i work hard. i take it very seriously. i am no -- i know i have been given a privileged position to be on this, to be the eyes and ears for others that cannot be there. i take it very seriously. this is on that crawler transporter. this is charlie bolden shaking hands with workers as were writing the transporter out to the pad. of course, the shuttle lift up at night. i had to get a lightning shot in their, too. you will see a common theme throughout my images. if there is a puddle, i would use it. here is the first one.

i will sit there. i have a lot of pictures. i am happy to answer questions about them at the end. this is writing out on the helicopter with a sniper. the security is very serious. both here and in russia. this is in the lobby of the launch control center before going up to the firing room for one of the launches. the mural that they have there. this is inside the firing room. i used to joke that i never saw a single launch. i always watched people watching logically that is nasa administrator charlie bolden. this is one shot with myself in the frame. i used a remote. his office juts into the firing room. these are remote camera set up around the launchpad. you don't want to be this close during the launch. the closest that you can get is three miles during a shuttle launch. three quarters of a mile for

soy isuz launch. this is a smoke plume as workers are exiting the room. landing of scs 135. charlie bolden on the left and the center director on the right. that is the main landing gear on the tar mark of the shuttle landing facility for sts 135. chris ferguson, feeling if there is he coming off the front of the shuttle after we landed. a unique view underneath the shuttle looking towards the front nose.

this is the final role from the landing facility to the opf. then i had a responsibility to work with others and help document all the shuttles going to their final homes. this is discovery at dulles airport in virginia. pouddle number two. puddle number three. this is where the enterprise was being pulled out and discovery it was being rolled and as they pass each other. enterprise being loaded up to come to new york. this is that dulles airport as

well. look for it. this is coming into jfk. some days or weeks later, out on a boat in the hudson. the enterprises being brought up to the intrepid. -- the enterprise is being brought up to the intrepid. that is something you see every day. back down to florida. this is for endeavor's departure off to los angeles. i enjoy doing all of these

tremendously. it is bittersweet, obviously, the into the shuttle program. as a photographer, this is one of the really rewarding experiences that i have had, where we are able to see the public and the orbiters and what we do so close together in one place. going to the streets of los angeles with endeavor was incredible. it's too bad we cannot do it every day. this is from the goodyear blimp. as endeavor went by the randy's donuts. i just like saying that i was in the goodyear that is fun. throughout the entire route, just this outpouring of love and excitement. people holding their breath.

they had to his exact to the streets and avoid buildings and take out a few trees along the way. they try their best not to do that. time warner let people get up in their boxes and photograph it as it went by. i was told that in inglewood, when we went through there, they had zero crime that day. zero. that is los angeles. and, a lot of people ask me if when i first came to nasa i was a big fan of space, nasa, and so forth. i have be honest and say i was a

fan of nasa. i was not obsessed with it. it was not my goal. photography was my first love. i was extremely lucky to have such great subject matter. the two go together so well. maybe i've had the kool-aid now for 25 years, but if there's anything about what i have learned over the years from

being at nasa and making pictures for nasa is summed up in this picture and many of the pictures like it. regardless of what we discover in space, regardless of where we end up, the act of getting there, discovery, the whole process -- to see kids get excited about it and start seeing them light up and think about math and science is worth every single penny. sometimes i get bored. this is the administrator checking out an atlas five rocket. this is juno spacecraft on its way to jupiter. again, remotes. these are a bunch of unmanned missions good this is out of the annenberg air force base with the beautiful pacific behind it. -- vandenberg air force base with the beautiful specific pacific behind it. the lawyer on the right followed me everywhere and watched everything i shot. [laughter] robert bigelow, another entrepreneur with inflatable habitats. i think of this is the jiffy pop that we are going to fly into

space. these are his inflatable space stations. this is an orbital down at nasa. we had a rollout that happened yesterday. these are not those. these are various other rollouts taking place. this is the newest launchpad for me to be working on. it is a lot of fun when you go set up remotes, to be there to discover new images. it starts to get repetitive after a while. i have done how many soyuz launches. you want to try to tell the story in a unique and challenging way. that can be difficult when it's repetitive. it is very exciting to have different opportunities. this is out on a boat in the ocean getting some shots around sunrise. a remote set up. i was so happy they put that sign there. i started dipping my 10 oh into infrared.

this is false color infrared remote camera shot. i'm still working on that a little bit and will make it better next time. -- i started dipping my toe into infrared. i went to retrieve this remote and was happy. i was fortunate enough to go

over to japan for the launch of the gpm spacecraft. i had never been to japan before. i always wanted to go. i had an incredible expense there. i really enjoyed it. not unlike our visitor center. it's interesting to see what similar and different. just driving around you see space related themes everywhere. h2 a rocket.

it is a beautiful rocket. it was gorgeous. there were servers out there earlier. i was upset that i missed that shot. it's the shop gets away. you circle in one eye and set a goal, and once the goal is reached, you circle in the other eye. this was used for the building of the rocket and the goal was the successful launch and putting it into orbit. i guess these are getting cropped a little bit. it is what it is, i guess. i was surprised. i did not realize -- certainly in russia, there are a lot of traditions. i did not realize that in japan they have traditions as well leading up to launch. they visited three different shines before -- reince before lunch.

they leave two bottles of sake. they do some prayers. we moved on to the next one. my interpreter who was with me was -- my friend olga from moscow is here. she's going to kill me for calling her out. my interpreter, who is very dry and straight about everything as me if i knew much about the religion. she said, there's over 8 million deities. we are visiting three shines in leading prayers. she said, you know what's interesting is that they all like sake. [laughter] one of the challenges i have is that i'm not allowed to photograph a lot of things that will show our systems and design. that is a challenge i am always overcoming. you will show people in the workplace doing a lot of work. i shoot minimal depth of field, cutting people together see you don't see monitors. i don't set them up, but i'm always looking for this when i'm shooting to make sure i'm not -- i'm respecting those bounds. the rocket launch in japan. we had to wear hardhats. we are three miles away. [laughter] i have a love affair with a moon. this was the full moon -- super moon at the lincoln memorial. >> guys, the photo before that is one of the photographs we will auction off. >> ok. this is the last super moon as well. i do a lot of hearings in washington. i actually enjoy doing those. i have a front row seat between whoever is testifying in congress and typically every

emotion is covered in 30 minutes. i start with smiles and they go downhill from there. it is great. i notice i have let the smiles out of this one. this is our current administrator, charlie bolden. he is a wonderful man. four-time astronaut. this guy, john glenn, by far one of the best people i have ever met in my career, just amazing. >> [indiscernible] >> what i always still people is that he will walk in a room,

could be me, custodial staff, president united states. as for as he is concerned, we are all the same. if just a sweetheart, really nice guy. and of course, neil armstrong. an amazing human being. sorry, i am dragging on here. i will try to speed up. this is that jpl. this is the day we are about to land on mars. this is the moment in the control room where we got the signal back that we have landed successfully. i did one of these pictures during the mars pathfinder landing. there was a gentleman that had been at nasa for a decade and he was part of the mars viking program. he was rejoicing. i saw him with a very stern look on his face. i said, what's the matter?

aren't you happy? is there a problem? did we not get a good signal question mark -- good signal? he said, back in my day men were not hugging like this. [laughter] she made a visitor nasa a few years ago. this is the president's science advisor being interviewed by a student reporter. we do quiet a bit. this is the president making a call to the international space station. this is elon musk, puddle number four. kennedy space center. and trying to keep secret service out of your frame is not always easy. and in the oval office as well. this is the last time i photographed these gentlemen with the president in the oval office before neil passed away. i had the incredible honor, the family permitted me to be the only photographer at the funeral for neil.

that was a personal family funeral. i went on to cover the washington, d.c. funeral as well. i went on a navy ship out into the atlantic for his aerial at sea. this is his granddaughter preparing her remarks. his wife and granddaughter. i had no idea this was happening. these things are planned, but these things just don't happen. this was the second full moon, the night of his funeral in cincinnati. back in washington at the

national cathedral. and this is in jacksonville, florida, waiting for the remains to come off the plane. and, out of seat. the navy put down their cameras and let me be the only photographer to shoot this. i'm not sure why, but -- my first trip to moscow was in 1991, when we first started discussions together to partner up. i think i have made about 70 trips to moscow, and 56 earned so to kazakhstan. my first launch is a 1995 at of kazakh's stand. the rocket is in three cases when we arrive. the capsule area. they just start to slap that thing together. it is pretty amazing to watch,

actually. it takes about 12 hours for this to go on. there was one time when it was almost all the way together, my escort was saying it's time to go. i said i wanted to see it all together. i was making pictures. he was asking me to go. i said the light is not right. he said, have you seen this movie, kill bill. [laughter] were done. move on. this is the business in. rollout like clockwork, 7:00 a.m. that is the same launchpad that eureka garamond launched off of.

-- yuri garg aaron -- the darren . when my friends. -- one of my friends. this is a rock at a door and of saatchi. -- sochi. that is a 32nd exposure. it is not that fast. -- that is a 30 second exposure. if you were to ask me what is missing and what i need to do more of in the future, this is it right here. after you have done is forever, the hardware is cool, but it's the people. that's definitely what i'm looking forward to doing more and more of, people that i love. the priest comes down to bless the rocket.

he comes over and blesses the media as well. i think he has a special target on me specifically. there is the crew in the background in quarantine waiting for a no go or go for launch. they put on the flights is behind the glass. this is one of the things that i have been wanting to get for a

long time was the crew getting their haircuts, just to show -- they are normal human beings that do things that we all need to do. finally, after years of trying to get into do this, they got me into do it. i was asking my colleagues and they -- what should i expect.

they said, it depends. i said, what does it depend upon ? they said, it depends on how short the skirt is today. [laughter] the crew is in the back room saying goodbye. they are signing the door. lots of traditions. the priest ready to bless the crew as they come out.

pressure suit check out -- up and saying goodbye to the family. steve swanson. this is that the base of the pad. this is a 14 millimeter lens, which exaggerates things. it is a small rocket. one of the things i have yet to capture his when the crew gets up to the stairs, they path them on the back and then there's a guy takes his knee and jams it into their butt, saying get out of here. this is the other launchpad. this is the other time that i -- this of the only time i photographed the other launchpad into zack and stand. this is from pad one. this is a two minute exposure in the middle of daylight. staged in kazakhstan -- we had often he looked cracked -- helicopters.

there is a media healer craft -- helicopter. we circled the area where the capsule is supposed to land. once we see that we are a -- at a point, we open up the door of the helicopter. i am hanging out. another guy lays down next to me. two guys lay down on top of his who are shooting. two guys sit on the four of us. there's two guys leaning on the shoulders. there are eight guys doing this thing. there are only six of us these days. we open the door. the first time this happened, max, a good friend of mine was on top of me. you can't hear anything. the wind is blowing. it is cold. your craning your neck to look around to see if you can find why you're shooting. you're waiting to see if we could see it. max says, bill. i love you. i said, dude, not the time. not the time. [laughter] this is staging. this is the flotilla, 12 helicopters. this is the runway, which is no longer in use, but we use it for our landings. some of the locals come and pick us up and take us into town for a few hours of rest before the next morning. we eat at the restaurant. you stay at the hotel.

i found some breakfast, which is always good. when the doctor eats it, i know it's ok. he is the flight surgeon. here we are hanging out at the helicopter and seeing it come down with three people who have been in six months. it is pretty incredible. these pilots are good. this is shot with a 300 millimeter lens. we are right on it. you can see the ground crew chasing after it is well in atvs and jeeps. a lot of farmers fields out in that neck of woods. this is a shop that i had been trying to get for ages, to see the retro jets firing.

this is shot at 11 frames per second. that is how quick it happens. i have had a lot of folks and come to me after they get out of the capsule and ask me if they really fired. this is during early morning landing, with all the support vehicles with their headlights on. crew of three inside.

this ran on the front page of the new york times. a different landing. this is nice to see the scenery out there. one thing that is a good question to ask katie and others is something i haven't heard talked about yet. i remember ken talking about this. when they open the hatch, the was no one there. it took a while for the support crew to get there. he talks about the first thing was the smell of dirt and earth and inhaling that and loving that smell after being in space. there is katie. this is a print that is available as well today. all of these images are in the public domain. all of these images can be downloaded from the nasa website to be used. the crew is being brought out of the capsule. they are carried over to a chair. a little thumbs up. smelling the smells.

some of our rush and friends. this ran on the cover of aviation week a couple of weeks ago. then there is a lot of work it takes a place on the capsule to get it out of there. ron gearan in the helicopter. mike blown away by gravity. he gives the wrong his hat up in the air. how cool is this. a lot of the crew, some of them feel up to walking and want to do it. others don't. there is almost always support personnel who insist upon helping them anyway. the whelping -- welcoming party at kazakhstan at the airport. they are given much of the dolls -- these dolls after landing.

thank you for your patience. [applause] how are we doing? we ran long, didn't we? >> we have a lot of time. before you guys have questions. bill, have you ever had a picture you took an nasa said you cannot use that one? >> no, i have to admit that i'm pretty fortunate. i also know what nasa is not going to like. i have had my share of mistakes over the years. one is a funny story.

i had made a picture in the firing room of everyone on headsets and in their working. we ended up scrubbing for the day. we launched a day or two later. i came back in the firing room for the reattempt and one of the gentlemen there sent, we just got a strange: the firing room. he said a radio station in all essentials called us live on the air and said we have the firing room? they said that they zoomed in on a photograph that had the phone on it. luckily, everyone thought it was hilarious. i was concerned about it. >> obviously, being around all these guys and taking all of these pictures of these rockets taking off, and you want to go into space? are you going to buy a ticket on verging galactic? you must make a lot of money is a photographer, right? >> that punchline was pretty good. no, i would love to go up. i think it would be great. i am always thinking about what i would do it there that might be different. a lot has been done.

tom has done a lot of the shots that i had on my list. i think the only thing left is a series of nudes. >> not nudes of you? >> i once interviewed bill anders, who took the the very famous photo. i was like to ask people what they were thinking at the time they did a great thing. for bill, it was earthrise. he said you wanted know what i'm thinking. i'm thinking i am off mission. i'm supposed to be taking photos of the dark side of the moon as we go around because apollo was the first time anybody had gone around the moon and instead of taking photos of the potential lunar landing sites for apollo 11.

but here i am taking pictures of the earth. i'm wasting film. what i really thought was that i was going to get a lot of trouble for taking these pictures. they were so beautiful. he cannot help himself. bill got the right one.&f1 it's being in the right place at the right time? >> absolutely. that is half the game, just rang to plan ahead and think about where you need to be and hope it happens. >> give me an example of one where you were in the right place at the right time. >> all right, well, you caught me off guard. absolutely. it's not so much nasa related, when jfk's last visited the white house. tom hanks was having his premier. it was being premiered in the

east room with president clinton , and jfk junior was there with his wife, he killed off for a moment and i saw him approach the famous portrait of his father with the arms folded. i never made a couple of frames of that. i cannot pass on it. i just happened to be hanging out at the right time in the right place. anyway, the white house photographer came and joined the great i backed off. i felt it did not have a whole lot to do with what i was doing here. when he passed away, the white house put together a photo welcome to present to the family , and they use my photo of that. it's just one of those happenstance things. >> i'm going to open it up now for questions. let's start here in the front row. can someone give him a microphone? >> thank you. it's very clear that there is a strong connection between you and your work.

there is a lot of love there. it's clear that there is a lot of love that you put into your work. the images speak for themselves. being a young person, i'm really curious to know -- there is obviously a lot of tenacity that is tied with that love. is that some you have always had? and if you could talk about one or two key moments when you are in your 20's and beginning to move towards nasa? lakeshore. >> sure. photography has always been my passion, more than nasa, but now nasa's in my blood, too. i feel very fortunate that that has not gone away. anytime i go out on a photo assignment, especially to places where had i have been again and again. i love that challenged to find

something new, try to find a new picture, and yet of the story in an understandable way, because you could just go crazy and take pictures that don't make sense. you have to tell the story as well. for me, it's that passion that has never gone away. that's not entirely true good i have had my moments where i have gone home from work and not wanted to pick up a camera. the first time that happened to me, it scared me. am i losing it. then it comes back. that's the one thing from my experience. i don't freak out when that happens. it still happens. i know just to stick with it and it will come back. it does. i love looking at the work of others. i should mention that my colleagues -- if you have not seen his pictures, very creative, very good. it's nice seeing some fresh eyes. it helps to inspire me as well.

being around others who love what i do as well as part of it. did that answer your question? >> yes. this fellow here. >> equipment question. what kind of camera, lens, handhold, tripod? >> yes to all of the above. i shoot nikon stuff day in and day out to all the remote cameras are cannons with nikon lenses. we have the whole shooting match. i shoot some films still, just for personal satisfaction, but not a lot. i was a hold out for a long time.

i did not go to digital until i had to. now, i am in full hawk -- hog. i had a scanner, hairdryer, fish tank heater, clips -- the whole thing. i remember the hotel in moscow. i'm standing there with a roll of film and a smock with a bathtub full of chemicals and so forth. >> you would have a problem with the ebola thing in new york if they saw you. >> yes. i had to take a set dish with me as well. the only window in the hotel and kazakh's stand to face the satellite was down at the other end of the hallway, and these are back in the days where you had to assemble these satellite dishes. i set the alarm for 2:00 in the

morning, wake up, simple satellite dish, put it in the window behind the curtain, rent a wired to my room, set the window, ran the wire into my room. i would scan a frame and using my modem from moscow, to washington, to the office, it would take me to in a half hours to send a picture. occasionally it would disconnect. when you are at 90%. you know. the equivalent of sucking pizza through a straw. madness. when it comes to digital, i am a huge fan. being able to send things on a dish smaller than my laptop is amazing. >> i have another question. i was fascinated by the photos of the neil armstrong funeral. can you give us any insight from a personal standpoint what it

was like, the mood? that was a select group of people. >> yes, an incredible honor. how to describe it. the family was very kind, very polite. subdued. the navy bent over backwards for them. this is an american hero. it was interesting, when i photographed the ceremony in ohio, there was a family publicist of sorts. we had to get to know each other and make sure he was comfortable with me and what i was doing. the only picture that ever got questioned was someone said, they are going to do a flyover at the end of the ceremony. this was at a small country club it was very modest. they were concerned how that might look, being on the lawn of

the country club. does it look elitist? my take was, i said if there is anyone in this country americans would like to have seen have a good life as a result of his hard work, it is neil armstrong. show this picture. luckily they did not argue. they said absolutely. >> one more question and then we are going to break. back there. yes. if the guy can get you the mic. >> in the first decade of the manned space program, families were front and center in the official story of the astronauts and the missions. there is a book out in recent year, there is a tv show being made about it now. in the last 20 or 30 years, it feels as though the families

have in much less in the picture. i appreciate public attention has changed. there is a lot more astronauts. to what extent have you looked at conveying the story of the space program over the last 20 years have you paid attention to the families, to what extent does nasa think that should be part of the story? how did the astronauts feel about that? >> that is a very good question. i would encourage you to ask us some of the astronauts directly of course as well in what their

take is on that. a lot of things, as katie was sharing when she shared her medical situation. nasa takes privacy very seriously. but extends to the family members as well. as a photographer, i would love to incorporate that. i also respect that boundary. it is a balancing act. absolutely. i'm not sure i can give you a real good answer for that one. it would be good to talk to katie and other folks. >> ok. let's have a big hand for bill ingalls. [ applause ] >> from reuters voiced outrage at the paris attack. we will have moon's remarks along with comments from president obama and a speech by the french president tonight at 8:00, all related to that paris

tror terror attack. here is a preview of the u.n.'s remarks. >> i want to express my outrage at the despicable attack against the french. it was a horrendous unjustifiable and cold-blooded crime. it was also a direct assault on a corner stone of democracy. i extend my deepest condolences to the families and my best wishes to all those to bring the perpetrators to justice quickly. this horrific attack is meant to divide. we must not fall into that trap.

this is a moment for solidarity around the world. we must stand strong for freedom and stand against forces of division and hate. >> this sunday on q & a, author dick lair talks about "the birth of a nation," its depiction of former slaves after the civil war this is a scene showing what happens when you give former slaves the right to vote, the right to be elected and the right to govern. it's a scene in the south carolina legislature where their

first and primary order of business is to pass a bill allowing for interracial marriage because again, in griffith's hands black men are solely interested in pursuing and having white women. >> author dick lehr sunday night at 8:00 eastern and pacific on c-span's q & a. >> the national governor's association held its third annual state of the states address yesterday. the chair of the nga, colorado governor john hickenlooper urged

congress to increase spending on infrastructure. he said too little spending is handicapping u.s. businesses and markets. this is about an hour. [ applause ] >> thank you and good morning, ladies and gentlemen. thank you for coming to the third annual national governor's

state of the states address. it is my -- this is going to be a tough one, i can tell. must be the snow. it is my privilege to serve as the governor of colorado and as the chair of the nga. joining me today is my good friend and vice chair and governor of the great state of utah. i would like to take a moment to acknowledge the chief of the national guard bureau here with us today. he is also a member of the joint chiefs of staff. we are welcoming many new colleagues this year as governors. already four new governors have been sworn in. alaska arizona hawaii and the virgin islands. as of today the governor will be sworn in as the first female governor of rhode island. over the next few weeks, another seven new governors will take the oath of office. many of these colleagues are relatively new to politics.

they entered the realm of elect elected office after many successful years. tom wolf spent years running a family business. arizona's new governor was his state's first treasurer but before that he was the founder and chief executive of cold stone creamery. he didn't step into office until four years ago. she was her state's treasurer but before that she launched one of rhode island's first venture capital firms. he will take over as nebraska's governor on thursday. he held several leadership positions including a business that eventually came to be known as ameri-trade. this is after years in the private sector.

these new perspectives will be of great benefit not only to the individual states but to the whole country. public service and political experience is critical but so is private sector experience. knowing what it's like to take a risk and start a business. having had to meet a payroll and not only keep the lights on but turn a profit and succeed. this experience can help state governments empathize with the business community and with its employees. all of which helps cultivate responsible economic growth. today marks the swearing in of the 114th congress and our colleague mike brown of south dakota. mike joins nine other former governors who realize that having been a governor will help make them a better senator. i tell you all of this because we have a clean slate a fresh start. as the house and senate and the administration put their agendas together, we are asking them to look to the states. gridlock too often may be the norm here in washington, d.c.

but that does not hold true in the states. later this afternoon governor herbert and i along with others will meet with the president to talk about the upcoming year and areas of mutual concern and interest. identifying challenges and finding solutions that work for everyone are the hallmarks of the state capitals. it's the hallmarks of successful business leaders. we have demonstrated we can work together to solve our nation's most pressing problems. indeed, this is as it should be. as our founding fathers intended states to function as laboratories of democracy. i would like to highlight a few of the things happening in states and how we are delivering results for the people of our states. then governor herbert will outline how the federal government can partner with us going forward. let's start with education. every gfovernor i know wants to be the education governor. research has shown that to have

a strong competitive education system early learning needs to come first. already most states have invested more state dollars in early care on education. those states are creating policies to increase the likelihood that money is spent on high quality learning opportunities. governor malloy has led efforts in connecticut to expand early care and education. make sure those opportunities are rampant. last year he established a new office of early childhood to build a cohesive high quality system of care and education for young children in his state. he also worked with the legislature to expand the voluntary preschool program. states are elevating the quality of their education by raising their expectations of students and moving the quality of the assessments used to measure students' progress. with testing, it's about quality not quantity. when done well students are better prepared for postsecondary education, avoid

remedial classes and are on a path to obtaining a certificate or degree to enter the work force and ultimately the middle class. ensuring students leave high school ready for college or a career is a top priority for governors everywhere. governor haslem has led tennessee with this approach, producing largest gains in student achievement over the last four years. as states set higher standards, what students learn and how they will learn will not change much unless we improve the quality of teaching and leadership within all our schools. states are revamping the preparation of teachers and principals and are evaluating how educators are evaluated. we passed legislation to elevate the quality of our teachers and our principals. today teachers and principals are evaluated according to a

system based on rigorous standards. they receive feedback based on multiple observations of their practice as well as their contribution to student learning. along with this feedback, teachers and principals are given the necessary professional development opportunities to improve their performance. as we all know, education is not stopped in the classroom. it continues throughout their careers. the work force is constantly evolving and learning which is absolutely necessary -- which is absolutely necessary in our modern economy. where we can create opportunities, that means well paying jobs. and well paying jobs mean upward mobility. economic growth and job creation depend on a well educated and well trained work force. there is a growing recognition that the united states will benefit from more advanced on the job training opportunities to develop a skilled work force for businesses and for -- for

businesses and for well paying careers for workers. that's one reason states have focused on creating apprenticeships. main street montana elevates the role of apprenticeship as a work force solution for the state's key industries. several states are offering tax credits to employers who hire apprentices. others are offering tuition benefits and reimbursements when workers take relevant courses. some states provide support to state-wide and regional agencies to help businesses develop apprenticeship models. this year, the iowa apprenticeship and job training act tripled apprenticeship funding to over $3 million to support classroom-based instruction for apprentices in high demand sectors. governor herbert's commitment to aligning the work force training system with the needs of the employers in the state is paying great dividends.

utah's unemployment rate is one of the very best in the nation. his support for reforms that emphasize science technology engineering and math the so-called stem careers, it's helping utah realize its goal of 66% of all adults obtaining a degree or postsecondary certificate by the year 2020. also preparing today's students for a modern technology driven economy. we governors are occasionally competitive. but it's good having one governor standing out so it pushes the rest of it. we also must look to the -- at the talent pool when creating economic development strategies. among that pool of talent are our returning veterans. after returning from armed forces, many veterans find that they cannot transfer easily their skills to a civilian job without the additional burden -- without the added burden of additional certificates or licenses. because of this 20 states have enacted legislation just in the

past year to assist veterans and their spouses in transferring and obtaining occupational licenses. six states illinois iowa, minnesota, nevada virginia and wisconsin, are participating in a project to ease veterans' transition -- to ease the transition from military service to civilian employment by accelerating the occupational licensing process. in minnesota, the governor signed legislation reducing the number of years of military experience necessary to take the police officer reciprocity exam. in wisconsin the governor created an ak sl rated program that bridges the gap between military training and civilian credentials, especially in nursing. in every state education and healthcare are the top two expenditures. all states continue to focus on

improving healthcare raising quality and containing costs. increasingly, governors are aligning economic incentives across public and private payers moving away from traditional fee for service models and toward value and quality. many governors are starting the transformation with medicaid. for example, governor bentley proposed a demonstration waiver in alabama to implement regional care organizations to provide care to almost all of the medicaid beneficiaries within the next few years. in washington, they have a demonstration waiver proposal to support state wide healthcare transformation by consolidating siloed federal funding sources and maximizing their value. for its part nga is working with governors to create a medicaid transformation framework to include agreement in concept with the federal government around common

state-wide transformation themes. that's flexible federalism. oregon transformed its medicaid program by delivering the state -- dividing the state into 15 regional coordinated care organizations that emphasize prevention and chronic disease treatment, to reduce the need for emergency room visits and hospitalizations. arkansas has implemented a novel system of bundle payments for select procedures and conditions. these payments cover the entirety of services needed. physician, hospital pharmaceutical, post care, post acute care for each episode of treatment thereby establishing incentives for the most efficient care. governors are leading the way in proving the health of the people in their state by focusing the wellness of the whole person and optimizing individual health outcomes. a key aspect of these efforts

includes integrating medical and behavioral healthcare systems. missouri is a pioneer in this effort. the governor places a premium on evident-based practices for people with the most serious needs. the missouri model shows promising evidence of significant reductions in hospitalizations and improved outcomes for serious chronic conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure and cholesterol. as states strive towards high quality and more efficient healthcare governors are also developing an accessible well-trained and flexible healthcare work force to meet both the current need and that of a transformed healthcare delivery system. many states report provider shortages across diverse practice areas, including adult primary care, oral health, behavioral health and a range of

other specialties. more over, delivery system efforts are creating new nudes that are significantly changing the composition of the healthcare work force. along with how individual providers are expected to practice. governors are carrying out a number of efforts to support that new health work force including a a dressing scope of practice restrictions creating incentives for providers to practice in rural and under served areas, partnering with economic development and labor agencies to collect work force data and funding education and training programs to recruit, retain new types of professionals. in maryland, they established a loan repayment program funded by both public and private stakeholders which including an advisory counsel that scores potential open ply kants according to the likelihood they will continue serving under serve once their term ends. in north carolina, they created

a program linking emergency rooms to behavioral health providers who are able to initiate treatment through video conferencing. even with the gridlock in washington, governors are using their authority to effectively improve the quality of healthcare for the people of their states. education and healthcare are top of mind for all governors we also are focused on infrastructure. the roads, rail waterways, the runways, broadband networks and power grids needed to accelerate economic growth and job creation. governors know that you can't build a competitive economy without the foundation provided by modernized infrastructure. to be frank too little federal investment in infrastructure is handicapping u.s. business. what was new 65 years ago now has to be either rebuilt or

repaired. in response states are increasing their funding. fiscal year 2014, transportation spending grew by more than 4% with state funds increasing more than 10% at the same time that federal funding were declining by more than 1%. in order to bridge that gap, states have turned to creative funding sources and innovative ways to help their dollars go further. one approach that has been made sense in many states is creating new public private partnerships that leverage private sector financing and expertise to deliver new public roads bridges, ports and tunnels at a lower cost and more quickly. we have had success in colorado with the public private partnership transit project that opened last fall. there's a new road project under way. our state along with maryland, illinois and north carolina held retreats with the help of the nga to think through these new

opportunities. including how to identify the savings and structure for these projects so that they can really work. energy policy is another area where governors have been leading the charge. governors have been crafting state energy plans and developing a variety of policies thanks to technological advances including increased production from horizontal drilling, the past few years have seen a reversal in the decline in the domestic production of crude oil. in september monthly production was back up to 256 million barrels on par with its peek in 1996. a far more importantly a far cry from the low point of september 2005 when it was less than half that amount. we expect to see continued high levels of production for some time to come, even with the drop in oil prices that is part of

the -- is in part a consequence of more production in the united states. there's a similar story to be told about natural gas development where production saw ten straight months of growth from february to november of this past year. reaching 67.9 billion cubic feet per day on average. as such, the united states now leads the world in natural gas production. these increased have lowered cost increased reliability enhanced energy security and furthered economic development. lower energy costs have added 500 to $1000 annually to household budgets across the united states. much of this new production is from shale in oil and gas. meanwhile, states are working to ensure that they are managing the development of this new shale energy. in colorado, we created rules to eliminate methane and processes

along with a number of other rules that protect water and land resources. governors are working to ensure that development is done safely and responsibly so that we can all use natural gas to heat our homes, to generate electricity, to fuel our vehicles in a way that lowers emissions and increases the diversity of our energy supply. from the 21st century production, let's jump now to 21st century threats. like not enough water. that's not in the script. the continued growth and sophistication of cyber attacks against the united states makes cyber security a critical issue for all governors. crime, like commerce is now done often on the internet. what used to be stolen in person is now stolen with a keyboard. cyber security is considered one of the largest homeland security

threats that we face. governors have made significant progress on this front. last year, the nga resource center for state cyber security under the leadership of maryland governor o'malley and michigan governor snyder released a call to action outlining essential steps governors can take to improve their state's cyber security practices. i'm happy to report today that according to a recent survey, two-thirds of the state have adopt order are considering adopting the recommendations. governors are leading national efforts to improve a whole of government approach to cyber security. at the 2014 nga summer meeting, the council of governors ratified the joint action plan for state federal unity of effort on cyber security. this document will help improve coordination of state and federal governments efforts to strengthen our response to cyber

security. as we all know there's is much work to be done to ensure that our networks and critical infrastructure are secure from cyber attacks. governors will continue to improve the security. another threat that nations's governors recognize is prescription drug abuse. it's the fastest growing drug problem in the entire country. it's critical that we have a coordinated and effective response. last year along with governor -- last year governor bentley and i co-chaired first round. prescription drug abuse project. now under the leadership of nevada's and vermont's governor, other governors have conceived -- convened high level teams of policymakers with the goal of implementing strategies to reduce overdoses and deaths. these states are building on the lessons learned from the first academy developing plans that

are able to use data and evaluation to drive policy to rely on evidence-based practices and ultimately change prescribing behavior. i know in our early implementation, colorado has reduced prescription drug abuse by more than 20% in the first 2 1/2 years. public health, law enforcement and other stakeholders must work together to find a solution to the growing problem. governors continue to lead the way encouraging greater collaboration and coordination to reduce overdoses and death. what i have outlines are a few highlights from the state's many accomplishments. we know we will continue to grow and continue to do more. that's why i have chosen to focus my chair's initiative this year on delivering results. my overall goal is to make state government work in the most efficient, cost-effective way possible through innovative management and hiring practices

through government process improvements and through appropriate regulation. many of my fellow governors are already taking full advantage of the innovations used by businesses, universities and others to address the fundamental issue of how to deliver people better results. for example, a number of govern florz cutting bureaucratic red tape making government work better for its people and its businesses. one way is to make it easier to obtain licenses and permits. for example, in south dakota, the governor launched a new red tape review eliminating more than 148,000 words and 900 sections from the state regulation. new jersey governor chris christie created a commission to review all pending and proposed rules and regulations for their affect on the state's economy. on a related note, he signed into law in november that will revise or repeal unnecessary or

burdensome statutes identified by the commission. they are ensuring that taxpayer money is spent wisely. in michigan a new website provides information to the public on performance in key areas such as economic strength health and education and public safety. another governor instituted results washington an effort to ensure that all state government is focused on achieving a set of high priority goals including world class education. healthy and safe communities and a prosperous economy. in colorado, we are focusing on delivering results as well. one of the things we did immediately after taking office four years ago was travel around the state and ask communities and business leaders what we could do to help their businesses, to help their business development. part of what we heard was to get rid of unnecessary rules, get government out of the way. in response we established what we call the pits and peeves

initiative. i signed an order that required all state agencies to conduct periodic reviews of all their rules to determine their need, their appropriateness and their effectiveness. thus far in colorado, we have reviewed more than 13,000 state regulations and either improved or eliminated almost 50%. the order wasn't rocket science but common sense. which we all have learned sometimes alludes bureaucracy. sim ly we have adopted processing systems. in colorado, government processes are done more quickly and efficiently than ever before. to expand on these things is the right direction for all governors. these experiments in bringing modern management techniques to state governments are taking place all across america. we are beginning to find

solutions to secure this -- solutions to some of this country's most nagging problems. state governments exist to improve not complicate the lives of their citizens. to expand more on these issues and how federal government can partner with us, i turn it over to my good friend from the great state of utah, governor gary herbert. [ applause ] >> thank you. welcome, everybody. it's an honor to be here with you today. it's a privilege to join my good friend here as we lead the national governor's association. i enjoy serving with him as we work together with the western governor's association. i'm excited about this opportunity to continue to work together here in washington representing the governors of this great nation. a new congress provides a clean slate.

it's a new year and a new opportunity to reset priorities and focus on solutions. like many of my fellow governors, i too have been frustrated by the stalemate that seems to pervade washington. guiding principals should guide. about you they should not be used to impede governing. governors have to get things done. today, we speak on behalf of the nas's governors to build upon the innovation and activity in the states and to call for a federal agenda that focuses on solutions and partnerships rather than extreme partisanship. this new congress provides us with a unique opportunity to reauthorize several major programs. with a backlog of work that has been left undone by the previous congress, we now have the opportunity for meaningful reform to ensure that state federal programs work more effectively. let's start with education. 43 states are operating under

waivers from no child left behind. waivers are important tools that provide states with flexibility to innovate and manage programs government by waiver is a sign of underlying laws that do not work and are in need of reform. governors are calling on congress to reauthorize the elementary and secondary education act. this should be done in a way that protects states' rights to set standards and recognizes the need for maximum flexibility as states meet goals and advance education for all of our students. the new act should reinforce the principal that accountability and responsibility for k-12 education rests with the states. it should also support governor strategies to improve low performing schools and it must include flexibility for governors to empower teachers and school leaders to prepare all students for success.

the objective of k-12 education to prepare students for college or career training and provide the basis for a successful future. in oklahoma, the governor hosted a summit in her state that brought together for the first time leaders from education, the business community and state government in order to lay out a plan and make a joint commitment to improve education in her state. other states are also doing similar things to ensure state driven education excellence. other major education bills are also pending, including reauthorization for head start and the higher education at per kib kins career and education act. this sets the stage for building a pipeline aimed at preparing more students for success in the workplace and in their communities. by leveraging various parts of these separate bills to reinforce one another, states will have the latitude necessary to create a coherent system that

is better for our students. as we all know, better education leads to a better work force. as governors we are continually working to ensure our work force systems are ready to develop and sustain a skilled work force for today's global economy. the work force envestment act of 1998 gave governors tools to ensure an effective and responsive system to meet the needs of worgers. 16 years later the law was in need of an update to allow governors to address new challenges that confront workers in our modern state economies. we applaud congress for breaking through the gridlock to reauthorize this law which provides flexibility for governors to grow and spur economic development. unfortunately, appropriators failed to fully fund the 15% set aside, a tool that governors have used to build work force programs that attract and retain

businesses, create jobs and improve worker skills. we look forward to partnering with the federal government to fully implement the law and with congress to fully restore the 15% set aside which by the way can be done with no tax increase. let me also recognize that our nation's veterans are a valuable part of our american wouldrk force. we are focused on providing veterans are ready access to the benefits, the services and the economic opportunities they deserve. specifically, the governors are dedicated to sharing innovative state initiatives that seek to ease veterans' transition to civilian life. we are partnering to hire more veterans, to better support military spourss and families. in addition, governors will continue to work with federal agencies and congress to address ongoing state federal challenges

related to information sharing records management and elimination of the disability claims backlog. another significant concern for the governors is healthcare. we agree with the goals of improving health and quality of care while doing everything possible to contain costs. last year we came together as states to make more than 40 recommendations to the department of health and human services through our healthcare sustainability task force. these key recommendations include streamlining the approval process for medicaid waivers like we have done in utah. as we have seen in arkansas and in oregon. developing a path of permanency for longstanding successful state programs as they have been done in arizona. and also allowing states to share in the federal savings that result from state-driven reforps. we are an ongoing discussion to make sure that these recommendations become a

reality. in particular, i would like to acknowledge the work that has been done through the new medicaid accelerator program. looking ahead governors will work with federal partners on these and other opportunities to improve the quality and efficiency of the nation's healthcare system. two areas where governors have consensus are in the call for reauthorization of the children's health insurance program, known as chip. as well as the need to coordinate efforts to combat prescription drug abuse. congress should act quickly to reauthorize and fund chip. since 1997 the program has been successfully provided children and pregnant women and working families with affordable health insurance. governors believe chip should be reauthorized until those children and pregnant women have access to other affordable alternative coverage options. prescription drug abuse is a major public health and safety

crisis confronting communities across the united states. while governors are leading comprehensive initiatives to address this issue a coordinated national response is needed to effectively turn the tide of this epidemic. the federal government should work in close coordination with governors to develop policies that complement state efforts and focus on specifically one enhancing public education and awareness, two maximizing the use of state prescription drug monitoring programs, three, improving provider education and prescribing practices four providing safe, convenient and cost-effective options for disposing unused drugs encourage abuse deterrent formulation and expanding access to addiction treatment and alternative treatment for pain. another priority for states is restoring, rebuilding and expandingexpand ing our infrastructure.

if congress does not act early this year federal reimbursement from the highway trust fund for state spending on contracted transportation projects are at risk as soon as this spring. unless congress reauthorized or extends federal surface transportation laws and programs, they too, will expire on may 31st of this year. the uncertainty created by these two events will leave jobs and economic growth at risk in all of our states. therefore, we call on congress to strengthen the economy and invest in the future by passing a long-term reauthorization. a multi-year authorization should include flexibility for states to maintain innovative financing options such as the private public partnership which can serve as tools during great uncertainty. however, innovative financing

mechanisms alone cannot replace the continued federal investment necessary to create a cohesive national transportation system. this commitment by the federal government to our service transportation began in the 1950s under president easen hower and continues to this day. support for infrastructure investment must include support for municipal bonds. bonds have financed most every major infrastructure project in this country in the last accept turry. ending or capping the federal exclusion from nks for bond interest would increase the cost of financing infrastructure projects. this would slow future projects and require states and local governments to find alternative sources of revenue. while where he on the subject of infrastructure and tax, let me take a moment to express governors disappointment with congress for not passing legislation addressing marketplace fairness regarding online and remote sales.

length lathe was proposed that would have helped level the playing field for all retailers and alauped for collection of taxes that are owed to the states under existing laws. not only is it unfair to other taxpayers who pay their taxes, this failure to act distorts the marketplace in effect favoring remote sellers who often have no connection to our communities over the businesses that are hiring our people and serving our families. this discussion has been going on for over 15 years. it has strong bipartisan support. it is time. in fact, i would say it's pastime for congress to act and to resolve this issue. already 23 states have taken matters into their own hands and passed amazon laws to collect a portion of the tax on their own. more will0w heard earlier states are not

afraid to govern. to fully resolve this issue at the national level, congress must act. we ask them to act now. we do appreciate the work congress has done with regards to the national guard. last year, congress did the right thing by saying, no to a plan to cut the army national guard and remove of its combat air capability. this year a commission will review the role of the army national guard. we fully intend to communicate how the guard's cost-effectiveness and more than ten years of combat experience should be leverages to meet the threats and realities facing the nation. we already know that the pentagon intends to resubmit plans to reduce the side of the guard and remove their helicopters. governors in congress said no once. and we will say it again. the guard is the most cost-effective combaft ready for force in our nauseous's arsenal. as a former staff sergeant in the utah national guard i know

firsthand how the guard faithfully serves this country abroad and here at home. governors understand the need we have as a nation to make adjustments to meet financial realities. this is the time to invest in value and the national guard is the best bank for the taxpayers' buck. one example of how useful and versa tie the guard can be is its potential to help states address cyber security threats. states counties and cities are experiencing the same attacks we hear about with regard to the retailers and banks and other businesses. as the governor said, nga has taken the lead to provide states with plans and strategies for combating cyber attacks. since the men and women of the guard come from our communities and our businesses some of best and brightest working in the area of cyber security also serve in the guard. as the federal government develops policies to thwart attacks and protect us, it

should partner with the states and recognize the value the guard can bring to this new front. let me now address the subject of energy and the epa. much work remains to be done at the federal level to ensure that the united states retains its newly found position as a leader in world energy production. american energy producers have made enormous progress in developing both renewable and traditional sources of fuel. it's critical that we cultivate a regulatory climate to that allows for safe efficient and environmentally responsible innovation in each of these areas. the epa's rule to limit greenhouse gas emissions will require states to submit compliance plans soon after the resumes expected finalization date in june. it's important that states have the flexibility and the resources needed to develop these plans. additionally, the proposed

waters of the u.s. rule would alter which waterways would fall under federal jurisdiction versus state jurisdiction through the clean water act. the epa must continue its coordination with states to ensure that the epa does not overstep its bounds affecting state aets jurisdiction and authority. speaking of water which we have spoken of today, i would like to thank our congressional partners for passage of the water resources reform and development bill. governors developed a set of guiding prince pals for the bill's reauthorization. we are pleased that many of these principals were included in the final bill. as the bill is implemented governors are committed to ensuring that key provisions such as the public private partnership for the corps of engineers are developed with input from the states. for more than a century, our governors have been working for the national governor's

association, a bipartisan association with a partisan town. in order to discuss mutual concerns and act collectively for the betterment of our states initiatives and policy recommendations we have worked together on have served as the cat list for positive change in our country. as elected officials, we are expected to make government work. i look forward to working with all of my fellow governors on the priorities we have outlined here today. and to partnering with congress and the administration to find solutions for the american people in 2015. the challenges we face as a nation require the full measure of american brains and braun and best innovation each state has to offer. our success depends on our ability to overcome divisiveness and to form unprecedented partnerships which in turn will lead us to unlimited possibilities. i have seen it work in utah.

i know it can work for our nation. a greater patter inship between states and a federal government is essential for a people driven to create security opportunity and prosperity for the next generation of americans. no less was done for us by those who preceded us. we need that vision and that commitment now more than ever. thank you very much. may god bless these united states. [ applause ] >> questions? do we have any questions? this many journalists in one place. yes? >> raise your hand. there you go.

>> hi. you had mentioned transportation bill. i was curious if you guys had any suggestions for how you would like to see them fix the highway trust fund issue. >> i think our recommendations have been more general in nature in terms of making sure that we don't lose ground. i don't know any governor or any responsible legislator who is not concerned as we see the increasing fuel efficiency of vehicles that are revenues -- the primary source of revenue for maintaining and expanding highway infrastructure are going to diminish. we have not made a specific recommendation that i know of. >> again it's a matter of getting it done. sometimes they are not getting things done. it sits and gets kicked on down the road. one of the things that we have suggested to the president and the congress is that although we need to balance the budget, we

understand the fiscal constraints and we applaud them living within their means. we also ought to have the monies that give -- as given to the states under the trants tags and reauthorization to have less strings attached. we believe we can do more with less if we are not hampered. we have the ability to innovate and create and do things with more flexibility. we have talked to the secretary of transportation regarding this very issue. it seeps to have been received well. the proof will be in the pudding if we can get a reauthorization and have a reauthorization that has less strings attached so we have more flexibility. >> the other thing we have talked -- the white house and congress -- in the process with the funding we have to reduce the red tape that when we're doing major projects, many times the sequence of requirements in terms of getting your --

satisfying the epa and various federal agencies could be done in parallel instead of being done sequentially, which could reduce the amount of time and preparation for the large projects. the white house and department of transportation have done that in communities with some of their efforts to expand port capacity in anticipation of the expanded panama canal is a good example. >> good morning. when you guys are meeting with the president today, you have a long list of stuff that you would like the federal government to look at. but probably a very short time. what are your top priorities when meeting with the president today? >> i think probably the highest priority of everything we are talking about is to build that relationship between state

governments and the federal government. in terms of healthcare, if we've gone out and we now have a number of states using the same waiver successfully, let's make it easier to get those done and make them in many cases permanent. once you begin -- when you have 35 or 40 states that have a waiver, say, in education, maybe it's time to change the law. you have that many people using waivers, there's something wrong with the structure. so that's going to be a primary focus. also, i'm sure we will talk about marketplace fairness. that's a primary concern of many states. it's not fair to our local businesses that are part of our community and really support community in many ways, support not just through payment of taxes but support the non-profit, the third leg of the school that helps societies grow and prosper. i think it's only fair that what was originally intended to help

the internet get started -- it's pretty well started now. i'm not sure we need to keep continuing to giving them this rather large tax break. >> let me just add that in addition to the list that i had given in my portion of the presentation here today, the concept of the need for congress and the white house to listen to the governors is important. we are the laboratories of democracy. we're doing a lot of things out there that are having success. we learn from each other. we are getting together and sharing best practices and learning from each other. what works in colorado may not work in utah, but we learn from those things and develop our own policies. it helps us to become more effective. we think that the white house and congress can learn from states. when they go to implement and change policy, they ought to ask for input. we will try to professor the

opportunity for them to hear from us. you with the the healthcare reform attempt or the affordable care act i think would have been better if the congress and the president had engaged with the governors first and said, how do you think this is going to work in your state, what do you see some of the challenges as well as the opportunities. i think we would have had a better law if the governors had been asked in advance of passing the affordable care act, their input. >> yeah. >> hi. earlier you mentioned issues regarding the national guard. in many ways, that mirrors recent issues with the air national guard structure in fiscal '13. can you talk about how things have changed with your interaction with that service the structure the air force has played into that and how it has created the next budget proposal? >> sure. i think if i'm speaking for all

governors, which i am, it requires a certain amount of delicacy. i think every governor wants -- is committed to making sure that we have the appropriate structure throughout our entire military system. that being said, governors look at the benefits that we receive from national guard and disaster -- we have had 13 federally declared disasters in colorado in the last four years floods fires all manner of things. yet repeatedly the national guard has come to our support and not just colorado national guard but neighboring states. utah, we were rebuilding roads after the flood of september of 2013, we had a team of national guard engineers came and allowed us to continue design work 12 hours a day, so we got roads open before the first snow well.

governors have a bias. general grass knows well that bias and has been a great mediator and facilitator between that. in the end, we recognize if we want what's -- we want to make sure our country is absolutely safe and our military has resources it needs. we just in many cases we look at that resource of trained national guard military infrastructure in place ready to serve should they be needed. it seems to us at least that that creates a level of flexibility that should be cost-effective. >> let me say amen to the comments. just add that if there's ever an issue that ought to have bipartisan support, when we talk about the proper role of government, democrats and republicans, independents agree that public safety and national defense is something we ought to have the government involved with. for the collective good and the protection of our citizens. a great tool that we have to

complement the regular army and air force, full-time people are our national guard air and army guard as well as the army reserve. it really it's a collective effort. so we feel very much committed to support of the national defense as we collaborate together as i mentioned. one of the best bangs for the buck if not the best bang for the buck is in fact our national guard. >> a question back there. >> thank you. i have a related question. about a year ago your state legalized marijuana. i would be curious to hear how you think that has gone if you have any concerns. relatedly, the two neighboring states of colorado have taken action and sued the state over the law. i know a lot of sheriffs have complained about t. are you concerned about stillover? is that action you might

consider taking? thank you. >> do i have concerned about marijuana? of course. i will say that after the initiative passed several years ago, it was an initiative that i and almost every elected official in colorado opposed. if you asked me the day after the election if i could change the -- how the voters turned this around and voted it down i would have said yes. that's a good idea. as bad as the pre-existing system was, the war on drugs is in many cases been a failure i was -- doing something without federal support, without infrastructure we have and things like the enforcement of alcohol regulations, we were concerned that we could do it well enough. i think now a couple years down the road we have an industry that is i think in almost every case -- there are always a few exsessions. but working hard to create a

system that is well regulated and abiding by the law that we're not having a black market in drugs. obviously, are focused on adjusting the tax structure to make sure we eliminate drugs. the concern that we still have and that i still have is whether young people will view this legalization as in some way saying that -- to them that marijuana is safe. literally, every neuroscientist i have talked to is very concerned that the modern marijuana, the high thc marijuana, especially when kids are younger, but even up to until 24 or 25, that even once a week, you can permanently diminish long-term memory which is reducing your iq. kids don't see that. we are very concerned about that. we're about to launch another $6 million marketing campaign towards informing not just kids but their parents as well that just because it doesn't seem to have these negative affects on

adults, that does not mean that we should in any way make it easy for kids to get it. on the other hand, one teenager told me about a year ago, he was interviewing me for something and i asked him the same question, should i be worried about kids and their attitude toward marijuana, and his response was if you eliminate the black market, you are going to do a great job, it's going to reduce the ability of kids to get access to marijuana. if you think when i was in eighth or ninth grade, i couldn't get marijuana, you are kidding. drug dealers don't care who they sell to. if we eliminate the black market, we will have a more secure system to make sure kids don't get access to marijuana. with adults, we have seen basically that people that were smoking before it was legalized seem to still be smoking it. they seem to be paying taxes and doing it appropriately. the people that weren't smoking marijuana before it was legalized don't seem to be

smoking it at all. if anything if there is any increase, it seems to be very infrequent smokers people that smoke once or twice a month. so far in the data that we have seen, we don't seem to have a spike in frequent users, which was a major concern. >> let me answer it this way. as i mentioned earlier justice brandice talked about states being the laboratories of democracy. they really are the laboratories of innovation, piloting programs, testing theories and issues and seeing what the results are going to be. utah, like many other states, is observing colorado and other states that have legalized marijuana to see what the consequences are going to be. intended or otherwise. we will probably react accordly to what we see taking place there. the good news is if it works we will learn from that success. if it doesn't work, we will in

fact learn from the lack of success. if it doesn't work well in colorado, the good news is it won't destroy the rest of the country. we will learn from the experience and that experiment. it's a great system these united states, these lab troirs of democracy to see what's going to take place with this and the unintended or intended consequences. lastly in utah, we legalized a da derivative of marijuana. as a controlled substance, for those that have seizures and have a need for the medical application of that. so we're trying to make parts that make sense to utah and avoid others we think maybe would be pushing in a direction that's probably not warranted for our young people. we have no plans to sue colorado. i know others are concerned about that and the -- that is as

of today. >> next question. >> yeah. >> the concern for some are is we have a colorado law that's in contrary to a federal law. that's not being enforced. there's issues there that need to be resolved. i expect over time they will be. >> there's a question. >> what are the chances you would run for president in 2016? >> you want statistical, one in 20,000. that's off the top of my head. i think it's nil. i do think you should ask the question of governor herbert. i have seen a lot of the republican candidates and personally -- [ applause ]

>> an endorsement from a democrat is going to help me. if his is nil mine are less than nil. >> anything else? yeah. >> just one quick question. you mentioned that a lot of the governors are coming in are coming from the pry vac says tore have that experience. it's something you bring as well. are there particular sort of traits or organizational abilities that you are looking for as former business leaders in how you run government or how you run a state, do you see a difference from the career politicians versus the people who came in from the private sector. >> a governor needs all kinds of experience. for many years there was a dire lack of people that had any business experience.

i think our private sector spends tens of hundreds of billions of dollars worldwide on how to do a better job of managing, how to be more effective, how to make people happier in their jobs, how to get better outcomes. too often if you look at the number of leaders that have advance management degrees how many are in business versus how many are in government business has the vast majority. that's a minority of what our total system of all the managers that we need. there's a fellow in colorado named jeff smart. he wrote a book. he describes efforts in colorado and michigan, delaware, other states he worked on, of how hard it is to attract people from the private sector not just to run for office but to serve in cabinets. i know that governor herbert and

myself have made it a priority to find people who have experience. they add great value to not just the agency they are working in but to the cabinet. there's a real percolation affect there that's a benefit. jeff wrote a book that basically imagine imagines a democracy of real leaders, people that have been trained in how to manage and lead in all the different levels of complexity. i think if you look at the list we look back some -- two years ago there were several of us talks, there were a half dozen -- six or eight governors in 2012 that had serious managing, people who built their own businesses. when you look at the new governor, i think it's ten out of 12. you go down the list and it's

republicans and depps. i think that's a reflection of the american people saying, hey, maybe we do need some more business perspective in how states govern. >> let me also add that the governor and i both come from the private sector and from business. i think that gives you a good foundation as far as management skills and how you in fact get things done. we're the executive branch. we have to get things done. i would say this. government is not a business but it should be run like a business. meaning that like a business person would have to -- you have to live within your means like our household budgets. done spent more than you take in. you ought not to have unreasonable debt. it would put you on a panelway to bankruptcy or insolvency. you ought to save for a rainy day. you ought to anticipate the ups and downs of the marketplace and have money set aside. in utah, we have a significant

rainy day fund to help us weather the storms which probably will come sometime into the future. that being said, it's not a business. i can't go out and have a state building built by my even though it might be cheaper more effective. i can do it quick and maybe save taxpayers' dollars because we must have openness and transparency in government because it's the taxpayers' dollars we're spending. so sometimes we sacrifice efficiency for transparency and openness and fairness and level playing fields. that being said, the principles that guide businesses ought to be the same kind of principles that guide us in government. and if we would do that, the taxpayer, i think, would be much better served. >> thank you all for being here. >> thank you.

here's some of our featured programs for this weekend on the c-span networks. on c-span2 saturday night at 10:00, cass sunstein on the pitfalls of group decision-making. and sunday after at 1:00, part of book tv's college series. we talk with recently published professors on the influence of hip-hop on politics and the u.s. government's efforts to cure malaria during world war ii. and on american history tv on c-span3 saturday at 8:00 p.m. eastern on lectures in history, anderson university professor

brian dirk helps us understand the views of white americans on race and slavery both before and during the civil war. and sunday afternoon at 4:30 a discussion on birth control advocate margaret sanger, her legacy and the impact race, social class and politics had on the birth control movement. find our complete television schedule at c-span.org and let us know what you think about the programs you're watching. call us at 202-626-3400, e-mail us at comments@c-span.org or send us a tweet at c-span c-span #comments. join the k span conversation. like us on facebook, follow us on twitter. with live coverage of the u.s. house on c-span and the senate on c-span2 here on c-span3, we complement that coverage by showing you the most relevant congressional hearings and public affairs events. and then on weekends c-span3 is the home to american history tv with programs that tell our nation's story including six unique series, the civil war's

150th anniversary, visiting battle battlefields, american artifacts, touring inging museums. history bookshelf look at best-known american history writers, the presidency looking at the policies and legacies of our commanders in chief. top college professors delving into america's past. and our new series real america featuring archival government and educational films from the 1930s through the '70s. c-span3, created by the cable tv industry and funded by your local cable or satellite provider. watch us in hd like us on facebook and follow us on twitter. next the history of the national highway system and how its construction led to increased vacation travel, truck transportation and scenic exploration exploration. the history colorado center hosted this event.

thanks shawn for that introduction and thanks to all of you for being here. i am really -- and i say this, i know every speaker says this, but i'm sincerely really honored to be speaking here because i have a really strong personal attachment to this place that goes all the way back to the days in the old dustpan-shaped building up on 13th avenue. just a real quick story if you can indulge me here. many years ago as an undergraduate history major, i was looking for a summer job. and so i got the genius idea of wandering into the old colorado heritage center on 13th up with morning and asking the first random person i saw who was the lobby security guard, if there were any internships available. and obviously i had no clue how to go about doing this. to his enormous credit the lobby security guard said why don't you go up to the man yew

discriminate manuscripts department and see if they need any help. i met the curator for a long time at the historical society an unforgettable character for anybody who knew him and an unbelievable storehouse of knowledge and enthusiasm and fun surrounding colorado history. and for the rest of that summer and over the next several years, stan did more than i can ever say to help get my research on colorado history off the ground and ultimately my wider career as an historian. now, sadly, stan has since passed, but i'd like to publicly dedicate this evening's talk to him and express my deep gratitude for all that he did to help me over the years. i'd also like to thank everybody at history history colorado for all the work that you do at history colorado to build greater awareness and concern for the heritage of our state and for the preservation of that heritage and then of course i'd like to thank all of you for being here and taking time out of your week to talk vacationland with me today. so i'll get started with that. vacationland the book that shawn mentioned that i'll be

drawing the material for tonight's talk from it's a history of tourism and recreational development in the colorado high country in the decades after world war ii. mostly folks who know the period 1945 to the 1970s. it tells a story of how this part of the southern rockies went in just a few decades, a very short time, from a remote and obscure and little visited backwater, really, to one of the most celebrated and heavily visited vacation destinations in the united states. one core question i'm asking in the book is how did the high country come to be a vacationland? but much more broadly, the book is an effort to get at much bigger issues, ones that go way beyond the high country, way beyond colorado. it's an effort to figure out how when tourism became such a big business in the decades after world war ii when americans came to seek out and value landscapes like the colorado high country for leisure for personal fulfillment, for pleasure and when they on some level or another bought into the way these landscapes were being

marketed to them and packaged for them, what implications did all of that carry for the ways americans related to place environment, nature when so many people learned to consume recreational landscapes and to depend on them as a fundamental part of their lifestyles really, what consequences did that carry for american environmental politics, popular environmental culture? in the broadest sense, then what vacationland is an attempt at is to ruminate on the environmental consequences of mass consumer culture, not just how our acts of consumption have physically changed the land, but also how they've changed our minds. and in terms of teaching us without our really even realizing it to think in new ways about nature and place. so i thought i'd give you a taste of the book tonight by focusing my talk on what was really the centerpiece of tourist development in the high country, and that was the development of modern paved highways culminating in interstate 70. and i've kind of loaded the dice here by really jacking up

interstate 70 on this map. this is really the region that i focus on in the book, that area you know, high country is obviously a vaguely defined term and different people define it different ways. i use it basically to focus on the areas that west of denver that could have been and eventually did become the interstate 70 corridor. if that sounds like a weird way of putting it hopefully it will be clear what i mean in just a moment. i'm going to begin by focusing on the very first section of interstate 70 to be built west of denver. and that was the four-lane bypass above and around the old mining town of colorado springs. now, bypassing i'ddaho springs were something that state highway officials were very eager to do because by the 1950s this town had become a notorious traffic bottleneck. the two main highways west of denver, u.s. highway 6 and u.s. highway 40, were forced together in this narrow valley where idaho springs is located and

forced to go right through the middle of town past all the cafes, past the motels past the gas stations people turning on and off the road really slowing traffic down to the point where this became known as the turtle route. and it was known to truckers and travelers and others as one of the most congested stretches of highway in all of rural america. so state highway planners determined to build a four-lane limited-access by did pass which i showed you before on the mountainside just above town on the south. the construction began in late 1957. and in february 1958 with the bypass almost completed, state highway officials led local business owners and chamber of commerce types and so forth on a tour of this new road. the business owners were pretty excited about this spanking modern road with its smooth sweeping four lanes and controlled access on and off ramps and its big signs pointing to idaho springs. they were excited until they actually got up there on the bypass and looked down at their town and were completely horrified by what they saw.

with the old turtle route that i showed you before, you know, with highway 6 and 40 running right through the middle of town, business owners had learned to attract tourists by sprucing up the fronts of their buildings and lots. restaurants had flower boxes. you know motels had a little patch of lawn and maybe some flowers and bushes and trellises and the like. but from up on the new bypass, the locals found themselves looking down on their towns from a totally different. perspective. and it was not a pretty sight. they realized touristing passing through the valley were not going to see the fronts of their buildings but the backs which were unpainted, they were unplanted, piled high with old junk. it made i'd eye springs look like, as the local newspaper put it, a ghost town and the process of decay. this was not a good impression for prospective visitors. so for small-town boosters and business owners trying to capitalize on the exploding post-war automobile vacationing