

to receive $1,000 when they turn in gross-polluting,

inefficient vehicles. California leads the nation on these

initiatives.

Ending or weakening the current moratorium on offshore oil

and gas leasing will not result in reduced prices for

consumers nor is it the foundation for a sustainable energy

policy. I urge your support for renewing the OCS moratorium

and your continued support for California's economy and

coastal environment.

Sincerely,

Arnold Shwarzenegger,

Governor.

Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the Slaughter/Shays Amendment to the FY07 Interior Appropriations Bill that would add $5 million each to the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Many of us do not recognize the role the arts play in our lives. But without the arts, our lives would be black and white. Arts add the color. Arts add the diversity and aid the understanding. Arts allow for expression and facilitate the acceptance. These experiences are truly immeasurable.

Cultures that have the ability to create, preserve and appreciate the arts are truly unique. I know you can think of times when a certain peal of a trumpet, or glimpse of a color triggers something--a memory, an awareness, or an idea. Though art can trigger strong emotions, the value of these has not historically been measured. But they are no less important than our experiences that are quantifiable.

NEA and NEH ensure that Americans across the country can discover and share the treasure of artful expression while instilling a sense of historical and cultural heritage throughout the generations.

I urge my colleagues to recognize the benefits of preserving the arts and humanities by supporting this amendment's funding to NEA and NEH.