Time is Now to Invest in Infrastructure

Floor Speech

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Mr. COSTA. Madam Speaker, the time is now to make historic investments in families, workers, and communities across the country.

Everyone, no matter who they are or where they live, deserves access to modern, dependable infrastructure to maintain the quality of life for Americans in the 21st century. That is why we must pass the President's bipartisan infrastructure package tomorrow.

We are living off the investments our grandparents and parents made generations ago. In many communities, that is no longer sustainable.

In my home State of California, we are suffering from the devastating effects of climate change, historical fires, and droughts.

Farmers in the San Joaquin Valley, which I represent, also need an infrastructure that reflects their ability to put food on America's dinner table every night. The devastating dry conditions and the lack of water have led many of them to fallow their fields, hundreds and thousands of acres of productive farmland.

It is as simple as this: Without food from our farmers, Americans don't eat. It is a national security issue. Therefore, we must fix our broken water infrastructure system.

The only way to ensure farmers have the water they need to feed our Nation is to build and improve more conveyance and storage facilities.

This infrastructure package will help that, as well as efforts that we are pursuing under the reconciliation package. We need to capture and improve and store water for times such as now.

In addition to that, we need to make other critical investments in rural and underserved areas by expanding broadband. Broadband access today is just like rural electrification was in the 1930s. No American should be without broadband.

We also learned from the COVID-19 crisis that access to quality healthcare is critical. It is critical that we have ample physicians and nurses. We can make more protective equipment, but we can't make more doctors and nurses. Therefore, we have a serious shortage of healthcare professionals, and that is why a part of this effort to build back America better is to provide medical schools and underserved areas improved access to our broadband. That is critical. We must do that.

In addition, investing in public transportation for our economy is just as essential. The United States is trailing other nations when it comes to investments in modern infrastructure and transportation like high-speed rail. It is time that we bring our system into the 21st century.

Finishing California's high-speed rail efforts, along with four other corridors in the country, will help our climate, improve traffic gridlock, and reduce emissions that pollute the air.

Climate change is an important part of this essential package of investing in our infrastructure. We know, with the results of droughts, fires, floods, and hurricanes, that the climate is changing, and we need to provide tools to address that.

Without critical investments in this infrastructure package that we will vote on tomorrow, our Nation will suffer. Making life better for our constituents is my top priority and should be the priority of Congresspeople throughout the country. It requires us to focus on the health and development of our communities, and the economy needs us to support this effort.

Madam Speaker, may I inquire as to how much time I have remaining.

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Mr. COSTA. Madam Speaker, as we talk about building back better, let me also note that we must pass a continuing resolution to ensure that government stays operating.

Shutting down the government is not an option, and we should act upon this in the next 24 hours to whatever extended date is agreed as well as lifting the debt ceiling.

In the 17 years I have been here, I have never, under Republican and Democratic administrations alike, voted to shut down government. That is irresponsible, and therefore, we must also lift the debt ceiling. This is, in fact, to pay bills that Congress in the previous administration has already created, and we don't want to be deadbeats.

The impacts on our economy would be devastating in terms of even contemplating shutting down government or not lifting the debt ceiling. Honoring Sherwood Boehlert

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Mr. COSTA. Madam Speaker, I was saddened to learn of our colleague Congressman Sherry Boehlert's passing. I served with him during his last term, as he was chair of the Science, Space, and Technology Committee.

Sherry was terrific. Sherry's focus on making sure that Americans address the needs of science in a changing world was always at the forefront as chairman of the committee. I went with Sherry on an incredible trip to Antarctica to explore the impacts of climate change.

Beyond his contributions to the Congress and to the people of our country, Sherry was an avid baseball fan. Sherry loved representing Cooperstown and had the best baseball collection I have ever seen.

God bless you, Sherry, and your family.

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