mrs. capps: mr. chairman, i yield myself 30 seconds to respond to my colleague from colorado, the author of the bill. section 328 of the clean air act is what is at issue today in this amendment. it was created more than 20 years ago largely at the insinsens of california officials. in fact, my republican predecessor, he introduced this legislation because residents were unhappy about uncontrolled air pollution from offshore drilling as well as local industry and business groups who were upset that offshore sources were basically free to pollute while onshore producers tried to make up for the degraded air quality. only two states now have this permission to -- mr. gardner: will the gentleman yield? the chair: the gentlelady's time has expired. i will yield 1 1/2 minutes to my colleague from delaware, mr. carney. the chair: the gentlelady has 1 1/2 minutes remaining. the gentleman is recognized. mr. carney: i rise in support of this amendment and i ask unanimous consent that this letter from the dela

mrs. capps: it gives oil companies a pass to pollute. it doesn't allow them from applying technology to vessels like crude and supply boats which account for most of the air pollution from drilling off my congressional district's coast. it also opens up a loophole for drill ships to pollute with no limit while the ship moves into play. and instead of measuring pollution as a source itself, h.r. 2021 allows oil companies to measure the impacts at the shore with a net result of more air pollution overall. second, h.r. 2021 does away with proven processes that move -- provide an expert, efficient of air permits decisions. i would note that in 20 years the santa barbara air pollution control district has never denied an offshore drilling permit and there's more drilling off my district than just about anywhere in this country. the local air permitting review process works. we don't need to change it. in addition, this bill's provision to remove all appellate action to washington, d.c., is wholly unf

the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from california, mrs. capps, for five minutes. mrs. capps: mr. speaker, today i rise to honor a constituent of mine from the 23rd district of california. his name is mr. jack southerland. mr. southerland served honorably in the coast guard during world war ii. he was stationed off the california coast. mr. southerland's brave actions on december 25, 1943, resulted in the safe passage of two escort carriers down the pacific along the coast and into san diego bay. i am very proud to represent mr. southerland, an example to us all for his dedication to our country and for his lifetime of serving our community. mr. speaker, the debt we owe to our nation's veterans is immeasurable. mr. southerland is no exception. in fact, he's an example of those of that greatest generation who served nobly during the second world war. his actions in 1943 leave me humbled and honored by his sacrifices. we can never repay his service, but we can act honorably on his behalf and behave in a way that is indicative of a grateful nation. singling out events like these are

mrs. capps: i rise in opposition to the misguided attack on medicare and medicaid. no matter what the other side says, their plan for medicare and medicaid will end them, leaving them nothing but a shell. this is a we of priorities. which is the best choice? either closing the doughnut hole so seniors, including 7,000 in my district, don't have to choose between their medications and paying the rent, or giving huge subsidies to oil companies. or this choice, telling people, including 100,000 in my congressional district in their 40's and 50's to hurry up and save another $200,000 each before they retire so they can pay for health care since medicare's guarantee is gone or continuing tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires. the republican budget is not a plan for our future, it's a recipe for disaster. it ends medicare and medicaid, puts our seniors at risk. stand up for our current and future seniors. they is a -- say no to the republican attack on medicare and medicaid. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas. >> i ask unanimous consent

mrs. capps: i rise in strong opposition to the rule and the ag bill. instead of helping americans hit hardest by the recession today we are debating a republican spending bill that guts critical nutrition programs which literally puts food on the table so that millions of low-income women, children and seniors don't go hungry. it cuts the american food assistance program which could cause our local food banks to close their doors, and it slashes the budget of the w.i.c. program, the effects of which will leave hundreds of thousands of women and children without adequate nutrition. w.i.c. not only keeps our low-income families from hunger but by emphasizing adequate nutrition, the program reduces the incidence of low birth weight babies, promotes school readiness by giving children the nutritional building blocks their brain needs to develop at a critical stage. it also increases child immunization rates. these are not just for the child and the family. in fact, the program helps every dollar invested in w.i.c. we save about $2 to $3 in health care cost

mr. chairman, finally, i'd like to thank the co-sponsors of this amendment, representative reichert, tonko, ellison, moore, wasserman schultz, capps, slaughter, cuellar, fudge and wilson. i'd like to yield to the gentlelady from nevada, ms. berkley. the chair: the gentlelady is recognized. ms. berkley: thank you, mr. higgins. i rise in support of the amendment to eliminate a provision in this bill that would harm las vegas, phoenix, denver, miami, baltimore, detroit and a dozen more cities around the country. this bill before us would eliminate any funding for the urban area security initiative for all but the top 10 highest risk urban areas, leaving over 50 u.s. cities off the list, including my own city of las vegas, one of the greatest tourist destiny -- destinations in the world, with over 37 million visitors a year. for almost a decade uasi program has worked to help cities prevent acts of terrorism. not too long ago, over 60 u.s. cities received funding to help them purchase equipment, develop recovery plans and implement counterterrorism strategies. in my home city of las vegas, for example, we've create creathed the southe