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“COMMERCE, JUSTICE, SCIENCE, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2010” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Commerce was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E1527 on June 23, 2009.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
COMMERCE, JUSTICE, SCIENCE, AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT,
2010
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speech of
HON. DAVID WU
of oregon
in the house of representatives
Thursday, June 18, 2009
The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2847) making appropriations for the Departments of Commerce and Justice, and Science, and Related Agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2010, and for other purposes:
Mr. WU. Mr. Chair, I rise to express my opposition to the Nunes amendment. This amendment puts the salmon runs of the Sacramento River, which is the major run of Pacific salmon, in jeopardy of extinction and risks shutting down the Central Valley Project and State Water Project, affecting water supplies for farms and millions of Californians.
This amendment could halt all activity in California's major water infrastructure and would only serve to delay development of a long-term management plan for water resources. Mr. Nunes' proposal would send government agencies and partners back to the drawing board, inviting further litigation and greater intervention by federal courts. Moreover, the amendment would prevent us from finding consensus solutions for another year or more.
California water disputes have worsened over the last eight years as politically motivated water policies killed tens of thousands of salmon. Some of the water decisions made during that time were not based in science and have since been ruled illegal by federal courts and illegitimate by the Commerce Department's inspector general.
As a result of these short-sighted policies, California and Oregon have gone without commercial and recreational salmon fishing seasons for three of the past four years. These closures and limitations on fishing are completely unprecedented and have devastated both states' hunting and fishing industries, which together employ over 250,000 workers and contribute more than $13.6 billion to state economies.
Our fisheries and coastal communities cannot afford to be subjected to politics. I reject the Nunes amendment wholeheartedly and ask my colleagues to do the same.
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