farm ponds in kansas or elsewhere. this proposed rule by some bureaucrats in faroff washington is a clear violation of the separation of powers within our constitution and ultimately it is nothing more than a power grab of private property. in practice this rule would provide for farmers to provide for permission to do routine farming activities like fertilizing and plowing. if we have to pay more to comply with washington regulation, americans will see it in higher prices at the grocery store. mr. chairman, only in washington would they try to define standing water in a ditch surrounded by prairie in kansas as water capable navigation. it's time for the administration to ditch this rule. until then this congress should not spend a single penny advancing this massive 370-page rule. i support the provisions in

this bill. i yield back the balance of my time. the chair: the gentleman from kansas yields back. the gentleman from idaho reserves. the gentlelady from ohio is recognized. i'll continue to reserve. the chair: the gentlelady from ohio reserves. the gentleman from idaho is recognized. mr. simpson: it is now my pleasure to yield two minutes to the gentleman from texas, mr. weber. the chair: the gentleman from texas is recognized for two minutes. mr. weber: thank you, madam chair. i rise -- thank you, gentleman, for yielding. i rise to engage in a colloquy with chairman simpson. i thank the chairman for including language in the committee's report which would require that the army corps of engineers also look to strategy seaport designations when allocating funding for additional work. however, the president's budget for f.y. 2015 proposes to cut the maintenance budget for the sabean natchest waterway by 35% over last year. no other area of the country, i

have been able to identify, have seen such a dramatic cut to their resources in the president's budget. this does not make sense. the waterway is located between texas and louisiana and responsible for the third highest tonnage volume of foreign trade in the nation and supplies 55% of our nation's strategic petroleum reserve. 0% of our nation's commerce jet fuel. and a significant majority of our military's jet fuel. it's also used by the u.s. military to transport cargo to and from overseas employments, being the ports of beaumont and port arthur, and handle over 3% of all military cargo. reducing resources to maintain waterways in harbors like this will restrict commerce, increase cost, and jeopardize safety at a time of increasing trade volume. i believe this cut is extremely shortsighted. will the chairman agree that congress needs to hold the

administration accountable in how it allocates precious taxpayer resources for economically significant national infrastructure? and will the chairman work with me and others to ensure that harbors and waterways that play a critical role for our economy and national security are a priority in the allocation of maintenance resources? i yield. mr. simpson: i thank the gentleman from texas for highlighting the importance of of waterway resources. the bill being considered increases funding by 18% above the budget request. i agree the congress needs to hold the administration accountable in this regard and i promise to work with the gentleman to ensure that we prioritize maintenance funding for all of our nation's economically and strategically significant -- the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from idaho reserves. the gentlelady from ohio is recognized. ms. kaptur: i continue to reserve our time.

the chair: the gentlelady from ohio continues to reserve. the gentleman from idaho. mr. simpson: it's my pleasure to yield two minutes to the gentleman from nebraska, mr. terry. the chair: the gentleman from nebraska is recognized for two minutes. mr. terry: i'm particularly pleased to see section 401 in this bill which requires the chair of the nuclear regulatory commissioner to notify the other members of the commission and the house and senate appropriations committees, the house energy and commerce committee, and the senate environment and public works committee, within one day after the chairwoman or chairman begins using emergency powers. this provision was included in the last congress and i am hopeful that the underlying policy can be put into federal statute. in fact, the last two years, madam chairman, i had two congresses i had a bill to make these permanent changes. the bill is h.r. 3132. so for example, currently no testify nation of an emergency

exists, and no requirement of notices by the chair to fellow commissioners or to congress exists. that's why this language is so important in this bill. yet the current chair, miss mcfar lapd, opposes this -- ms. mcfarland: opposes this language as burdensome. this follows on the heels of a former chair, her immediate past chair, that quote-unquote, declare and emergency without telling anybody and used it in a political purpose. so there's obviously a need for this type of language and we should make it permanent instead of having to do this every year on the energy and water appropriations bill. i'm glad to see that the current commission is more collegial now, but it's incumbent upon us in the house and senate to make sure that these changes are made permanent so this abuse of power doesn't occur any more. i yield back.

the chair: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from idaho reserves. the gentlelady from ohio. ms. kaptur: we continue to reserve. the chair: the gentlelady continues to reserve. the gentleman from idaho is recognized. mr. simpson: madam chairman, i yield myself such time as i may consume. i yield to the gentleman from alabama for the purposes of a colloquy. the chair: the gentleman is recognized. >> i thank the chair lady and chairman. yesterday we received a letter and white paper from the naval -- chief of naval operations and director of naval reactors program. i'll include these documents in a statement for the record i'll be submitting shortly. this letter from our nation's most senior naval officers makes clear that the cuts -- cuts to the naval reactor's budget request has taken over the last four years endangering the safety and reliability of the navys' nuclear fleet. mr. rogers: with the 12% reduction proposed by the bill before us today, naval reactors

will have taken over $600 million in cuts over five years. the letter from the admiral is clear, quote, the persistent cuts have put naval reactors in the position of being unable to provide for a safe and reliable nuclear fleet, to design and test the nuclear reactor plant for the ohio replacement program, and to safely and responsibly manage the aging infrastructure and facilities while processing spent nuclear fuel. this approach is no longer sustainable, close quote. the naval reactors is a critical defense priority contained in this much larger appropriations bill. i share the admiral's concern that if sustained these reductions will endanger the national security and the naval reactor's unparalleled 60 tsh year record of safe and reliable nuclear operations. i urge the gentleman from idaho to review these deductions and impacts as the bill progresses and restore the funding to the budget request level.

i and my colleagues on the armed services committee stand ready to support these efforts. mr. simpson: i thank the gentleman from alabama for his continued advocacy for the important national security activities funded in the energy and water bill which includes the naval reactors program. i looked forward to working with him and his colleagues on the armed services committee as the appropriation process continues to make sure and ensure that navy reactors receive the funding it requires to sustain, support, and modernize the nuclear fleet. i reserve. the chair: the gentleman from idaho reserves. the gentlelady from ohio is recognized. ms. kaptur: i continue to reserve our time. the chair: the gentlelady continues to reserve. the gentleman from idaho is recognized. mr. simpson: how much time remains on both sides? the chair: the gentleman has 10 minutes. 15 1/2 for ms. kaptur. rp you have 10 minutes. -- you have 10 minutes. mr. simpson: i yield myself

such time as i may consume. the chair: the gentleman is recognized. mr. simpson: i'd like at this time to yield to the gentleman from new mexico, for the purposes of a colloquy. >> i thank the chairman. mr. grisham: we have a responsibility to be good stewards to the historic and radiological work at these laboratories. at los alamos there are legal operation, and the broader 2005 consent order and the d.o.e. on the state of new mexico to remediate waste at los alamos. two major wildfires have highlighted the importance of removing ground waste from this facility. d.o.e. was nearing colleagues of the 3706 campaign when the nation's only repository for true waste, the waste isolation pilot plant, experienced first a fire and radiological release. as we work to restore whip

operations, we must ensure they have the resources to meet their legal obligations and recognize our moral obligation to these communities who have served our great nation. it is with this intention that i request the chair to work with me and refives from other affected communities as this bill moves forward to conference to ensure that adequate and appropriate funds are available not only for restoration operations of whip but legally mandated environmental remediation efforts at los alamos and other affected national laboratories. i thank you for the time to address this important issue. i look forward to working with you to find a solution. mr. simpson: i thank the gentleman from new mexico for his continued advocacy for the cleanup program. i look forward to working with you on ensuring adequate funding is available to support the department of energy's cleanup program, including the cleanup work at los alamos and the restoration of operations at whip. i thank the gentleman. i reserve. the chair: the gentleman from idaho reserves. s to the gentlelady from ohio

continue to reserve? ms. kaptur: madam chair, i'd like to inquire if the gentleman is roady to close. -- is ready to close. mr. simpson: i believe we have two more speakers. ms. kaptur: i reserve the balance. the chair: the gentlelady from ohio reserves. the gentleman from idaho is recognized. mr. simpson: it's my pleasure to yield two minutes to the gentleman from illinois, mr. roskam. the chair: the gentleman from illinois is recognized for two minutes. mr. roskam: i thank the chairman for yielding. i'm happen to see $20 million included in this appropriation bill for reimbursement for uranium cleanup and i want to highlight the language in the bill that directs the department of energy to provide sufficient resources in future budgets to eliminate the reimbursement backlog which stands at $54 million and return to a more normal reimbursement schedule to ensure a backlog doesn't occur again. the current backlog of $54 million grows year by year with sites in illinois, colorado, wyoming, washington, south

dakota, and new mexico, and the way this works out in my constituency is the community of west chicago illinois that had an adverse situation years and years ago. there was a situation with thorium that was spread throughout the community. they have done a tremendous job in cleanup, but the cleanup, madam speaker, needs to continue. so i commend the chairman for his commitment. and look forward to being part of this solution for the full mediation of this issue in chicago illinois and other places around the country. i yield back. the chair: the gentleman from illinois yields back. the gentleman from idaho is recognized. mr. simpson: it's my pleasure to yield two minutes to the gentlewoman from west virginia, mrs. capito. the chair: the gentlelady from west virginia is recognized for two minutes. mrs. capito: i rise in strong support of the energy and water resources appropriations bill which makes important investments in our community, our energy jobs, and our nation's energy future. this bill prioritizes using abundant coal reserves to

produce clean, efficient energy. i'm very pleased that the bill makes a strong investment in fossil energy research and development, including work on clean coal technologies. i ask my colleagues to join me in opposing amendments that would strip this funding. west virginia is a leader in this technology. with the national energy technology lab in morgantown, conducting much of this important research. this administration has continued to attack coal and the people who rely on coal for energy and employment. this bill not only rejects the add madam speaker's 15% cut -- administration's 15% cut for fossil fuel research, but sends a clear message, coal is, will be, and must be an important part of a national all of the above energy strategy. we'll continue to work to invest in developing ways to make it more efficient and cleaner. the energy and water approps bill also rejects the army corps of engineer and e.p.a.'s proposed rule to expand federal jurisdiction under the clean water act. and finally, this bill maintains funding for the

appalachian regional commission underscoring its importance to local communities. my state of west virginia is the only state that is entirely within the boundaries of the a.r.c. and the people of west virginia have truly benefited from the a.r.c.'s proven record of spurring economic development and improving access to health care and education in low-income communities. i want to thank the chairman of the appropriations committee, hahl rogers, the chairman of the subcommittee, mike simpson, for bringing this piece of legislation to the floor that makes the right choices and sets the right priorities for our country's energy future. with that i ask my colleagues to join me in supporting this bill and i would like to yield back the balance of my time. the chair: the gentlelady from west virginia yields back her time. the gentlelady from ohio reserves. the gentleman from idaho. mr. simpson: i would inform the lady we have no more speakers. if the gentlelady is ready to close, i'd close. ms. kaptur: i'm prepared to close, mr. chairman. the chair: the gentlelady from ohio is recognized.

ms. kaptur: i thank you. an energy hungry world will continue to push up global energy prices and availability. america must not get caught in the ensuing juggernaut. our liberty and economic security truly are at stake. over a quarter century ago president jimmy carter was not energy n he equated independence close to war. oil rich unstable regions we've been dependent around the world. instead we must refocus and draw powers from our own land, performing something worthy to e remember daniel webster says every day, energy security is such a calling. certainly this bill leaves unmet opportunities on the table. too much in my view.

but its direction is clear. it aims at liberty. it looks forward to meeting that objective by moving this bill forward. i want to thank chairman simpson, rob blair, tona, our entire staff for their willingness to work together, for preparing a bill that's inclusive and pragmatic and i appreciate chairman simpson's gentlemanly reachout to our side of the aisle. i also want to thank all the staff that have helped. their countless long hours, light nights, during holidays and so forth and their foresight has been critical in helping us prepare this legislation that's aimed at restoring liberty, creating jobs in america, reassuming economic power here at home, strengthening our energy portfolio and water security for future generations and fundamentally our national security. with that i yield back my remaining time and ask our colleagues as we move through the amendment process to help

us move this bill forward in america's interests. the chair: the gentlelady from ohio yields back her time. the gentleman from idaho is ecognized. mr. simpson: i thank the chairman for yielding. i thank the gentlelady for her work on this bill. she's been a valuable partner in crafting a bill and trying to address the needs of all members on both sides of the aisle. obviously you can never address all of them, but i think both the republican and democratic members of the committee and of the house ought to be proud of the bill that's before them and our efforts to try to -- try to address their desires and their needs and with that i will encourage all members to support this legislation. i look forward to the debate on the amendments that are going to be coming up and yield back the balance of my time. the chair: the gentleman from idaho yields back his time. all time for general debate has expired. pursuant to the rule, the bill

shall be considered for amendment under the five-minute rule. during consideration of the bill for amendment, each amendment shall be debatable for 10 minutes, equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent and shall not be subject to amendment. no pro forma amendments shall be in order except the chair and ranking minority member of the committee on appropriations or their respective designees may offer up to 10 pro forma amendments each at any point for the purpose of debate. the chair of the committee of the whole may accord priority and recognition on the basis of whether the member offering the amendment has caused it to be printed in a portion of the congressional record, designated for that purpose. amendments so printed shall be considered as read. the clerk will read. the clerk: be it enacted the following sums are appropriated for energy and water development for fiscal year ending september 30, 2015, namely -- title 1, corps of engineers, civil department of the army, corps of engineers,

civil. appropriations shall be for authorized functions pertaining to river and harbor flood and stormwater reduction and related efforts. investigations. $115 million. onstruction, $1,704,499,000. the chair: the clerk will suspend. for what purpose does the gentlelady from indiana seek recognition? mrs. walorski: mr. chairman, i have an amendment at the desk. the chair: will the gentlelady specify which amendment? mrs. walorski: number 10. the chair: the clerk will designate the amendment. amendment number 10

printed in the congressional district offered by mrs. walorski of indiana. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 641, the gentlelady from indiana and a member opposed each will control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentlelady from indiana. mr. simpson: mr. chairman, i understand that amendment number 10 is changed and currently now rewritten and is amendment number 53. the chair: does the gentlelady wish to offer the unprinted amendment? mrs. walorski: no. yes, we do. i'm sorry. the answer is yes.

the chair: the clerk will report that amendment. the clerk: amendment by mrs. walorski of indiana. insert increased by $500,000. page 26, line 24, after the dollar amount insert reduced by $500,000. the chair: the gentlelady from indiana is recognized for five minutes on this amendment. mrs. walorski: thank you, mr. chairman. my amendment would provide a $500 increase for the army corps of engineers' continued priority program and would pay for the increase of a small $500,000 cut of the departmental administration account. for small communities struggling to pay for $25,000 projects, this minor amendment can be a major help around the country. the cap program allows for funding of small local projects without the lengthy study and authorization process typical of most larger corps projects. it deals with issues like navigation improvements and flood control and is incredibly

important to local communities that cannot afford to fund these studies and projects on their own. two specific sections of the program are vitally important to my district. section 205 which deals with flood control and section 14 which deals with stream bank erosion. the city of peru, indiana, lives within an area designated as a floodplain because of a ditch that runs through it but the ditch hasn't flooded in the entire time the city has been keeping records, which is more than 80 years. this floodplain designation has made insurance premiums so expensive business developers are reluctant to locate to the area and residents are struggling to pay their premiums. corps engineers have been to the site and they don't think the floodplain is correct either. the ditch hasn't flooded. so cap funds are desperately needed in places like peru, indiana, so the corps can conduct a study to see if the ditch is ever likely to flood and if so what type of project to prevent flooding and bring down flood insurance premiums. in a place called rochester, indiana, a river is part of

route county 250 north. they have lost several feet of the embark bankment. the situation has become so bad that they need to have a project to be done to fix it. county officials cannot conduct a study or repairs on their own. the army corps of engineers said they need to conduct the examination and repairs but cap funds are needed. however, the continuing authorities' program is so popular with local communities like peru and rochester, the corps of engineers routinely gets more projects than they can fund and cap funds run out quickly. chairman simpson has tried to address this problem. president obama's budget request provide $10 million for cap and only funded four of the cap sections but chairman simpson denied that and allocated $56.8 million for eight cap sections. my amendment would provide a small funding bump for cap that

would enable the army corps of engineers to help dozens of communities making very small funding requests. some say the department of energy cannot afford another cut to the funding but that's simply not true. this year's bill provides $250 million for department of energy's departmental administration budget. this is $20.5 million more than last year. my amendment would only cut $500,000 from this amount. that's a .19% cut. given the enormous importance of local infrastructure, i believe this is one small cut that congress should make. i urge my colleagues to support this amendment and i reserve the balance of my time. the chair: the gentlewoman reserves the balance of her time. does any member seek recognition? mr. simpson: mr. chairman. i rise in opposition although i am not opposed to the amendment. the chair: without objection, the gentleman from idaho is recognized. mr. simpson: mr. chairman, we support the amendment and thank the good lady for offering it. the chair: the gentleman yields back. the gentlelady yields back and

the gentlelady from indiana. mrs. walorski: i appreciate the chairman and the ranking member. i appreciate your willingness to accept my statement, mr. chair. i yield back the balance of my time. the chair: the gentlelady yields back. the question is on the amendment offered by the gentlelady from indiana. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. he amendment is agreed to. for what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition? >> mr. chair, i have an amendment at the desk. the chair: the clerk will designate the amendment. the clerk: amendment number 8 printed in the congressional record offered by mr. murphy of florida. the chair: the gentleman from florida is recognized for five minutes. mr. murphy: thank you, mr. chairman. i rise today to offer the murphy-cleaver amendment to the underlying energy and water appropriations bill to extend this fund in the construction account by $5 million. the treasure coast and palm beach communities in florida,

i'm so proud to represent. the restoration projects in my area are vital to restoring the natural flow of lake okeechobee, reducing the harm that is caused by discharges om the lake into the st. lucie river. this is to improve the water quality throughout the system. with our local waterways being no exception. the urgency to move these ongoing projects forward could not be more clear. the record rainfall in our area resulted from last year being dubbed the lost summer with the dieoff of many important species as well as health warnings that kept the public out of the water and harmed our local economy that rely so heavily on our waterways. while $1 million might not seem like a lot, this money could be used to help projects that are near completion across the finish line. for example, the kissimmee water project is 86% near completion and this funding can be used to fund one of the

final steps needed to complete this project. once completed, this project will restore up to 20,000 acres of wetteland, storing more -- wetland, storing more water north of the lake and discharging waters into our local estuaries and clean the water before it flows into the already inundated waterways. for florida's 18th district, $1 million can make a real difference and the fight -- in the fight to protect our waterways. mr. chair, i now yield to the gentleman from missouri, my good friend, mr. cleaver, for as much time as he may consume. mr. cleaver is a great champion of infrastructure projects such as these that invest in our future and come back to our economy in multiples. the chair: the gentleman from missouri, mr. cleaver, is recognized for as much time as he wishes to use. mr. cleaver: thank you, first, mr. murphy, and to the chair, ranking member and the chairman of the committee. our amendment would transfer a modest amount, as mr. murphy stated, $1 million, between the

corps' expense account to the construction account. the boost in funding can help flood control projects that communities, including several in my district, that we are pushing in hopes that they can be completed. the united states has, as i believe we all know, an aging water infrastructure system, and a colossal $80 billion backlog of army corps projects. over 1,000 authorized projects vigorously compete for funding. this is understandable when you consider the fact that america's levees, dams and inland waterways were given a grade of d by the american society of civil engineers in their 2013 report card. how can we expect our economy to flourish when its bedrock is deteriorating. water infrastructure funding is vital to my district and it sits on the confluence of several rivers and flood

control projects protect thousands of lives and billions in economic investment. one such project lies within one -- a 100-year floodplain. when it floods access to and from the park is cut off, risking the lives of over 400 workers. without a 7,000-foot flood wall and levee, those 400 workers and over $61 million in manufacturing remain unprotected. another project in my district, dobson industrial park, is ready to start its final phase but until that final segment is completed and connected, the rest of the project, the investment of $250 million within the park, remain at risk. mr. chairman, most army corps projects contain agreements between the federal government and local communities that share the funding and responsibilities for their construction. it is time for the federal government to hold up its end of the agreement for us to step up to the plate and fully

invest in our water infrastructure. i want to thank mr. murphy for his collaboration on this amendment and i yield back, mr. speaker. the chair: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from florida. mr. murphy: thank you. i want to thank mr. cleaver for his support of this commonsense amendment and urge my colleagues to support this proposal that, as you have heard, has the potential to make a major difference in the well-being of communities from florida to missouri. mr. simpson: will the gentleman from florida yield? mr. murphy: yes. mr. simpson: we'll accept the amendment. mr. murphy: i want to thank the chair and for the ranking member for support of their amendment. ms. kaptur: i just want to say -- thank the gentleman from lake , from the eechobee area, for introducing this amendment. mr. murphy: thank you. i yield back the balance of my time. the chair: the gentleman yields back.

does anyone seek recognition? . the question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from florida. so many as are in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. the amendment is agreed to. the committee will rise envelopely to receive -- informally to receive a message. the speaker pro tempore: the house will be in order. the chair will receive a message. the messenger: mr. speaker, message from the president of the united states. the secretary: mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: mr. secretary. the secretary: i'm directed by the president of the united states to deliver to the house of representatives a message in writing. the speaker pro tempore: the committee will resume its sitting. the chair: the committee will be in order. for what purpose does the gentleman from louisiana seek recognition? >> mr. chairman, i have an amendment at the desk. the chair: the clerk will designate the amendment. amendment number 4,

printed in the across-the-board -- congressional record, offered by mr. cassidy of louisiana. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 641rk the gentleman from louisiana and a member opposed each will control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from louisiana, mr. caddy. mr. cassidy: this amendment is about setting priorities. the army corps of engineers construction account has a serious backlog of over $60 billion. according to a recent c.r.s. report, there's a backlog of more than 1,000 authorized studies and construction projects. the president's budget inadequately addresses this backlog, only allocating $1.1 billion for these important infrastructure projects. a 32% reduction over fiscal year 201 enacted levels. now, i applaud the committee for providing $48 million more

for core construction over the 2014 enacted levels, but more needs to be done. this is especially prevalent with the recent passage of the bipartisan water resources conference report which contained authorizations for existing projects such as the louisiana coastal area and new projects such as morganza to the gulf. mr. chairman, my amendment transfers $5 million out of the department of energy's administrative account and moves that money into the corps of engineers' construction budget. the goal is to move more projects forward, to reduce the backlog, and open up the door for projects across the country vital to our nation's waterways, our economy, and ability to export. louisiana, for example, contains three million acres of coastal wetlands. louisiana's coast is home to over two million people supporting vital ecosystems, national security, thousands of jobs, and a unique culture. as you may know, our coastal wetlands are rapidly disappearing.

the u.s. geolocal survey indicates if land loss trends continue, louisiana will lose 2,400 square miles of land between 1932 and 2015. that's an area about 25 times the size of washington, d.c. morganza . to gulf, one of five new projects authorized, is of immense importance to louisiana's coastal restoration and protection efforts. the project's purpose is to protect the remaining fragile marsh and wetlands from hurricane storm surge. this is one of many projects around the country that need funding and are vital to our nation's infrastructure. taxpayers wish to see this backlog cleared out and other projects important to our nation's economy move forward. that's what this amendment intends to help achieve. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from louisiana -- the chair: the gentleman from louisiana reserves. the gentleman from idaho, for

what purpose does do you rise? mr. sim con: -- mr. simpson: claim time in opposition. i must oppose this amendment. i know it is a high priority for his district and state and the country. the committee often hears complaints that the projects take too long and cost too much to build in large part attributed to inefficient funding. if that is true, the only responsible way to allow for new starts is to finish understanding the impacts of the selected new stars on the corps' future budget requirements and on the expected costs and timelines of ongoing projects. unfortunately, we do not have that information and the administration has shown no willingness to provide it. the fiscal year 2014 act followed -- allowed for a limited number of new construction starts with the requirement that the administration provide information to show that these projects would be affordable at reasonable construction account levels and that these new projects will not unduly delay or increase the costs of ongoing projects. to say that the so-called analysis from the administration was inadequate

would be an underestimate. and -- understatement. additionally, the administration continues to propose budgets with significant cuts to the construction account, including a 32% cut for fiscal year 2015. in fact, several individual projects authorized in recrept -- in the recent wrrda are each estimated to cost more than what the administration requested for the entire nationwide construction program. clearly as promising as some new projects may be, it would be fiscally irresponsible to initiate new projects with no information on the impacts of doing so. i understand that some members with authorized projects in their districts are anxious to get construction under way. i also understand that many members with projects under construction in their districts want to see those projects completed and start realizing the benefits of these federal, state, and local i vestments. i reserve the balance of my time. -- investments. i reserve the balance of my

time -- yield back. the chair: the gentleman yields back. the gentleman from louisiana. mr. cassidy: i yield back. the chair: the gentleman from louisiana yields back. the question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from louisiana, mr. cassidy. so many as are in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. he amendment is agreed to. for what purpose does the gentleman from new mexico seek recognition? mr. lujan: i have an amendment at the desk. the clerk: page 3, line 16, insert the dollar amount insert increased by $15 million. page 6, line 3, after thele toar amount insert by $15 million. the chair: pursuant to house 641, a member opposed and for each control five minutes. mr. lujan: to ensure local

governments like the city of rio rancho, and the middle rio grande conservancy district get reimbursed for the work they have done in conjunction with the army corps of engineers. it works with local governments in new mexico to construct levees, implement flood control measures, and other important infrastructure for the safety of the public. more specifically the city of rio rancho entered into a reimbursement contract with the army corps of engineers and has not been paid back for several years due to the lack of appropriations. the same goes for the county of middle rio grande conservancy district, and other communities across the united states. this delay in reimbursement has led to interruptions in financing for other city projects and also has the potential to hurt the credit rating of these entities if they do not recover these funds via reimbursement as stated in their contracts with the federal government. by increasing thele toar amount on this account which includes a number of programs and accounts that are critical to local governments like engineering, construction,

technical assistance, flood control, and environmental infrastructure, we can get these entities reimbursed and get these liabilities off the books of the army corps of engineers. according to the congressional budget office this increase has zero impact on the budget and in fact would save money by reducing liability for the federal government. mr. chairman, local governments have been left holding an i.o.u. from the federal government for doing the work based on a good faith written agreement with the army corps of engineers. mr. chairman, i understand there may be opposition from some of my colleagues, but i'm hoping that i can persuade the chairman to support me in this effort. under section 593 of the water resources development act of 199, the cito of rio rancho and other governments entered into agreements with the army corps of engineers. they expect to be reimbursed. they have budgets with the exactation they'll be paid back. -- expectation they'll be paid

back. i understand the constraints the subcommittee dealt with with the allocations given to them, we need to make sure when we are working to make these local governments hold with the agreements and contracts with the federal government. with that i reserve the balance of my time. the chair: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from idaho, for what purpose does do you seek recognition? mr. simpson: claim time in opposition. the chair: the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. mr. simpson: i rise to oppose the amendment. first, though, let me ensure my colleague that i am sympathetic to the needs for increased construction funding. in fact, the underlying bill increases construction funding by almost $50 million above fiscal year 201 and almost $600 million or 52% above the budget request. while i understand there is always more that can be done, we could shift the entire expenses account to construction and there still would be more that needs to be done. although it may seem like an easy offset here on the floor, members should recognize that a $50 million cut to the expenses account cannot be sustained in conference. funding for the expenses account in the underlying bill already reflects a 2% reduction

from fiscal year 2014 and a 4% reduction from fiscal year 2012. for those reasons i must oppose the amendment and urge my colleagues to vote no. i yield back the balance of my time. the chair: the gentleman yields back. million lujan: may i pose a question. with local governments like this entering into agreements with the army corps of engineers and doing work like this, is there something that could be done associated with trying to get an assessment of those and maybe we can chip away at those reimbursements if a timely manner? is that something we might be able to work on? mr. chairman, i would yield to anyone that might be able to respond to that. mr. simpson: i didn't hear the question. mr. lujan: my question is with local governments like the ones in new mexico and other parts of the united states that have entered into agreements with the army corps of engineers and others for reimbursement in a timey manner s. there a way we might chip away at this?

i have offered this amendment if years past. and again there's local governments across the united states that are awaiting for reimbursement. i think it's something that it would be good for us to look at. i yield. mr. simpson: if the gentleman yield. i certainly understand the gentleman's concern. i agree with him. this is -- it all comes down to funding levels. i would be more than willing to work with the gentleman to try to see if we could address his concern, which is a concern for all of us, as we move forward into the conference process. mr. lujan: mr. chairman, would that be agreeable or amendable -- ms. kaptur: the chairman and i work closely on matters like this. it's difficult because of the fact that we have no new starts. we have a backlog that is enormous. and the department is under the -- the corps is under pressure. we will be very happy to work with the gentleman and try to resolve situations that you may face in your region. mr. lujan: thank you very much. mr. chairman, i thank the

staffs for their time and effort and the courtesy of the chairman and ranking member. with that not offer this amendment today. we'll see if we might be able to work together, mr. chairman, and if not we'll come back next year and see what we can do. maybe we'll need to take a look at a vote. appreciate everyone's courtesy today. with that i yield back the balance of my time. the chair: does the gentleman seek to withdraw his amendment? mr. lujan: i seek to withdraw my amendment as well. the chair: without objection, he amendment is withdrawn. for what purpose does the gentleman from rhode island seek recognition? mr. cicilline: i have an amendment at the desk. the chair: the clerk will report the amendment. the clerk: amendment offered by mr. cicilliniveryry. page , line 17, before the semicolon, insert of which $ million shall be for environmental infrastructure projects for financially distressed municipalities. the chair: for what purpose does the gentleman from idaho seek recognition? mr. simpson: reserve a point of order. the chair: point of order is reserved. pursuant to house resolution 641, the gentleman from rhode

island and a member opposed each will control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from rhode island, mr. cicilline. mr. lujan: i first want to thank the chairman and ranking member for their hard work -- mr. cicilline: i first want to thank the chairman for their hard work. as we recognize the army corps of engineers provides invaluable assistance to financially strapped communities through its general construction fund, specifically for wastewater and water improvements, and in past years has allocated specifically a fund for this purpose over this year's report does not include any money for this account. so the amendment i would offer would direct that $44 million which is 3% of the total allocation for construction projects in the army corps of engineers, be setaside to support environmental infrastructure programs specifically for financially distressed communities around the country. as we know, mr. chairman, there are approximately $298 billion of unmet needs for wastewater and storm water treatment that

are projected over the next 20 years. of that about 15% to 20% represent water treatment, and that percentage is expected to grow over time because of increases in federal regulations. in older cities, a single system, in fact combines both storm water and sewage, and rain, snow, can overwhelm those systems and present a tremendous challenge. 72% of the united states population is served by sewage treatment plants, 3.8 million americans are served by facilities providing less than secondary treatment, which is a basic requirement of law. this is a huge unmet need. for municipalities, financially distressed ones, investing in water treatment facilities can be a tremendous burden that they can't meet alone. . in fact, since 2007, the federal government has required cities to invest more than $15 billion in new pipes, plants and equipment to address sewer

and wastewater treatment. so we're imposing and rightly so -- i am not criticizing it -- but we're imposing the standards and the price is being borne by the municipalities. what this bill attempts to do is ensure that at least some portion of that account is set aside for wastewater treatment projects and particularly targets facilities that have financial challenges, financially distressed communities. so i have spoken with the ranking member, and i recognize the chairman has reserved a point of order. i would ask if my ranking member would continue to make the case that these wastewater treatment facilities require some additional investment. if that's the case i look forward to working with the chairman and my ranking member so that we can be sure that this investment is preserved, that it -- as it has been in past years so communities that really need assistance with their wastewater treatment facility also have some access to these funds and if so then

i'll withdraw my amendment. the chair: is there objection to the withdrawal of the amendment? ms. kaptur: there's no objection from our side and we look forward to working with the gentleman and your region of the country and the midwest and great lakes and northeast in particular, those needs are huge. the chair: without objection, the amendment is withdrawn. the clerk will read. the clerk: page 4, line 3, mississippi river and tributaries, $260 million. the chair: the clerk will suspend. for what purpose does the gentleman from louisiana seek recognition? >> i have an amendment at the desk. the chair: the clerk will designate the amendment. the clerk: an amendment offered by mr. mcalister of louisiana. page 19, line 12, after the dollar amount insert reduced by $127 million.

the chair: pursuant to house resolution 641, the gentleman from louisiana and a member opposed will each control five minutes. for what purpose does the gentleman from idaho seek recognition? mr. simpson: excuse me. never find. the chair: the gentleman from louisiana is recognized for five minutes. mr. mcallister: thank you, mr. speaker. i appreciate the hard work you've done in this whole committee bill, appropriation process. i know it's not an easy task. there's a lot of juggling. my amendment will increase the m.r.t. to $47 million and bring levels.to f.y. 2014 offset is to reduce the office of energy efficient by $127 million. this number is necessary to make it outlay nor. this is less than 10% of the

proposed spending by the committee. budget authority will be reduced by $80 million. the mississippi river and tributaries are the main arteries, commerce of the nation. as we see in the reports today that we have flooding going on in the mississippi river starting from the mississippi up above and down. it provides protection to 36,000 lower mississippi valley acreage. the m.r.t. projects facilitate navigation and promote commerce on the nation's most vital commercial artery. water commerce increased from 30 million tons in 1940 to nearly 500 million tons today. since initiation, the m.r.t. project in 1928, the nation has received a $24 return for every $1 invested. the remaining work to be completed will have an estimated 37-1 return on investment. with the panama canal exnks pangs under way, we must continue the vital resource,

not reduce funding. these waterways are too important to our nation. i just want to say how important the mississippi river is to the nation as a whole, not just to my district and those of us bordering the mississippi river and their tributaries all up and down the central united states. it's very vital to the agriculture industry, to the commerce industry, to everything that the flood control -- it just has a tremendous impact that we all need to be aware of. i know this $127 million looks like a lot in the renewable energy and efficiency office, but we tried to find different places that we can take away. we found this the less neutral. only reducing 7% of the total budget. it was the largest we found we could take it from. again, i just want to commend the committee on the hard work they've done. i know it's not an easy challenge at all for them to reduce and have to answer to certain parties for what was reduced and not reduced. we've worked on this bipartisan. got a lot of bipartisan support

on it throughout yesterday and today. i appreciate your consideration and support on trying to make sure that we do everything we can to take care of the m.r.t. with that, mr. speaker, i yield back my time. the chair: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. who seeks recognition? the gentleman from idaho. mr. simpson: claim time in opposition. the chair: the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. mr. simpson: mr. chairman, i rise today to oppose the amendment. let me assure my colleague, though, that i agree with him about the importance of making investments in navigation and flood control infrastructure. in fact, a lot of the problem was trying to find an offset for $47 million. as the gentleman knows, it's very difficult because there are things in this bill that are very important to at least someone within this body. that's why the underlying bill increases because of the importance of navigation and flood control. that's why it increases funding for m.r.t. 6% above the president's request and focuses funding such that navigation is increased by 21% and flood control by 15% above the budget request. while i understand there is

almost always more that can be done, we must balance several competing activities within the energy and water bill. the amendment would reduce eere -- the eere account, which is already cut by $113 million below last year's level and $528 million below the president's budget request. so while we did increase funding for the m.r.t. account above the president's request, the eere account is already $528 million below the budget request by the administration. within the eere account, the funding -- the bill preserves is just as important as the funding it cuts. the bill focuses funding for three main priorities -- helping american manufacturers remain competitive, supporting weatherization assistance program and addressing future high gas prices. this funding supports breakthrough research to reduce what americans pay at the gas pump and to help our companies compete in the global market

which creates jobs here at home. for these reasons, while i sympathize what the gentleman is trying to do with the amendment and tried to happen on crafting an amendment that we can find $47 million for, i must oppose the amendment and urge my colleagues to vote no. with that i yield back the balance of my time. the chair: the question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from louisiana. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. he amendment is agreed to. mr. simpson: the gentleman from idaho. the chair: pursuant to clause 6 of rule 18, further proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from louisiana will e postponed. for what purpose does the gentleman from arkansas seek recognition? >> i have an amendment at the desk. the chair: the clerk will designate the amendment. the clerk: amendment offered by

mr. crawford of arkansas. page 4, line , after the dollar amount insert reduced by $18,800,000, increase by $9,500,000, increase by $9,300,000. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 641, the gentleman from arkansas, mr. crawford, and a member opposed, each will control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from arkansas. mr. crawford: thank you, mr. chairman. first, i want to thank the chairman and the committee for their hard work of putting this bill together. i know it's taken a lot of time and effort to get here and i appreciate that. my amendment addresses the very real threat to the lives of arkansans and americans across the country and citizens and businesses in the areas of completion of aquifers and lack of water agriculture during times of drought. the grand prairie projects in my district, which are well under way to completion, will provide an economical and sensible of protecting aquifers from completion and provide for agriculture water supply as well as a valuable role in water quality and quantity

control efforts for one of our most critical waterways, the mississippi river. aquifers provides portion of water used for ag irrigation. with demands of agriculture, businesses and municipalities, uifers across the country, especially two that support the mississippi delta, takes the form of requiring to drill more often and deeper to access quantity its of water. ey were supposed to have a steady water supply in arkansas' mississippi delta region. first authorized in 1996, these projects are kals, pumps in times of abundance and store it for future use. during periods of drought, farmers can take from these. helping ensure a continued and reliable water supply, both for

agriculture and municipalities. in addition to the ag benefits, biomed and grand operatey will help mitigate the flood damage done to homes and businesses, ensure safe and steady food and water supply for american citizens and provide a habitat for various apple fibians and waterfowl across the south. it will support jobs. our region is above the national unemployment rate. without these two important projects, these farmers will force to deplete aquifers that those depend on risking losing their livelihood. with that i yield back. the chair: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. who seeks recognition? the gentleman from idaho. mr. simpson: i seek time in opposition. the chair: the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. mr. simpson: although i am -- i rise in opposition although i am hopeful that my colleague will withdraw the amendment. first, let me assure the gentleman that i am sympathetic to the issues that he's highlighted in his statement.

adequate water supply, whether it is for agriculture, irrigation, municipal uses a basic necessity for economic prosperity. in the committee, flood control is our top priority and this funds accordingly. my colleague from arkansas has proven to be a strong advocate for his stents constituents and the projects that seek to further development -- develop the agricultural i shall gation infrastructure important to his constituents. if the gentleman will agree to withdraw the amendment, i'll agree to work with him to move forward to try to address these needs if funds necessary becomes available. mr. crawford: i thank the gentleman for his commitment. mr. simpson: i yield. mr. crawford: i ask unanimous consent to withdraw my amendment. the chair: is there objection? being no objection, the amendment is withdrawn. the clerk will read. the clerk: page 4, line 12, operation and maintenance, $2,905,000,000.

the chair: for what purpose does the gentlelady from california seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i have an amendment at the desk. the chair: the clerk will report the amendment. the clerk: an amendment offered by ms. hahn of california. page 4, line 24, insert insert by $56,-- reduced by $73, 309,100. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 641, the gentlelady from california, ms. hahn, and a member opposed, will each control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentlelady from california. ms. hahn: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself however much time i may consume. i rise to offer the hahn-huizenga amendment to the energy and water appropriations bill to utilize the harbor maintenance trust fund at the target set forth in the recently passed water resources reform and development act. as a representative of the

nation's busiest port complex and the co-founder, along with you, mr. speaker, of the ports caucus, i have fought hard from my first day here in congress to increase the funding for our nation's ports and to fully utilize the harbor maintenance trust fund to ensure that the money that we collect at our ports goes back to our ports. around here they're starting to call me ms. harbor maintenance tax. and after working for months with my colleagues, we reached a plan to finally put the harbor maintenance trust fund to work and fully utilize this trust fund by 2025. and i appreciate the chairman and the ranking member and the hard work that you've put on the bill before us today. but i have one little problem with it. the bill on the floor today fails to follow the law that we just passed seven weeks ago in such a bipartisan fashion, and we are falling behind by over

$57 million towards utilizing that harbor maintenance fund. that's money that our ports have paid for and they need. i understand the difficult task the appropriations committee has in front of it, but for our ports to remain competitive, they need this funding. and with that i'd like to reserve the balance of my time. the chair: the gentlelady from california reserves. who seeks recognition? the gentleman from idaho. >> i seek time in opposition to the amendment. the chair: the gentleman from idaho is recognized for five minutes. >> mr. chairman, i rise to oppose the amendment. mr. simpson: let me assure my colleague i agree with her on the importance of sufficient maintenance of our nation's waterways, water resources infrastructure, including our waterways. seems like the amendments that members are offering i get up and agree with them, however there are challenges that they face. i also agree that since the harbor maintenance tax is collected for a specific purpose, and since the needs for dredging is apparent, we

should be using these funds for the intended purpose, to the greatest extent possible, rather than allowing a balance to accumulate in the trust fund. that's an issue that we've been dealing with for the last several years with my good friend from louisiana trying to figure out how we can exactly do that without harming all of the other programs within the budget. and unfortunately that's what they do until we change our budget rules or something. and i don't have the answer to it yet. but week of been working with try -- but we've been working with the -- trying to work with the budget committee to make sure that the taxes collected are used to do what it was intended to do. and if the account is just growing, then we shouldn't be collecting the tax. i know that's what it sounds like. in fact, the bill continues to increase funding for harbor maintenance trust fund activities above the previous year and above the budget request as the committee has repeatedly done over the past few years. the bill includes more than

$1.1 billion for these activities which equates to more than a 20% increase over the amount requested by the administration for fiscal year 2015. while i understand that there is almost always more work that can be done, we must balance several competing activities within the energy and water bill. the amendment would reduce the nuclear energy account by $12.8 million. which would bring the account below the fiscal year 2014 level. the underlying bill provides a total of $899 million for nuclear energy programs, only $10 million above last year. that's what seems strange about this. doing what we all think is the right thing to do, using the harbor maintenance trust fund to do harbor maintenance, by increasing that we hurt nuclear energy. which is i don't think what the intent of the lady is or the gentleman from louisiana or others. -- others that want to do this. in addition to protecting the department of energy's nuclear energy materials, this funding protects a range of national security programs at the nnsa, department of homeland security and other federal agencies.

furthermore, i oppose the reducing -- reduced funding for nuclear energy research and development which is a critical part of this bill's support for a balanced energy portfolio. nuclear power currently generates 0% of the nation's electricity -- 20% of the nation's electricity and it will continue to play a large role in the future. as i said, i'm sympathetic to what the gentlelady is trying to do. in fact, i was a co-sponsor at one time of a bill by my friend from louisiana that would have said that you have to use the harbor maintenance trust fund and use it to dredge the harbors. which is what we all know it should be doing. if there's a need out there, we using that to do it. we need to work together to try to solve this problem and, believe me, it would help us a lot in crafting this bill if somehow we could do that. otherwise we shouldn't be collecting the tax, if we've got a need and the account is growing. but it's because of our budget rules and so forth that it

creates this problem. but i understand what the gentlelady is doing. unfortunately her amendment would hurt the nuclear account and other accounts within the bill which has been the problem in the past. with that i reserve the balance of my time. i'd yield to the gentlelady from ohio. the chair: the gentlelady from ohio is recognized. ms. kaptur: i thank the chairman for yielding and for your sympathy toward the intent of the amendment. i wanted to commend congresswoman hahn and congressman huizenga on a bipartisan basis for elevating the question of our ports and waterborne shipping is the most efficient mode of moving goods in and out of this country. i think they are performing for this congress an extraordinary service by uniting on a bipartisan basis and kind of ringing the bell to us and saying, hey, pay attention to what's happening here with this harbor maintenance tax and how we help our ports compete as we see the panama canal come online and ship building occurring in other countries like south korea, for example,

and china, and singapore and lots of other places and saying, hey, america, wake up. and i feel some urgency to want to support the direction of their efforts, so as with the chairman, you know, comes to where the offset is, it is true the harbor maintenance tax fund's $185 million have been moved as a result of our efforts into the fund that the administration had not requested, so we as a subcommittee are moving in the right direction. but i'm hoping that this might begin a conversation with our subcommittee in how we work with them on the harbor maintenance task in a more -- tax in a more effective manner. so i thank the chairman for yielding. they brought an important issue before us that we need to resolve more effectively. the chair: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentlelady from california

is recognized and has 3 1/2 minutes remaining. ms. hahn: thank you, mr. speaker. i'm pleased to be joined by my colleague from michigan, congressman huizenga. and at this time i'd like to yield to him 90 seconds. the chair: the gentleman from michigan is recognized for a minute and a half. mr. huizenga: thank you. i thank my colleague from california for working with me on this and i'm glad to hear the elevation that this issue is getting. in fact, on monday i met with a shipping company in my district about this issue, among other things, about great lakes shipping. i can tell you though that it seems to me, as we pass the wrrda bill just a short seven weeks ago, i was willing to compromise on that glide path. what i don't see currently is that demride path to the direction. we are as -- glide path to that direction. we are $5 million below what was laid out in that bill. and my -- the chairman from idaho, who has a very difficult job balancing all of this, has pointed out that the nuclear energy program is the way that

we are going to offset this. i will point out though that it is appropriated for $899 million this year, a level that is $36 million above the president's budget request, $10 million above the fiscal year 2014 enacted level, and $243 million above the level proposed by the house appropriations committee for fiscal year 2014. so it doesn't seem to me we're exactly raiding that, when everybody has said that we are overfunding that portion of the bill and it seems to me that this is a great way of impacting our economy, to help create jobs, and to help create that continuing to move forward . so with that, i just want to thank the committee for working towards the solution. i know that i too had signed onto mr. boustany's bill earlier and have been a champion of this. we're working toward a true solution in this. but we do have a $1.-- i encourage my colleagues to support this at this time.

so with that i yield back. the chair: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from california -- the gentlelady from california is recognized. ms. hahn: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield one minute to my friend from texas, mr. gene green. mr. green: thank you, mr. speaker. i speak in favor of the hahn amendment and i'd like to have my full statement placed into the record. i'd like to commend the appropriations committee efforts for increased -- increasing the corps of engineers' budget. we have serious water and infrastructure needs. at the port of houston which i represent, we need operation and maintenance as well as construction money. i greatly appreciate the committee's efforts for our needs, for $31 million, but this amount does not reflect the amount that's needed. the port of houston's the second largest port in the history by -- country by tonnage. in 2012 we expanded operations to cruise ships. for maintenance dredging, operations, the port of houston requires $70 million annually. they generate a given tax

revenue both for the state and federal government. the challenge is to meet the opportunities of the 21st century, the ports all over the country need more than what's available in this appropriations bill. that's why i'm a strong supporter of the hahn amendment and again i would ask unanimous consent to place my full statement into the record. the chair: without objection, so ordered. the gentleman's time has expired. the gentlelady from california is recognized. ms. hahn: mr. speaker, i'd like to now yield 45 seconds to my good friend from michigan, mr. benishek. the chair: the gentleman from michigan is recognized for 45 seconds. mr. benishek: thank you very much. i'd like to have my entire statement in the record, please. the chair: without objection. mr. benishek: mr. chairman, i rise today in support of the hahn-huizenga amendment which would increase funding for united states army corps of engineers' operation and maintenance account by $57 million. faunding level that was established -- a funding level that was established in the house-passed wrrda bill. this is offset and bipartisan in nature. i'm here today to support the additional funding because my district, michigan's first, is in urgent need of funding to address the backlog of projects

on the books. from dredging to basic port maintenance, to the locks which are in desperate need of replacement, the backlog affects jobs and our local economy in northern michigan. mr. chairman, i understand a tough decision must be made during these economic times. all americans depend on the great lakes for transportation of goods and services. i appreciate the consideration ever -- the consideration of this amendment and ask for a yes vote from my colleagues. the chair: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentlelady from california is recognized for 15 seconds. ms. hahn: mr. speaker, and co-founder of my ports caucus, are you telling me i have 15 seconds left? the chair: 15 seconds. ms. hahn: i'd like to yield to .- 10 seconds -- to mr. nolan the chair: the gentleman from minnesota is recognized for 10 seconds. mr. nolan: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise in support of the amendment, the great lakes are operating at 80% of capacity.

it's costing us $3 billion in annual business, jobs, growth and income. this amendment would restore these funds and move our country forward economically. thank you, mr. speaker. the chair: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentlelady from california is recognized. ms. hahn: thank you, mr. speaker. i urge an aye vote on this amendment. when our ports are strong, our country is strong. thank you. i yield back. the chair: the gentlelady yields back the balance of her time. the question is on the amendment offered by the gentlelady from california. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. the gentleman from idaho. mr. simpson: ask for a recorded vote. the chair: pursuant to clause 6 of rule 18, further proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentlelady from california will e postponed. for what purpose does the gentleman from louisiana, mr. cassidy, seek recognition? mr. cassidy: i have an

amendment at the desk. the chair: will the gentleman from louisiana pick which amendment he's offering? .r. cassidy: the $1 million i believe that is h.r. 4923. i'm sorry, i'm sorry, underlying bill. page 4, line 24. the chair: the clerk will report the amendment. the clerk: amendment offered by mr. cassidy of louisiana. page 4, line 24, after the dollar amount insert, increased by $1 million. page 26, line 24, after the dollar amount insert, reduced by $1 million. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 641, the gentleman from louisiana, and a member opposed each will control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from louisiana. mr. cassidy: mr. chairman, unfortunately the president's f.y. 2015 budget request cuts unemployment by 28%, reflecting an overall billion-dollar cut

in the corps' civil works budget from levels set in f.y. 2014 omnibus budget bill. while i appreciate the house appropriation mark of $44 million above the 2014 fiscal year level, more must be done to help ensure our waterways are properly maintained. this is especially true with the waters resource conference report which allows for 100% of the funds generated by the cargo tax to be utilized for harbor maintenance and drenling by the year 2025 -- dredging by the year 2025. we need to bridge this gap now as nearly 1,000 federal ports and harbors have not been adequately maintained and are thredged to their authorized depths and widths only 35% of the time. the amendment i and my colleague from louisiana are co-authoring directs $1 million from the department of energy's administrative offices and directs $1 million to the u.s. army corps of engineers' operation and maintenance account. the purpose of the funding redirection is to make strategic and justified investments in our nation's ports and waterway

infrastructure, such as the ship channel. for example, port of lake charles officials announced yesterday that vessel traffic is expected to increase by more than 50% over the next five years and double within the decade. with more than $67 billion worth of capital investments in southwest louisiana, the increased channel use is attributed to expanded operations of existing terminals and the construction of several proposed facilities. mr. chairman, we need to work to provide the resources to maintain and drenl these vital nave -- dredge these vital navigation and shipping channels. i reserve the balance of my time. the chair: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. does any member seek recognition? for what purpose does the gentleman from louisiana seek recognition? does the gentleman oppose the amendment? does the gentleman oppose the amendment?

>> no, i'm in support of the amendment. the chair: the gentleman from louisiana, mr. cassidy, do you yield to the other gentleman from louisiana? mr. cassidy: i do. i yield to mr. boustany. the chair: the gentleman from louisiana is recognized. mr. boustany: thank you, mr. chairman. first of all, i want to compliment chairman simpson on all the work he's done on this bill, but also the work he's done with me to plus-up the harbor maintenance account and the funds available for dredging. it's critically important, and i'm very proud to stand with my colleague from louisiana in support of this very important amendment. as my colleague expressed, the president's fiscal 2015 budget creates even more of a shortfall and we've got a significant backlog in harbor maintenance. this is going to hurt american competitiveness. in fact, roughly $3 billion worth of cosal navigation operations and maintenance work could be done if the funds that are collected for this were actually made available to be used for it. louisiana's a leading state in trade, international trade, with three of our top 10 ports

that conduct trade and goods and -- conduct trade in goods and energy. more u.s. merchandise travels by ocean-going vessels than by dirps a -- airplanes, trucks, freight trains and pipelines combined. that's why these funds are critical for american competitiveness and that's why they're really important in facilitating u.s. foreign trade. . our waterways are the vital economic pathways for commerce and the ability to move foreign goods -- goods to foreign markets. jobs depend on this. jobs in louisiana and across the united states. this infrastructure is vital. our amendment would take a modest step. it would redistrict $1 million from the department of energy's administrative offices to the army corps of engineers' account. i believe this will prioritize necessary maintenance and move us in the necessary direction.

the federal government has -- let's make sure that the corps has the tools to do the job with the money that's collected for that job. the president failed to do that in his budget request. we can make that change now. i urge my colleagues to support the amendment. i yield back to my colleague. the chair: the gentleman from louisiana, mr. cassidy, is recognized. mr. cassidy: i yield back the balance of my time. the chair: the gentleman yields back his time. the question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from louisiana, mr. cassidy. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. the amendment is agreed to. the chair: for what purpose does the gentleman from oklahoma seek recognition? >> mr. speaker, i have an amendment at the desk.

the chair: the clerk will report the amendment. the clerk: amendment offered by mr. lankford of oklahoma. age 4, line 25, after expended insert of which such sums are necessary to carry out the study authorized in section 6002 of the water resources reform and development act of 2014. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 641, the gentleman from oklahoma, and a member opposed will each control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from oklahoma. mr. langevin: thank you, sir. there was -- mr. lankford thank you, sir. the bill included a study that would allow the corps of engineers to be able to evaluate their projects. as simple as this may be, the corps of engineers has a tremendous number of things on their inventory that they're doing operation and naint assistance for. -- maintenance for. they will do a simple evaluation of which projects met the central focus of the corps of engineers and which

projects might not meet the central focus. it might make a simple determination if what is the core projects of the corps. there are projects all over the country. there might be boat ramps, picnic pavilions or a lake that's never more than 5% water in it. it was a project that did not work effectively but the corps still has to maintain because it's on their inventory. this study would allow them to develop what is the core focus of that. this amendment just assures that the corps would have the money necessary to be able to fulfill that study. with that i yield back. the chair: the gentleman yields back his time. the question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from oklahoma. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. he amendment is agreed to.

the clerk: page 6, line 3, regulatory program, $200 million to remain available until september 30, 2016. formerly utilize sites, remedial action program, $100 million. flood, coastal and coastal emergencies, $28 million. expenses, $178 million to remain available until eptember 30, 2016. the chair: for what purpose does the gentleman from arizona seek recognition? >> mr. chairman, i have an amendment at the desk. the chair: the clerk will report the amendment. the clerk: amendment offered by mr. gosar of years. page 26, line 24, after the dollar amount insert reduced by $9,551,000. page 59, line 20, after the dollar amount insert increased by $9,551,000. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 641, the gentleman from arizona and a member opposed will each control five minutes.

r. gosar: amendment 170. the chair: the clerk will rereport the amendment offered by the gentleman from arizona. the clerk: an amendment offered by mr. gosar of arizona, after the dollar amount insert reduced by $4 million. page 59 insert increased by $4 million. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 641, the gentleman from arizona and a member opposed will each control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from arizona. mr. gosar: mr. chairman, i rise today to offer a simple amendment to save precious taxpayer resources and to reduce the amount of money on paying inefficient bureaucrats with a history of mismanagement and disorganization. specifically, my amendment reduces net outlays for the administration of the army corps of engineers by $1 million for the fiscal year

2014 level, which reduces the budget authority in this bill for the corps' administrative by 2.25%. the corps of engineers received an overall increase of $25 million in the bill above the fiscal year 2014 level. while i can support funds going to worthwhile projects, i take issue when the corps continually receives the budget request level for administrative officials who fail to curve theired -- curb their bad behavior. i'd like to read a quick excerpt, and i quote, the corps of eng mears has suffered -- engineers has suffered severe failings in recent years and have resulted in cost increases for projects such as the costs associated with the lock and dam project. quote two, in some cases the administration has not requested authorization increases in time for the congress to act before projects experience delays. quote three, the committee enacted new requirements in fiscal year 2014 intended to address these problems, but to

date five months after enactment, the corps has not complied with the committee's directions. quote four, in addition the committee notes that the corps has not submitted a complete work plan for fiscal year 2014 or complied with several other oversight issues necessary to safeguard taxpayer dollars. another ineptitude is they have been working on one chief report for a particular project in arizona for five-plus years now. throughout this country this is the norm and not the exception to the rule. this failure to perform even the most simple of tasks drives up the costs of projects and leaves to projects not being completed in a timely manner. due to frustrations with these delays, congress was forced to enact a provision that recently passed worda for reports to be completed within three years. an important flood control project was initially estimated by the corps to cost roughly $24 million. now several years past the deadline for completing this

project, the total cost estimate for the project exceeds more than $100 million. i realize projects vish use sometimes, but this is a clear example of failed leadership within the agency. unfortunately, mismanagement has become prevalent in the corps for quite sometime now. several years ago, former senate majority leader, tom dashle said the corps is one -- tom daschle said the corps is one of the mismanaged agency. one thing was cited by the government accountability office. the g.a.o. had nothing but negative things to say about a corps study justifying a $332 million project on the delaware river. g.a.o. found that the study was based on miscalculations, invalid assumptions and outdated information. g.a.o. found that projected benefits for this project were nearly 75% fraudulent. with an almost $18 trillion debt that continues to grow, it is irresponsible to throw more money at a department that cannot manage its own affairs. my amendment does not reduce

funding for important projects. again, my amendment simplyry uces -- simply reduces bureaucrats from the fiscal year 2014. i ask my colleagues to support the amendment. i want to thank the chair and ranking member for their continued work on the appropriation and i yield back the balance of my time. the chair: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. for what purpose does the gentlelady from ohio seek recognition? ms. kaptur: yes, i rise to oppose the amendment. the chair: the gentlelady from ohio is recognized for five minutes. ms. kaptur: yes. mr. chairman and members, i rise to oppose the amendment because it doesn't make any sense to me to make it harder for the corps to do its job when we know they have backlog in projects of over $60 billion. we are increasing funding for the corps to try to meet the needs of states like arizona, but the other 49 states as well, and there seems to be no shortage of complaints about the corps' response time on

project issues because they can't get their work done because they don't have enough money to complete their projects. so this gentleman may be unaware that oversight funding has already been cut by $4 million than the current year. we're asking the corps -- we're giving them more projict money to deal with their backlog but if we don't have proper oversight we're going to dig the hole deeper. we need to have the resources in order to complete the projects. and the amendment in a way is penny-wise and pound foolish because it reduces federal oversight of more than $5 billion. and the problem of the corps historically has been that every member has projects that they want completed but we don't have the money to do it. and so if you're going to cut the legs out of staff that are there to do the job, it's going to make it much more difficult to manage the money.

and so you can -- i don't know. it's like trying to send an army into battle and not giving them the weapons to do it or creating all these barriers to completion. we need to turn around and allow the corps to resolve the projects that are on the books. there are no new starts in this bill. and give them the staff to do the job and to get it done and to get it done well and within budget, not stretch it out. the reason these projects are stretched out over the years, they simply don't have the money to put the infrastructure in the ground, whether it's arizona or ohio or california. they're just shortchanged at every end. so we make it really difficult for them. i think the gentleman is well-intended. he wants to get the work done. i want to get the work done, but i don't think the amendment leads us to that end. respectfully, we would oppose the amendment and ask our colleagues to join us. i yield back my remaining time.

the chair: the gentlelady from ohio yields back her time. the question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from arizona, mr. gosar. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. the amendment is agreed to. the gentleman from idaho. mr. simpson: i ask for a recorded vote. the chair: pursuant to clause 6 of rule 18, further proceedings on the amendment offered by the gentleman from arizona will be postponed. the clerk: office of the assistant secretary of the army for civil works. $2 million to remain available until september 30, 2016. the chair: for what purpose does the gentleman from florida seek recognition? >> i have an amendment at the desk, mr. speaker. the chair: the clerk will report the amendment. the clerk: amendment offered by mr. bilirakis of florida. page 7, line 21, after the dollar amount insert reduced by zero dollars. page 59, line 20, after the dollar amount insert increased by $2 million. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 641, the gentleman from florida, mr. bilirakis,

and a member opposed will each control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from florida. mr. bilirakis: thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today to ask my colleagues to support increase accountability of the army corps of engineers. i think, of course, chairman rogers and -- i thank, of course, chairman rogers and chairman simpson for this appropriation bill and to ensure scarce taxpayer dollars are well spent. my amendment seeks to strike all funding for the office of the assistant secretary of the army corps of civil works. under current law, fringe groups are allowed to, for the cost of -- a postage stamp, mr. speaker, file lawsuits against any infrastructure protection project needing a clean water permit that they file in the file registry. this is outrageous. the fear of them have stopped a number of worthy projects that were necessary for local governments to protect their

constituents. the corps' failure to defend the public safety is because of a serious lack of leadership by the corps, in my opinion. one such project in my congressional district is the ridge road extension. a much-needed route for hurricane evacuation. for over two decades -- two decades this project has been the permitting process because of the bureaucratic paper shuffling and duplicative environmental studies. during this time of scarce taxpayer dollars and economic uncertainty, we have pending infrastructure projects that can create jobs and protect the public, but the corps often drags out the application process to push the applicant to draw up their application out of fear that the agency will have to engage in litigation. . these lawsuits are solely to

kill safety public projects. i note this bill's committee report which says, and i quote, the committee is concerned that the administration has not been taking congressional direction seriously. in regards to these permit projects, there's clearly a serious leadership problem at the agency. this is an opportunity for the administration to act and ensure the public is protected. the committee report also includes encouragement from the committee to keep in mind the public safety aspects of a project when considering permit applications and to pursue ways to shorten review times, including by performing reviews currently and eliminating duplicative reviews to the maximum extent pract cancel. i call on the -- extent practical cabble. i call on the corps to improve these needed public safety projects to prevent needless

loss of life. with assurances from chairman simpson that the committee will continue to encourage the corps to prioritize public safety projects, i would consider withdrawing the amendment at this time. i'll yield to the chairman. mr. simpson: i would assure the gentleman that we share his concerns. and in fact if you look at the underlying bill, we have reduced funding for the office by 60%, by $3 million. because of the same concerns that we have that you are expressing, that mr. gosar expressed before you. it is a concern that all of us have and we will work with you to make sure that -- all of us have and we will work with you to make sure that we address this. mr. bilirakis: thank you. our constituents need evacuation routes in case there is a hurricane or any kind of a disaster. thank you very much and, mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that my amendment be

withdrawn. and i appreciate it. thank you. the chair: seeing no objection, the gentleman's amendment is withdrawn. the clerk will read. the clerk: page 8, line 1, general provisions, corps of engineers, civil, section 101, none of the funds shall be available for a reprogramming of funds that creates or initiates a new program. section 102, none of the funds may be used to award any contract that commits funds beyond the. as appropriated for that program -- beyond the amounts appropriated for that program. section 103, none of the funds shall be used to award any contract that commits additional funding for the inland waterways trust fund. section 104, the secretary may transfer to the wish -- fish and wildlife service $4,700,000. section 105, none of the funds may be used by the corps of engineers to develop or enforce any change in the regulations pertaining to the definitions of the term fill material or discharge of fill material of the federal water pollution

control act. section 106, none of the funds may be used by the corps of engineers to develop or enforce any of the changes pertaining to the definition of waters of the federal water pollution control act. section 107, the secretary shall not promulgate any regulation that prohibits an individual from possessing a firearm at a water resources development project. title 2, department of the interior. central utah probably. central utah project completion account, $9,874,000. bureau of reclamation, appropriations shall be expended to execute authorized functions of the bureau of reclamation, water and related resources, $856,351,000. the chair: for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek reck mission? >> i have an amendment at the desk. the chair: the clerk will report the amendment. the clerk: amendment offered by mr. ruiz of california.

page 12, line 25, after the dollar amount insert, redulesed by $1 million, increased by $1 million. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 641, the gentleman from california, mr. ruiz, and a member opposed each will control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from california. mr. ruiz: thank you, mr. chairman. before i begin, i would like to thank chairman simpson and ranking member capture for their hard work and collaborate -- capter for their hard work and collaborate -- kaptur for their hard work and collaboration on this bill. i rise to provide additional critical resources for bureau of reclamation environmental restoration projects that address or improve public health conditions. the bureau of reclamation is responsible for managing, developing and restoring our nation's water, to support the interests of the american public. and, mr. chairman, i can think of fewer efforts more in the public's interest than protecting the public's health.

across the west, the bureau of health's water district recycled water technology to provide safe irrigation water for crops, provides engineering assistance for restoration efforts, and monitors water quality so that communities can take preventative action to protect the environment and public health. there are many examples in our nation and i will give just a couple of these examples. in southern california, in the coachella valley, the bureau of reclamation plays a large role in protecting public health by monitoring and helping restore the water equality of the salt and sea. for several decades now, the deteriorating water quality and reduced water inflow have made the salten sea a threat to southern californian residents and eventually the sea could threaten public health in cities all across southern california. as the sea dries and the water level recedes, exposed lake bed will release wind-blown contaminants containing arsenic and pesticides.

exposure to those contaminants has been shown to increase the number and severity of asthma attacks, decrease the growth and development of lung function in school-aged children, increase the risk of cardiac disease, heart attacks and mortality in adults. already exposed lake bed on the southern portion of the sea has had an impact on local air quality, with rates of pediatric asthma hospitalization in the region far above the national average. and as an emergency medicine physician, i have seen firsthand the effects of poor air and water quality. the public health danger to families and children from this sea is very real and to help address the exposed lake bed in the southern portion of the sea, a partnership has put together the project to cover over 700 acres of exposed lake bed with clean water. the shallow pools will cover the dangerous contaminants in the lake bed, preventing them from becoming airborne and threatening the surrounding communities. the bureau of reclamation

supports projects like this all across the western united states, working with local stakeholders who recognize the value of ensuring our waters are well managed. for example, in my neighboring district in california's 42nd district, the bureau of reclamation assisted in helping to mitigate public health concerns and water quality issues at a lake. the lake, like the salta nmbingts sea, has faced chronic challenges related to water level and water quality. algae blooms from the lake caused public health concerns and even infected and took the life of a child. a collaboration between local governments, local water districts and the bureau of reclamation came together to establish a supply of recycled water to help maintain water levels and installed airaters to reduce algae blooms and prevent fish dieouts by keeping oxygen levels high. the lake now supports many local businesses, as a flourishing tourism industry and is safer for the residents

to enjoy all the benefits the lake has to offer, including swimmer and water sports. my amendment would provide additional resources toward many bureau water projects throughout the nation that will protect the public's health. the health of the american people must be put above politics and i urge my colleagues to come together to support my amendment. i reserve the balance of my time. the chair: the gentleman from california reserves. who seeks recognition? for what purpose does the gentlelady from ohio rise? ms. kaptur: mr. chairman, i rise to support the gentleman's amendment and to say that he has worked so hard in the interests of maintaining both public health and restoration of the environment, related to the saltan sea. unless you've actually seen the saltan sea and you see what the changing nature of the ecosystem in southern california -- you can't manage how enormous -- imagine how enormous that challenge is.

and the gentleman, from the very first day he was elected, was talking to us about that particular part of the country. i know that polluted agriculture runoff had something to do with what's happened to the saltan city. the changing nature of rainfall has transformed. i think about the sea in russia and how dangerous that has become to the surrounding environment. we face the same challenge here in our country and i know it's difficult to resolve this issue , it'll take many years because it didn't take just one year for the sea to become a wasteland really, and the surrounding communities so affected. i want to thank him for his leadership and for keeping us and your part of america on the right course. you're very talented and very caring. so i just wanted to stand in support of his efforts. i thank you and i yield back the balance of my time. the chair: the gentlelady yields back the balance of her time. the gentleman from california.

mr. ruiz: i yield back the balance of my time. the chair: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from california. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. he amendment is adopted. for what purpose does the gentleman from colorado seek recognition? >> mr. chairman, i have an amendment at the desk. the chair: will the gentleman end his amendment to the desk?

the chair: the clerk will report the amendment. the clerk: amendment offered by mr. gardner of colorado. pages 12, line 25, after the dollar amount insert, reduced by $3 million, increased by $3 million. the chair: the gentleman from colorado and a member opposed will each control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from colorado, mr. gardner, for five minutes. mr. gardner: i thank you, mr. chairman. i rise today in support of the amendment which allocates $3 million for water conservation and delivery. the funding for this amendment is taken directly from the underlying bill's $856 million appropriation to the bureau of reclamation. for water probablies. the amendment directs $3 million of this sum specifically for water conservation and delivery probablies. the bureau of reclamation fund provides critical assistance to western areas of the country. in the ar i had west, water is our life. these projects improve water supply, quality, water supply quality, address water shortage issues, improve conservation

measures and stabilize walter supplies -- stabilize water supplies. probablies like the arkansas valley conduit, with over 100 miles of pipeline, serving dozens of communities with clean, abundant and affordable water. in the western united states, water is an economic driver. in order to attract more economic growth, either in business or agriculture, every industry in the west is dependent upon an ample and safe water supply. this amendment will allow the bureau of reclamation more flexibility to continue with these types of projects while simultaneously improving public health and improving the environment. projects are critically important during drought years so that water is appropriately allocated for both municipal and agricultural uses. the water conservation and delivery line in the bureau's budget has been previously used for the california central valley project, the washington state basin water enhancement project, the arkansas valley conduit in colorado and the project in the chairman's home state of idaho. i urge support of the amendment and i yield as much time as he may consume to the co-author of

this amendment, mr. tipton from colorado. and i thank him for his leadership on issues relating to water in the state of colorado. the chair: the gentleman from colorado, mr. tipton, is recognized for as much time as he wishes to use. mr. tipton: thank you, mr. chairman. i'd like to thank my colleague, mr. gardner, for yielding time to me and for your partnership in this critical matter. as you know, water is the life blood of the western united states and absolutely critical to the health of our communities and our local economies. in order to meet federaly iy mandated quater -- federally mandated water quality standards across the west, this fund is essential. in colorado, as is in the case throughout the west, we have similar needs, to be able mo move forward with engineering design work on authorized features for existing reclamation projects. this amendment would provide the bureau of reclamation the flexibility it needs to be able to allocate funds to advance and complete ongoing work that will provide efficient delivery of water from an existing multipurpose reclamation

project as was authorized by congress in 1962. among the eligible projects within the water conservation delivery fund is in my district, the arkansas valley conduit. it is the final component of the frying pan arkansas project, water diversion and storage project in the lower arkansas valley. once constructed, the conduit will deliver clean drinking water to families, producers and municipalities throughout southeastern colorado. by directing $3 million of this sum specifically for water conservation and delivery projects, the bureau of reclamation can proceed with ongoing work and water supply delivery projects at a more efficient pace, to be able to reach our shared goal in meeting increased water demands by developing and maximizing clean water supplies. it is our hope that reclamation prioritizes these projects and resolves the water short ands that exist in the west, while enhancing our regional development and promoting our job growth. i yield back to my colleague from colorado, mr. gardner. .

mr. gardner: mr. chairman, i'll reserve at this time. the chair: the gentleman reserves. the gentleman from colorado. mr. gardner: thank you, mr. speaker. i want to thank him for doing tremendous good in our states for water conservation delivery efforts. i urge support of the amendment and yield back the balance of my time. the chair: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. pursuant to house resolution -- -- on tion is will the the amendment offered by the gentleman from colorado. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. he amendment is adopted. for what purpose does the gentlelady from south dakota seek recognition? mrs. noem: mr. chairman, i have an amendment at the desk. the chair: the clerk will

report the amendment. the clerk: page 12, line 25, after the dollar amount insert increased by $10 million. page 19, line 12, insert reduced by $7 million. page 26, line 24, after the dollar amount insert reduced by $6 million. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 641, the gentlelady from south dakota and a member opposed will each control five minutes. mrs. noem: thank you, mr. chairman. i do want to thank the chairman and the ranking member and all of the committee staff for their hard work on this bill. one of the most important things during the appropriations process is making tough decisions and identifying priorities that need funding. one area that is specifically important is providing water throughout the country, including in rural areas. in my state and across the west, there are critical water infrastructure projects that are waiting to be funded. they were promised to be funded by the federal government years ago and construction is under way on many of these projects. many of these communities have put their fair share in

funding. the state has done so well. the only thing that hasn't followed through is the federal government. water is our most basic needs and we need to make sure we have safe and affordable drinking water across this country. for rural areas it's also a jobs issue. without completion of rural water projects, businesses aren't able to creates much-needed jobs, and local economies suffer. unfortunately, yearly after year funding for these projects continues to decline under the president's budget requests. we have the opportunity here today to make some meaningful progress on these projects and ensure that the federal government follows through on its previous commitments. even with my amendment, funding for rural water projects is still below what it was for fiscal year 2014. my bill increases funding for rural water projects and it does not increase net budget outlays. we need to support critical infrastructure and essential access to water. i urge my colleagues to support the amendment and i would like to yield as much time as he will consume to the gentleman from montana.

the chair: the gentleman from montana is recognized for as much time as he wishes to use. mr. daines: i want to thank the gentlewoman for her leadership on this amendment as well as the chairman for allowing us to have this debate and i rise in support of this amendment. in the appropriations process, we must prioritize funding for necessary projects and balance those with spending reductions to reduce the national debt. in montana, we depend on a steady supply of water to irgait our crops, to water or livestock and provide energy through hydropower or reunusual resource. the struggle for clean water continues to create health challenges for indian country and nearby communities. in addition to making economic development more difficult. without this critical funding for rocky boise north central ter system and the fort peck water system, thousands can go without quality water accessibility. the president's budget request

for these critical projects continue to decline each year while prioritizing other accounts that are not related to basic needs of our rural communities. mr. chairman, every year we wait to delay funding of these essential projects, the more expensive the construction, the operation and the maintenance become. for instance, the fort peck project's reduced funding level has doubled the authorization period and inflation has doubled the overall cost of construction, yet the projected savings is $11 million. however, overhead will consume on the project to date and encroach upon the authorized construction ceiling. you know, the c.b.o. has just scored this amendment, this decreases the net budget outlays. passing this amendment is responsible stewardship of tax dollars and important to rural communities and it's a nonpartisan issue. funding these projects is supported by the entire montana delegation, both republicans and democrats, and last year a

similar amendment passed by voice vote. i urge support of this amendment. i yield back the balance of my time. the chair: the gentleman yields back his time. the gentlelady from south dakota. mrs. noem: i'd reserve the balance of my time. the chair: reserves her time. who seeks recognition? the gentlelady from ohio seek recognition? ms. kaptur: i rise to claim time in opposition. the chair: the gentlelady is recognized for five minutes. ms. kaptur: i rise to oppose the gentlelady's amendment and do so for several reasons. first of all, where the funds are taken from which are renewable energy accounts have already been reduced by $113 million from the prior fiscal year. frankly, those accounts are part of our future. our future energy security for the country and as i said in my opening statement, the preservation of our lib wit. with over 40% of our energy resources being imported, there is no higher priority than for us to diversify our energy

portfolio and to reclaim our own economic and energy security. further reduction in those accounts will have a detrimental impact, not just in montana, but across this country. in addition, the amendment, as i understand it, reduces departmental administration by $6 million and given my colleagues' frustration with the department's pace on many activities, including approval of our l.n.g. export efforts, this seems to be a case of really making it much more difficult for the department to do its job. let me put on the record again, just since twee in the last decade, our -- 2003 in the last decade, our country has spent $2.3 trillion on importing foreign petroleum. this is a vast shift of wealth and thousands upon thousands, literally millions of jobs evaporating from our country.

bloomberg new energy finance reports for 2030 the market outlook estimates that renewables will command over 60% of the $7.7 trillion of power investment that are going to be made someplace. and when we think about our country's future, we must be vigilant. we must be smart. we must be engaged in those markets because if we aren't we see what china is doing, we see what russia is doing. we have to pay attention. we can't rob peter to try to pay paul. any water project, whether it's in montana or whether it's in ohio, is largely a public project. and you have to make money in the market to pay for it. reasserting ourselves and becoming leaders in energy rather than importers of energy is where america needs to head. i think this takes us in the wrong direction.

we shoulding leading investment in these technologies, not further eroding their capacity for our country because other countries will displace us and they are doing so. now, in terms of rural water projects and the bureau of reclamation, those water projects already will receive $21 million above the administration's request. so it's not like our subcommittee isn't doing its job, and frankly our part of america gets much less attention than the west does in terms of rural water investment . we have a 50/50 match in our part of the country. we don't have anything like the bureau of reclamation, and we have to compete in the midwest for those precious dollars and we don't have enough. as e manage to move along west -- as best we can. so i think we have done what we can in our bill for rural water

and i'd take objection to the gentlelady's efforts to further cripple those renewable energy accounts that are going to help to create america's new future and leading us toward energy independence and toward a reassumption of our lib wit. so i would hope she would find another way to achieve her objective and i think i must also offer the comment that, you know, as we look toward the west and its water needs, because of what is happening in the environment, we may be at a point in america's history where we have to put our dollars where it makes the most sense. if development is occurring in areas that are already water short or becoming desert, where the desert is growing and where literally nature can't provide what it did maybe 100 years ago, i think we have to manage the public dollars more wisely. so i oppose the gentlelady's

amendment. i hope we can find a way to meet her genuine concerns and i yield back the balance of my time. the chair: the gentlelady from ohio yields back her time. the gentlelady from south dakota is recognized. mrs. noem: a couple of facts to follow-up on the gentlelady's comments. what we are frying to do is get clean drinking water to individuals, to people where the federal government has failed to follow through on commitments it's made previously. the reason we have plused up some of these dollars is because the president's budget request has been so low the last few years. we had to do that in order to try to meet the need. water projects still, even if my amendment is adopted, will receive less than they did in 2014. i certainly understand your of rns, as i am a sorer all-of-the-above -- as i am a supporter of an all-of-the-above energy policy. last year it was voice adopted because everybody recognized the importance of making sure people in this country can get clean drinking water. they at least should have that basic privilege. with that, mr. chairman, i yield back and i ask for

everyone's support on this amendment. the chair: the gentlelady from south dakota yields back her time. the question is on the amendment offered by the gentlelady from south dakota. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, the ayes have it. the amendment is agreed to. the clerk will read. the clerk: page 13, line 23, central valley project, restoration fund. $56, 995,000. california bay-delta restoration, $37 million. policy and administration, $53,849,000. bureau of reclamation loan program account, $500,000 is permanently rescinded. administrative provision, appropriations for the bureau of reclamation shall be available for purchase of five passenger motor vehicles. general provisions, department of the interior, section 201, none of the funds shall be available for a reprogramming of funds that creates or initiates a new program,

project or activity. section 202, none of the funds may be used to determine the final point of discharge for the interceptor drain for the st. luis unit development. title 3, department of energy, energy programs, energy efficiency and renewable nergy, $1,789,000,000. the chair: for what purpose does the gentlelady from florida seek recognition? ms. castor: mr. chairman, i have an amendment at the desk. the chair: the clerk will designate the amendment. the clerk: amendment offered by ms. castor of florida. after the dollar amount insert increased by $112,686,000. page 21, line 2, after the dollar amount insert reduced by $165 million. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 641, the gentlelady from florida and a member opposed will each control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentlelady from florida, ms. castor. ms. castor: thank you, mr. chairman. i rise today to offer an amendment to boost the energy

efficiency initiatives across america that have a proven return on investment for taxpayers, and this amendment is paid for by reducing but not eliminating accounts that do not have the same return on investment for taxpayers. mr. chair, the appropriation in the bill for energy efficiency and renewable energy is $112 million below the 2014 appropriated level. and it's $528 million below the budget request. now, i wish we could meet the budget request this year, but colleagues, we should at least restore the money back to last year's levels which is still a very modest investment in energy and -- energy efficiency and renewable energy for america. the funds tied to energy efficiency and renewable energy fuel jobs across america. in advanced manufacturing, in

clean energy. these investments in energy efficiency help make our businesses more competitive compared to businesses all across the globe. in addition, energy efficiency reduces the cost for consumers. wouldn't that be revolutionary? to put some money back in the pockets of our neighbors in this day and age? and has the added benefit of providing cleaner air. . back home in florida i've noticed local governments investing in better lighting and energy efficiency. this has the potential to lower property taxes for our neighbors back home. mr. chairman, we're on the cusp of a technological revolution when it comes to energy and energy efficiency. look at what's happening all across america. we have a very diverse portfolio, but this budget today is screwed -- skewed a little bit, it chops energy efficiency and renewable energy that has such great potential to create jobs. and it's a little too