cable satellite corp. 2013] >> we also heard from house democratic leaders and minority leader nancy pelosi. we'll have those remarks for you later on the c-span networks or you can go online to c-span.org. and now back live to the u.s. house. members gaveling in for work on water resource projects. chaplain conroy: compassionate and merciful god, we give you thanks forgiving us another day. give the members of this house strength, fortitude and patience. fill their hearts with charity, their minds with understanding, their wills with courage, to do the right thing for all of america. and the work to be done in the weeks to come, may they rise together to accomplish what is best for our great nation.

just as we remembered yesterday the passing of two former members of the people's house, tom foley and bill young, we pray today for the honorable major owens. we thank you for the service he rendered to his constituents and to our nation and as ask your blessing upon those who mourn his passing. may all that is done this day be for your greater honor and glory, amen. the speaker: the chair has examined the journal of the last day's proceedings and announces to the house his approval thereof. pursuant to clause 1 of rule 1 the journal stands approved. for what purpose does the gentlelady from north carolina rise? ms. foxx: mr. speaker, pursuant to clause 1, rule 1, i demand a vote on agreeing to the speaker's approval of the journal. the speaker: the question is on agreeing to the speaker's approval of the journal. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ace have it. the journal stands approved. ms. foxx: mr. speaker. the speaker: the gentlelady.

ms. foxx: i object to the vote on the grounds that a quorum is not present and i make a point of order that a quorum is not present. the speaker: pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this question are postponed. the pledge of allegiance today will be led by the gentleman from arkansas, mr. crawford. mr. crawford: i pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under god, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. the speaker: the chair will entertain up to 15 requests for one minute speeches on each side of the aisle. for what purpose does the gentlelady from north carolina rise? ms. foxx: i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute, mr. speaker. the speaker: without objection. ms. foxx: thank you, mr. speaker. president obama made some big promises with regard to obamacare. if you like your doctor you can keep them. same if you're happy with your insurance. somehow even when new taxes and thousands of pages of regulations, government would be able to mandate universal coverage and simultaneously

save everyone money. that's not panning out in america. north carolinians tell me their policies are being canceled and their prices are set to double. experts are even advising some americans to find a way to lower their incomes to help pay for obamacare. for one family in california, if they don't find a way to earn $2,000 less, they will pay $15,000 for health care. if they make less money, they'd pay just over $1,000. it's easy to blame technical glitches for obamacare's problems. it's harder to own up to the costly consequences of forcing a one-size-fits-all health care prescription onto 1/6 of the american economy. as president obama presses forward with obamacare, a broken website is certainly the least of his problems. yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back the balance of her time. for what purpose does the gentlelady from arizona seek recognition? >> i request unanimous consent to address the house for one

minute and to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from arizona is recognized for one minute. ms. sinema: the folks in my district have seen enough of the partisan nonsense of those in washington. we have to stay focused on economic development. in my district, those opportunities include strengthening our infrastructure. mrs. kirkpatrick: at the grand canyon, the transcanyon pipeline is in desperate need of repair and the canyon's maintenance backlog continues to grow. in the white mountains, we can revaive the timber industry by building on the momentum of the eager saw mill and the ford apache timber company. and with the new contractor onboard, it's time to shift the forest restoration initiative into high gear and help our forests. projects like these create jobs and help those in rural

arizona. i urge my colleagues to work together on commonsense efforts to create jobs. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back her time. for what purpose does the gentleman from arkansas seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: without objection the gentleman from arkansas is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. in august the explosive ordnance disposal lost joshua bowden of georgia, was killed in action on august 31, 2013, at the age of 25, while serving his country in afghanistan. staff sergeant bowden joined the united states army in 2005 and was on his second deployment to afghanistan. mr. crawford: his awards included the purple heart, joint defense meritorious service medal, nato medal, combat action badge, parachutist badge and air assault badge. as house chairman of the e.o.d. caucus, i was honored to meet sergeant bowden during the e.o.d. day on the hill.

the purpose of this was to show how they play in defending interests both at home and abroad. he was patriot who was willing to put his life in the line of fire and i am proud to have met him. in september, staff sergeant bowden was laid to rest at arlington national cemetery. it's important that we take time regularly to reflect on the sacrifices made by our nation's service men and women and the veterans who preceded them. i'm honored to have met staff sergeant joshua bowden and my thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from georgia seek recognition? >> i ask permission to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from georgia is recognized for one minute. mr. barrow: mr. speaker, since october 1, millions of americans have attempted to access healthcare.gov. and every day we're learning more and more about the problems they're facing. folks are frustrate and rilefully so. i'm proud to be part of a bipartisan effort to reform the law by repealing the mandate that employers provide coverage

they can't afford and the mandate that individuals buy insurance on their own. earlier this year the administration delayed the employer mandate because businesses across the country just weren't ready. but not the individual mandate. at the very least, our constituents deserve the same relief that businesses got. this isn't about pointing fingers. this is about providing some relief to the folks we represent who are facing serious uncertainty because they're being forced to buy something that's just not ready. i urge my colleagues and the administration to delay the individual mandate. it's not only the right thing to do, it's the only practical thing to do. and with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from north carolina seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from north carolina is recognized. >> mr. speaker, i rise today with great concern on the lack of accountability and transparency with the president and the administration over the entire health care exchange and their platform with their website. mr. speaker, we have walked

through the tragedy of benghazi, the abuse of the i.r.s., the lack of real commitment from the attorney general. mr. speaker, this isn't right. we need a government who is transparent, who is willing to tell the truth to the american people. mr. pit ger -- enger: they come to speak to house democrats. now, figure that out. where is the transparency there? the american people deserve to know the truth of what happened to the $400 million that was spent on a website to try to enlist people to join this health care exchange. the american people have been left on the hook for a website that cost these hundreds of millions of dollars and they deserve better. thank you. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentlelady from texas seek recognition? ms. jackson lee: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to

address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. ms. jackson lee: it's always good to have a number of good news stories for my colleagues and the american people, and i'm delighted to have a good news story which is that the affordable care act is rolling along and recognizing that the most important aspect of this law is that americans, like kendall, kendall brown in oklahoma city, are having their lives changed in front of their eyes. she writes to the president that she has crohn's disease she's 's also -- benefited from the affordable care act by staying on her parents' insurance. she wrote in this letter, as individuals are debating to delay the individual mandate, she said, mr. president, if they do it then this is the last letter you'll receive from me because i'll be dead by the time i'm 27 years old. so the good news is, my friends, enroll.

ou can use 1-800-318-2596. 30,000 calls and only 20 seconds in wait time. you can use the navigators, you can use the outreach efforts. you can get on the web and be educated. 1-800-318-2596. we are rolling along. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from michigan seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. >> mr. speaker, i rise today in order to recognize the fact that october is breast cancer awareness month. in my home state of michigan, breast cancer is currently the second leading cause of cancer death for women and it is the most frequently diagnosed cancer for women in michigan. i've served as a doctor for 30 years in northern michigan. i'm all too familiar with how devastating breast cancer is for patients and their friends

and their loved ones. thankfully, early detection rates have increased, and mortality rates have decreased nationwide. mr. benishek: this is partially due to the hard work of the doctors, nurses and medical professionals who are involved in diagnosising and treating this illness and coming up with innovative new treatment options. this improvement is also due through the fundraising, outreach and public awareness efforts of groups like the michigan breast cancer coalition and the national breast cancer foundation. however, there's still much work left to be done. i urge all my colleagues and all of my constituents to raise awareness of breast cancer, to take the steps necessary to -- in order to detect this terrible disease. encourage all women to ensure they're up to date on their mammograms. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentlelady from oregon seek recognition? >> to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from oregon is recognized for one minute. ms. bonamici: congress must act without delay to provide

certainty to their employers, keep families together and ensure that all children raised here in america have access to affordable, higher education. less than a decade ago, it might have been impossible to imagine that so many businesses, farm workers, labor leaders, educators and even politicians would come together to support compre hencively reform of our broken immigration system, a system that no longer reflects our values or national interests. the american public has reached consensus, as has the united states senate. it's time for members of the house to put aside their differences and pass a bill that grows the economy, creates a modernized immigration system, enhances our security and creates an achievable path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. i encourage the leadership to bring comprehensive, commonsense and compassionate immigration reform legislation to the house floor this fall. mr. speaker, the time to act is now. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentlelady yields back her time. for what purpose does the gentlelady from florida seek recognition? ms. ros-lehtinen: i seek unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from florida is recognized for one minute. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you so much, mr. speaker. today's much-anticipated and greatly needed water resources bill will allow our nation to develop and maintain our economically vital ports and waterways and will support flood protection and environmental restoration efforts. as a water centered state, florida is uniquely impacted by the water resources reform and development act. we have 16 sea ports, which contributed $96.6 billion to e economy last year, and our maritime cargo industry supports more than 680,000 jobs. florida has invested millions in our ports in preparation for the expansion of the panama canal and this bill before us today is a complement to florida's investment in world

class maritime infrastructure. without this bill, florida and indeed our nation as a whole, are at risk of losing jobs to nearby foreign ports and their ready or so-to-be ready draft harbors. this bipartisan water resources bill will create good american jobs and will grow local economies. let's pass it, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from rhode island seek recognition? mr. cicilline: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from rhode island is recognized for one minute. mr. cicilline: mr. speaker, last week congress finally took action to end a painful, unnecessary government shutdown that cost our economy $24 billion, forced hundreds of thousands of federal workers to stay home and brought us to the brink of defaulting on the full faith and credit of the united states. while the hardworking men and women i serve in rhode island's first district are relieved that congress finally did its job, they want all of us to get back to work on addressing the

urgent challenges facing our nation. creating jobs, strengthening our economy, fixing our broken immigration system, repairing our crumbling infrastructure and finding responsible ways to reduce the federal debt. like all americans, rhode islanders want elected officials to get beyond the political battles of the moment and work together on implementing effective policies and innovative solutions that will put our country on the right track and get americans back to work. over the past several years, the house has voted over and over again on bills that would repeal obamacare, restrict reproductive freedom for women, weaken critical environmental standards and limit collective bargaining rights for workers even though there's no chance these divisive proposals will be signed into law. it's time now to get things done. each of us should commit to abandoning the partisan rhetoric and working as colleagues to overcoming the challenges facing our country and those we have the privilege to represent here in the congress. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from georgia seek recognition? the gentleman from georgia is

recognized for one minute. >> mr. speaker, now that obamacare has had 23 days of what has been a disastrous rollout and hundreds of thousands of americans are getting health insurance cancellation noticed, i want to give you a couple of examples of what's happening in georgia. in our state, the news is not good. one constituent tells me, and i quote, not only are premiums higher, but we have to pay more out of pocket. i will end up spending about $500 to $600 a year on durable medical supplies that have always been covered 100%. mr. scott: that does not help the middle class. another shared the news that he recently learned from his employer, and again i quote, my premiums are going up over $1,200 a year and my deductible is going up by over $1,000 a year and my out-of-pocket maximum will move from $3,500 to $6,500. that is more than a house payment for many georgians, mr. speaker. these are hardworking middle

class families in my district who were promised by the president that if they liked their insurance they could keep their current health care plans. now these plans are more expensive and my constituents have less coverage. this is unacceptable, mr. speaker, and contrary to the president's promises, obamacare is driving up cost, thretsening jobs and kicking georgia -- threatening jobs and kicking georgians out of the plans they like and were promised they could keep. mr. speaker, thank you and yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentlelady from new york seek recognition? ms. velazquez: to address the house for one minute, revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from new york is recognized for one minute. ms. velazquez: thank you, mr. speaker. is week new york city lost a tireless champion for the powerless. representative mayor owens district included part of my district and i can attest firsthand that he was beloved throughout brooklyn. a librarian before entering politics, service to community was simply part of who he was and that is reflected by his

accomplishments. his work led to the creation of the youth bill initiative at heart which today creates opportunities for thousands of disadvantaged youth through construction in low-income communities. major will always be remembered for his work on the americans with disability act, always a voice for the voiceless. he sheparded that historic bill tone actment, creating a more just -- to enactment, creating a more just society for millions of americans. he is perhaps the only member of congress known for composing rap lyrics, performing at open mike sessions. he spoke to the issues of our time. addressing peace, war, poverty and social justice through the power of hip-hop. mr. speaker, those of us in new york and brooklyn today mourn the loss of a neighbor, while our nation honors the passing of its steadfast public servant. i hope all my colleagues join

me in paying tribute to and remembering our friend and former colleague, mayor owens -- major owens. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back the balance of her time. for what purpose does the gentleman from kansas seek recognition? >> address the house for one minute, to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from kansas is recognized for one minute. >> mr. speaker, i rise today in support of greater accessibility to taxpayer-funded research. mr. yoder: this week is open access week in america. and i am proud to be a lead co-sponsor of the fair access to science and technology research act, better known as faster. access to scientific research maximizes research investments and improves the quality of science while assuring transparency and efficient use of tax dollars. simply put, taxpayers should not have to pay for taxpayer funded research over and over again. policy like fastr has been a tremendous success already at the national institutes of health and some of the best research institutions in america like my alma mater, the university of kansas, have helped lead the charge by instituting open access

policies of their own. now it's time to make open access the law of the land for all publicly funded research. i urge my colleagues to make a real impact on the quality of science and life-saving research conducted in america and urge them to co-sponsor and support the fair access to science and technology research act. i yield back, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentlelady from california seek recognition? the gentlelady from california is recognized for one minute. ms. hahn: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today to recognize the national domestic violence awareness month. an opportunity to stand with millions of victims who have suffered in silence, silent fear in their own homes. approximately three women are each day as a result of domestic violence, according to the national network to end domestic violence. while our countries -- has made enormous strides in combating domestic violence, gaps in federal law leave millions vulnerable. in this nation, one in six

women will find themselves a victim of stalking in their lifetime. and many of these encounters turn violent and tragically women are hurt or killed by their stalkers because of a glaring loophole in federal law. under the current law, convicted stalkers of intimate partners are prohibited from possessing firearms, but women who have had no romantic relationship with their stalker are left unprotected. so i've introduced the protecting victims of stalking act legislation that would address this comblaring -- glaring loophole and prevent stalkers under restraining orders from purchasing firearms. i hope you'll join me in this effort to reconfirm our commitment to protecting victims of domestic violence. i yield back. thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from nevada seek recognition? >> i seek unanimous consent to address the house for one minute, revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from nevada is recognized for one minute. >> thank you, mr. speaker. mike landsberry, math teacher,

passed away just about 50 hours ago. he was 45. an alabama native, high school athlete, coach, husband, dad, marine, nevada air guard senior master sergeant and a friend. mike landsberry observed the horror of an active shooter at his school monday morning and simply moved without hesitation instinctively into harm's way to protect others. in so doing, mike made the ultimate sacrifice in service to the end to his students, his school and his community. coach, you humble us all with your warrior's spirit, your compassion. they will be your lasting legacy. thank you for your service and may you rest in peace. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentleman from new jersey seek recognition? the gentleman from new jersey is recognized.

mr. sires: mr. speaker, i rise today to honor steven sr., the founder of the north ward center and inspiring figure of newark, new jersey. to recognize his achievements and contributions, a statue of him reading to two young children will be placed on the main campus of the north ward center. he began his career in education and as a teacher in newark that went on to develop the north watch center in 1970, a group of five institutions designed to provide educational, cultural and meaningful social services to low and moderate income families in the area. from his humble beginnings as a small preschool, the center nowicallies an adult medical daycare, a business training center, as well as the academy, a charter school that has received national recognition and the honor of being named a blue ribbon school. since the founding of the center, steven has continually worked to improve the quality of life for every one in the community, from young and

senior citizens. he has been honored by numerous organizations and institutions such as kent university and the thurgood marshall college fund, for his contributions and dedication to education. today i recognize the accomplishments of steven and i thank him for his continued dedication to the residents of newark, particularly the north ward. and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentleman from indiana seek recognition? >> i seek unanimous consent to address the house for one minute, revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from indiana is recognized. >> thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today in support of the legislation to be considered on the floor this afternoon, h.r. 3080, the water resources reform and development act of 2013. mr. speaker, my amendment ruled in order and to be considered en bloc addresses an issue very important to my district in northeast indiana, as well as other similarly situated districts around the country. i'm proud to represent fort wayne, indiana's second largest

city which has more than 10 miles of levees that protect residents and businesses. in response to recent army corps of engineer guidelines requiring levee devegetation, local governments across the country affected by this policy have made their voices heard. mr. stutzman: unfortunately this unnecessary policy will cost taxpayers in my district millions of dollars. my amendment saves the city of fort wayne $25 million and makes levee safety the highest priority while allowing the army corps of engineer to fully examine the guidelines, study -- study the guidelines authorized in the underlying bill. i thank chairman shuster for his assistance and look forward to further pursuing solutions to this issue. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentleman from missouri seek recognition? >> unanimous consent to address the house, revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from missouri is recognized for one minute. mr. cleaver: mr. speaker, later today the water bill will come

before this body. i intend to vote against it. the reason is that there are 23 earmarks in it. i support all of those projects, but i don't have an earmark in it. and i want one. i am not one of those people who is going to pretend to the public, as many of us have, that earmarks cost the budget more money than it does, it does not. and we go around and talk about the bridge to nowhere. there is a bridge, it's called the grianna island bridge. the worst thing about this is constitutionally we have the power of the purse. we've given it to the administration. and so they put 23 prgs -- projects out here and they said, well, they used to be earmarks. that's like cutting off the tail of an alligator and putting little ears on him and saying, i used to be a dog. ladies and gentlemen, this is wrong. and the public needs to understand that this earmark business is damaging the constitution because it's our job to spend the purse. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time.

for what purpose does the gentleman from north dakota eek recognition? the gentleman from north dakota is recognized. mr. cramer: mr. speaker, i rise to encourage my colleagues to support today's jobs bill, the water resources and reform development act, because it's not an earmark. it authorizes, not appropriates, money for 23 projects identified by the corps of engineers as important and they're important for a number of reasons. not the least of which is the primary purpose is the movement of goods and services into the global marketplace which creates wealth and jobs for americans. further, it authorizes projects that are important to flood protection, to flood-prone areas like the rev river valley of the north, my area -- the red river valuey of the north, my area. but in addition to, that the real reforms that are impressive are things that it de-authorizes old projects to the tune of $12 billion worth of and furthermore, it gives more leverage, flexibility, for the use of nonfederal funds,

which is i think the very thing that the taxpayers of this state are looking for. the type of flexibility that allows local governments and local communities to do the right thing for themselves. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentlelady from nevada seek recognition? ms. titus: unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from is recognized for -- the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. ms. titus: nearly 73 years ago, as countries across europe were falling to hitler's forces, an emsear from muse linney arrived in athens to demand the greeks surrender and allow the allied forces to occupy that country. in response, the greeks courageously, courageously replied no. the access -- axis forces quickly descended on greece but they failed to anticipate the courage of the atlantic people who led a passionate resistance in defense of their freedom and their beloved country. on the island of create alone, for example, with only -- creeth alone, for example, with

only broom sticks and plow shares as weapons, women and children held the germans at bay for 10 days, breaking their assault. now, the story of this bravery has largely been overlooked in the history books. but the greek refusal to surrender proved to be one of the most decisive moments in the war. as winston churchill said, if they had not been the virtue and courage of the greeks we don't know what the outcome of world war ii would have been. on august 28, greeks around the world celebrate ohi day to honor the legacy of the greek people and share with the world the story of their bravery. i commend them and say happy ohi day. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from ohio seek recognition? >> ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute, revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from -- the gentleman from ohio is recognized. mr. johnson: mr. speaker, you know, if you go into a restaurant and you order two eggs over medium with sausage

and toast, and the server bringses you two eggs scrambled with bacon and a muffin, you got two choices. you either eat what you've got or you send it back and you start over. double the cost, double the time. mr. speaker, that's exactly what's happened with health care -- healthcare.gov, the obamacare website. it doesn't work. it's not glitches. it's broken. and it can't be fixed. the president needs to own up to this. he needs to reimburse the american people for the over $400 million that's been spent, he needs to hold those in his administration accountable that misled him and the american people, and he needs to give the american people a break on this individual mandate until the website does work. and with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentlelady from illinois seek recognition? .

the gentlelady from illinois is recognized for one minute. ms. killy: i ask congress to pass -- ms. kelly: i ask congress to pass legislation to end domestic violence. this is regardless of age, race, religion or economic status. one victim of domestic violence is too many, but the heartbreaking reality is that in this country, three women are killed daily by intimate partners. young women are at a greater risk to be victims of domestic violence. four out of every 10 teen girls know someone their age that's been abused by a boyfriend. last week, i introduced house resolution 3297, the teen dating violence education act, to protect teenage victims of domestic violence. my bills provides schools with the resources to inform students of their legal rights as it relates to dating violence. our teens deserve to be empowered with the knowledge to

create a safe and secure environment, free of domestic violence. ending teen domestic violence now is a good first step towards preventing future domestic violence among adults. i urge my colleagues to co-sponsor h.r. 3297. with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back her time. for what purpose does the gentleman from maryland seek recognition? >> to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend my remarks, i ask unanimous consent. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from maryland is recognized. >> mr. speaker, the train wreck of obamacare continues. mr. harris: in 2007, before he was elected president, the president said that family policy prices would go down $2,500 per family. that was the promise. in 2009, the president promised that if you like your policy you get to keep it. mr. speaker, i don't know what the president's going to say from charles from northern baltimore county who wrote me said and yesterday, and i want

to quote this. quote, i just received my cancellation letter from blue cross regarding my family's insurance policy. my $697 a month health savings account qual football policy is no longer -- qualifyable policy is no longer compliant. to have a similar product in a obamacare plan, my premium will increase nearly 40% and have a $7,000 deductible. yikes. so much for if you like your policy you'll get to keep it. mr. speaker, charles and his family are not getting a $2,500 cut in their premium. they're getting a $3,300 increase in their premium. their deductible is going up $7,000. mr. speaker, they like their plan but they don't get to keep it. the train wreck continues. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentlelady from maine seek recognition? ms. pingree: i ask unanimous consent to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from maine is recognized.

ms. pingree: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, tomorrow, october 24, is food day, a nationwide movement to promote healthy, affordable and sustainably produced food. and next week, congress will begin the process of reconciling the house and senate farm bills. i know this is a big job, but i want to urge my colleagues to work to come up with a farm bill that promotes healthy, affordable and sustainably produced food. without exception, everywhere i go and every group i talk to, from bankers to teachers unions, from veterans to college students, people nod their head when i talk about locally grown sustainable food. people want to know where their food comes from and they want to see the farmers in their community succeed. there is nothing more fundamental than food, and it's time we get serious about creating a food system that works for everyone, for families, for farmers and for our local communities. if we are going to change our food system, congress must take this historic opportunity to reform agriculture policy by

producing a farm bill that reinvests in our local economies. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back her time. for what purpose does the gentleman from pennsylvania seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, request unanimous consent to address the house for one minute and to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized. mr. thompson: mr. speaker, according to a federal report issued yesterday by the energy information administration, natural gas being produced in the marcellus shale region is growing faster than expected. production has now reached 12 billion cubic feet a day. that's six times the production rate of 2009. the vast majority of production has come from pennsylvania, including the areas of the state that i represent, along with west virginia. to put this in perspective, the marcellus alone produces more natural gas than saudi arabia. if marcellus were its own country, production would rank third in the world after russia and the rest of the united states. this has led to record low gas prices. it's the reason companies are moving manufacturing back to

the united states. it's why consumers have more money in their pockets after paying their bills. also, mr. speaker, data released monday by the e.i.a., said that carbon emissions dropped from 2011 to 2012. to their lowest levels since 1994. mr. speaker, domestic gas production is helping create a stronger american economy. it's helping us improve the environment, and it's helping america remain competitive and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentlelady from california seek recognition? the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. >> mr. speaker, the president was right last week when he said nobody won after last week's political spectacle. ms. -- i'm glad we finally came together and reopened the government. if we had followed the republican plan, we would only funded 17% of the entire

federal government. mrs. davis: such haphazard funding is really a recipe for a long-term man-made disaster a colossal failure to invest adequately in our nation's future. so in the next few weeks, we will have the opportunity to come together and once and for all put these funding battles behind us. i understand we all understand -- i understand, we all understand that agreeing on a budget will not be easy, but that doesn't mean we should wait until the last minute to start talking to one another. let's get back to work now and start the process of figuring out how we can agree to a balanced and a reasonable fiscal plan that puts middle-class american families first and the american dream back in reach. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady's time has expired. for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i ask unanimous

consent. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. veasey: mr. speaker, i rise today to recognize the life of a truly remarkable woman, ruby cole session, who passed away earlier this month. in 1985, ms. session's seung son, tim cole, a veteran, a student at texas tech university, and a black man, was wrongfully convicted of the rape of a woman in lubbock county and was sentenced to 25 years in prison. he died there of an asthma attack while incarcerated. in 2009, d.n.a. evidence proved that tim cole was wrongfully convicted and in 2010, he received the first posthumous pardon in texas history. ms. session fought for justice for her son but throughout all of that she still fought for justice for everyone in the state that had been wrongfully convicted. thanks to her efforts, texas now has additional safeguards to prevent wrongful convictions

and provides restitution to former prisoners who have been exonerated of their crimes. am honored to have known ms. session and have supported her during the time in the texas state legislature. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentleman from tennessee seek recognition? mr. cohen: to address the house for one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. cohen: thank you, sir. last friday i became aware of the death of a great united states congressman, bill young from florida. mr. young was the senior republican member, served in this house since 1970. he was a gentle soul, congenial, friendly, always nice to me. and i asked him to join with me in the tir receipt syndrome syndrome yrette

caucus. and helped with the biomedical research committee. he understand earmarks were the responsibility of this congress and fought for them and in support of them. he was close friends with john murtha. both men were in the military reserve and both men towards the end of their careers recognized that war was wrong in places where they had previously been for it. john murtha in iraq and 2012, mr. young. said it's time to get out of afghanistan. a great leader passed. his funeral will be tomorrow in the state of florida. i was fortunate enough to know him. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from tennessee yields back his time. for what purpose does the gentleman from maryland seek recognition? >> i ask unanimous consent to be removed as a co-sponsor of l.j. res. 62. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. for what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition? mr. webster: mr. speaker, by the direction of the committee on rules, i call up house

resolution 385 and ask for its immediate consideration. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the resolution. the clerk: house calendar number 68, house resolution 385, resolved, that at any time after the adoption of this resolution the speaker may, pursuant to clause 2-b of rule 18, declare the house resolved into the committee of the whole house on the state of the union for consideration of the bill h.r. 3080, to provide for improvements to the rivers and harbors of the united states, to provide for the conservation and development of water and related resources, and for other purposes. the first reading of the bill shall be dispensed with. all points of order against consideration of the bill are waived. general debate shall be confined to the bill and shall not exceed one hour equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the committee on transportation and nfrastructure. after general debate the bill shall be considered for amendment under the five-minute rule. section 2, a, in lieu of the

amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the committee on transportation and infrastructure now printed in the bill, it shall be in order to consider as an original bill for the purpose of amendment under the five-minute rule an amendment in the nature of a substitute consisting of the text of rules committee print 113-24. that amendment in the nature of a substitute shall be considered as read. all points of order against that amendment in the nature of a substitute are waived. b, no amendment to the amendment in the nature of a substitute made in order as original text shall be in order except those printed in the report of the committee on rules accompanying this resolution and amendments en bloc described in section 3 of this resolution. c, each amendment printed in the report of the committee on rules shall be considered only in the order printed in the report, may be offered only by a member designated in the report, shall be considered as read, shall be debatable for the time specified in the report equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, shall not be

subject to amendment, and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question in the house or in the committee of the whole. d, all points of order against amendments printed in the report of the committee on rules or amendments en bloc described in section 3 of this resolution are waived. section 3, it shall be in order at any time for the chair of the committee on transportation and infrastructure or his designee to offer amendments en bloc consisting of amendments printed in the report of the committee on rules accompanying this resolution not earlier disposed of. amendments en bloc offered pursuant to this section shall be considered as read, shall be debatable for 10 minutes equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the committee on transportation and infrastructure or their designees, shall not be subject to amendment, and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the question in the house or in the committee of the whole. the original proponent of an amendment included in such

amendments en bloc may insert a statement in the congressional record immediately before the disposition of the amendments en bloc. section 4, at the conclusion of consideration of the bill for amendment the committee shall rise and report the bill to the house with such amendments as may have been adopted. any member may demand a separate vote in the house on any amendment adopted in the committee of the whole to the bill or to the amendment in the nature of a substitute made in order as original text. the previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill and amendments thereto to final passage without intervening motion except one motion to recommit with or without instructions. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida is recognized for one hour. mr. webster: for the purpose of debate only, i yield the customary 30 minutes to my good friend and colleague from florida, the gentleman, mr. hastings, pending which such time i yield also to myself such time as i may consume. during the consideration, the time yielded is for debate

only. mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks . the speaker pro tempore: without objection, and the gentleman is recognized for as much time as he wishes to use. mr. webster: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i rise today in support of this rule and the underlying bill, house resolution 385, provides a structured rule for consideration of h.r. 3080, the water resource reform and development act, first wrda bill since 2007. the rule makes 24 amendments submitted to the rules committee in order, half of which were sponsored by my colleagues across the aisle, and it provides for robust debate in the house of representatives. the underlying bill was marked up, the bill was reported favorly about -- favorably with support. the bill today garnered that support because of four reasons. first, this bill reforms the federal bureaucracy. this bill is fiscally

responsible. this bill strengthens accountability and this bill creates jobs. mr. speaker, talk to anyone around the country that relies on the army corps of engineers. talk with anyone that depends on our water infrastructure, ater resources and so forth, talk to anyone who wants to develop a new water resource infrastructure, talk to anyone who ships in or out of our harbors or ports. maybe if you had the opportunity to talk with our shipping companies, maybe with -- with women and men who work on our tug boats and barges, or maybe with farm who needs to get his corn to the right markets or maybe the manufacturer who needs to ship her product or his product to a foreign customer, or maybe a port director who is trying to get america prepared for the economic opportunities that will come with the larger ships coming through the panama canal. mr. speaker, if my colleagues spoke with these men and women, they would hear the same

refrain. our bureaucracy delays american investment, our bureaucracy costs american jobs, our bureaucracy helps america's foreign competitors. the approval process of our critical water infrastructure takes years too long and sometimes well over a decade. one project that my friend from florida is familiar with, a glades.in port ever some bureaucrats have spent their entire career studying this one project. it's a prime example of washington bureaucracy crushing american jobs and america's future. this bill before us today does away with the these -- with these delays. it sets hard deadlines on the time and cost of the studies, it consolidates or eliminates duplicative studies, it requires concurrent project review by multiple agencies and it puts our projects on a path to construction. mr. speaker, this bill reforms federal bureaucracy but it also

is fiscally responsible. we all know that our nation spends too much, our nation oftentimes spends money haphazardly, without a plan, without restraint. this bill does not. chairman shuster is committed to restraining spending and is committed to managing america's taxpayer dollars wisely. this bill is proof of that. his bill retains spending -- restrains spending, i'm sorry. i convinced -- i commence the chairman for making the tough choices necessary to get our budget in order. mr. speaker, when was the last time an infrastructure bill was brought to the house floor and it cut more than it spent? the bill before us today does just that. it de-authorizes $12 billion of old, inactive projects, it pays for the new projects by canceling the old projects, and it sunsets the construction of new projects in order to prevent future backlogs.

mr. speaker, this bill reforms federal bureaucracy, it's fiscally responsible, and it strengthens accountability. many of our constituents when they hear us talk about infrastructure, remember the days of pork barrel spending. many of our colleagues might remember the 1939 movie about a newly appointed senator who goes to washington running head-on into a political machine built on earmarks and pork barrel spending. mr. smith goes to washington is a dramatic rendering of how most infrastructure bills were put together in the past. in fact, the bill was debated, was in the movie, was a water resource bill and the filibuster was over an earmark in that bill. this bill ends that earmark process. the bill before us today strengthens accountability for american people, gone are the days of inserting earmarks at the last minute, gone are the days of creating new pet projects, gone are the days of

wasting taxpayer money on pork barrel spending. mr. speaker, this bill contains no earmarks. it also establishes a new transparent process for future bills that will ensure that taxpayer dollars are spent on necessary projects. it will prioritize our spending and provide strong congressional oversight. this bill reforms federal bureaucracy, it is fiscally responsible, it strengthens accountability and it creates jobs. the key to creating american jobs is expanding our economy. american producers must be able to get their products to the world market. this push to sell to the world is a high-stakes competition that america must win. our farmers, our -- our farmers are being pressured by our neighbors in south america, our manufactures are being -- manufacturers are being pressured by both european and asian countries, our energy producers are being pressured by many foreign countries in all corners of the globe. investing in our infrastructure will boast this trade, increase

american competitiveness, and position our country for economic growth. these advancements will put america to work. while construction workers will immediately be put to work on these projects, every single american job that depends on our transportation infrastructure will benefit from this bill. our economy will grow, our producers will compete with the world and american jobs will be created. mr. speaker, it is easy to see why this bill garnered a unanimous bipartisan support from the members of the committee and why it deserves to be passed here. this bill reforms federal bureaucracy, this bill is fiscally responsible, this bill strengthens accountability, this bill creates jobs. for these reasons, mr. speaker, i rise in support of the rule and the underlying bill. chairman shuster, ranking member rahall and the committee on transportation and infrastructure have provided us with a unanimously supported, bipartisan bill that will move

our nation forward. i encourage my colleagues to vote yes on this rule and yes on the underlying bill and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida reserves his time. the gentleman from florida is recognized for as much time as he wishes to consume. mr. hastings: thank you, mr. speaker, and i thank the gentleman from florida for yielding me the customary 30 minutes. and i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. hastings: thank you. mr. speaker, i rise today. i agree with everything that my good friend and colleague from florida said, everything that he said, with exception of the fact that i'm opposed to the rule. while i may support the underlying legislation, the rule blocks over 70 amendments, many of which were germane to the bill. this kind of rule is not conducive to an open process. the bill, though, far from perfect, is long overdue. there's a lot of go-nowhere, do-nothing talk about creating jobs here on the hill, but this

bill, like the highway bill, and the farm bill, will actually create jobs. the bill also reinforces a point that i've been making for some time. and that is, repairing our nation's aging infrastructure, including our water infrastructure, is the best jobs program out there. the resulting economic benefits will ripple from our ports to main street america as badly needed jobs across a wide range of industries. for example, every dollar spent on everglades restoration, like the ones authorized here, is returned four-fold by stimulating related industries like tourism, construction and retail. despite these undeniable benefits, it's been seven years since the last water bill. that's seven years of productivity lost. but if you think seven years is a long time, try waiting 17 years, as my colleague, mr.

webster, pointed out. that's how longport everglades has been waiting for -- long portland everglades has been waiting for a report from the army corps. and at long last, the report is due shortly. yet this bill fails to authorize the pending project. while much of the blame for the delay falls outside of this chamber, congress can and should do right by the portland -- port. mr. speaker, the port has already waited its turn. with the new panama canal expansion becoming operational, any further delay for such a vital piece of our nation's infrastructure will be too late. i do can understand that tough choices have to be made. the way i see it, the army corps' lengthy review process is in part to blame for the backlog of projects. though this bill contains

some partisan measures addressing this issue, the corps has already begun testing its own way of increasing the speed of review. one of these successful tests was the pilot program for the central everglades planning project. yet that project is not included in this bill either. despite the chief's report being anticipated within a few months. this new approach, when coupled with a more frequent water bill, could help eliminate the massive backlog of projects that has forced congress to make these tough decisions. when we look at what this does, the urgency for authorization is even more obvious. it will help end the discharges of polluted water from lake okeechobee that have been devastating florida communities for years. the water is choked green with algae and killing wildlife, tourism, fishing and oyster industries, particularly in the indian river area of our state. the people of florida can't

wait for another water bill to come around. the streamline successful pilot program is more preferable than the streamlining of environmental review contained in this bill. my friends across the aisle seem oddly opposed sometimes to having freshwater and clean air and attacking nepa and environmental regulations at every opportunity. including otherwise inappropriate vehicles like this bill. but i understand that no one is happy all the time. i do have grave reservations about some of the policies in the bill, and hope that we can work them out through the legislation -- through the legislative process. there's no need for congress to make the waters rougher than they already are. let's continue to do our work the constituents sent us here to do and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida reserves his time. the gentleman from florida is recognized. mr. webster: mr. speaker, at this time i would yield the gentleman from texas, mr. webber, two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is --

weber, two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized for two minutes. mr. weber: thank you, mr. speaker. nearly 1/3 of our economy depends on international trade. and 99% of that trade passes through our nation's ports. since transportation accounts for as much as 10% of the cost of the products we buy, it is so very critically important that our ports and waterways run efficiently and are properly maintained. i am proud to be a co-sponsor of the water resources reform and development act, which is a part of the critical role laid out to congress by our founding fathers and regular -- in regulating interstate commerce. with this bill we can reform the army corps of engineers' management of important infrastructure projects and reduce their project backlog in order to create the conditions for a much stronger american economy. mr. speaker, this bill does that and that's why i'm proud to support it and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the

balance of his time. the gentleman from florida reserves. the gentleman from florida is recognized. mr. hastings: mr. speaker, i yield two minutes to the distinguished gentleman from massachusetts, my good friend, mr. mcgovern. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from massachusetts is recognized for two minutes. mr. mcgovern: thank you, mr. speaker, and i thank my colleague from florida for yielding me the time. mr. speaker, let me first of all begin by opposing the rule. this house is becoming much too closed. and i would remind my republican colleagues of the promises they made when they took over this place. they promised a more open and transparent house of representatives. what we have seen is closed and restricted rules time and time and time again. there is no reason why this can't be an open rule. so i'd urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to vote against the rule. secondly, with regard to the underlying bill, it is my intention to support the underlying bill. but i do have serious reservations. the proponents of this bill talk about the streamlining provisions that are in this bill, that somehow streamline the environmental review process. that it somehow -- that the environmental review process causes delays. i would remind my colleagues that the facts are clear, the

delays are caused by funding that doesn't correspondent to the demand. the last water bill authorized over $23 billion in new projects and since that time appropriations have been at $1.5 billion per year and the ryan budget, which my republican colleagues seem to love so much, will cut that by another 1/3. add to that sequestration and all the other budget cuts that my colleagues are proposing here, it is lack of money, not environmental reviews, that are causing the delays. and further, environmental reviews are really the only way voters have any say about the federal projects in their community. we need a water bill, but we don't need to sacrifice the environmental review process or a process that allows our constituents to have a say in how projects proceed. i hope when this bill moves to the senate -- moves to conference committee with the senate that we can fix some of these i think egregious problems in the bill with regard to the environmental review process, but we do need

a water bill, we also need a transportation bill. and i would hope my colleagues on the other side could convince the tea party members to allow that to come to the floor. because we have an aging infrastructure, not only in terms of water projects, but in terms of highways, roads and bridges, and i go on and on and on. if we get this right we can create some jobs. i urge my colleagues to oppose the bill and support the underlying bill. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida reserves. the gentleman from florida is recognized. mr. webster: i yield to the gentleman from georgia, mr. collins, one minute. search the gentleman from georgia is recognized for one minute. mr. collins: i rise to support the bill and underlying bill, h.r. 380. this bill provides commonsense reforms to water construction projects which will help facilitate commerce and get this country back to work and without earmarks. it also addresses our regulatory framework and makes commonsense solutions we can use. article 1 of the constitution clearly spells out the federal government has a role in regulating commerce, and when we talk about building ports and

dams, these are the type of projects the federal government can and should undertake which will allow the private sector to thrive, as well as encouraging private party participation. i want to thank the chairman and the committee for their work on this bill which advances the cause of the savannah harbor expansion project, one of many that can move forward in the bill. it will allow the state of georgia to begin construction on this much needed project. when completed consumers and businesses across the country will benefit from the imports and exports that flow through savannah. it provides residents across the country with framework that advances long-term economic growth opportunities by expanding and improving our sources of water supply. with that, mr. speaker, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from florida reserves. the gentleman from florida is recognized. mr. hastings: i'm very pleased to yield two minutes to the dean of the house of representatives, my good friend, mr. dingell. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. dingell: i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. dingell: mr. speaker, i am

proud to say thanks to my good friend from florida for yielding me this time. i urge that the rule be rejected. there is no reason why we can't have an opportunity to amend this legislation to address some of its failures. as the author of the national environmental policy act of 1969, i was proud to usher in a new era of environmental and wildlife conservation. moreover, nepa passed the house with overwhelming bipartisan support by a vote of 372-15. a similar vote took place in the senate. during the debate on nepa, i noted that mankind is playing an extremely dangerous game with his environment. we have not yet learned that we must consider the natural environment as a whole and assess its quality continue -- continuously if we wish to make strides in preserving and plow texting it. nepa has a simple promise. look before leaping. the law ensures that federal

agencies weigh the environmental consequences of development projects before they are undertaken. this bill puts its finger in the particular ahe proach. i worry that the provisions included in the bill before us today will lead us down a path going back to those days of impunity and disregard for the well-being and concerns of the public. where actions were taken without any full appreciation or understanding of the environmental impact of that. that was the reason nepa was passed. so that we would know what we were doing. and so that we would have a fair opportunity for people to participate in the judgments by having these decisions made in an open and a transparent fashion. now, perhaps changes are needed, and perhaps an update, if you will. we cannot say that this legislation does that. however, before we make changes, we need to have some comprehensive hearings in the

committee on jurisdiction. i note that the committee that brings this legislation to the floor is not necessarily the committee of jurisdiction. this is a proposal which is regarding -- which is disregarding one of the things which was said by president nixon when he signed it. he said that this was going to start the decay of the environment. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from florida reserves. the gentleman from florida is recognized. mr. webster: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, at this time i'd yield to the gentleman from texas, mr. poe, for three minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized for three minutes. mr. poe: i'd like to thank the chairman for the inclusion in the provisions of this bill to help expedite environmental reviews and language requested by myself and congressman farenthold which would help increase private investment in our nation's ports and expedite the compligse of large critical he projects. one important project authorized in this bill is the deepening of

the sabean waterway. i have been working on the authorization of this probeing ject -- project since i was elected in 2004. my predecessors, nick lampson and jack brooks worked on this project. mr. weber who now represents this area works -- has been working on this project. in fact, the original report for the sabean natchest waterway was authorized to begin in 1997. 16 years ago. that was he three presidents ago. it was in the last century. since that time all four of my kids have finished high school, graduated from college, gotten married, and given me 10 grandkids. the united states has fought two major wars. 16 years to do an authorization on a federal project? something wrong with this picture, mr. chairman. this project was supposed to cost $300 million. today if it's authorized it will be $1.1 billion.

that's a 287% increase, and we still haven't moved any dirt. there's something wrong with this picture, mr. chairman. that's why this wrda bill is so important. it makes critical structural improvements on the way the corps of engineers does business so we can end these absurd delays. it shouldn't take 20 years to complete a project. and i'm talking about authorization just to approve the project like the sabean waterway. this waterway is critical to america's energy and national security. it was first authorized at 40 feet. this water bill will make it -- the depth 48 feet, permitting deeper draft vessels to come through. right now tankers that come up the waterway can't be full because they drag bottom. they have to offload part of that fuel before they come up the waterway. that is why this is important to the united states. it's also vital to the united

states military. the united states military, the sabean natches waterway is the home of the largest commercial military outload port in america, and it's the second argest in the world. the channel is home to two designated military strategic seaports, beaumont and port arthur, texas. additionally approximately 20% to 30% of the nation's commercial jet fuel and significant majority of classified amount of our military's jet fuel is produced in this waterway. this is the energy corridor of the united states. refineries line this entire waterway. the delays by the corps of engineer have cost millions of dollars, all because they cannot make up their mind to approve the project. mr. speaker, pick a horse and ride it. either approve the project or deny the project, but make up your mind. these delays are absurd. that's just the way it is. i yield back, mr. chairman.

i don't need more time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida reserves. the gentleman from florida is recognized. mr. hastings: thank you very much, mr. speaker. at this time i'm pleased to yield for unanimous consent to y good friend from california, ms. sanchez. ms. sanchez: i thank the gentleman from florida. mr. speaker, while not a perfect bill i will be voting for this and ask unanimous consent to put forward my remarks to the house. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. hastings: at this time i'm pleased to yield to a former member of the rules committee, my good friend, the gentlewoman from california, ms. matsui, two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from california is recognized for two minutes. ms. matsui: thank you, mr. speaker. i want to thank the gentleman from florida for yielding me time. mr. speaker, i rise in strong support for the bipartisan wrda bill. i want to commend chairman shuster and ranking member rahall, along with chairman gibbs and ranking member bishop. i'd also like to thank senator boxer for leading the senate in passing its wrda bill earlier this year.

mr. speaker, my district of sacramento is the most at-risk metropolitan area for major flooding as it lies at the confluence of two great rivers -- the american and the sacramento. we have a lot at risk. we waited too long for this bill and we need congress to act. since the last wrda in 2007, a number of key flood protection investments have been carefully studied by the army corps of engineers. one such project that has been thoroughly studied by the corps and holds a report is the thomas improvement project. levee deficiencies were found in the area in 2008 and remapped by fema in 2008. the corps put the level of protection at one and 33 years a. third of the national standard. since then costly flood insurance has become mandatory. the area is to be protected by the project is home to over

100,000 people. two interstate highways, and an international airport. it is heavily urbanized, and home to dozens of schools and hundreds of small businesses. if a levee broke, the damage would be similar to that experienced in new orleans. to fully underscore the importance of this project, my constituents have voluntarily voted twice to pay their local share. despite the significant local investment, work remains uncompleted. the project needs congressional authorization. mr. speaker, we must pass this bill. we must establish a conference committee with the senate and we must work to ensure wrda becomes law this year. it is too important for our nation, and i look forward to working in a bipartisan way to ensure that. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the gentleman from florida reserves. the gentleman from florida is

recognized. mr. webster: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time i'd like to yield two minutes to the gentleman from michigan, dr. benishek. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from michigan is recognized for two minutes. mr. benishek: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today in support of h.r. 3080, as well as a bipartisan amendment that we will have on the floor later today. this bill works to address our nation's competitiveness and increase the economic growth by maintaining our infrastructure in a senseable manner. our amendment that we'll offer today will work to address the challenges that invasive species present to our country today. mr. speaker, as the co-chair of the invasive species caucus, and the only member who has the privilege to represent three of the five great lakes, i'm honored to speak on the floor today about the threat these species bring to our natural environment. they also represent a huge economic cost to each of our districts. it costs over $100 million a

year in the great lakes alone to have these invasive species being fought and controlled. mr. speaker, our amendment is simple, it does not authorize any new funds or create new programs. simply put it helps address the invasive species issue by requiring the g.a.o. to complete a competitive -- comprehensive report on federal spending for the operations and costs of invasive species. why is this important? the report takes into account all species nationwide will allow congress to identify both gaps and dupe canive efforts in the future. -- duplicative efforts in the future. we can effectively target areas for improvement in the in you fuhr -- in the future. i urge support for this bill and our amendment. i yield the remainder. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from florida riffs. the gentleman from florida. mr. hoifings: would you be kind enough to tell us the -- mr. hastings: would you be kind

enough to tell us the time remaining on both sides? the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings, has 19 1/2 minutes remaining. and the gentleman from florida, mr. webster, has 16 1/2 minutes remaining. mr. hastings: thank you very much, mr. speaker. at this time i'm very pleased to yield one minute to the distinguished gentlewoman from california, ms. hahn, who is the co-chair of the ports caucus which i'm a proud member. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from california is recognized for one minute. ms. hahn: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in support of the underlining bill and as my colleague said, as the founder and co-chair, along with my friend, ted poe of the congressional ports caucus, i'm happy that today the house has this opportunity to pass a water resources bill that will provide long needed investment to our nation's ports and create jobs. our ports and waterways have been waiting for over six years

for a new water bill. it's time to end their wait. one of the things i came to congress to do was to fight for the full use of the harbor maintenance trust fund. and to ensure that we address the expanded use needs of ports like the port of los angeles and the port of long beach that see so much commerce but so little of this harbor maintenance funding. do i wish that we had been able to be more addressive in this bill? of course. but the bill we have before us is a huge step in the right direction. congress, i think, is finally recognizing that our ports aren't just gateways, they are engines of growth, prosperity, and of jobs. passing this legislation would be a big victory for our ports, a strong signal that this house recognizes the critical importance of our ports to our economic health. i'm going to be voting for this bill. i encourage my colleagues to do the same. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from florida reserves.

the gentleman from florida, mr. webster. mr. webster: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time i yield to my good friend from georgia, mr. woodall, four minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from georgia is recognized for four minutes. mr. woodall: thank you, mr. speaker. i thank my friend on the rules committee for yielding. this is a big bill for georgia. it's a big bill for all of america, mr. speaker, it's so often that we hear about the conflict in this body. well, when we all know the jobs are important to absolutely everyone's constituency, when we all know that 99% of our imports and exports travel through our ports, it's easy to come together and get excited about doing things that matter. we've got the panama canal opening for newer and wider, bigger ships, my homeport in savannah, not ready, mr. speaker. through no fault of our own. we began that process back in the 1990's to begin to expand the port of savannah, and it has taken 15 years to get through

that permitting process. . this bill says, who benefits from that? whose constituency is it that benefits from jobs being slowed or delayed for 15 years? no one's does. so we're able to come together and say, let's do it, let's do it right, but let's do it in an efficient manner. three years is what we've given, three years, 36 months, to study each and every aspect in the permitting process. and to do those things concurrently, today, mr. speaker, as you know, you have to do one study first and then a second one and then a third one and then a fourth one and you can't start the next one until the first one has finished. today we say, if we know we've got six studies to do, let's do them simultaneously. let's go ahead and get all the work done. we all benefit from that. the reforms in this bill go into those projects that are authorized, mr. speaker, that represent spending on our books, that we know we're not going to do.

we say, if we have any new projects that we're interested in doing, let's take those old projects off that are no longer a priority for america. let's set our priorities. we know we have to spend money in this government. but we ought to spend it on the best projects, not the least of these. and this bill recognizes in a budget-neutral way, a way to authorize those projects that are most important to us, while we're moving those that are the least. mr. speaker, i live in a county that relies on a corps of engineers lake, working with the corps of engineers in partnership is critical to my community for our drinking water, for our recreation, for our economy. the corps has been a good partner. but the corps' often ham strung by the laws that this congress has put in place and by the implementation of those laws by administrations, both republican and democrat. this bill, mr. speaker, reclaims to this house for both sides of the aisle the authority to direct the projects of the corps of

engineers. not through earmarks, mr. speaker, but by recognizing that constitutional responsibility that we have to our constituents back home, to decide where those dollars are spent, how those projects are prioritized, rather than punting on that issue this bill reserves those powers rightfully to this house and to this congress. mr. speaker, this bill is not everything that i would like for it to be. candidly, in three years in serving in in thisky congress i have yet to see a bill that is like for it ould to be, but i know this bill is a step in the right direction, a step that we can take and a step that we must take. i thank my friend from florida for his leadership on the issue, for his leadership on the rules committee and for yielding me the time today. with that i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from georgia yields back. the gentleman from florida, mr. webster, reserves. the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings. mr. hastings: thank you very much, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, at this time i'm pleased to yield one minute to the distinguished gentleman from california, my friend, mr.

lowenthal. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from california is recognized. mr. lowenthal: i thank the gentleman from florida. mr. speaker, we are a country of interdependent states that share prosperity, challenges and resources. united with a goal of a healthy economy, supported by quality infrastructure. at times, though, inequities in the collection and distribution of federal resources create such an imbalance that one region is put at a distinct disadvantage. this is the case for california, which collects nearly 1/3 of the nation's harbor maintenance taxes, but receives less than 7% of the expenditures for port projects. mrs. napolitano's amendment, had it been allowed to come to this floor, would have brought a measure of equity to this stark imbalance. i believe this was a missed opportunity for our nation's ports.

thank you and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings, reserves. the gentleman from florida, mr. webster. mr. webster: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time i yield to my fellow floridian,ed a and good friend, mr. southerland, three minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for three minutes. mr. southerland: thank you, mr. speaker. i'd like to thank the gentleman from florida for yooled yielding to me today. today i rise in support of this rule. for the water resource reform and development act. and i agree with my colleague on the other side of the aisle, the gentlelady from california, ms. hahn, she understands how important this bill is and as do i. make no mistake, this is a jobs bill. we are going to be able to take advantage of economic opportunities because of this piece of legislation. i'm proud to serve as a member of the transportation committee can and that this bill passed unanimously out of committee is something that i think needs to

be noted. this legislation enhances the army corps of engineers' ability to develop and support america's port and waterway infrastructure. and it does so with full spending offsets and zero earmarks. that's the kind of commonsense reform i believe the american people expect and deserve. this bill places hard caps on the time and cost of studies, eliminating duplications and delays. places a three-year cap on those studies and caps in dollar amounts of $3 million. it expands the role of public, private -- public-private partnerships in water infrastructure. and makes significant changes to the harbor maintenance trust fund that -- moneys that are collected for harbor maintenance are more fully utilized for their designed purpose. i know that's a novel idea, that those moneys collected for harbor maintenance trust fund would be there. this bill addresses that. but perhaps most importantly the people of my district this bill begins a critically

important conversation that began at the committee level on the impact of the decreased water flows down the a.c.f. river system and into the appalachia bay. the appalachia bay is a national treasure, producing 90% of florida's oyster harvest and 10% of the nation's oyster harvest. the oyster men and small businesses and hardworking families who depend on this bay have seen their livelihoods put at risk. i'm pleased that chairman shuster and the ranking member have worked in good faith to begin this dialogue with me. for these reasons i urge my colleagues to support this rule , as well as the underlying bill, which provides critical support to florida's 15 deepwaterports and -- ports and allows us to be fully prepared for the economic opportunities as a result of the panama canal zone expansion. and with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. mr. webster: mr. speaker, could you tell me how much time i am reserving? i am reserving my time.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida, mr. webster, has 11 1/2 minutes remaining. and reserves. the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings, is recognized. mr. hastings: thank you very much, mr. speaker. i'm very pleased to yield one minute to the distinguished gentleman from north carolina, my good friend and fellow helsinki commission member, mr. mcintyre. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. mcintyre: thank you, mr. speaker. as co-chairman of the congressional waterways caucus, i do support many of the provisions of this bill, but i'm concerned that it has no language to re-authorize, peekser -- expiring coastal protection projects. our beaches are the economic engines and environmental pressures that protect our coast from storms and create jobs for our community. in fact, when you talk about return on tax dollars, the beaches can't be beat. for every $1 spent by the federal government on beach renourishment, $320 are returned in revenue. i know of no other federal program that gives that kind of return. when we think about the inclusion of coastal renourishment projects, there

are over 50 that will be expiring if this is not addressed. we have found, like at carolina and curey beach in north carolina, and as many of our colleagues all over the nation have found, a few thousand dollars on the front side saves millions of dollars on the backside after a vicious storm like sandy or katrina or fran or hugeow and the list goes on -- hugo and the list goes on. it's important that the water language contain the re-authorization of these projects that are already in progress, otherwise we lose these investments. and that is not a good use of taxpayer money. these are investments that ultimately create jobs and save money. thank you, mr. chairman. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings, reserves. the gentleman from florida, mr. webster. mr. webster: thank you, mr. speaker. this time i'd yield to the gentleman from florida, mr. yoho, two minutes. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. yoho: thank you, mr. speaker. and i'd like to thank my colleague, mr. webster, from florida. i rise today in support of h.r. 3080, the water resource reform and development act of 2013.

wrda is commonsense legislation that prevents -- permits the army corps of engineers to cap the time and cost of studies, consolidates and accelerates environmental analysis and stimulates the u.s. economy through increased competitiveness in the global market and through job creation. in my home state of florida, our 15 ports have contributed to over $96 billion to the state's economy and perhaps most importantly employees -- employs hundreds of thousands of individuals. within my district, we have two inland ports and particularly in the lake city area, which are uniquely positioned to import and export products quickly to florida, the southeast and to the american heartland. encouraging an infrastructure project such as these spur job creation. in today's economy, we cannot afford to neglect these opportunities. we have today the opportunity to demonstrate the -- that congress can work towards the

best interests of our country and so i urge my colleagues in the house to take swift action in voting to approve wrda and get our country back onto the path of safe infrastructure, global competitiveness, economic stability and job creation. mr. speaker, i thank you and yield back the remainder of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. mr. webster from florida reserves. the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings. mr. hastings: thank you very much, mr. speaker. i'm very pleased to yield one minute to the distinguished gentlewoman from connecticut, ms. esty, at this time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from connecticut is recognized for one minute. ms. esty: i thank the gentleman for the time. and i rise in support of the water resources reform and development act. because it's essential for our economy, and it addresses flood control and water mansionment issues important to my district -- management issues important to my district. it supports more than 27,000 jobs in connecticut. but congress hasn't passed a water bill since 2010. we can't wait another six years to ensure that our inland waterways and seaports remain

the greatest in the world. i do have concerns about provisions meant to streamline environmental reviews. but this bill is the result of bipartisan cooperation. something all too rare in washington these dales. and as a co-sponsor i am proud to say that this bill reflects the bipartisan action that my constituents expect from congress. that's why i'm so grateful for my friend, pennsylvania chairman shuster, as well as ranking member rahall, and representative bishop, for their responsible bipartisan leadership on this effort. if you're concerned about the economy, public safety or the lack of funding for our water infrastructure, passworda today. thank you and i yield back my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back the balance of her time. the gentleman from florida reserves. the gentleman from florida, mr. webster. mr. webster: thank you, mr. speaker. i'd like to clarify one thing and that is the chairman and the ranking member did everything they could to stay within the guidelines and the

jurisdiction of the transportation and infrastructure committee and they did that. they did not vary in any way over into the clean water act or anything else. so nothing in this bill is changing any of the standards. all it's doing is allowing parallel tracks. that's it. so the project mentioned by mr. woodall, which is 15 years, and mr. hastings' project which is 17 years, would only be done sooner, not by circumventing any environmental requirement. it be done through the parallel tracks. understand and with that i'd like to yield -- and with that i'd like to yield two minutes to my good friend from georgia, mr. kingston. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from georgia is recognized for two minutes. mr. kingston: i thank the gentleman for yielding. mr. speaker, in 1733, when a general sailed up the savannah river, i've been told the river was 12 feet deep. we've been playing in the mud down there ever since.

today it's 42 feet deep. but 42 feet isn't enough for the large ships that will soon start coming through the expanded panama canal. if we are to stay competitive, we have to deepen the river. there are 352,000 jobs in georgia related to import-export and the port of is a van in a . in van -- have a san -- savannah. $1 spent gives us a $5.50 return. and these tough economic times, that's why this legislation is so important. furthermore, it's basically a re-authorization necessitated by bureaucratic delays. the original authority to deepen the savannah river was in 1999. it took 123 years and $41 million -- it took 13 years and $41 million of study to finally get four federal agencies to approve it. during that period of time, china built a port from start

to finish, which is billinger than the port of savannah. mr. speaker, if we are to be competitive as a nation, we have to do better than this. today's legislation accelerates the approval process by alleviating unnecessary government delays. this legislation is commonsense, it's pro job and pro america and i urge its passage. thank you and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from florida, mr. webster, reserves. the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings. . mr. hastings: mr. speaker, at this time i'm pleased to yield one minute to the distinguished gentleman from washington, my friend, mr. heck. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from washington is recognized for one minute. mr. heck: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in support of water resources reform and development act, and i rise in support for a very good reason. this bill helps create jobs. good jobs. family wage jobs. and it's not just jobs in

construction from the infrastructure projects. it's jobs throughout the shipping and transportation sectors. i happen to represent a district that contains a number of ports, including the port of olympia, and parts of the port of tacoma. activities at the port of tacoma alone are related to 113,000 jobs in washington state. but there are more jobs to be found there. and around the country if we act now. mr. speaker, i believe a healthy economy requires a healthy environment. i hope that the final bill that is reported out of the conference committee does not get caught in the false premise of having to choose just one. however, i think this bill is a good bipartisan start and i urge its passage. with that i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings, reserves. the gentleman from florida, mr. webster. mr. webster: i have no more

presenters, mr. speaker. therefore i reserve my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings. mr. hastings: thank you very much, mr. speaker. i yield one minute to the distinguished gentleman from illinois, my friend, mr. snyder. -- schneider. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from illinois is recognized. mr. schneider: thank you, mr. speaker. this re-authorization is long overdue. there is no better way to put people back to work and stimulate our economy than invest in our nation's infrastructure. in my home, the 10th district of illinois, there are $235 million in projects waiting to get under way. the multiplier effect of these projects will have in our community cannot be overstated. this bill makes a number of reforms that will benefit the communities in illinois that i represent. it will for the first time recognize the great lakes navigation system as the single system that it is. it will ensure that a portion of the harbor maintenance trust fund is dedicated to small harbors like the one i represent in with a keegan. this bill -- -- this bill is not

perfect. i have objections to some of the provisions. that said this bill is a great example of the progress that can be made when both sides come to the table and find common ground. i believe there is still more to be done to safeguard our environment and underlying bill. i look forward to working with the chairman and ranking member as this bill moves through the conference to ensure that adequate environmental protections are maintained in the final measure. i thank the gentleman and look forward to passing this bill. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings, is recognized. mr. hastings: thank you very much, mr. speaker. i'm very pleased at this time to yield one minute to the distinguished gentlewoman from maryland, my good friend, ms. edwards. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from maryland is recognized for one minute. ms. edwards: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today in -- generally in support of the re-authorization of the water resources development act, but i do want to express a couple concerns that i have. one is this discussion about reforms that i think really put

in jeopardy what it is we are trying to do both in terms of developing our water resources, also protecting our environment. i'm concerned about the streamlining under the national environmental policy act, nepa. it doesn't slow down projects. in fact, it ensures that the general public state and local government officials and industry have a seat at the table when federal agencies make decisions that impact our communities. indeed, i'm offering an amendment along with my colleague, mr. blumenauer and mr. defazio, that would restore our confidence in this system to make sure that we are really protecting our environment. my other concern, mr. speaker, is an amendment that's going to be offered, the young and petri amendment, that would, in fact, go back to the private sector for services instead of leaving that to the decision of the army corps of engineers. so with that i yield the balance of my time and i look forward to further working on these issues.

thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back her time of the the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings. mr. hastings: thank you, mr. speaker. at this time i yield one minute to the distinguished gentleman from pennsylvania, my friend, mr. cartwright. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized for one minute. mr. cartwright: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, i'm encouraged that we have today before us a bipartisan bill that will help improve our nation's waterways and infrastructure and create jobs. however, i do agree that this bill is imperfect, and i am dismayed that this bill includes provisions that will undermine our environmental protections and reduce the ability for public input. in that regard i wish to associate myself with the remarks of mr. dingell. what's left out is an environmental review process that avoids pitfalls and saves taxpayers money by allowing the army corps of engineers to understand where problems may exist with their proposals.

the bill also misses an opportunity to encourage the corps to use natural infrastructure in its flood control projects in order to better address future extreme weather, safeguard our neighborhoods, and improve wildlife habitat, nonstructural alternatives to corps projects should be considered as viable options. the project delays are overwhelmingly due to funding issues or changes to the project, not environmental review. i urge my colleagues to fix these shortcomings in the conference committee process. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings. mr. hastings: thank you, very much, mr. speaker. i'm pleased to yield one minute to the gentleman from minnesota, my friend, mr. ellison. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from minnesota is recognized for one minute. mr. ellison: thank you, mr. speaker. i want to thank the gentleman from florida for yielding time. environmental review isn't a problem. it's a good thing.

including citizens in projects and how they affect our community and their voices is important. protecting water quality and natural areas that drive local economies is important. saving tax dollars is important, yet unfortunately in the mind of some, environmental review is a problem that needs to be streamlined. i don't call these environmental reviews streamlines something good. i say that they are just weakening a good process that allows people to be involved and participate. i think weakening the national environmental protection act is shortsighted, misguided, and i oppose those particular provisions. while there are merits in this bill, there are also a problem and weakening the environmental review is chief among them. i'm disappointed those provisions aren't included in this bill. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings, roifings reserves. the gentleman from florida, mr. webster. mr. webster: thank you, mr. speaker. i would like to point out again,

no environmental law has been changed. none. nothing has been weakened. nothing has been shortchanged. nothing has been slowed down. the only thing that's happened is those studies instead of being done in a linear path, one after another, are done simultaneously. it doesn't weaken anything. it doesn't undo anything. what it does do is speed up the process, which is very, very needed. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings. mr. hastings: mr. speaker, at this time i'm pleased to yield one minute to the distinguished gentleman from new jersey, my good friend, mr. holt. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new jersey is recognized for one minute. mr. holt: mr. speaker, i thank my friend from florida. despite some merits in the wrda bills that the republicans have proposed, they fail to address the number one reason why corps of engineers projects are delayed. a serious lack of federal funding. the bill before us perpetuates a myth that the problem is

environmental review of engineering projects and not inadequate funding. in my congressional district, the green brook project has been funded at $11 million per year. if this funding level continues, it will take more than 30 years to complete the project which will eventually protect several flood-prone communities frequently at risk from extreme weather and save lives. until then the green brook residents remain under threat. now every water resource project has effects on the environment and should have good environmental review. streamlining environmental review will not save money or expedite construction. limiting the national environmental review limits public participation, prevents identification of potentially costly problems. projects stopping problems. environmental review is not something to be tolerated. it's something to be welcomed. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings. mr. hastings: at this time i'm very pleased to yield one minute

to the gentleman from minnesota, my friend, mr. nolan. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from minnesota is recognized for one minute. mr. nolan: mr. speaker, members of the house, distinguished member from florida. i rise in support of the water resource reform and development act. i'm a proud co-sponsor of this legislation. it's a good example of bipartisanship and cooperation and common sense as opposed to some of the politics that have dominated this chamber. as a member of the subcommittee on water resource, i was pleased to have had a part in several bipartisan provisions beneficial to the economy, to the environment, and to conservation. we are creating jobs and stimulating business income with this legislation. we are putting a stop to raids on the harbor maintenance fund. we are expanding the definition of invasive species now limited to plant life to include animal life species like zebra mussels and asian carp. we are closing the lock and dam at saint anthony falls to prevent the spread of asian carp through the lakes and rivers of

northern minnesota. mr. speaker, by passing this bill the congress demonstrates that we are still capable of achieving reasonable, bipartisan solutions that solve problems and get things done here in this country. thank you, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from florida. mr. hastings: thank you very much, mr. speaker. at this time i'm pleased to yield two minutes to my good friend from florida, ms. brown, to discuss our proposal if we defeat the previous question. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from florida is recognized for two minutes. ms. brown: thank you, mr. chairman. first of all i want to thank my colleague from florida for yielding time to me. my amendment is very simple. it authorizes the corps projects to receive a final chief report up to one year following the enactment of the bill. let's be clear, under the present arbitrary deadline, critical corps projects of engineering throughout the united states will have to wait

for a for years. this is the second corps project that we have done in 14 years. now, my colleague from florida keeps saying that there is no change. there is a change in this project in that in this particular bill this is the first time that members did not have up to two years to get their chief report in. the chief report is long. it takes time. it's economically and environmental justified, and it indicates it's a benefit to the entire contry. let me say one thing about this amendment, it does not change anything in the current bill. it pays the same way other projects is paid for. it is what we have always done. authorize these additional projects would generate billions of dollars in economic activity, create hundreds and thousands of

well-paying jobs. i want to yield one minute to my colleague, mr. murphy. the speaker pro tempore: thank you for the -- mr. murphy: thank you for the time. i rise to discuss an environmental catastrophe taking place in my district. while i strongly support the underlying bill, without the amendment, it would force my constituents and residents from florida to wait at least another two years for projects critical for our environment and our economy. the central everglades planning project, critical to the deteriorating health of the waterways in my district, is nearly ready to go. this project will safely move more water south of lake okeechobee instead of forcing -- mr. hastings: i yield an additional one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. ms. brown: i yield that to mr. murphy. mr. murphy: the project would move more water safely out instead of to the east and west

causing damage to the environment and local economy. i urge my colleagues to oppose the previous question and support the common sense, bipartisan brown- frankel-crenshaw-posey amendment that would allow the army corps to complete its work on authorizing several important projects in the final stages of approval. i spoke on the floor earlier today about the importance of acting now. on initiatives that will help address the environmental crisis occurring in our area. today we have that chance. my constituents and our waterways cannot wait. defeat the previous question and support the brown amendment. thank you. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady. ms. brown: yes, sir. if we defeat the previous question we can bring up this amendment right now and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady yields back. the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings. mr. hastings: thank you very much, mr. speaker. i'm very pleased to yield one minute to the distinguished gentlewoman from texas, ms. ackson lee, at this time.

the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady from texas is recognized for one minute. ms. jackson lee: i thank the distinguished gentleman from florida and the manager and he knows how important this whole bill is to the texas gulf region and i thank him for yielding the time. let me say that there are many things we'd like to fix in this bill but i know there are many texans who are waiting for this bill to pass and i was delighted to work with the texas delegation to strengthen the bill by encouraging nonfederal entities to invest in their harbor maintenance and step in when the army corps of engineers cannot. i'm also delighted that we have addressed the question of dredging and we should do it even better. i thank the rules committee for consenting to my amendment that deals with consultation, which stakeholders and water district, local, city, county government. i know my local governments are waiting to have the army corps of engineers actually listen to them, as well as historically black colleges, minority institutions.

i'm also looking forward to making sure that the $20 billion in projects through the defazio amendment is included and not rejected. and finally, i hope that we can work together, mr. speaker, on ensuring minority and women-owned businesses and the billions of dollars that are used by the army corps of engineers are actually getting the opportunity to work. i ask my colleagues to recognize the importance of this legislation and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings. mr. hastings: thank you very much. i would advise my good friend from florida that i have no further speakers and i'm prepared to close if he is. mr. webster: mr. speaker, i'm prepared to close also. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings, is recognized. mr. hastings: thank you. i yield myself the balance of time. how much time is that, mr. speaker? the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida has 4 1/2 minutes. mr. hastings: thank you very much. mr. speaker, this bill used to be known as the water resource development act. now it's called the water resources reform and development act. while with many of these new reforms that i take issue, i

look forward to working with my friends on the other side of the aisle to make sure that we are here again in two years to again update our water resources and infrastructure and hopefully a bill with less ill-advised reforms. mr. speaker, if the previous question is defeated i'm going to offer an amendment to allow for the inclusion of the bipartisan brown amendment. which would authorize projects that receive a final chief of engineers report up to one year following the enactment of this bill. mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent to insert the text of the amendment in the record, along with extraneous material immediately prior to the vote on the previous question. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. hastings: mr. speaker, i urge my colleagues to vote no and defeat the previous question. i urge a no vote on the rule and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida, mr. hastings, yields back his time. the gentleman from florida, mr. webster. mr. webster: thank you, mr. speaker. this rule provides for ample

and open debate and makes in order amendments from both sides of the aisle. further, it advances a bill that was reported out of the committee with a unanimous bipartisan support. this bill is good for american workers, good for american producers, good for american shippers. as my friend from florida, mr. hastings, knows this bill is also good for the state of florida. florida has 18 public seaports, these seaports are critical components to our economy. they are responsible for supporting more than half a million florida jobs and for generating $66 billion in total economic value. the activities of these seaports contributed $1.7 billion to florida's state and local budgets. furthermore, this bill advances key ecosystem restoration projects in the florida everglades and supports the economic development of that, the ever glades provides in our state. i thank chairman shuster for working with me and other

florida members to ensure that the state is well positioned to move forward. chairman shuster and ranking member rahall and my colleagues on the committee on transportation and infrastructure have given us a bipartisan product that reforms the federal bureaucracy, is fiscally responsible, strengthens accountability and creates jobs. mr. speaker, this is a good bill. i say to my colleagues in the house, if you support reforming the federal bureaucracy, if you are looking to manage our spending, if you are looking to increase transparency while investing in our infrastructure and if you're looking to create american jobs, support this bill. vote for the rule, vote for the bill, move the country forward. i yield back the balance of my time and i move the previous question on the resolution. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from florida, mr. webster, yields back his time. the question is on ordering the previous question on the resolution. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it.

mr. hastings: mr. speaker. i ask for the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. all those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having arisen, the yeas and nays are ordered. members will record their votes y electronic device. pursuant to clause 9 of rule 20, the chair will reduce to five minutes the minimum time for any electronic vote on the question of adoption. this is a 15-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.]