James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act of 2010

Floor Speech

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Mr. NADLER of New York. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 2 minutes.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the Zadroga 9/11 Compensation Act.

On September 11, 2001, Osama bin Laden orchestrated the deadliest terrorist attack in American history, killing almost 3,000 people and wounding thousands more. The attacks created an environmental nightmare as hundreds of tons of every contaminant known to man and woman came out onto the streets and canyons of Manhattan and Brooklyn. Into this toxic crowd ran firefighters and police and other first responders. First responders came from all 50 States to aid in the rescue and clean up in the subsequent days.

The Environmental Protection Administration, the EPA, despite ample evidence to the contrary, kept falsely proclaiming that the air was safe to breathe. It wasn't. The terrorists caused environmental catastrophe, but the Federal Government compounded the damage by telling people the environment was safe when it wasn't, and now thousands of people are sick and in need of special care.

We have a moral obligation to treat those who became ill, and that's what this bill is all about. For 8 years, Representative Maloney and I, supported on a bipartisan basis by the New York delegation and others, have worked to bring this bill to the floor. Now it's finally time to pass it.

Time and again, as we moved the bill through the legislative process, we have adjusted it, reduced its size and scope, limited its cost and made concessions to broaden the coalition and lower the cost. We worked with our colleagues on the other side of the aisle to reopen the Victims Compensation Fund in a responsible way in order to protect contractors from liability so they would not find they sacrificed their businesses to serve their country. We even agreed to cap attorneys' fees.

I know some Members are concerned about the cost of providing this assistance. Let me emphasize, this bill is fiscally responsible and balances the needs of our 9/11 heroes with fiscal constraints. It is completely paid for. We have achieved this by closing a tax loophole which allows foreign companies to evade U.S. taxes.

Second, we have capped the funding level, capped the number of people who can participate, and capped the number of years the program can continue. Just within the past month we have brought the cost of the bill down an additional $3 billion.

Now, let me appeal to my colleagues on the other side of the aisle. I understand that some of you may have a problem with the offset, even though it is not aimed at U.S. companies and is simply designed to improve withholding of taxes that are legally due. I understand that.

But I have to ask you this: just consider for a moment what we are talking about. Balance that tax break against the needs of our 9/11 heroes, needs that are so great, so raw and so obvious, and let our moral obligation to the heroes of 9/11, our obligation, as Lincoln said, ``to care for him who shall have borne the battle'' prevail. Let us do the honorable thing and vote for this bill.

To me, the choice is simple. I will be voting for the firefighters, for the police, for the first responders, for the survivors of the attacks. I urge every Member of the House to do the same.

And I want to thank Congresswoman Maloney, the New York delegation, the Speaker, the majority leader, the chairmen of the various committees, Frank Pallone, and all the organizations like the International Association of Fire Fighters, the National Association of Police Organizations for supporting this vital bill.

Do the right thing. Do the moral thing. Do the only moral thing. Vote for this bill.

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