Providing for Consideration of H.R. 3534, Consolidated Land, Energy, and Aquatic Resources Act of 2010; and Providing for Consideration of H.R. 5851, Offshore Oil and Gas Worker Whistleblower Protection Act of 2010
Floor Speech
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Mr. McGOVERN. I thank the gen tle lady for yielding to me and for her leadership on this issue.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the rule, and I rise in strong support of the underlying bill. And to my friend from Texas who talks about listening to our constituents, let me assure him, I listen to my constituents every week when I go home. And what I hear from them is that they are sick and they are tired of my friends on the other side of the aisle continuing to rise on this floor to be apologists for Big Oil. What my constituents want and I think what the American people want is smart regulation, better safety standards, whistleblower protection. They want to make sure that a repeat of what we just saw in the gulf never happens again.
My friend talks about jobs. How many jobs have been lost because of this oil spill? How many fishermen are out of business? How many hotels and restaurants have lost business because of this terrible crisis? You know, this crisis has had such a negative impact on jobs that I can't even begin to quantify. So my friend talks about jobs, it is because of the recklessness and the lack of oversight by the Bush administration that got us here, and we don't want to see this repeated again and again and again.
So this is a good bill, and it's a smart bill. If you want to apologize for Big Oil, go right ahead. But the American people are not on your side on this one.
Mr. Speaker, I also rise to express my strong support for the Land and Water Conservation Fund program and particularly for the Stateside program. The Stateside program provides matching Federal grants to States and local communities to develop outdoor recreation facilities and parks and conserves brilliant natural spaces throughout the country. Since the creation of the Land and Water Conservation Fund program in the 1960s, funding levels for the Stateside program have fluctuated widely.
This is especially evident over the past decade. Between fiscal years 2002 and 2005, between $91 million and $140 million per year was appropriated for the Stateside program. Unfortunately, in sharp contrast, only $19 million to $40 million has been appropriated between fiscal years 2006 and 2007, representing less than 10 percent of the total land and water conservation funding per year. The Stateside program is a good program that benefits communities across the country. It is a good, strong program that deserves adequate funding.
Now, Mr. Speaker, I would like to enter into a colloquy with the chairman of the Natural Resources Committee, the gentleman from West Virginia (Mr. Rahall).
Mr. Chairman, as you know, I have serious concerns about the funding levels for the Stateside LWCF program. I am pleased that that the CLEAR Act provides for permanent funding for the entire LWCF program, but I remain concerned that there is no statutory program supporting equitable funding for the Stateside program.
As you know, unfortunately, the Stateside program has been chronically underfunded. I think we can all agree that these programs positively contribute to the vibrancy of our communities, and actually create jobs. Stateside funding has widespread support, and I seek your assurance that we can find a way to provide increased funding for the Stateside LWCF program.
I yield to the gentleman from West Virginia.
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Mr. McGOVERN. I want to thank Chairman Rahall for allowing me the opportunity to address my concerns, and for working with me toward ensuring the Stateside program receives the funding it deserves.
Again, I want to thank the gen tle lady from Maine for the time. I will close by urging my colleagues to support the rule, support the CLEAR Act, and let this Congress go on record as standing with the people of this country and not standing with Big Oil.
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