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“ENERGY AND WATER DEVELOPMENT APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 1998” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Transportation was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E1528 on July 25, 1997.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
ENERGY AND WATER DEVELOPMENT APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 1998
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speech of
HON. PORTER J. GOSS
of florida
in the house of representatives
Thursday, July 24, 1997
The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2203) making appropriations for energy and water development for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1998, and for other purposes:
Mr. GOSS. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of the Klug amendment to cut $90 million in duplicate road funding from ARC.
Mr. Chairman, I want to be clear from the start--I believe that we should eliminate all funding for the Appalachian Regional Commission. In many ways, the economic development projects that ARC funds are more egregious than the highway projects. Absent elimination, though, I believe the Klug approach makes sense for both sides, as it only cuts a small portion of duplicate funding from the program.
The passionate statements of ARC supporters today serves to underscore what Reader's Digest had to say about ARC just a few years ago --``You can't kill a good giveaway!'' A look at ARC's past funding shows that the money largely follows important legislators, rather than needy constituents.
An excellent example is the Corridor H program in West Virginia. A proposed 114 mile Federal four-lane highway through the scenic West Virginia mountains, Corridor H would cost $1.1 billion, with 80 percent of the money coming from Federal taxpayers. The costs of carving through 4,000 foot mountains contribute to a $10 million per mile project cost. The West Virginia Department of Transportation's own traffic projections do not support the need for this project and over 90 percent of residents from neighboring Virginia opposed Corridor H in public hearings. Yet, the beat goes on for this Federal pork, partly due to millions of dollars of annual ARC funding.
The ARC was founded over 30 years ago on the ``Field of Dreams'' proposition that, if you build a massive highway system with Federal bucks, economic growth would ride into town. Under that assumption, two-thirds of all ARC money spent since 1965 has gone into highway construction. The original estimated cost to Federal taxpayers was $840 million, yet the 26 highway system is now slated to cost $9 billion and won't be completed until 2060.
Mr. Chairman, this debate especially hits home for growth States like Florida struggling to get their fair share of highway funds. While Florida has seen dramatic increases in its population, ARC has rewarded States that are losing people with more and more Federal funds. According to their own annual reports, $872 million in ARC grants for highways, out of a total of $1.1 billion, has been spent in West Virginia between 1980 and 1992, despite the fact that the State experienced a population loss of 7.2 percent over that time. As we struggle to make ends meet with limited transportation funds, this type of largesse is simply unacceptable.
Mr. Chairman, I am not a fan of the ARC program. I believe that Great Society relics like ARC need to be shelved altogether. But if we are going to provide funding for ARC, we should at least extract some savings for the American taxpayer. We should at least prohibit States from double dipping when other States are struggling to make ends meet. The Klug amendment is a responsible, conservative approach that recognizes the reality of our limited resources while striking a blow for fairness. I urge its adoption.
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