Making further Continuing Appropriations for Fiscal Year 2011, and for other purposes

I rise today in strong support of approving a continuing resolution to maintain a level and consistent funding stream for our government.

It is one of our primary constitutional responsibilities as Members of Congress to keep the Federal government running through the passage of appropriations legislation. This continuing resolution will ensure that all necessary and vital functions of government will continue uninterrupted until both Chambers of our legislature have completed their work.

If we do not act now, the Federal government will effectively shut down this Friday, December 3.

This CR is a short-term, straightforward measure to keep the government running and get us through the next two weeks, until December 18th, when bipartisan negotiations continue between the House and Senate. It is my hope that my colleagues on the other side will work with us now to move this important bill forward and to pass a clean continuing resolution contained under this rule.

This CR will fund the Federal government at levels already approved by the House in the FY10 appropriations bills and FY09 supplemental bill.

This includes extending the authority for the Department of Defense to execute the Commanders Emergency Response Program, An essential tool for military commanders in Iraq and Afghanistan. It would also continue the application period for retroactive stop loss benefits throughout the duration of the continuing resolution. The Retroactive Stop Loss Pay (RSLSP) program provides $500 for each month/partial month served in stop loss status---with an average benefit of $3,700 to the brave servicemen and women, veterans, and beneficiaries of those whose service was involuntarily extended under Stop Loss.

This CR would also continue funding VA hospitals already under construction, including one in my home state of Colorado, the Denver VA Hospital,which serves 58,000 veterans living in Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska and Wyoming. Millions of veterans and their families across this nation depend on the VA for medical care and support. We must pass this CR so that we can continue to build these much-needed facilities. Absent this CR, construction on these VA facilities would grind to a halt, leaving our veterans in the lurch. Our veterans took an oath to defend our country and they deserve to come home to better care and a quality hospital that meets their needs.

This CR would allow the Federal Air Marshals to maintain the existing FY 2010 4th quarter coverage level for international and domestic flights. This funding will allow for continued training, including: investigative techniques, criminal terrorist behavior recognition, firearms proficiency, aircraft specific tactics, and self-defense measures that are necessary to protect the flying public. This funding will allow the Federal Air Marshals fulfill their mission of protecting air passengers and crew. Protecting our nation and combating terrorism is a top priority for this Congress and that without the passage of this CR those efforts with regard to our Air Marshalls will grind to a halt, leaving the travelling public at risk.

The CR would also allow the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection to maintain the level of Customs and Border Protection personnel in place for the final quarter and final few weeksFY 2010. This provides proper funding to keep terrorists and their weapons out of the U.S., secure and facilitate trade and travel, and enforce hundreds of U.S. regulations, including immigration and drug laws.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection law enforcement professionals serve as America's Frontline on our nation's borders, at ports of entry, field stations and checkpoints across the United States. It is important we maintain a consistent level of personnel at our nation's borders. By interrupting these funds we would be jeopardizing CBP's ability to do their job and protect America. This funding enables these officers to inspect our borders, process trade, combat terrorism and smuggling. A vote against this continuing resolution is a vote to gut our border security when we need it the most.

In addition to extending the existing authority for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to regulate chemical facilities that present high levels of risk. This Continuing Resolution would continue to extend the existing Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) authority to provide technical and financial assistance to States and localities for pre-disaster hazard mitigation activities.

As an example in my home state of Colorado, this means keeping in place vital programs such as:

* The 2008 Colorado Springs Wildfire Mitigation Project that removes vegetation around critical facilities and communities.
* The 2008 Denver Regional Hazard Mitigation Plan, which assists 37 communities, townships and counties in the Denver Metro Area in analyzing and assessing their hazard risks.
* The 2007 Coal Creek Crossing affecting the Town of Erie in Boulder County, CO, flood reduction project that helps the Town of Erie modify infrastructure around the Coal Creek Crossing to eliminate future damages..

My district Mr. Speaker recently suffered one of the worst forest fires in the history of Colorado, which completely destroyed over 100 residences. These emergencies can strike anywhere at any time, and if we fail to pass this continuing resolution we would cripple the ability of the federal government to help with emergencies wherever they occur, whatever their nature is.

This CR would also maintain the additional $23 million in funding to the Department of Interior's new Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (the former Minerals Management Service) for increased inspections of offshore oil rigs. In light of the recent disaster we all witnessed unfold this summer in the Gulf of Mexico, these funds should be the last thing we want to allow to expire or to cut. These funds are critical to ensuring that tragedies like the Deepwater Horizon spill are not repeated and that our oil reserves are inspected. These funds allow existing rigs to continue operating in a manner that both protects the workers on the rig and the sensitive environmental areas in which these rigs operate--protecting our economy and future job loss. Interrupting these funds would be putting offshore oil rig workers lives in danger, the environment in danger, and our nation's economy endanger as well.

This continuing resolution before us also maintains the current rate of the Foreign Military Financing (FMF) program to include the $965 million that was advanced for Israel, Egypt and Jordan in the FY 2009 Supplemental. By providing assistance and aid to our allies in the Middle East, we strengthen our position and make a vital investment in global and national security.

A vote against this continuing resolution is a vote to cut off aid to our allies like Israel in the Middle East at a time when they are critical in the fight against terrorism and to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons to Iran.

Through this continuing resolution, we also continue the rate of operations for the Pakistan Counterinsurgency Capability Fund (PCCF) at $700 million. This section also continues the terms and conditions included in the FY 2009 and FY 2010 Supplementals, which will help build and maintain the counterinsurgency capability of Pakistan under the same terms and conditions.

Mr. Speaker, I have not been a supporter of escalation efforts in Afghanistan or in Iraq, but Mr. Speaker I think there is a strong bipartisan support from this body that assisting the government of Pakistan in counter insurgency efforts is one of the most critical fronts to protect Americans from terrorism and the resurgency of the Taliban and from allowing al-Qaida a foot hold in that region.

These are vital programs that we must continue to fund without interruption. There may be some on the other side who question the need to for a CR. Let me remind everyone that with the exception of fiscal years 89, 95, and 97, at least one continuing resolution has been enacted for each fiscal year since 1955.

I encourage my colleagues to support the necessary rule for this CR as well as the underlying CR to prevent the federal government from shutting down, jeopardizing our allies and friends across the world, as well as the safety and security of Americans. I reserve the balance of my time

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