Providing Congressional Disapproval Under Chapter 8 of Title United States Code, of the Rule Submitted By the Environmental Protection Agency Relating to ``California State Motor Vehicle and Engine Pollution Control Standards; Heavy-Duty Vehicle and Engine Emission Warranty and Maintenance Provisions; Advanced Clean Trucks; Zero Emission Airport Shuttle; Zero-Emission Power Train Certification; Waiver of Preemption; Notice of Decision''

Floor Speech

I would say to my colleague, I very much wish that I was not in this position. This morning, I was--like Chairman Lee, I was chairman of the committee, and I know this is a challenging process to put these measures together.

Chairman Lee and I have worked very closely for years on these issues and a host of others, and I look forward to having plenty of opportunities in the future to continue our good work.

One of those bills was S. 356, the Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization Act of 2025, that for years I have championed with my friend and colleague from Idaho Senator Crapo.

Across the West, this legislation has had bipartisan support because it would reauthorize a crucial lifeline--particularly for schools and law enforcement and roads throughout the West.

I was in Grant County recently, a small community in eastern Oregon, and they are basically hanging by a thread if they don't get the Secure Rural Schools money restored. That is why I am here on the floor today.

I am clear that I want us to work together and to get this done as expeditiously as possible. I am committed, as I have been over the years, working with Chairman Lee to advance these bipartisan proposals swiftly.

I deeply regret being out here and having to express my concerns today and to object, and I just hope we can be back on this floor very, very quickly to pass this good package of bills and make sure the Secure Rural Schools legislation is included.

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Mr. WYDEN. Just to briefly respond because we are hearing about hostages and extortion and all this kind of thing. I just want my colleague to know because he and I have worked together for years and years and we have never had a difference of opinion that was based on somebody trying to take hostages and these kinds of things.

This is about something that is really, in my communities, a question of whether they are going to make it in terms of keeping the schools open.

And throughout the West and in the Federal Government, like in my colleague's State, the Federal Government owns much of our land. People are waiting to see if we will work together and fix this.

I want to tell my colleague, I am happy to join him in 20 minutes if we have worked this out, and we will be done, and if my colleague says we will go home and say we got something else done that was constructive.

So I want to renew my point: This is not about politics. It is bipartisan. I stand willing, with my staff, to join the Lee staff right now. We can work together over the next few minutes. We have a unanimous consent request, and we are done.

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