Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I want to take this opportunity to honor the life of Roger Andal, Vietnam veteran and former South Dakota Commander of the Disabled American Veterans, who died on Tuesday, June 13, 2006, at the age of 57 from complications after surgery in his battle against Crohn's disease.

I am deeply saddened by the news that my good friend Roger Andal has passed away. Roger lived a life of service to his fellow Americans. He was drafted in July 1969 and was sent to Vietnam that December where he served as a platoon medic with the Army's 4th Infantry Division. Roger served the next five months in the jungle around Pleiku in the central highlands of Vietnam before being hit with shrapnel from a rocket propelled grenade. He spent the following five months in military hospitals before being honorably discharged on April 13, 1971.

Following his tour of duty in Vietnam, Roger became one of the most tenacious and most effective advocates for veterans that South Dakota, or the nation, has ever seen. Roger's cause was righteous and his will was unyielding. But even in those tough and passionate battles on issues he cared about, he also brought a caring spirit, a hearty laugh, and a ready hug that touched all who knew him. Roger relished a good battle, but he was as kindhearted as he was dogged in his pursuit of ensuring that the federal government keep its promises to our nation's veterans. As State Commander of the South Dakota Disabled American Veterans, he was a true leader, who fought the tough fights and led by example. He quietly suffered the effects of his own injuries while working so hard to ease the pain of others, including the physical and mental pain experienced by his fellow combat veterans years after their service to the country.

Today, we remember and honor the noble service and the undeterred commitment of Roger Andal to the United States of America. I join with all South Dakotans in expressing my sympathies to his family. Roger's commitment to and sacrifice for our nation will never be forgotten. The lives of countless veterans and their families, including my own, were touched and helped by Roger's work, and we all have a heavy burden to carry in his absence. My thoughts and prayers are with Roger's wife Peggy, his children and all his family in this time of sorrow and I look forward to continuing to fight for those things Roger cared about so deeply.

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

(Ms. HERSETH asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, we on this side of the aisle support passage of H.R. 4013. This bill would provide the opportunity for conjunctive use of surface and groundwater in Juab County, Utah. The Central Utah Project, as it was originally planned, would have provided Juab County with sufficient water supplies.

However, this project has evolved over time; and under current plans, Central Utah Project water would not be available to east Juab County. The pending legislation resolves this issue and would provide the county with an opportunity to develop needed water resources.

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

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

(Ms. HERSETH asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, as the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Renzi) explained, H.R. 4162, the Los Padres National Forest Land Exchange Act, provides for the exchange of lands between the Secretary of Agriculture and the United Water Conservation District of California.

The legislation consolidates the land ownership surrounding Lake Piru in Congressman Gallegly's district.

We note with appreciation that the bill, as amended, does not include language that would have exempted this land exchange from the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969.

Mr. Speaker, we have no objection to the bill.

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

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

(Ms. HERSETH asked and was given permission to revise and extend her remarks.)

Mr. Speaker, this is a very important bill for the district I represent. I certainly thank Mr. Renzi and the committee and subcommittee leadership on both sides of the aisle for their support of this important legislation.

H.R. 3967 shifts Pactola Reservoir water from declining irrigation use to municipal and industrial use where it is sorely needed. This legislation reflects an agreement reached by the Bureau of Reclamation, the local irrigation users and local municipal and industrial water users to adapt to the changing water needs of the larger Rapid City community.

I would like to thank Director Jabloski of the Rapid City Public Works and Rapid City Mayor Jim Shaw for their hard work on this issue. I am proud to sponsor and to support this legislation that will help satisfy the water needs of Rapid City's growing population.

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

Mr. Speaker, I am introducing the Indian Country Educational Empowerment Act. This Act will facilitate economic growth and development in Indian

Country by dramatically increasing the incentives for individuals with advanced degrees to work within and for Indian Country.

I am deeply concerned by the fact that Native Americans continue to rank at the bottom of every indicator of social and economic well-being in America. Unemployment continues to average near 50 percent in Indian Country and hovers well over 90 percent on many Reservations. Indian Country continues to have some of the highest rates of poverty, poorest health, highest mortality rates, and lowest levels of educational achievement in the United States.

A unique legal and political relationship exists between the United States and Indian tribes that is reflected in the Constitution, various treaties, Federal statutes, Supreme Court decisions, and executive agreements. This creates a responsibility for the federal government to facilitate and complement tribal governments' efforts to improve the quality of life for Native Americans and encourage economic development in Indian Country. This bill does just that.

Numerous external efforts at economic development in Indian Country have proven unsuccessful. The most successful efforts have been initiated from within native communities themselves. Economic development efforts that empower native communities and give them the tools to make their own decisions should be encouraged and pursued.

I believe that education and economic development go hand-in-hand in Indian Country. Indeed, higher education is a fundamental form of economic development. Yet, an uneducated workforce continues to be a cyclical obstacle to economic growth in Indian Country.

The cycle is vicious. Businesses are often unwilling to locate into Indian Country because of the lack of an educated workforce and Native American youth see little value in an advanced degree because there are no jobs on the Reservation that would reward one. Those native youth that do obtain a higher education often do not return to their communities because there are no jobs.

Higher education is costly to attain. As college and graduate school costs continue to swell, students are increasingly shouldering high levels of debt to pay for a college education. In fact, thirty-nine percent of student borrowers now graduate with levels of debt that require monthly payments in excess of eight percent of their total monthly incomes.

Loan repayment assistance for higher education graduates choosing to work in Indian Country will help break this cycle of poverty and promote economic development. I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation.

Mr. Speaker, today I am pleased to introduce the Oglala Sioux Tribe Angostura Irrigation Project Rehabilitation and Development Act. This legislation authorizes much-needed efficiency improvements to the irrigation facilities at the Angostura Unit, a Federal Bureau of Reclamation dam on the Cheyenne River in South Dakota. These improvements will restore critical water resources and promote economic development on the nearby Pine Ridge Indian Reservation.

This bill provides important resources to the citizens of South Dakota and the Lakota people of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. It authorizes funds to carry out the Bureau of Reclamation's recommended improvements to the irrigation facilities at the Angostura dam. The dam provides substantial economic benefits to many South Dakotans. It provides irrigation to 12,218 acres of land which benefits ranchers and agricultural producers in the area, and it supports an important recreational boating and fishing industry which is enjoyed by many of our citizens.

Until now, however, the Angostura dam has failed to provide any of these economic benefits to the members of the Oglala Sioux Tribe who live just 20 miles downstream of the dam on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. The Oglala Sioux Tribe has long relied on the resources provided by the Cheyenne River, which forms part of the northern boundary of its reservation. Long before the dam was constructed as part of the Pick-Sloan Missouri River Basin Project, the tribe relied on the river as an important economic resource. Since it was completed, however, the dam has taken an enormous toll on the tribe. The dam curbed the Cheyenne River's natural flow, reducing water quality on the reservation, diminishing natural riparian habitats, adversely impacting fish and wildlife and forcing important tribal agricultural enterprises to shut their doors.

The bill implements the Bureau of Reclamation's preferred alternative in its revised water management plan for the Angostura Unit, which calls for improved efficiencies in irrigation operations that will free up additional water resources for both existing water users and the tribe. In addition, the legislation would authorize the creation of a trust fund to compensate the tribe for the devastating economic impacts and loss of natural resources caused by the operation of the dam. The fund will be used to promote economic and infrastructure development on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and enhance the education, health and general welfare of the Oglala Lakota people.

I hope that my distinguished colleagues will take up and pass this legislation quickly. It will allow all of us in South Dakota to better use our natural resources, while keeping our solemn commitment to deal fairly and honorably with the Oglala Sioux Tribe and the Lakota people of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. I ask for your help and support in moving it forward.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce legislation that will facilitate the timely and seamless transfer of the Homestake Hydroelectric Project Number 1 from the Barrick Gold Corporation to the City of Spearfish, South Dakota.

This hydroelectric facility, originally constructed to provide electricity for a gold mine in the Black Hills of South Dakota, has operated continuously since 1912. The mine recently closed and the city of Spearfish acquired the project with plans to operate it to both generate power and benefit downstream water users.

When the city acquired the project, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission asserted jurisdiction, based on a finding that a pre-1920 federal right-of-way grant which authorized the occupancy of federal lands by the project, had expired. This project has been operating for more than 90 years under a 1909 right-of-way allowing the project to occupy U.S. Forest Service land in the Black Hills National Forest. The project had never previously been subject to FERC jurisdiction under the Federal Power Act and the U.S. Forest Service maintains that the right-of-way continues to be valid.

The legislation accomplishes three goals. First, the legislation strikes a balance between the various and important water uses of Spearfish Creek--agricultural irrigation use, power generation, recreation, aesthetic and to protect a unique and historic trout fishery.

Second, it authorizes the United States Geological Study to examine the hydrology of the watershed to ensure that future management of the stream is based on sound science.

Third, it enables the City of Spearfish, South Dakota, to assume operation of the facility without having to undertake the lengthy and complex federal hydroelectric licensing process operated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission,

This legislation would enable the facility to continue operating as it has since its construction. It also recognizes that the City of Spearfish and the State of South Dakota are well equipped--as they have been for the past century--to appropriately manage the flows of Spearfish Creek.

Mr. Speaker, on May 22, 2006, I missed rollcall vote No. 177 on S. 1235, the Veterans Benefits Improvement Act, and rollcall vote No. 178 on H.R. 3858, the Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards Act. I was unable to vote because I was participating in a House Agriculture Subcommittee field hearing and post-hearing meetings with automobile industry executives in Rochester, MI, on the role that industry can play in promoting renewable energy technology in the United States. Had I been present and voting, I would have voted ``yea'' on S. 1235 and ``yea'' on H.R. 3858.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge and address an oversight that occurred on legislation that I recently introduced in the House of Representatives. For

the past several months, I have been working with several of my House colleagues to draft a comprehensive bill that would significantly increase the production and utilization of renewable fuels in this country. The bill, H.R. 5372, is entitled the Bioenergy Innovation, Optional Fuel Utilization, and Energy Legacy (BIOFUEL) Act of 2006.

Throughout this process, one of my colleagues, the chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, Jim Clyburn, was among the most helpful and enthusiastic supporters of this legislation. Prior to introduction of the bill, Chairman Clyburn had made it clear to my office that he would like to be listed as an original cosponsor when the bill was introduced. Unfortunately, due to an oversight on my part, Mr. Clyburn's name was not included on the bill as an original cosponsor, as it should have been. His name has since been added to the legislation but I regret this error and I wanted my colleagues to know of his invaluable contribution to the bill and that he should be considered an original cosponsor.

I thank the gentlewoman for yielding.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support today of the resolution in H.R. 4200, the Forest Emergency Recovery and Research Act. I have been working on this legislation for many months with Chairman Walden, with Representative Baird, Chairman Goodlatte, and many others, and I have appreciated their leadership on this important issue.

I serve on both the House Resources and Agriculture Committees, and have been able to consider this legislation from both seats. H.R. 4200 has been through numerous congressional hearings, including field hearings, extensive discussions on language and provisions, two committee markups, and multiple adjustments along the way. The process has been open and responsive to many of the concerns raised by the bill's opponents.

When I first began discussing this bill with others, the conversations started with the recognition that our country's forest management system as it pertains to the aftermath of fires, hurricanes, and beetle infestations or other events is critically broken. Forest managers often have the knowledge but not the ability to respond, unlike their State, tribal, or county counterparts.

In the face of this paralysis we all recognize that, far from being over, another crisis sometimes begins after the fire is extinguished. The cost of inaction is high and has been felt in my home State of South Dakota.

In 1988, fire burned a portion of the Custer National Forest in northwestern South Dakota. The Forest Service was unable to remove any of the dead trees, and in 2002 the same area burned again. The second fire consumed most of the organic matter and new generation, inflicting even more harm.

Now, pictured to my right is the reburned area. The white lines of ash that you see throughout this photo are what remain from the trees downed by the original 1988 fire. Swift action after the first fire could have prevented this bare landscape and could have helped the area to regenerate.

I support H.R. 4200 and the corresponding rule not only because of the past consequences of inaction, but in anticipation of what the next fire season may leave us with. Many of today's forests are subject to drought conditions, bug infestations, and in many cases an unhealthy and overgrown condition. This is certainly true in South Dakota. Fires in places like these pose an extra and unnatural risk, high-intensity fires that destroy precious sources and soils and in many instances damage any real chance at natural regeneration. The need for sensible and responsive management tools is clear.

To meet this need, H.R. 4200 brings two new and important ideas to the table: a fund dedicated to post-catastrophic events science research, and the creation of preapproved practices. Science is the essential. It should be the touchstone of our management decisions, and in the face of new scientific evidence we should adjust the way we manage our forests.

H.R. 4200 recognizes that need and creates a new program to analyze and better understand forest regeneration. In fact, the bill requires that 10 percent of the proceeds from any recovery project go toward the new research activity. This emphasis serves an important check on forest management decisions and will complement the bill's numerous requirements that all actions must be consistent with the underlying forest management plan.

The other innovative aspect of this legislation is the creation of preapproved practices. As we can see from this picture, delays do have consequences. Fortunately, this could have been averted with swift action, actions enabled, but, as Mr. Walden explained, not required by H.R. 4200. With the completion of preapproved

techniques and practices, we will have a library of approved actions to choose from, each tailored to meet unique forest recovery needs, and all of them ready for implementation. This process will make the most of the time we have before a catastrophe takes place. They will allow managers to consider the unique landscape and ecology of each forest. As they are drafted and approved, they will provide an important forum for public input and oversight. H.R. 4200 includes key provisions to ensure that forest management plans are followed. If they are followed, it preserves the public's role and in many instances goes even further. The bill language actually weighs in against plantation-like restoration projects and requires that new temporary roads built to achieve recovery projects be obliterated.

The bill has been strengthened by many changes that I mentioned throughout the Resources and Agriculture Committees hearings, and I think that my colleagues should support it as is. I encourage them to do so without the addition of any further amendments. I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 4200, to vote ``yes'' on the rule and on passage of the bill.

Mr. Speaker, I want to take this opportunity to honor the life of Staff Sgt. Greg Wagner who died May 8, 2006, from wounds suffered while serving in Iraq.

Every member of the House of Representatives has taken a solemn oath to defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic. While we certainly understand the gravity of the issues facing this legislative body, Greg lived that commitment to our country. Today, we remember and honor his noble service to the United States and the ultimate sacrifice he has paid with his life to defend our freedoms and foster liberty for others.

The lives of countless people were enormously enhanced by Greg's compassion and service. Greg, who represented the best of the United States, South Dakota, and the military, continues to inspire all those who knew him and many who did not. Our Nation and the State of South Dakota are far better places because of his service, and the best way to honor him is to emulate his devotion to our country.

I join with all South Dakotans in expressing my sympathies to the family of Staff Sgt. Greg Wagner. His commitment to and sacrifice for our Nation will never be forgotten.

Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me time.

Before I address some of the specific provisions of the motion to instruct, which I urge my colleagues to support, I do need to take a moment to respond to Mr. Burton, the gentleman from Indiana, who spoke moments ago.

In my opinion, we need to elect people who will make a true commitment to developing renewable energy in this country. His statements toward all of us on this side of aisle, respectfully, were overinclusive. I am someone who has supported a balanced and diversified energy policy and an approach to meeting the needs of this country that includes domestic oil and gas exploration.

But even using the best estimates of our percentage of the world's reserves of our domestic oil supply, we simply cannot drill our way out of this problem. And step number one should be a true commitment to renewable energy, not step number one being where we can drill next.

In recent days we have heard a lot of rhetoric from our colleagues on the other side of the aisle regarding the need to provide relief for those facing severe hardships due to today's sky-high energy prices. Now, I agree with the need to act. We should have acted last fall when we confronted the same problem. This is probably the most pressing concern on the minds of my constituents in South Dakota right now, who, as rural citizens, drive further to work, drive further to get their kids to school, drive further to get to the doctor. We had farmers who had the most expensive harvest last fall because of fuel prices, who are now facing the prospect of the most expensive spring planting season for the same reason. So I am sincerely hoping that my colleagues ultimate actions on the other side of the aisle will reflect and match their words.

We have learned that House Republican conferees have been objecting to Senate-passed provisions in the tax reconciliation package that would strip unnecessary oil company tax breaks from the bill. This includes some changes to arcane inventory laws and other reasonable changes that Big Oil simply does not need in this time of record profits and record prices, as my colleagues have noted.

So adopting these Senate provisions would raise nearly $5 billion in Federal revenue over 5 years. That is very good in this tight budgetary environment, and it is an important reason to do it, but it is not the primary reason to do it.

The primary reason to do it is that Big Oil is making record profits, profits made on the backs of taxpayers who are truly struggling to fill their tanks. And those same taxpayers should not be subsidizing them with unnecessary tax breaks that the oil companies clearly do not need.

Madam Speaker, I oppose this whole reckless tax package, because at a time of record deficits in this country, we simply cannot afford to pass a budget bill that actually makes the deficit worse.

This motion to instruct by my colleague from Washington is an opportunity to inject a small amount of sanity and fiscal discipline into what has otherwise been a broken and misguided process. The Senate saw the wisdom of including these provisions and the folly of continuing to grant more than $5 billion in tax breaks to huge oil companies at a time of record profits and record prices. Even President Bush said yesterday that at least $2 billion of the subsidies to Big Oil through special tax breaks lavished by the Republican Congress on the oil companies is unnecessary.

I only hope that the conferees from this Chamber also see the correctness of the President's statement and the Senate approach to these provisions, agree to this motion, and to recede to

the Senate provisions in the bill. It will benefit all Americans as both energy consumers and taxpayers.

Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the motion.

Mr. Speaker, On April 5, 2006. I missed Rollcall vote No. 90 on H.R. 1127, the Darfur Peace and Accountability Act to impose sanctions against individuals responsible for genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, to support measures for the protection of civilians and humanitarian operations, and to support peace efforts in the Darfur region of Sudan, and for other purposes. Had I been present and voting, I would have voted yes on the Darfur Peace and Accountability Act.

Mr. Chairman, I thank the gentleman from Michigan for his leadership, as well as the gentleman from South Carolina for his.

As I travel throughout the State of South Dakota, the number one issue my constituents raise with me is health care. For thousands of families in my State and millions across the country, health care is their top priority. But this budget not only fails to make health care a national priority, it makes the crisis worse.

This budget ignores the 46 million Americans without health insurance, and it actually eliminates the transitional Medicaid assistance program that encourages families to leave welfare for the workforce. This budget actually punishes families trying to create a better future by choosing work over welfare.

The budget cuts funding for health research at the NIH and disease prevention at CDC. It eliminates the National Children's Study to improve the health and well-being of children, the kind of common sense research that will pay dividends in the future. We ask the American people to recognize the cost savings that comes with prevention, but this budget fails to make disease prevention and the research that leads to cures a priority.

This budget cuts Urban Indian Health Centers which serve Native Americans across the country, including in a number of communities in South Dakota. And as has already been noted, it cuts funding for veterans health care by $6 billion over the next 5 years, and it shifts the burden of health care costs for our troops and their families from a grateful nation to the very families with loved ones serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

And this budget is particularly hard on seniors. As Mr. Dingell already noted, by allowing a cut to physicians under Medicare it will make it harder for millions of seniors to find quality health care services, particularly in already underserved areas.

And for the millions of seniors struggling to navigate the Medicare drug benefit bureaucracy, this budget does absolutely nothing to solve that problem. For seniors forced to deal with the poor planning and implementation of CMS and the private drug plans, this budget does nothing for them or the community pharmacists who have shouldered most of the burden.

Congress can do better. We owe it to the American people to do better, and I urge my colleagues to demand that the committee either bring us a new budget, one that makes health care a national priority or, better yet, support the Democratic substitute, which does just that.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize and pay tribute to an individual who has earned a reputation as one of the most important and influential agricultural leaders in my home state of South Dakota. Very recently, the longtime president of the South Dakota Farmers Union, Dennis Wiese, retired from that position and passed the torch to the next generation of farm leaders. It is on this occasion that I would like to recognize and honor the valuable contributions that he has made to the South Dakota Farmers Union and to South Dakota agriculture.

Dennis first began his involvement in agriculture as a young boy on his family's farm near Flandreau, South Dakota. After graduating from high school he began farming. As he immersed himself in the operation of his farm, Dennis became increasingly interested in agricultural and rural issues that he saw affecting family agriculture. This led to active participation in farm policy debates. In 1993, this interest culminated in his election as the president of the South Dakota Farmers Union, one of the most influential farm organizations in our state. In that role, Dennis served as a staunch and effective advocate for public policy on behalf of the state's farmers and ranchers. He earned a reputation as an honest and valuable source of information, and a fountain of new ideas for positive policy change. He also simultaneously served as a member of the board of directors of the National Farmers Union Property and Casualty Insurance Companies.

During his time as president of the South Dakota Farmers Union he met with national leaders, including President Bill Clinton on several occasions, to discuss issues affecting rural America. Dennis counseled many members of Congress on agricultural matters, including Senators Tim Johnson, Tom Daschle, Larry Pressler and John Thune, and Congressman Bill Janklow and myself, among others. He also has served on national agricultural panels with other prominent rural leaders and he has testified before the Senate and House agriculture committees on numerous occasions.

I had the great good fortune to work with Dennis in another of his important endeavors; one that I think will be one of his finest legacies. In 2003, he was the driving force behind the creation and success of the South Dakota Farmers Union Foundation, a nonprofit charitable organization that conducts education programs that teach youth, young adults, farm families, and others about cooperatives and other issues important to family farm agriculture and our rural communities. I was fortunate enough to be the first executive director of that worthy organization and was able to see first hand the talent and dedication that Dennis brings to all of his efforts to assist South Dakota and rural America.

Dennis announced in January of 2005 that he would not seek re- election after serving 12 years as president of the 14,000-member South Dakota Farmers Union. He was replaced in an election in November of last year by another impressive agriculture leader in my state, Doug Sombke. Since Dennis' retirement, he has started a government affairs and economic development consulting firm in his home town of Flandreau, South Dakota. He is now putting his full energies into expanding that business. He is working on many significant and important projects, including the expansion of South Dakota processing company that produces and markets locally grown premium Hereford beef.

It is because of the leadership of bright and dedicated men and women like Dennis Wiese that the challenges facing farmers and ranchers across the country receive the attention

they deserve and the unique needs of rural America are heard. It was my pleasure to work with Dennis during my time leading the South Dakota Farmers Union Foundation, and also to benefit from his experience, wisdom, and counsel during my first year in Congress and on the House Agriculture Committee.

Dennis' family, including his wife, Julie, and his children Dayton, Kyle, Owen, Austin and Elissa are justifiably proud of their father and husband for his work on behalf of family farmers and ranchers. I look forward to continuing our close and valuable relationship with Dennis as he continues to serve South Dakota and American agriculture.