Floor Statements

Mr. Chairman, per the bill's rule for H.R. 6599 that required preprinting of amendments, I submitted an amendment for consideration. This amendment was drafted incorrectly and therefore I am withdrawing the amendment.

Offered By: Mrs. Capito

Amendment No. 25: Page 34, line 21, after the dollar

amount, insert ``(increased by $100,000,000)''.

Page 38, line 23, after the dollar amount, insert

``(reduced by $70,000,000)''.

Page 41, line 22, after the dollar amount, insert

``(reduced by $30,000,000)''.

Offered By: Mrs. Capito

Amendment No. 26: Page 33, line 18, insert before the

period the following: ``: Provided further, That the

Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall increase the mileage

reimbursement rate for veterans by an additional 6.5 cents,

to 41.5 cents per mile''.

Madam Speaker, today the House will consider legislation that makes clear that our major obstacle to lowering prices is a shortage of supply. Yet, this House will not act on any legislation that will actually increase our Nation's overall energy supply.

It's time for this Congress to get serious about both protecting consumers and taking action on real solutions that will ease the pain at the pump.

I hear from West Virginians on a regular basis who can no longer afford the price of gasoline. Just yesterday, I spoke to several West Virginia seniors. They're concerned. They're making tough decisions. And on fixed incomes, they're very troubled when they have to go to the gas station to fill up their cars.

West Virginians deserve a truly comprehensive, all-of-the-above approach to our energy challenges to become energy independent. We need legislation that leads to new refineries, new technology, and new energy exploration, not these weak attempts that are only wanting to change the topic.

With gas prices at more than $4 a gallon, we simply cannot afford to deliberately allow our domestic energy resources to waste away.

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

I rise today in support of S. 496, the Appalachian Regional Development Act Amendments of 2008. I would like to thank Chairman Oberstar, Chairwoman Norton, Ranking Member Mica, Ranking Member Graves and also my colleague from Ohio, Representative Space, for their steadfast support of the Commission and for the people of Appalachia.

As a Member of Congress from West Virginia, I can attest to the tremendous work the Appalachian Regional Commission, or the ARC as it is called, has done to bring clean water, safe roads, new jobs and a better quality of life to millions of people in the Appalachian region.

Over the last few years, the ARC has made a number of investments in my district, including an economic development strategy and business incubator in Elkins, a child care facility in Moorefield, and the new Corridor H highway.

The Appalachian Regional Development Act of 1965 established the ARC to promote regional coordination and develop projects that will trigger jobs, economic growth, and a better quality of life. The Commission is led by two co-chairmen. One is Presidentially appointed and Senate- confirmed, and the other is selected by the Governors of the participating States. As my colleague mentioned, the Commission includes all or part of 13 States, including the entire State of West Virginia, parts of Tennessee, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York and Mississippi. The House companion bill passed the House last year. The Senate bill we are considering today includes an amendment that reflects our agreement with the Senate on the differences.

The bill reauthorizes the Commission for 5 years. In addition, the bill amends current law to allow the Commission to cover up to 70 percent of costs for projects that address problems in communities at risk of becoming distressed in the region. These programs include infrastructure projects, demonstration health projects, housing projects and initiatives for telecommunications, technology and entrepreneurship.

This bill also authorizes the creation, as my colleague mentioned, of the Economic and Energy Development Initiative, which I think is a great addition, which will provide grants to develop new alternatives for utilizing our vast conventional energy resources. I'm also pleased that this compromise includes language from the House bill which would discourage earmarking projects in future appropriation bills.

Leveraging Federal funds in West Virginia and the other Appalachian States has helped dramatically improve our communities over the years. The investment has resulted in a reduction of poverty, the creation of jobs, and the improvement of health and education. We still have a ways to go. And that is why I think this bill is extremely important for reauthorization today.

The work of the Commission is an example of the Federal and State partnership that has promoted economic growth in needed areas and distressed areas of high unemployment and high poverty so that these communities can begin to prosper independently in the future.

Thank you again. I urge my colleagues to support the bill.

I reserve the balance of my time.

I would like to yield such time as he may consume to my friend from Tennessee (Mr. Duncan).

Mr. Speaker, I would like to yield 3 minutes to my colleague from Ohio (Mr. LaTourette).

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I would just like to offer my gratitude to all of the Members who have worked so hard on this. This is extremely important to my home State of West Virginia. My entire State is part of the ARC. I mentioned several projects in my State. The gentleman from Tennessee mentioned water projects. I have two going right now that are the beneficiaries of ARC funding.

I think it is important to realize, too, that this is a partnership between the Federal Government and the States. By leveraging ARC funds just this year, $9.55 million in my State of West Virginia, has resulted in another $16 million of additional investment.

This part of our country has historically struggled, and with the current energy issues that we have before us and the high price of gasoline, we are an energy-rich region of this country. We can contribute to the solutions through either coal to liquid and our natural gas reserves and other things that need to be added to a comprehensive, all-of-the-above energy plan for this country.

With that, I express my deep gratitude and also my deep commitment to the ARC and its continuation.

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

Madam Speaker, I encourage our discussion on flood insurance. But like my colleagues, I am very frustrated with the high price of gasoline. And I believe that West Virginians deserve a comprehensive all-of-the-above approach.

I had a lot of conversations just last night with West Virginians, and they had wonderful, creative solutions. They had amazing ideas: Let's use algae, let's use cooking oil, let's use biomass; and, of course from West Virginia, let's use coal.

We also had a gentleman who offered a great national call for conservation, that we would incorporate our youth

through education and other methods to get involved with how we can conserve. But the most thing I heard was the question of frustration, and why are we not doing anything?

Unfortunately, this House has yet to act on any legislation that will actually make a difference. And it is time for a change. It is time for this Congress to get serious about protecting consumers and taking action on real solutions.

West Virginians are less concerned, as the previous speaker said, about the political battles that are encompassing Capitol Hill. We are more concerned about a bipartisan breakthrough that actually increases supply and makes our Nation more self-reliant.

Mr. Speaker, today I rise in support of H.R. 4461, the Community Building Code Administration Act, authored by the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. Moore). Under current law, there are no dedicated Federal funds for building code administration. Funds from development or hazard mitigation programs have been used

for this purpose in the past. The competition for these funds is intense, and infrastructure projects generally receive preference over building code enforcement. States and local jurisdictions fund local building code enforcement departments without Federal assistance.

The legislation offered by Mr. Moore requires the Secretary of HUD to award grants on a competitive basis and with Federal matching funds to qualified local building code enforcement departments. The grants can be used to increase staffing, provide staff training, increase staff competence and professional qualifications, support individual certification or departmental accreditation, or for capital expenditures specifically dedicated to department administration.

Both State and local governments that have responsibilities for administering laws and regulations addressing building safety and fire prevention would be eligible for Community Building Code Administration Grants. The bill authorizes $100 million over 5 years. Any grants awarded under this bill would be capped at $1 million.

I would like to note that HUD has expressed some reservations regarding this legislation because currently CDBG funds can be used for this exact same purpose. The Department has concerns whether or not it is necessary to dedicate another $100 million for this purpose when it is already an eligible activity under CDBG.

I would like to thank Mr. Moore for offering this legislation.

I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 6216, the Asset Management Improvement Act, authored by the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Sires). There is general agreement that we need to work with our public housing authorities to improve and refine their asset management policies. The Quality Housing and Work Responsibility Act, which was passed by Congress in 1998, included a requirement for a negotiated rulemaking to develop a new public housing operating fund formula.

Rulemaking concluded in 2004, after a 3-year, $4 million Operating Cost Study was conducted, and in 2005, HUD issued the Public Housing Operating Fund Final Rule. HUD has agreed to delay the implementation, in an effort to give PHAs additional time to comply with the negotiated rule. This legislation will make further changes to that rule. It is my hope that all parties can continue to work together to make further improvements.

The base text of the legislation requires HUD and public housing agencies to negotiate, after April 1, 2009, reasonable property and asset management fees with interested stakeholders. The fees would then be implemented January 1, 2011.

The legislation increases, as the chairman said, the number of units public housing agencies can manage to 500, from 250, before they are required to manage their housing portfolios by the new asset management system. It also states that the bill's provisions, including those relating to public housing asset management, do not affect in any way current law regarding tenant participation and tenant opportunities in public housing.

As the chairman noted, we have been here before considering similar legislation. Unfortunately, that legislation was pulled from consideration during the motion to recommit that would have preserved the right of law-abiding citizens to own a firearm. I am pleased the authors of this new version included this important provision.

In addition, the authors have included the text of the manager's amendment, as well as the Meek amendment, in this new draft. The manager's amendment included language blocking illegal immigrants from eligibility and ensuring that certain agencies that apply to HUD for stop-loss do not have their applications rejected on the basis that the management and related fees they establish pursuant to the bill's provisions are not reasonable as defined by HUD. The Meek amendment provides that the tenant organization protections set forth in HUD's regulations apply to public housing agencies that are placed in receivership by HUD.

I would like to thank Mr. Sires for offering this legislation.

I reserve the balance of my time.

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

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New Jersey and certainly support his bill, but I think it is appropriate when talking about trying to stretch our public housing dollars as much as we can to provide housing and safety and cover and a sense of community to many families, I think it brings to light what many families are thinking about right now, and that is the high price of gasoline, how are they getting to where they need to go, to get to a job, to pick up their children at school, to go to church, to go to the grocery store, all the things of daily living.

Many of our public housing situations don't have access to bus routes or any kind of mass transportation, so I think it is incumbent upon this Congress to address this very difficult issue, and I have put forward, as have many of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, ways to address this, whether it is more drilling, whether it is coal-to- liquid, whether it is more renewables. But it is certainly not standing still. And as we try to move our dollars into the public housing arena to provide shelter and homes for many, many Americans across this country, I think it is important at the same time when people are figuring out how they are going to pay their rent, they realize how are they going to pay for their gas, how are they going to pay for their food.

So I would encourage as we look at housing issues today, we also look at the very important issue of energy in our homes and with our families.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3329, the Homes for Heroes Act offered by the gentleman from Texas, Mr. Green.

In the week after our Nation celebrated its 232nd birthday, it is important that we take time to properly recognize the sacrifices of our Nation's veterans and those service men and women who are currently defending our freedoms and liberties in theaters across the world.

Like many of my colleagues, I have been to Walter Reed to visit our wounded warriors who have been injured in battle, and I am always touched by their spirit and courage. It goes without saying that our Nation and government must provide these veterans with the tools to succeed once they leave the military and the benefits they deserve for the sacrifices that they have made in the name of freedom.

This legislation improves one important aspect for our veterans, especially those who suffer from long-term physical and mental disabilities: That is access to affordable housing. The Veterans Administration is the only Federal agency that provides substantial hands-on assistance directly to homeless individuals, homeless veterans. Although limited to veterans and their dependants, the VA's major homeless specific programs constitute the largest integrated network of homeless treatment and assistance services in this country.

The Department's homeless veterans programs were first authorized in 1987 and have grown and developed during that time. The program offers a number of services that include outreach to veterans living on the streets and who otherwise would not seek assistance, long-term sheltered transitional assistance and supportive permanent housing.

According to the VA, about one-third of the adult homeless population are veterans. That is staggering, I believe, with current population estimates suggesting about 154,000 veterans are homeless on any given night. Many other veterans are considered near homeless or at risk because of their poverty, lack of support from family and friends and dismal living conditions in cheap hotels or overcrowded and substandard housing.

This legislation requires HUD to create a position within the Department to serve as a liaison to the Veterans Affairs Department. A Special Assistant for Veterans Affairs would ensure veterans receive proper access to HUD's housing assistance programs, coordinate all HUD programs and activities pertaining to veterans, and act as a liaison between HUD and the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Mr. Green's legislation also requires, as he noted, that HUD provide 20,000 rental vouchers for homeless veterans. It authorizes $200 million in fiscal year 2008 and such sums as may be necessary for each subsequent fiscal year. It also requires the Department to maintain a constant level of funding in coordination with rising home costs. The measure allows family members of a veteran receiving a housing voucher to maintain the voucher and the home after the veteran's death.

The bill authorizes grants to nonprofits that sponsor housing projects for veterans making less than 50 percent of the median income of an area, assists veterans in obtaining housing or homeless assistance, and assists veterans with the plan and application process for HUD assistance programs. It also includes language to assure that any voucher program would not inhibit low income tax credits that are already in place.

I would like to thank Mr. Green for offering this legislation and for his efforts to improve housing for our veterans.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to yield such time as he may consume to my colleague the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Shays).

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

Today, we are considering a bill to make something the law that is already the law. The majority claims it is necessary to force energy exploration companies to either use or lose leases they hold. However, use it or lose it is already the law. The Secretary of the Interior can already cancel a lease if the lessee fails to comply with the terms. Federal leaseholders are already required to produce oil and/or natural gas within 5 to 10 years of beginning the lease.

By blocking some firms from competing for new leases, this legislation could further increase gas prices that are already exceeding $4 per gallon. This is frustrating because I believe West Virginians would rather see us take up legislation that will actually lead to a new and more forward-thinking energy policy rather than waste time passing legislation that is already on the books. That means new exploration, coal-to-liquids, and renewables.

If this is the best the majority can do, is to restate current law, that's fine. But I think most Americans and West Virginians understand that the time has come for a more serious and comprehensive debate on this issue. That's what they deserve.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today, calling for expanded domestic energy exploration and for a truly comprehensive energy policy, including renewables.

Access to oil and natural gas resources from Federal lands and waters is critical to the energy supply of West Virginia consumers, businesses, and homeowners. Specifically, the Outer Continental Shelf will be increasingly important to our Nation's energy future. Approximately 25 percent of U.S. oil and natural gas production comes from offshore areas. Technology has allowed the industry to explore deeper in the Gulf of Mexico and to make many new discoveries.

However, current policy unnecessarily keeps many promising prospects off limits, restraining additional growth and supplies. Congress and past Presidents have put a stop to offshore drilling and development. This must end. With gas prices at more than $4 a gallon and filling up the minivan at $70, we simply cannot afford to deliberately ignore our abundant resources. It is time to use our resources and to use our common sense.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 254, a bill to award a Congressional Gold Medal honoring the great artistic work of Constantino Brumidi on this great Capitol building. The bill was introduced by Senator Enzi and has 99 cosponsors in the Senate, and in the House, a companion bill was introduced by our colleague, Mr. Pascrell, which has 307 cosponsors.

As we've heard much of Mr. Brumidi's history, he created artworks in the House of Representatives Chamber, many committee rooms, the President's Room, the Senate Chamber, and throughout the corridors of the Capitol. His most famous work within these halls is ``The Apotheosis of George Washington,'' which appears on the Capitol dome in the Rotunda. Mr. Brumidi painted these hallowed halls, and in so doing, he depicted the narrative that is the vivid history of these United States.

Born in Italy in 1805, Constantino Brumidi studied at the Italian Academy of the Arts. In 1852, at the age of 47, he emigrated to America and devoted the rest of his years completing frescoes, sculptures, and paintings in the Capitol Building.

The story of Constantino Brumidi is important not only because he was the artist who gave life to these walls, but because his story is the American story. He was an immigrant to this country, and he used the skill that he had to contribute what he could. In the process, he, like millions of others, built this country into what it is today. Immigrants built this Nation's building, constructed its factories, fed its people, and when called upon, defended its sovereignty. Men and women from this great Nation's inception contributed whatever they could to make this Nation better.

Constantino Brumidi contributed his talents as an artist. And now, because of his efforts, we and all who walk through the Capitol may see not only his talent but this country's history and be filled with the same sense of awe and hope that filled those who walked these halls before us. That, ladies and gentlemen, is a wonderful gift.

On February 19, 1880, at the age of 74, Constantino Brumidi died four-and-a-half months after falling from a scaffolding while working on the Rotunda frieze that chronicles the history of America. He spent his entire time in this country contributing and attempting to fulfill his life's goal. He said, ``My one ambition and my daily prayer is that I may live long enough to make beautiful the Capitol of the one country on Earth in which there is liberty.''

As we stand here today and walk these halls, it is clear to all that Constantino Brumidi accomplished his goal.

This bill awards Constantino Brumidi the Congressional Gold Medal for his contribution. The medal will be displayed in the Capitol Visitor's Center as part of a display honoring his work.

Mr. Speaker, I urge the bill's immediate passage.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as he would consume to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis).

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Res. 1010, which recognizes the importance of manufactured housing in the United States.

Manufactured housing plays an important role in meeting this country's housing needs and is an important source of quality, affordable housing, including both homeownership and rental housing. In recent years, manufactured housing placements accounted for more than one-quarter of all new housing starts.

Despite the country's overall drop in home prices, the need for quality, affordable housing has never been greater. Because it is an important source of affordable housing, manufactured housing should be viewed as a critical part of the solution to the ongoing troubles in our housing market.

Today's manufactured homes can deliver quality dwellings and at prices ranging from 10 to 35 percent less per square foot than conventional site-built homes. These savings allow more and more Americans to own their own home or access affordable rental housing units.

The manufactured housing industry has evolved in the last decade to deliver a better quality, more affordable product. The affordability of manufactured housing is mainly attributable to the efficiency of the factory process. The controlled environment and assembly-line techniques remove many of the problems of the site-built sector, such as poor weather, theft, vandalism, and damage to building products and materials stored onsite. Also, factory employees are trained, scheduled, and managed by one employer as opposed to the system of contracted labor on a site-built sector.

As a Congress, we must do all we can do encourage affordable rental and homeownership opportunities for all Americans. Today's manufactured housing industry helps build communities and supports innovation, consumer safety, efficiency, and quality while preserving the affordability and customization of its housing units.

The legislation before us recognizes and fully supports the goals and ideals of Manufactured Housing Week, and I urge my colleagues to support the resolution.

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

Mr. Speaker, I would like to yield such time as he may consume to my colleague from Indiana (Mr. Souder).

Mr. Speaker, I would like to yield as much time as he may consume to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Feeney).

I yield back the balance of my time and urge passage of the bill.

Mr. Speaker, rarely, and rightly it is rare, do we honor one of our own with the highest civilian honor we can bestow, the Congressional Gold Medal. But rules are made to be broken, and just as Ed Brooke broke an unwritten rule and became the first African American popularly elected to the Senate since Reconstruction, we should break another and honor his courage and achievements.

Just as it may be hard for college students of today to imagine segregated bathrooms and drinking fountains, it is hard for all of us to imagine a Congress without African Americans and others of color. So it is especially important to think back to the historic day when this humble man took the oath of office in the Senate 41 years ago on January 3, 1967. The America of that time, as my colleague has noted, was not far past the struggles that led to the passage of the Civil Rights Act, which this Chamber voted a couple of months ago to honor with a commemorative coin.

Mr. Speaker, many of us know the general outline of Ed Brooke's life: a soldier in the Second World War, a lawyer whose 1966 book ``The Challenge of Change'' focused on African Americans in the United States and on politics. I doubt that many Members know though that he was actually a native of the District of Columbia, as the gentlewoman noted.

Born here October 26, 1919, he was a graduate of both Harvard and Boston University and followed in his father's footsteps as a lawyer before being elected Massachusetts Attorney General and then on to the United States Senate, where he served two terms.

Mr. Speaker, this bill was sponsored by our colleague in the Senate, Senator Ted Kennedy, also of Massachusetts, with 67 cosponsors, and he assured its passage before his unfortunate illness. We hope for him and his family the very best. Our prayers are with them. Here in the House a companion bill, H.R. 1000, was sponsored by our colleague Ms. Eleanor Holmes Norton, and she has collected 290 cosponsors.

Mr. Speaker, this bill honors a man, Senator Ed Brooke, but it also honors an idea and an achievement, that we are all equal, and that election to the United States Senate is open to any American who can prove to the voters that his or her ideas and character are appropriate and best represent their State, regardless of race, creed or religion. We should take this opportunity to celebrate that notion.

I urge immediate passage.

I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, so I will continue to reserve the balance of my time.

I continue to reserve.

Yes.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise to recognize the 100-year anniversary of the birth of the American credit union, the important role that credit unions have come to play in this country, and I urge support of H. Res. 1145.

Today more than 90 million Americans are members of a credit union. These millions of Americans are the beneficiaries of an experiment that began a century ago with the establishment of St. Mary's Cooperative Credit Association. From these humble beginnings in Manchester, New Hampshire, more than 8,000 credit unions have sprouted up that provide financial services to credit union members all across this Nation.

I would like to recognize credit unions for the important role they play in many distressed urban and rural areas. Many constituents have told me that they would not have been able to afford their own homes, start new business or even attend college without the help of their credit unions. I am also impressed by credit unions' commitment to financial literacy, which has helped credit union members become better educated consumers of financial services.

For these reasons, I support H. Res. 1145, celebrating the 100th anniversary of the American credit union.

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

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