Mr. President, another piece of legislation that I am introducing today addresses an issue important to citizens of southern Colorado. The problem is this: cable and satellite subscribers in two southern Colorado counties are forced by…
Mr. President, another piece of legislation that I am introducing today addresses an issue important to citizens of southern Colorado.
The problem is this: cable and satellite subscribers in two southern Colorado counties are forced by current law to receive New Mexico television stations. Lately, I hear almost every day from my constituents that they would prefer to receive Colorado television over New Mexico television.
The problem stems from the fact that these two Colorado counties are located in the Albuquerque designated market area, as determined by Nielsen Media Research. As a matter of fairness, citizens of Colorado should be eligible to receive Colorado TV. Consumers should choose which television stations they receive, especially since they are the ones paying for it.
The bill I am introducing does just that. It makes a commonsense change to the law that allows citizens of La Plata and Montezuma Counties to receive television stations from Denver, not Albuquerque.
I hope that my colleagues will join me in supporting this bill that is nearly identical to laws enacted in previous Congresses that addressed similar problems in other States.
Mr. President, I am introducing a bill dealing with the Granada Relocation Camp, also known as Camp Amache. It played an important, but sad, part in United States history. Camp Amache, one of 10 internment camps in the Nation, was established in August 1942 by the U.S. Government during World War II as a place to house the Japanese from the west coast and was closed on August 15, 1945. This is a significant part of American history and it should be preserved. My bill today will designate the Granada Relocation Camp as a national historic site in Colorado.
Mr. President, another piece of legislation I am introducing today will authorize the expansion of the boundary of Mesa Verde National Park. The boundary adjustment will allow for the incorporation of 324 acres of land owned by the Henneman family, which is being purchased by the Conservation Fund for conveyance to the park, as well as a 38-acre parcel that will be donated to the park by the Mesa Verde Foundation.
Mesa Verde National Park protects some of the best preserved and most notable archeological sites in the world. There are over 4,000 known archeological sites in the park, including 600 cliff dwellings. These sites were constructed by ancestral Puebloans, who occupied this area for over 700 years, from 600 A.D. to 1300 A.D.
Mr. President, the Baca National Wildlife Refuge Purpose bill will give the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service management tools that will allow the agency to run the Baca National Wildlife Refuge in a way that achieves the most beneficial use of this wonderful natural resource. The Baca National Wildlife Refuge consists of 92,500 acres of wetlands, sage brush, and riparian lands adjacent to the Great Sand Dunes National Park in southern Colorado. I, along with my former colleague from Colorado's 3rd Congressional District, U.S. Representative Scott McInnis, sponsored the legislation that converted the Sand Dunes from a monument to a park. This legislation also authorized the Federal acquisition of the Baca Ranch lands and I remain actively interested in the area's management.
Mr. President, I am introducing legislation which will extend congressional authorization for the Cache la Poudre Heritage Area in northern Colorado and will give local citizens greater management authority over the area. Under the original legislation, authored by former Colorado. Senator Hank Brown, the Secretary of Interior was to appoint a commission to work with the National Park Service and manage the area, but because of a technicality, the Secretary was unable to appoint the commission. In response, local citizens stepped up and formed the Poudre Heritage Alliance to support the Heritage Area until an official commission could be named. This legislation would rectify this, and empower local residents to continue the work they have been doing on behalf of the heritage area.
Mr. President, I am introducing a bill that will authorize the EPA to conduct a study of the growth in energy consumption by computer data centers operated by the Federal Government and by private corporations. The study will also examine industry movement toward energy efficient microchips and computer servers, potential cost savings associated with the movement to more efficient machines and what, if any, impacts to performance come with increased efficiency. The results of the study will allow us to more fully understand the impact that the growing number of computers in use throughout the country has on energy consumption. This information will better position Congress to make recommendations to Federal agencies on their energy use and computer selection.
It will also provide private industry with information that will allow them to choose computer models that will decrease their energy consumption, making their companies more efficient and profitable.
Mr. President, currently American seniors enjoy Medicare health plans called cost contracts. Under legislation I am introducing today, seniors will be able to continue utilizing these valued health plans.
Medicare cost contract plans are vital to America. Cost contracts provide Medicare beneficiaries in many rural areas and small cities throughout our country with an affordable, high-quality option to the traditional Medicare fee-for-service plan. For many of these beneficiaries, Medicare Advantage plans do not provide access to physicians in the community.
Medicare cost contracts are managed care plans that are reimbursed on a cost basis for providing health services. Under current law, cost contracts are one option for Medicare beneficiaries. Cost contract premiums cover Medicare deductibles and additional benefits not covered by basic Medicare. Further, for the costs of a normal Medicare fee-for- service copayment, seniors with cost contracts can use any Medicare provider regardless of whether they participate in the health plans network. This is critical in rural areas where physicians are scarce.
Cost contracts are vital to seniors who have them. From New York to Oregon, and even to Hawaii, America's seniors are enrolled in cost contract plans. Cost contracts are especially important in rural Colorado. Of the Coloradans with cost contract plans, 89 percent live in rural Colorado, where few physicians will see patients under straight Medicare or Medicare Advantage.
Many beneficiaries who are enrolled in Medicare cost contract plans live on limited incomes. Under the traditional Medicare program, beneficiaries incur considerable out-of-pocket expenses. In addition, Medicare supplemental insurers frequently age-adjust premiums
and either refuse coverage or impose coverage restrictions for pre- existing conditions. Medicare cost contract plans provide an affordable alternative.
Unfortunately, under current law cost contracts soon will terminate.
I believe Congress should work to extend Medicare cost contracts further. My bill, the Medicare Cost Contract Extension and Refinement Act of 2007, would accomplish this by extending by five years the cost contract sunset date of December 31, 2007, to December 31, 2012.
Cost contracts have been a bipartisan issue, with bipartisan support in the past. Senator Wyden of Oregon worked to get an extension for cost contracts in the 109th Congress, and I look forward to working with him again during the 110th.
Mr. President, I turn now to the issue of housing. Congress created the Mark-to-Market Program in 1997 to reduce Section 8 costs while preserving the affordability and availability of low-income rental housing. The purpose of the program is to reduce the property rents to market level while simultaneously restructuring property debt to prevent FHA defaults.
Studies seem to show that the program has been an overwhelming success. Nearly 250,000 units of affordable housing have been preserved due to the Mark-to-Market Program. This is affordable housing that would have been permanently lost as affordable otherwise. According to HUD, the program has also saved taxpayers more than $2 billion.
The original legislation authorized the Mark-to-Market Program for 4 years, which was subsequently extended for 5 additional years. Therefore, the Mark-to-Market program authority was scheduled to expire on September 30, 2006. Fortunately, the program authority was temporarily extended under the continuing resolutions.
When the program was extended in 2001, it appeared that 5 additional years would be sufficient time for nearly all eligible properties to complete the Mark-to-Market process. However, more recent projections show that nearly 78,000 properties will face rent reductions over the next 5 years.
It is important to note that even though the program will expire, these Section 8 properties with above market rates will still be required to have their rents reduced to market levels. Without the proper tools to also restructure the debt, many owners will lack sufficient funds for property maintenance or mortgage payments. Because many Section 8 properties are also FHA insured, this will result in a significant number of claims against FHA, in addition to many tenant displacements.
Clearly, no one finds this a desirable scenario. Failure to extend the Mark-to-Market Program would be bad for tenants and bad for taxpayers. Thus, I am pleased to join with Senator Reed of Rhode Island in reintroducing the Mark-to-Market Extension Act of 2007. Our bill would extend the program for 5 additional years to allow the remaining properties to go through the Mark-to-Market process. Frankly, I can see no downside to extending the program; It maintains affordable housing for less money.
I am pleased to work with industry groups and with my colleagues to see that this very worthwhile program is extended for an additional 5 years.
Mr. President, the first bill I present today is to address one of the biggest current scourges of our citizens-- methamphetamine abuse.
Just this week, a report published by Colorado's Meth Task Force cited Denver as a major distribution center for meth in the U.S.
Our Nation has been hard hit by the illegal trafficking of meth across U.S. borders. This is a national issue that is growing at a rate that constantly presents a challenge to our talented law enforcement officials. Through our work on the Combat Meth Act, we have provided them with many tools to fight the domestic production of meth. We are now called upon to respond to the issue of foreign produced meth as it presents a growing threat to the U.S.
In just 10 years, meth has become America's worst drug problem--worse than marijuana, cocaine or heroin. My home state of Colorado, like the rest of the Nation, faces challenges associated with the growing epidemic. Although the number of meth labs in the state is on the decline, meth distribution remains rampant because of Denver's location at the intersection of two major interstate highways, both of which serve as pipelines for the distribution of meth after it enters our country.
This evidence is echoed by the many local drug task forces, law enforcement officials, and District Attorneys who are tasked with tackling meth within our communities and who I have worked with on this issue.
According to estimates from the DEA, an alarming 80 percent of the meth used in the United States comes from larger labs, increasingly abroad, while only 20 percent of the meth consumed in this country comes from small laboratories.
Therefore, I propose that we improve efforts to curb the flow of meth both within and across our borders. We must take steps to expand enforcement to reduce the amount of meth being trafficked into the United States by establishing stricter penalties for meth offenders, improving coordination with foreign law enforcement officials, and examining the serious meth problems faced by Indian reservations.
The Methamphetamine Trafficking Enforcement Act of 2007 that I am introducing today is a first step to fighting the trafficking of this drug. My bill addresses the distribution issue by dramatically lowering the quantity and dollar amount thresholds for federal criminal prosecution of leaders of methamphetamine distribution rings.
The trafficking of meth across our borders makes Federal action necessary, but this is not our war to fight alone. This bill also presses upon the United States Trade Representative, the Secretary of State, the Attorney General, and the Secretary of Homeland Security to include new ways to curb the illicit use and shipment of pseudoephedrine, ephedrine, and similar chemicals in multilateral and bilateral negotiations. Federal law enforcement officials will collaborate with their foreign counterparts to fight meth internationally. Working together, we can find a long term solution.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the use, production and distribution of meth on Indian lands has increased in the past decade. With limited numbers of tribal law enforcement officials, meth can easily flow into and be trafficked out of many Indian reservations. This bill urges the Attorney General to research and report to Congress the challenges faced by all Indian reservations and make recommendations to help them address meth trafficking and abuse.
We must recognize the immediacy of the issue of methamphetamine trafficking. It is important that we protect the U.S. and its borders to ensure national security and the safety of our communities. I look forward to working with my colleagues on this issue and invite them to cosponsor the Methamphetamine Trafficking Enforcement Act of 2007.
Mr. President, I am introducing the Arkansas Valley Conduit bill, which will ensure the construction of a pipeline that will provide the small, financially strapped towns and water agencies along the lower Arkansas River with safe, clean, affordable water. This project was originally authorized by Congress in 1962, over 40 years ago, as a part of the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project. Due to several long years of drought and increasing Federal water quality standards, current water delivery methods are not enough. By creating an 80- percent Federal, 20-percent local cost share formula to help offset the construction costs of the conduit, this legislation will protect the future of southeastern Colorado's drinking water supplies and prevent further economic hardship.
Mr. President, another bill dealing with the large military presence in Colorado relates to the expansion of the Army's Pinon Canyon Maneuver Site. Due to an emphasis on rapid mobility, modularity, and maneuverability in recent years, the Army's ability to project force across the battlefield has increased exponentially. As such, the Army transformation is also driving higher their requirement for training space.
With its close location to Fort Carson, Pinon Canyon was perfectly suited for the Army's training needs 20 years ago. However, with the arrival of 10,000 new soldiers to Fort Carson, the Army has determined that the size of the site needs to be increased in order to meet Fort Carson's new operational training requirements.
I have been told repeatedly by Army officials that the genesis of Fort Carson's expansion proposal occurred when several landowners approached Fort Carson and expressed their strong desire to sell. I also understand that sufficient numbers of willing sellers exist to support a significant expansion of the site. However, many in the community surrounding Pinon Canyon have major questions that need to be answered.
In order to get some of these major questions answered, a reporting requirement was placed in the 2006 Defense Authorization bill, approved by both the Senate and the House. However, the Department of Army is restricted on communicating about any specific land acquisition proposal until a waiver for that site has been granted by the Secretary of Defense, which has yet to be granted. Thus, the Army's hands were tied and they were unable to meet the full reporting requirements in the 2006 Defense authorization. I understand the difficult position the Army is on this issue, but I believe it is absolutely necessary that they provide the information to the community and to Congress prior to any acquisition of property.
The leadership at Fort Carson has done a great job of reaching out and providing what information it could to the local communities. However, the Pentagon has not been as forthcoming. I believe the Congress and, more importantly, the local communities in Southeastern Colorado need more information before we can decide whether this proposed expansion is necessary and appropriate.
With these objectives in mind, today I am introducing a bill that clearly defines the process under which the Army can expand the Pinon Canyon Maneuver Site. This legislation prohibits the use of eminent domain, requires the Army to pay fair market value. Most importantly, the bill does not allow the Army to proceed with land acquisition until it delivers the answers previously sought on the environmental and economic impacts of expansion and also must offer options for compensating the loss of property tax revenue.
It is vital that the Army take the time to answer these important questions to help alleviate the affected communities concerns. A number of counties and small towns in Southeastern Colorado could be adversely affected by this expansion, and this study will help us better understand the extent of these impacts and provide options for mitigating them.
Mr. President, in another area, the events of the past several years remind us of the vital role of first responders in responding to natural disasters and terrorists attacks. It is important that our first responders receive the training needed to make critical, life-saving decisions under emergency circumstances. I believe that an essential element of preparing our first responders is to provide them with hands-on experience in real-world training environments.
The importance of real world training was called to my attention by a visit to the Transportation Technology Training Center, TTC, in Pueblo, CO. There, I witnessed first hand the tools at our Nation's disposal to equip our first responders with the training they need, specifically in the context of rail and mass transit. But our national training consortium does not currently include a facility that is uniquely focused on emergency preparedness within the railroad and mass transit environment. The inclusion of TTC would fill a critical gap in its current training agenda.
TTC is a federally owned, 52-square-mile multimodal testing and training facility in Pueblo, CO, operated by the Association of American Railroads, AAR. Each year, an average of 1,700 first responders travel to Pueblo, CO, to participate in TTC's training program. The facility has trained more than 20,000 students in its 20- year history.
The ERTC is regarded as the ``graduate school'' of hazmat training because of its focus on hands on, true to life, training exercises on actual rail vehicles, including tank cars and passenger rail cars. The ERTC is uniquely positioned to teach emergency response for railway- related emergencies.
It is for these reasons that today I introduce a bill authorizing the National Domestic Preparedness Consortium, as expanded to include the Transportation Technology Center in Pueblo, CO, and providing for its coordination and use by the Department of Homeland Security in training the Nation's first responders.
Mr. President, I am reintroducing legislation to establish a National Veteran's Cemetery in the Pikes Peak Region of Colorado in order to meet the needs of veterans in southern Colorado. This legislation is similar to what I have introduced and supported in the past, and seeks to fill a void for many veterans and their families. Colorado's fifth Congressional District contains the third highest concentration of military retirees in the nation. Recent estimates show that there are as many as 175,000 veterans in the area, when including all of southern Colorado. This legislation will allow thousands of eligible southern Colorado military personnel, both active duty and retired as well as the many veterans living in the area, to have a chance to find their final resting place in the region so many of them have come to love and appreciate.
This legislation has been influenced by the growing military retiree and veterans populations in the Pikes Peak region as well as community leaders and local Veterans Service Organizations who have repeatedly brought this issue to my attention over the last several years. It is important to note the passion and perseverance of those that have supported a National Veterans Cemetery and have worked tirelessly on the issue. This legislation is truly citizen-generated and is a testament to the dedication of veterans in the community.
Mr. President, the National Trails System Willing Seller Act will pave the way for the completion of our Nation's most outstanding national trails. The legislation will amend the National Trails System Act of 1968 to make clear that the Federal Government may purchase land to complete several national trails from willing sellers. The legislation specifically names nine trails that are spread across the nation. The Continental Divide trail, stretching from Mexico through Colorado to the Canadian border, is among the trails that await completion.
I was successful in gaining Senate passage of this legislation in the 108th Congress and am hopeful that both the House and Senate will act on the bill this year.