Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2024
Floor Speech
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Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Mr. Chair, I thank Ranking Member Kaptur for her leadership in yielding the time and I thank the gentleman from Tennessee and all the professional staff who have been working hard over the past day and a half to get appropriations back on track in the people's House.
Mr. Chair, I rise in opposition to H.R. 4394.
In the midst of all the turmoil across the globe and weeks of GOP chaos here on Capitol Hill, there is good news to share with the American people. It is a story of American innovation that is benefiting our neighbors and communities all across this great country. Innovation that is putting money back into people's pockets at a time they really need it.
Over the past year since Democrats passed and President Biden signed historic laws investing in infrastructure and clean energy and American workers, the American economy has been booming and our neighbors are enjoying some lower costs, good-paying jobs are being created, and folks back home are building safer, healthier, more resilient communities.
Infrastructure and clean energy are reducing pollution. They are improving our health. They are countering China's push to control supply chains, and that is why this GOP bill must fail.
The GOP bill takes America backwards. The GOP bill is a gift to China. This GOP bill is a recipe for higher energy bills.
The Democrats simply are not going to let the GOP take us backwards. It has been about 1 year since I stood by President Biden as he signed the historic clean energy law, the Inflation Reduction Act, and let me tell you it has been difficult to keep up with all of the announcements of new American factories and jobs in Ohio, in Tennessee, in Kentucky, Georgia, South Carolina, Pennsylvania.
I keep a list here. Suniva, a U.S. solar manufacturer in Norcross, Georgia, announced 240 jobs. They are the ones who fought cheap Chinese exports.
Stellantis and Samsung are building an EV battery plant in Kokomo, Indiana, 1,400 workers.
Polaris is building in Huntsville, Alabama, electric utility vehicles for the Army.
LG Energy Solution and Honda, $3.8 billion for EV battery plants. The list goes on and on.
America is the envy of the world because we have a clean energy law that is creating jobs. Along with the infrastructure and the CHIPS and Science Act, in Florida, we have seen about $500 million in new investments and about 1,700 jobs. Across the country at the lowest estimate, there are about 170,000 new jobs.
America is the envy of the world because of our clean energy laws. I will say it again. Our economy is booming, and we are not going to let the Republicans take us backwards.
Just this morning, it was announced that U.S. gross domestic product, a measure of all goods and services produced in the United States, rose at 4.9 percent which was much better than anyone expected. Private sector investment is flocking to clean energy and infrastructure projects in your districts and mine.
Clean energy projects don't just create new good-paying jobs. They also lower energy costs for our neighbors back home and all American families and we sure do need it.
In the Tampa-St. Pete area that I have the privilege of representing, electric bills are out of sight. They are astronomical.
In a single year, this past year, the average Tampa Electric Company customer saw an increase by a whopping $492. Why? Because they generate electricity based on oil and gas, primarily.
Thankfully, cleaner, cheaper energy, and energy efficiency is on its way to lower people's electric bills, and we cannot let the Republicans gut what we are doing in clean energy to lower electric bills.
Here is another good, new report that Floridians and all Americans needed.
Yesterday, the Biden administration announced help for consumers to afford these high energy bills. Florida will receive $106 million in Federal funds to lower home energy bills. I haven't even mentioned the high cost of extreme weather. Extreme heat across the country is hurting farmers. It is fueling fires and costly extreme weather events, and it is creating higher insurance premiums. Indeed, we just lived through the hottest summer on record. It was roasting. We have to reduce pollution that is causing this overheating and the higher cost on communities.
Mr. Chair, at the appropriate time today, I will offer this motion to recommit to send this bill back to committee. If the House rules permitted, I would have offered the motion with an important amendment to this bill. My amendment would strike two sections, 311 and 312.
Mr. Chair, I include in the Record the text of my amendment.
Ms. Castor of Florida moves to recommit the bill H.R. 4394 to the Committee on Appropriations with the following amendment.
Strike sections 311 and 312.
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Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes.'' Please tank this bill which takes us backwards.
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Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I have a motion to recommit at the desk.
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Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
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