Ban Asbestos in America Act

Floor Speech

BAN ASBESTOS IN AMERICA ACT -- (Senate - October 15, 2007)

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, In the nearly 7 years that I have worked to pass the Ban Asbestos in America Act, I have been aided by so many dedicated and driven individuals without whom this day would not have been possible. I wish to take a minute to thank them for all they have done.

I would like to begin by thanking my entire personal staff who have taken on this fight with me. Over 7 years many of them have come and gone, but I know they are all very proud today because each and every one of them, in their own unique way, has helped this effort along.

In particular I would like to thank Bill Kamela who, as the head of my HELP Subcommittee on Employment and Workplace Safety, has carried the torch on this issue for so many years.

Bill has sat with me in countless meetings reassuring widows, clearing legislative hurdles, and pledging to all to make this ban a reality. Bill's hard work and expertise have been essential to making this possible. I would also like to thank Anna Knudson, a former member of my staff who had the vision and passion to begin this effort.

I would like to thank Bill's hard-working staff Crystal Bridgeman, Mike Waske, and Janice Camp who lent their know-how and support to this effort at a critical juncture.

I would like to thank Alex Glass and my entire press office for their work in spreading the word about the importance of this effort. And I would like to thank Pete Weissman who recently left my office but whose words often helped drive home the urgency of this effort. I would also like to thank Mike Spahn who worked with me on the Senate floor to guide this bill to passage

I also want to recognize and thank Dr. Barry Castleman, Chris Hahn from the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation, MaryAnne Dunlap from Senator Inhofe's office, Ed Egee from Senator Isakson's office, Linda Reinstein from the Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization, Dr. Aubrey Miller, Dr. Greg Meeker, Dr. Richard Lemen, Dr. Mike Harbut, Dr. Harvey Pass, Andrew Schneider of the Seattle PI, and Matt Bergman.

I also want to say that it has been a pleasure to work with Senator Isakson's staff, the staff from EPW, and Senator Boxer's staff.

It takes a lot of people to get something done. A tremendous amount of people have worked on this. I thank them. Because of their work, we are going to ban asbestos, we are going to dramatically expand research and treatment, and we are going to launch a public education campaign so all Americans understand how they can protect themselves from the deadly asbestos products that may be in their home.

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