Floor Statements

Mr. Chairman, I thank my colleague from Arkansas, Mr. Westerman, for his hard work on the Resilient Federal Forests Act.

I would like to be able to submit that if you actually care about helping our forests, if you care about our watersheds, if you care about wildlife habitat, if you care about outdoor recreation, if you care about responsible job development, if you care about being able to provide funding for our schools, this is a piece of legislation to be able to try and achieve a win-win-win, literally, for our communities.

We have seen 7 million acres, Mr. Chairman, burn in the West in 2017 alone. We have seen our forests devastated. We have seen over half of the budget of the Forest Service being used to fight forest fires.

Is there a better way?

The better way can be found in this piece of legislation, to be able to not only address what we must address, in terms of fighting forest fires when they break out, but also to be able to have a responsible, proactive management forest to be able to make sure that we are creating healthy forests.

Mr. Chairman, as I travel throughout my district, I am now looking at forests that my great-grandchildren will not see as I saw them as a young boy growing up. It is time that we actually have legislation that doesn't just be reactive to the problem that we face when it comes to forest management but be proactive. This legislation will achieve that goal.

And, again, I applaud Mr. Westerman and the Committee on Natural Resources for their hard work on this.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Lauren McCoy, Community Animal Response Team coordinator at the Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region, Jeremy Colburn, Animal Care supervisor at the Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region, and Lois Benson, Megan Miller, Jasmine Pattschull, and Kate Scheer who were Community Animal Response Team volunteers. Following Hurricane Irma, they all assisted with helping to meet animal sheltering needs in Georgia when they were travelling through the area following the devastating hurricane.

The team voluntarily flew to Georgia to assist in caring for the large number of animals the Atlanta Humane Society had taken in as a result of the hurricane. The Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region's Community Animal Response Team was specially trained to handle this type of natural disaster that affects the wellbeing of pets and livestock.

The shelter in Atlanta was opened before and during Hurricane Irma where more than 600 animals were located in the 60,000 square foot facility. The entire Third District of Colorado is incredibly proud of the work completed during a time of national crisis.

Mr. Speaker, it is an honor to recognize these Colorado natives for the work they accomplished during Hurricane Irma. Their hard work and service is an example to us all and I stand with the residents of the Third District in thanking them.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the employees of the Garfield County Department of Human Services for their dedication to child welfare. Their work recently garnered national recognition from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service's Children's Bureau.

Every year the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service's Children's Bureau reviews child welfare practices across the nation. The Department selected Denver, Pueblo, and Garfield Counties in Colorado for in-person reviews this year. The child welfare division is the second largest division in the Garfield County Department of Human Services; it employs 31 individuals, who each respond to and manage cases related to child abuse, neglect, and protection for at-risk adults. From January 1 through September 20, 2017, roughly 350 referrals were assigned to the division, 85 percent of which were cases related to parental substance abuse. During the in-person review, 27 of Garfield County's cases were analyzed in-depth to determine whether the child welfare division followed federal guidelines and focused on child protection, outcomes of permanency, safety and well-being.

While it is rare for any entity to be awarded a perfect score, at the conclusion of the Department's evaluation, nine of Garfield County's cases were marked in the 100 percent category. The review results are a testament to the passion and dedication that each member of the child welfare division brings to their work every day. In addition to its review findings, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services also praised Garfield County for going above and beyond to engage in timely communication with families involved in cases.

Mr. Speaker, Garfield County's exemplary performance in the field of child welfare is incredibly valuable to communities in the county and our state as a whole. We are thankful for their continued efforts to improve the lives of young children and adults in the Third Congressional District. I stand with the residents of Colorado in thanking the employees of the child welfare division for their service.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Mr. Keith Swerdfeger of Pueblo, Colorado, who has been honored with the Lifetime Business Achievement Award from the Colorado State University--Pueblo.

Keith Swerdfeger was born and raised in Pueblo, Colorado, and has had a lifelong passion to start a business and make a contribution to his hometown. In 1968, Keith realized his dream of becoming a business owner, opening Swerdfeger Construction, Inc. with his wife Sharon. This was the beginning of a very successful business venture. Today, Swerdfeger Construction, Inc. is a vital part of Pueblo's economy as well as in southern Colorado and six other states, employing up to 500 people. Keith readily gives all of the credit to his employees for his company's success, while continuing to strive to create more jobs and opportunities.

Keith is passionate about investing in the Pueblo community and firmly believes that part of his company's success has come as the result of the work he, his family and employees have done to give back. Keith has been very active with the Pueblo Economic Development Corporation, Pueblo County United Way, the Colorado Contractors, the Distribution Contractor Association, the Greater Pueblo Chamber of Commerce and other civic and industry associations. Keith represented Colorado House of Representatives District 47 from 2011 to 2013 where he served on the Economic and Business Development Committee, the Finance Committee and the Local Government Committee. He was a strong advocate for his District and the community of Pueblo and worked diligently to bring jobs and economic opportunities to the people of southern Colorado.

Mr. Speaker, Keith Swerdfeger has been a long-time business leader and tireless civic volunteer for his hometown of Pueblo, Colorado. I'm fortunate to consider him a dear friend. When we tell younger generations of Puebloans that the keys to a successful life are dedication and a strong work ethic, we can point to Keith as an example. Pueblo is grateful to have Keith Swerdfeger as one of its sons.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Mr. Keith Swerdfeger of Pueblo, Colorado, who has been honored with the Lifetime Business Achievement Award from the Colorado State University-Pueblo.

Keith Swerdfeger was born and raised in Pueblo, Colorado, and has had a lifelong passion to start a business and make a contribution to his hometown. In 1968, Keith realized his dream of becoming a business owner, opening Swerdfeger Construction, Inc. with his wife Sharon. This was the beginning of a very successful business venture. Today, Swerdfeger Construction, Inc. is a vital part of Pueblo's economy as well as in Southern Colorado and six other states, employing 500 people. Keith readily gives all of the credit to his employees for his company's success, while continuing to strive to create more jobs and opportunities.

Keith is passionate about investing in the Pueblo community and firmly believes that part of his company's success has come as the result of the work he, his family and employees have done to give back. Keith has been very active with the Pueblo Economic Development Corporation, Pueblo County United Way, the Colorado Contractors, the Distribution Contractor Association, the Greater Pueblo Chamber of Commerce and other civic and industry associations. Keith represented Colorado House of Representatives District 47 from 2011 to 2013 where he served on the Economic and Business Development Committee, the Finance Committee and the Local Government Committee. He was a strong advocate for his District and the community of Pueblo--and worked diligently to bring jobs and economic opportunities to the people of southern Colorado.

Mr. Speaker, Keith Swerdfeger has been a long-time business leader and tireless civic volunteer for his hometown of Pueblo, Colorado. I'm fortunate to consider him a dear friend. When we tell younger generations of Puebloans that the keys to a successful life are dedication and a strong work ethic, we can point to Keith as an example. Pueblo is grateful to have Keith Swerdfeger as one of its sons.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Patti Canchola, a well-respected veterinarian at Pueblo Animal Services. Patti was voted the 2017 American Humane Hero Veterinarian, which is a national honor bestowed upon an individual who improves the lives of animals and their owners in unheralded ways.

Patti performs 3,500 to 4,500 spay and neuter procedures a year, as well as 200 other surgeries. She voluntarily takes veterinary forensics courses that train her on identifying abused, neglected, and mistreated animals that are a part of criminal investigations. When off the clock, Patti operates Amazin' Amos Pet Food Pantry, a nonprofit food bank, as well as St. Martin's Well Pet Clinic, an independent low-cost health center. Both of these organizations help pet owners with low socio- economic status provide their animals with the care and food they need.

As a child in Pueblo, Patti would bring home wounded cats, dogs, squirrels, and birds in need of assistance. Her love of animals has continued throughout her entire life. We are truly fortunate to have such an upstanding and dedicated member of our community and on behalf of the Third District I would like to thank Patti for her generous service to the community.

Mr. Speaker, I really appreciate the gentleman's efforts to be able to highlight the threat from wildfires that we are having in the West.

Mr. Speaker, in recent weeks, the aftermath of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma have dominated our news cycles. Our hearts certainly go out to the people who have been impacted as they rebuild their lives and continue to work to ensure that they have the resources they need.

When we hear the term ``natural disaster,'' most of us probably think of hurricanes, tornadoes, or earthquakes. Unless you come from the Western United States, you probably don't think of wildfires as a natural disaster. But they are, and they have devastating effects.

Wildfire season is a part of life in the West, but this year's fire season is shaping up to be the worst in history. Years of mismanagement of our national forests have led to conditions where fires are burning longer and hotter than ever before.

We need to address this problem on two fronts: one, through better forest management; and, two, by updating wildfire response so it is more in line with the Federal response to other natural disasters.

On the forest management front, we need to give the Forest Service the tools to engage in actual forest management. This means removing the dead and downed timber that serves as a fuel source for either man- made or naturally occurring fires, empowering local foresters and land managers to identify and designate areas of high risk, and supporting collaboration between all levels of government.

These principles are laid out in the Resilient Federal Forests Act by my colleague, Mr. Westerman from Arkansas. I am proud to be a cosponsor of this legislation.

We must also reform the Federal budgeting process for wildfire prevention and the suppression efforts. For too long, the process the Federal Government has used to allocate money to fight catastrophic wildfires has undermined forest management efforts that could prevent these types of fires from igniting in the first place.

Under current law, if firefighting costs exceed an agency's budget, it must shift money from non-firefighting accounts to make up the difference. Last year, the Forest Service had to transfer $700 million from other budgeted line items to cover firefighting costs, which brought the agency's total firefighting efforts to about 55 percent of the entire budget.

You would think that firefighting wouldn't be the biggest line item in the budget for an agency tasked with maintaining healthy forests. It is critical that we treat wildfires like other natural disasters after an agency's wildfire suppression funds are exhausted. The cost of any extraordinary firefighting that goes beyond the agency's annual budget should be funded through a budget cap adjustment similar to what is used by FEMA for other natural disasters.

It is my hope that we can continue to bring more attention to wildfires that are burning across the West and the impacts they are having on our communities, and also that we can work together to advance policies that better support forest management and fire prevention and suppression efforts and forest health.

Mr. Speaker, this resolution of disapproval will repeal the CFPB's Arbitration Agreements rule, a rule that consumers are going to be able to be protected by, according to the CFPB. That is their stated mission: to protect the consumers.

Let us look at the data that has been provided by the CFPB. Just 13 percent of the class action suits actually provided a benefit to the consumers. And what was that whopping benefit? Thirty-two dollars. Thirty-two dollars that they are willing to celebrate over as compensation for people who have been harmed.

Let us look at the other side of the ledger. What are trial lawyers receiving? On average, $1 million. So while our friends may want to stand up for the trial lawyers, for their million-dollar paychecks, we are going to choose to stand with the American consumer to make sure that they are going to be able to receive the justice that they deserve, and one way to be able to do that is going to be through arbitration.

When we look at the CFPB's own statistics, the average arbitration payout is not your $32. It is almost $5,400, which has been received in terms of compensation that is going to be paid.

This latest rule, Mr. Speaker, joins a growing list of CFPB actions that have hurt consumers. Since the Bureau's inception, they have rolled out rules and regulations 3\1/2\ times faster than other Federal agencies, and according to the research from the American Action Forum, just 26 of these regulations have added an additional $2.8 billion in regulatory costs.

The practical effect of the Bureau's actions are measurable, especially in rural districts like mine: no mortgage credit for young families trying to purchase their first home, community banks that spend more time on compliance than serving their community, and small businesses that cannot get the capital that they need to grow.

The Arbitration Agreements rule is nothing more than the latest sleight-

of-hand by the Bureau taking money out of pockets of consumers and gifting it to trial lawyers.

Mr. Speaker, the CFPB would lead you to believe that a multiyear class action lawsuit--and that is according to the CFPB's own estimates, average attorneys' fees of $388 million, and that is a win for consumers.

The judgment is not on the side of consumers. They may want to stand for the trial lawyers. We are going to stand for the consumers. Let's repeal this and institute the CRA for the arbitration rule.

Mr. Chairman, I would like to be able to address title VII of the Water Rights Protection Act in this bill.

Over many decades, Federal attempts to manipulate Federal permit, lease, and land management process to circumvent long-established State water law and hijack privately held water rights have sounded the alarm for all non-Federal water users that rely on these water rights for their livelihood.

The Federal Government's overreach and infringement on private property rights that led to the introduction of this original bill in the 113th Congress involved the U.S. Forest Service's attempt to require the transfer of privately held water rights to the Federal Government as a permit condition on National Forest System lands. With this permit condition, there is no compensation for the transfer of these privately held rights.

This Forest Service permit condition has already hurt a number of stakeholders in my home State of Colorado, including Powderhorn Ski Area in Grand Junction and the Breckenridge Ski Resort. The same nefarious tactic has been used in Utah, Nevada, and other Western States, where agencies have required the surrender of possession of water rights in exchange for approving the conditional use of grazing allotments. This Federal water grab has broad implications that have begun to extend beyond the recreation and the farming and ranching community and are now threatening municipalities and other businesses.

In 2014, the Forest Service proposed a groundwater directive that would have expanded the agency's reach over groundwater and established new bureaucratic hurdles to interfere with private water users' ability to be able to access their water. Though the Forest Service ultimately withdrew this controversial groundwater directive, there are no guarantees that the directive or something similar won't be back in the future.

The Water Rights Protection Act offers a sensible approach that preserves water rights and the ability to be able to develop water requisite to living in the arid West without interfering with water allocations for non-Federal parties or allocations that protect an environment that is cherished by all Westerners.

I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues from other Western States to ensure that no State-recognized water right goes unprotected from the class of actions that this bill prohibits.

I appreciate the inclusion of this legislation and encourage its passage.

Mr. Chair, to speak to the nature of the amendment.

Mr. Chair, I am.

Mr. Chairman, as my colleague from New Mexico noted, Wayne Aspinall of Colorado stated: ``When you touch water in the West, you touch everything.''

We have that shared concern that that water is going to be preserved. In the West, water is a private property right. We have State law. We have priority-based systems, which have always been recognized by the Federal Government.

Unfortunately, we have seen and reflected in this portion of the legislation that we are discussing today, the Federal Government reaching out to be able to require conditional use of permit water rights to be signed over to the Federal Government. At issue is the amendment that we are discussing right now.

When we talk about our Native American Tribes, my colleague and I have shared in common interest, along with our colleague, Mrs. Torres, in terms of making sure that Native American rights are protected from taking by the Federal Government, as well.

There is good news in the underlying bill. The Department of the Interior had made the statement that their ability to be able to negotiate or enter into water settlements with Tribes is in no way affected or restricted by this bill. It is in no way affected or restricted by this bill, according to the Department of the Interior.

While I have no objections to the changes proposed in the savings clause to be able to clarify as much, I did want to be able to register concern on the amendment that it may not have been as definitive as I would like to have seen in regard to specifying Native American water rights.

I think that is common ground that we are seeing on both sides of the aisle: to make sure that those private property rights are protected.

I will not vote against this amendment, and I applaud my colleagues working together with us to be able to try and achieve an actual amiable solution on something that, as Westerners, we understand probably better than anyone else in the country the importance of water--water for our communities, water for the opportunity for our communities to be able to grow and to prosper.

On this particular issue, a very important segment of that very community is the valuable contributions that our Native American Tribes make to all of our communities.

Mr. Chairman, I will be supporting the overall legislation. In terms of their work on this, I commend all Members.

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

Mr. Chairman, I would like to thank my colleague, Representative McClintock, for putting forward a very sensible piece of legislation.

The Colorado Water Congress, who supports this bill, stated in their letter:

The economic viability of the State of Colorado is

dependent on safe and reliable water supply. In recent years,

the ability of water managers to meet growth demand and to

create water storage has become more challenging.

In Colorado, the Windy Gap Project, whose formal environmental permitting process began in 2003, won't see construction start until at least 2019, with water storage ready by 2022--16 years to permit, 3 years to build.

For too long, Federal agencies have failed to properly coordinate and time their reviews of water supply project applications, resulting in missed opportunities for increased water storage during our wetter seasons.

Water is the lifeblood of Western communities. Without it, most communities in the Western United States could not survive, so it only makes sense to store as much of it as we reasonably can during those wetter years. Yet the Federal Government presents roadblock after roadblock that prevents a timely and cost-effective completion to many of these projects.

This legislation will streamline the permitting process and increase agency accountability by placing the Bureau of Reclamation at the center of the process and ensuring all other agencies are required to report to it in a timely fashion.

It is an effective piece of legislation, an effective approach to a problem that should not exist. I urge my colleagues to support this measure.

Mr. Chair, I also want to thank Chairman Hensarling for offering the legislation under consideration today.

The Financial CHOICE Act takes the necessary steps in reforming the supervision of our financial system that the Dodd-Frank Act failed to do. Among other provisions, this legislation requires financial regulatory agencies to tailor regulatory actions to fit the risk profile and business model of supervised institutions. Not only will this ensure appropriately tailored compliance obligations for banks and credit unions of various risk profiles, but it saves valuable time and resources for bank examiners.

As it stands now, community banks are facing an ever-increasing regulatory burden that they can no longer shoulder. This has had a devastating impact on small banks, forcing consolidation or failure and stifling the creation of new banks in areas that need access to credit.

In December 2015, a report by the Dallas Fed highlighted this problem, noting that the regulatory environment tends to be one-size- fits-all and concluding that the regulatory oversight should match the risk level an institution poses to the financial system and the economy at large.

The CHOICE Act will stop the trend of increasing compliance costs and decreasing financial services.

Mr. Chair, I thank the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Hensarling) for his tireless efforts on this legislation and urge my colleagues to support it.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to share my most sincere appreciation for the life and service of Navy Petty Officer First Class Remington J. Peters. He was tragically taken from this world at the young age of 27 over the Memorial Day weekend.

Remi was born and raised in Grand Junction, Colorado, where he was known by his friends to be a loving, caring and passionate young man who brought a smile to everyone's face. His parents described him as an angel on earth. After Remi graduated from Grand Junction High School, he found his calling in the U.S. Navy. He entered SEAL school and graduated without difficulty.

During his distinguished time in the Navy, Remi was assigned to the SEAL's prestigious Leap Frogs, the Navy's parachute demonstration team. Remi performed over 900 jumps, most of them at public gatherings in front of hundreds of thousands of Americans.

As a Navy SEAL, Remi risked his life every time he stepped foot on a ship or helicopter. Remi accepted the dangers of two combat tours and hundreds of jumps in order to serve his country.

Mr. Speaker, at only 27 years old, Remi had an impressive list of accomplishments. I hope as his family and friends commemorate his life, they are continually reminded of what an extraordinary individual he was. Remi will forever be remembered in his hometown of Grand Junction, and by so many who came to know him over the years. I continue to pray for comfort for Remi's family and friends during this difficult time, and I know that the memory of Remington J. Peters will live on in all who share his story.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor Terry Wetherill, who recently received the Emergency Manager of the Year Award. Terry is the Mineral County emergency manager and search and rescue coordinator. As part of the Mineral County Search and Rescue team, he serves as an EMT in the County Ambulance Service and as a fireman in the Volunteer Fire Department. Terry's roots in the community run deep. Terry's family was one of Mineral County's founding families, settling there over one hundred years ago. Terry made his home in Creede after 29 years of service in the U.S. Navy.

As Mineral County Emergency Manager, Terry has spearheaded the use of technology to aid in difficult search and rescue missions in the San Luis Valley in situations where all-terrain vehicles and snowmobiles can't access those in need of emergency services. Avalanches and steep cliffs create treacherous conditions in parts of the San Luis Valley, and the drone helps prevent rescuers from having to put themselves in life-threatening situations, Thanks to the work of Terry's office, Archuleta, Hinsdale, Mineral, and Rio Grande counties will now have access to this life saving drone.

Mr. Speaker, Terry Wetherill's service to Colorado and his commitment to safety and security in the San Luis Valley is commendable and we are fortunate to have him, He is well-deserving of this honor, and I wish him the very best in the future.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to honor former Congressman Ray Kogovsek, a dear friend who represented the Third Congressional District of Colorado before me. I ask that you keep him in your thoughts and prayers as he now faces a challenge far greater than any political race.

Ray is a native of Pueblo, Colorado, and but for his college years and his tenure here from 1979 to 1985, he never left his hometown and never wanted to. His commitment to his community spread to encompass the entire Third District, which he came to serve after 10 years in the Colorado Legislature where I first met him.

Ray won election to Congress in 1978 by 364 votes. In 1980, he faced the same challenger in a Reagan landslide year. He won by 22,000 votes. And in 1982, after redistricting changed half of his district, he handily won again. Ray won because of who Ray is. He is a man of gentle wisdom, wisdom about people, a man with a gut instinct to know what is right, a genuine man, a man who knows no anger.

His achievements in his short time here in Congress were many. From a vast wilderness bill painstakingly built through his outreach and development of a coalition of broad support, to funding to widen a beautiful highway through Glenwood Canyon to make it safer for road travel, to resolving a decades-old boundary dispute for the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, and his work on behalf of the Third District continued after he chose to leave Congress.

He is known for his work on Western water issues and was awarded the prestigious Wayne Aspinall Award by the Colorado Water Congress, an award named after another Colorado congressman who served as chairman of the House Interior Committee.

But I have a sense that what Ray values most about his career in public service, about his advocacy for his district and for the West, are his friendships, the friendships that he found and nurtured here in these halls and beyond.

I want to thank Ray Kogovsek on behalf of the House of Representatives and the Third District and wish him and his family comfort and strength during this difficult time.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise to honor the life of Robert ``Bob'' Rawlings of Pueblo, Colorado. Bob passed away at the age of 92, on March 24, 2017.

Born in 1924, Bob graduated from Bent High School in 1942. He immediately pursued a college education at Colorado College in Colorado Springs, but, ultimately, he decided to enlist in the Navy that same year.

Bob received a commission from the University of Colorado Boulder in 1943 and served honorably as the executive officer of subchaser 648 in the Pacific campaign of World War II. Bob was part of an effort to liberate over 100 British and Dutch prisoners of war during his time in service.

After receiving an honorable discharge from the Navy in 1946, Bob returned to school at Colorado College and earned his bachelor's degree in economics in 1947. Bob took a job as a reporter at the Pueblo Chieftain, the place he would work for the next seven decades, ultimately climbing the ladder to serve as chairman and as editor of the paper.

Bob always championed his hometown and used his career with the Chieftain as a platform to advocate his passion for Pueblo and for the surrounding region. A vocal supporter of protecting Pueblo's resources, Bob spent 70 years delivering news to the people of southern Colorado. His character and his life's work represent the very best of Pueblo and the entire State of Colorado.

Mr. Speaker, Bob Rawlings served his community as a philanthropist, a journalist, a sailor, and as a family man. Although Bob referred to himself as the world's worst golfer, Bob will be remembered by so many in his hometown as one of its best citizens.

While I am saddened by his death, I am honored to have known Bob. His presence will be missed by so many, but his impact in the community, however, will be remembered forever.