Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2019
Floor Speech
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Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Madam Chair, I rise in support of my amendment, which I believe will make meaningful strides to help alleviate problems of poverty and hunger in Puerto Rico.
Unlike the States, Puerto Rico has been forced to work with the limited NAP block grant since 1982. This has led to a systemic underfunding of the nutritional needs of these American citizens for nearly 4 decades.
Sadly, with a severely restricted budget resulting in reduced benefits and eligibility on the island, we are leaving thousands of families hungry every day.
Already tragic, these problems were made worse when Hurricanes Irma and Maria made landfall. Puerto Rico was devastated, leaving a large share of the population out of work and unable to meet their basic needs.
In the year since the immediate aftermath, the island is still suffering. Poverty levels have risen dramatically and the economy continues struggling. Sixty percent of the children in Puerto Rico live in poverty.
This has meant an increase in the share of individuals who would otherwise be eligible for NAP, except for the fact that the program is capped. NAP is simply incapable of meeting the needs of Puerto Ricans, particularly given the current circumstances resulting from the disaster.
The underlying bill we are debating today will provide Puerto Rico with an additional $600 million for disaster food assistance. I thank the chairwoman for including this critically needed funding.
This funding, and previously appropriated disaster resources, address two critical needs in Puerto Rico. First, it is providing NAP recipients with a bit more support to feed their families. Second, it aids an additional 200,000 people who lost their jobs and homes.
However, I believe Hurricanes Maria and Irma taught us some painful lessons with regard to nutritional support in Puerto Rico. We should be evaluating the benefits that adequate nutritional assistance has on Puerto Rican's health and economy.
My amendment would provide up to $5 million to support the Commonwealth in conducting such a study. This will be an independent analysis that includes a survey of NAP participants on the island and fully investigates the impact disaster nutrition assistance has on the food security, health status, and well-being of the people of Puerto Rico.
I should note that the USDA conducted similar studies for the SNAP program that operates in 53 jurisdictions during and after the Great Recession. It is my hope that this analysis will provide Congress with additional insight and tools to further reduce poverty, hunger, and hardship on the island.
Madam Chair, I urge my colleagues to support this amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.
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Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Madam Chair, I rise to discuss an environmental and humanitarian crisis affecting the people of San Juan.
For decades, Cano Martin Pena has been a repository for sewage overflow, mercury, and PCBs. The Cano Martin Pena was once a navigable and commercially used channel. Today, it is so clogged that it is possible to walk across it on some parts.
Due to the clogging, the approximately 25,000 U.S. citizens who live near the Cano Martin Pena face significant public health and safety challenges. Combined stormwater and the regional sewage system contribute to high concentrations of coliforms in the channel.
Frequent flooding is a constant risk that can put residents into direct contact with polluted water. Exposure to these polluted waters causes an elevated risk of gastrointestinal diseases and a higher prevalence of chronic diseases and asthma. Sadly, we often see these ailments in children 5 years old and younger. Those who reside near the canal live in constant fear that the next rainfall could become a major flood, dumping raw sewage into homes, schools, and businesses.
After the 2017 hurricanes, which exacerbated the Cano Martin Pena crisis with greater flooding, the communities that live near the 3.7 miles of this channel need our help more than ever.
Because of the hurricanes, more than 1,200 families partially or totally lost the roofs of their homes, and 70 percent of the community flooded with wastewater in the immediate aftermath.
These are the working people of San Juan, with one of the highest labor participation rates in the island. All they want is to be able to raise their families in safe and healthy communities. If we are ever to bring justice to these afflicted communities, we must dredge this canal and work toward its long-term remediation.
Puerto Rico has spent millions of dollars attending to the problem, but without additional Federal funds, this project will stall. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is ready to initiate construction as soon as Federal funding is made available.
My amendment will jump-start the most important flood mitigation project for Puerto Rico, ensuring the resiliency of critical infrastructure and doing justice to the working families living in this vulnerable area.
Madam Chair, this is not only an environmental project but a pressing issue of social and environmental justice. The people who live along this troubled canal have suffered long enough, but Hurricanes Maria and Irma underscored how quickly these problems can worsen with extreme weather. We have an obligation to act before the next hurricane or flood.
Madam Chair, I have been there and seen with my own eyes the devastation and hardship caused by this ecological disaster. I have seen children wading in contaminated waters after every heavy rainstorm. I ask my colleagues to join me in helping Puerto Rico by voting in support of this amendment.
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Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Madam Chair, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur).
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Ms. VELAZQUEZ. Madam Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
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