The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“LIGHT RAIL IN HOUSTON, TEXAS” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Transportation was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H11123-H11125 on Nov. 7, 2003.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
LIGHT RAIL IN HOUSTON, TEXAS
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee) is recognized for 5 minutes.
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, many times I have come to the floor of the House to express what I believe should be the chief responsibility of the Federal Government, problem solvers, working with local communities to enhance the quality of life of all of our citizens throughout America.
So today I take the special privilege of saluting my local community in Houston, Texas. It has been a 30-year journey, 30 years of trials and tribulations, of misrepresentations of the facts, and yet we have overcome it.
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But I do not fault those who opposed rail in totality because I do believe in democracy, and a vigorous debate has occurred in Houston, Texas on the question of implementing a light rail system. Those that hear my voice might say that that is probably not one of the more serious issues that we have in our community and in our Nation, but all of the long work of my community leaders, the Metro board, the City of Houston, deserve the tribute because in Houston it is a serious matter.
I do want to thank the mayor of the City of Houston, Lee P. Brown, and I am delighted to have been one of the strongest stalwarts and supporters of the Metro system over the last 30 years. One would not like to count those long journeys that we have had to take and the stark and strong opposition that we have had. And so I pay tribute to the members of the Metro board, former Ambassador Arthur Louis Schechter, the chairman; Mr. Thomas E. Whitson, vice chairman; Mr. Jackie Freeman, secretary; Mr. James E. Cumming; Dr. Samuel J. Gilbert, Sr.; Dr. Carol Lewis; Mr. Art Morales; Ms. Janie Reyes; and Mr. Don Wang. I also pay tribute to Metro's political action committee, Citizens for Public Transportation, led by Mr. Ed Wolfe; Community Outreach and Governmental Affairs Division led by Mr. Frank Russ and Mr. Tom Jasien; and most importantly the people of the Houston communities, all of the Houston communities and Harris County in the Metro service area who will benefit from this tremendous victory, all of my constituents in the 18th Congressional District who came together to cast a total of almost 400,000 votes and the majority of those supported the implementation of a Metro system.
What does it mean? It means that we will have a 50 percent increase in Metro's existing bus service. We will have new light rail, new commuter service and we will have no new taxes. We realize that in order to enhance the quality of life for the physically challenged and others who are disabled, for veterans, we will need a real light rail system in Houston.
Let me share with you that the distance between the earth and the sun is about 93 million miles. Houstonians drive about 156 million miles a day through a weave of roadway that will further ensure the congestion and the entanglement on our freeways and highways and byways. Furthermore, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality tells us that one-third of Houston's air pollution comes from our cars and trucks. Since light rail is powered by electricity, it produces no on-
site emissions. Houston residents need and deserve nonpolluting transportation choices like light rail, and now the plans will come to fruition.
Over the years we will support a 72-mile system that will go into Sunnyside and Akers Home and into the Gulf Gate region, into East End, into areas near the small cities. And I want to thank my friends in Fort Bend and out in the Woodlands. We will be looking forward to a commuter rail that will take us to the airport, to the Fort Bend area, to Sugarland and certainly to the northwest area. We are looking for the support of our entire community, the county officials, city officials, and it is imperative that the next mayor of the City of Houston be a vigorous supporter of light rail. The citizens will tolerate nothing less, that that person be vigorous and that they will not be overcome by special interests that will tell them that we cannot move on the 39-mile system and then the 72-mile system. It is interesting to watch those who are physically challenged relish to have a system that is accessible to the disabled and then to our senior citizens who need to have, if you will, low-priced but good service, clean service, mobility systems that they can access. And our senior citizens who we are fighting for on this floor to give them a guaranteed Medicare prescription drug benefit need the complement of good rail systems and a good Social Security system. That is what we have planned for them in Houston with the vote of the Metro system.
Mr. Speaker, I include for the Record my op-ed in the Houston Chronicle on Derailing Metro Transit Plan Isn't an Alternative and here we support in totality the Metro plan that has passed and the 72 miles.
Hooray. Congratulations to our city for doing the smart thing and being smart on transit. You deserve congratulations today.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay special tribute to a local victory--
I pay tribute to the Houston Metropolitan Transit Authority (METRO) of Harris County, Houston Texas for having successfully won the vote of approval for its light rail project in a referendum held on November 4.
Because of the undaunted effort of (1) the Houston METRO Board of Directors which consists of former Ambassador Arthur Louis Schechter--
Chairman, Mr. Thomas E. Whitson--Vice Chairman, Mr. Jackie Freeman--
Secretary, Mr. James E. Cumming, Dr. Samuel J. Gilbert, Sr., Dr. Carol Abel Lewis, Mr. Art Morales, Ms. Janie Palomo Reyes, and Mr. Don J. Wang; (2) METRO's Political Action Committee ``Citizens for Public Transportation'' led by its able Chairman Mr. Ed Wolfe; (3) METRO's Community Outreach and Governmental Affairs Division with Mr. Frank Russ and Mr. Tom Jasien; and (4) most importantly the people of the Houston communities who will benefit from this tremendous victory.
The victorious results of the November 4 referendum--of a total 366,226 votes cast from a pool of citizens of Harris County, Ft. Bend County, and Montgomery County, 189,443 (52%) voted for METRO Solutions and 176,783 voted against it--was the fruit of over two (2) years of hard work by the METRO Board, Staff, PAC, and the community all working together as a cohesive unit. Now, we may concentrate on the actual benefits that the METRO Solutions plan will achieve: 50% increase in METRO's existing bus service, including approximately 44 new local, signature express, and Park & Ride bus routes; Nine (9) new Transit Centers and nine (9) new Park & Ride lots, as well as expansion and upgrading existing facilities; Expansion of the METRORail line and commuter line components. The overall plan includes 72.8 miles of rail; Extension of the payments to local governments for street and other mobility improvements for five additional years (2010-2014); Initiating of the first 10 years of construction, which includes 22 miles of rail with no new taxes!
Road and freeway improvements, as well as the construction of an enhanced public transportation system, will now be put in place to alleviate problems such as congestion and pollution while generating significant tax dollars. Statistically, Houstonians travel more miles per day than there are miles between the Earth and the sun. The distance between the Earth and the sun is about 93 million miles. Houstonians drive about 156 million miles per day! Houston has one of the worst air quality problems in the nation. Furthermore, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality tells us that one-third of Houston's air pollution comes from our cars and trucks. Since light rail is powered by electricity, it produces no on-site emissions. Houston residents need and deserve non-polluting transportation choices like light rail and now the plans will come to fruition.
This victory demonstrates that despite the force of an extremely well-financed opposition driven by special interests and partisan influence, the great effort and the will of the people overcame in the end. I would actually like to thank my friend on the other side of the aisle, Mr. DeLay for his efforts to aid in giving METRO the funds it needed to conduct the studies that concluded that the METRO Solutions plan is smart.
Congratulations to METRO and congratulations to the local government.
Derailing Metro Transit Plan Isn't Alternative
(By Sheila Jackson Lee)
Just over one century ago, in 1880, Houston, the powerhouse of Texas business, had a population of only approximately 16,000 people, according to a federal census. Since then, the metropolis has seen unprecedented growth to become one of America's most populous cities. That's why we need a public transportation system that is funded by the public and will be used by the public.
The greater Houston area is subdivided into six counties: Chambers, Fort Bend, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery and Waller, Harris County proudly hosts the city of Houston, and that is where the largest part of the population is concentrated. In 2000, approximately 3.5 million people lived in Harris County alone. Over the next 20 years, the population of the Houston region will continue to grow. In fact, the influx of more than 2 million additional people in Harris County and another million in the surrounding counties is expected. With respect to transportation, Houston and Harris County already experience serious problems. The imminent increase in population will only exacerbate the problems and will have a negative impact on the overall quality of life in the region. All forms of infrastructure improvements must provide the solution.
Road and freeway improvements, as well as the construction of an enhanced public transportation system, will alleviate the problems while generating significant tax dollars. Statistically, Houstonians travel more miles per day than there are miles between the Earth and the Sun. The distance between the Earth and the Sun is about 93 million miles. Houstonians drive about 156 million miles per day!
The Metropolitan Transit Authority has worked over the past two years to create a long-range plan for mass transit in the Houston area called Metro Solutions. Texas has a Transportation Code, and it is authorized to act in this field of local government through Metro. Given the need for the service to be provided by Metro's plan and the state's jurisdiction to implement a plant that has been accepted by the public, why does the federal government and a member of the House Appropriations Committee need to interfere with its progress?
This member has worked to hinder this highly beneficial transportation project for quite some time. In fact, his amendment to the Transportation, Treasury, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act for fiscal year 2004, also known as H.R. 2989 and incorporated as Section 163, aimed directly at this project with proposed restrictions that are both redundant and unnecessary. This member introduced Section 163 under the guise of ensuring that the citizens in the transit authority service area had an opportunity to voice their desires with respect to the light-rail proposal. He took these measures despite his knowledge that the Metro board has been diligently working with the community to establish development plans that do not violate Texas law and despite the fact that Chapter 451 of the Texas Transportation Code requires the referendum process that will take place on Nov. 4.
Furthermore, his actions likely precipitated the issuance of an opinion by the Federal Transit Administration's chief counsel as to the denial of funds for the Advanced Transit Plan largely due to the redundant prohibitions of Section 163. Although Metro has called for a referendum pursuant to Chapter 451 of the Texas Transportation Code, in addition to having held several public hearings on the matter, the FTA, by way of this opinion, had summarily deemed the process insufficient for purposes of the Section 163 prohibitions. Because neither H.R. 2989 nor Section 163 is law, the FTA opinion effectively disrupted and interfered with the local administration of a transportation project that has been fully accepted and supported by members of the community.
In addition to the fact that the basis for this opinion was premature, i.e., the fact that both Section 163 and H.R. 2989 are not law as yet, the Metro board held a meeting to change the language of its referendum ballot for Nov. 4 to further conform to these prohibitions that are not yet law. This ballot was then accepted by the Department of Transportation for compliance with federal regulations. Metro held 178 public and stakeholder meetings during its development of the Metro Solutions plan between December 2001 and July 2003.
The alternative plan backed by Metro Solutions opponents and formulated by the Houston-Galveston Area Council, the
``100 Percent Solution'' plan, is still in draft form and has not yet had specific public involvement for the additional 5,000 lane-miles on top of the already planned 5,600 lane-miles. In terms of economic benefits projected for Metro solutions, between $130 million and $200 million per year in regulatory costs will be saved to reduce pollution emissions.
The opponents of Metro solutions offer the 100 Percent plan as an alternative. However, it is not an alternative. First, unlike the Metro solutions plan, the 100 Percent plan is an unfinished study and not a plan at all. Secondly, Metro Solutions covers only a portion of the eight-county region, while the 100 Percent plan contemplates the incorporation of the Regional Transportation Plan, or RTP, which is a multimodal plan that covers the entire eight-county region. The RTP is not an alternative to Metro Solutions--it includes Metro Solutions. Also, unlike Metro Solutions, the 100 Percent plan is based on a wish list of regional road and transit projects that have no identified funding and would require significant amounts of right of way. The claim by Metro Solutions opponents that the 100 Percent solution plan can reduce congestion depends upon the sudden appearance of this wish list of projects that the federal government currently prohibits local officials from planning and programming, as they have no existing revenue streams to fund such projects.
In conclusion, there is no need to impede or to derail the Metro Solutions plan. Houston is the only city in the United States that was affected by funding restrictions of H.R. 2989. As a result, the city has been singled out and excluded from the 25 slices of a funding pie worth $1.2 billion federal dollars. Dallas is slated to receive $30 million under the act. The referendum vote on Nov. 4 will translate to more needed rail, more buses and more roads with no new taxes. Metro Solutions is a public transportation plan that will serve the public--therefore, the will of the community should supersede any federal special interests. I strongly urge a yes vote on the Metro referendum.
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