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“ENERGY AND WATER DEVELOPMENT AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2015” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Commerce was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E1145-E1146 on July 11, 2014.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
ENERGY AND WATER DEVELOPMENT AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT,
2015
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speech of
HON. SHEILA JACKSON LEE
of texas
in the house of representatives
Wednesday, July 9, 2014
The House in Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 4923) making appropriations for energy and water development and related agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2015, and for other purposes:
Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Chair, I rise to speak on ``H.R. 4923, the Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2015,'' under final consideration by the House.
I want to thank Chairman Simpson and Ranking Member Kaptur for their stewardship in bringing this legislation to the floor and for their commitment to preserving America's great natural environment and resources so that they can be enjoyed by generations to come.
As a senior member of the Homeland Security Committee, and the former chair of the Transportation Security Subcommittee, I understand that the challenge of protecting our nation's vital assets such as transportation infrastructure requires the finest technology and the highest levels of intelligence. Nothing can bring us to our knees faster than something affecting our economic vitality.
One of the greatest engines our economy has is the Port of Houston, which hosts a $15 billion petrochemical complex, the largest in the nation and second largest worldwide? The Port of Houston petrochemical complex supplies over 40 percent of the nation's base petrochemical manufacturing capacity.
What happens at the Port of Houston affects the entire nation. The Port of Houston is critical infrastructure and the funding providing in the bill to address infrastructure needs and improvements are appreciated, but not sufficient to ensure that the nation's deep-water ports remain the best in the world.
Traffic at the Port of Houston accessed through the Houston Ship Channel has expanded dramatically. Today 2 million jobs depend on the Port of Houston. The Houston Ship Channel, which runs to the Gulf of Mexico, is the busiest channel in the nation with over 220,000 transits in 2013. We must look towards the future and make sure that port business destined for U.S. ports is retained.
Current levels of Army Corps funding barely address the operation and maintenance of our nation's ports and waterways. Nationally, the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund collects adequate funding to address current needs; unfortunately the Trust Fund does not fund new construction.
By 2016, our national ports will face a major competition when the Panama Canal's major expansion project is scheduled to be completed. The changes investments being made by the Government of Panama will mean that larger vessels that will pass through their canal will carry goods and supplies, destined for U.S. ports.
The real threat is that our ports, including the Port of Houston is that our waterways like the Houston Ship Channel is not dredged deep enough to handle the post Panama Canal water way upgrade that will be available in just 2 years.
The Panama Canal will be 50 feet deep, which will provide enough draft for navigation. The 50 feet deep ships are on track to become the norm and we must be forward thinking to meet the challenge of serving these vessels at our nation's ports.
This appropriations bill must significantly increase funding dedicated to the Corps of Engineers specifically the Civil Works Operations and Maintenance program.
Earlier this year an oil spill in the Port was extremely costly and the efforts to return the port to full capacity were heroic. The incident also highlighted the need modernization that would address rapid response capabilities at Ports that focus on restoration of waterways to full activity as quickly as possible.
The Port of Houston:
According to the Department of Commerce in 2012, Texas exports totaled $265 billion.
Is a 25-mile-long complex of diversified public and private facilities located just a few hours' sailing time from the Gulf of Mexico.
In 2012, ship channel-related businesses contribute 1,026,820 jobs and generate more than $178.5 billion in statewide economic impact.
For the past 11 consecutive years, Texas has outpaced the rest of the country in exports. The Port of Houston is the:
1st ranked U.S. port in foreign tonnage;
2nd ranked U.S. port in total tonnage;
7th ranked U.S. container port by total TEUs in 2012;
Largest Texas port with 46% of market share by tonnage;
Largest Texas container port with 96% market share in containers by total TEUs in 2012; and
Largest Gulf Coast container port, handling 67% of U.S. Gulf Coast container traffic in 2012
2nd ranked U.S. port in terms of cargo value (based on CBP Customs port definitions)
For these reasons, I reservations that this bill is all that Congressional should and could do to make sure that ports around the nation can keep pace with the global recovering economy.
In addition to these problems with the bill it also contains a number of riders that are problematic:
Obstruction of EPA's ability to clarify and define navigable water and specifying which of our nation's waterways are covered under the Clean Water Act.
Permanently prohibits the Army Corps of Engineers from modifying the definition of ``fill materials'' to include debris and overburden from mining and excavation projects to make them subject to the Clean Water Act.
Allows people to carry firearms on all Corps of Engineering lands
Finally, the bill faces strong opposition by the Administration, which means if it is passed in its current form it will not become law.
The Administration strongly objects to the funding level of $1.8 billion provided in the bill for renewable energy, sustainable transportation, and energy efficiency programs, a $546 million reduction below the FY 2015 Budget request. This reduced funding level will stifle Federal investment in innovative clean energy research and development (R&D) at a time of significant global competition and progress.
The Administration objects to funding reduction in the bill such as the $40 million reduction from the FY 2015 Budget request that would reduce the number of grants to academic investigators and funding for staff at DOE laboratories working on fundamental discovery science and research that underpins advances in clean energy.
Further, this reduction would also affect access to world class facilities used by researchers from all sectors to conduct R&D. The bill funds the international fusion project ITER, at a level $75 million above the FY 2015 Budget request. In light of schedule delays and management reforms underway, the Administration is concerned that the U.S. contributions would outpace the readiness of the project.
The bill provides the Corps of Engineers' bill $5.5 billion for works program, nearly $1 billion above the FY 2015 Budget request. The FY 2015 Budget focuses on investments that would yield high economic and environmental returns or address a significant risk to public safety. The Administration encourages the Congress to fund the civil works program at the requested level. The funding increase for the civil works program is provided primarily by decreases in other core priorities, including clean energy. The Administration also urges the Congress to permit the Corps to commence new starts in FY 2015.
The Administration strongly objects to sections 105 and 106 of the bill, which would prevent the use of funds to address deficiencies and regulatory uncertainties related to CWA regulations designed to protect important aquatic resources while supporting economic development.
Section 106 in particular would impact an important, ongoing Administration effort to provide regulatory clarity on which water bodies are covered by the CWA, which has been the subject of two Supreme Court cases in which the Court indicated the need for greater clarity regarding the statute's scope.
My service in the House of Representatives has focused on making sure that our nation is secure and prosperous. A central component of national security is the ability of our nation's international ports to move goods and into an out of the country.
With less than 50 legislative days remaining, I cannot support this bill and I ask that my colleagues in the House of Representatives work together to carefully manage our time and energy to make sure that the bills we past meet our obligations to the American public and can eventually become law.
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