[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 85 (Thursday, June 25, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1229]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


            INTRODUCTION OF THE VIRGINIA FLOOD CONTROL BILL

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                           HON. BOB GOODLATTE

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 24, 1998

  Mr. GOODLATTE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce a bill that is 
designed to alleviate a serious problem for flood victims. In 1996, 
much of the southeastern region of our country took the brunt of the 
punches hurricane Fran could muster. Soon thereafter, Congress reacted 
by sending emergency aid to help rebuild the lives of those caught by 
this natural disaster. Many of my constituents were recipients of that 
aid and were grateful for it. However, the bureaucracy that accompanied 
some of Congress' best intentions was not as welcomed.
  The people of the 6th district of Virginia are good, hard working, 
self-reliant people. Their first reaction was not to look for 
government intervention when calamity struck. Instead, they turned to 
their families and neighbors and told each other that it was time to go 
to work.
  The flooding caused by Hurricane Fran in Allegheny, Augusta, 
Rockbridge, and Rockingham Counties dumped tons of rock and other 
debris in fields, pastures, living rooms and basements. My 
constituents, the farmers and landowners, wanted simply to start their 
tractors, put their gloves on and begin moving rocks. However, federal 
bureaucrats told them they needed to apply for a permit to put their 
lives back together.
  If the farmers and landowners came crying to the government for help 
to move the debris, one might understand the federal cries for delay. 
But these folks were simply doing what they were always taught; if you 
want to get a job done right, do it yourself. Imagine their frustration 
when someone, probably from Washington, DC, came by and threatened to 
fine them if they continued to move the rocks without a permit.
  Homer Allman, a landowner in Rockingham County, told me the so-called 
``repairs'' the government so readily provided left nothing to be 
spoken for. ``The work they did is already eroding,'' he said. ``they 
provided me with six people who took three or four days to work on a 
plot of 1500 square feet of land that needed attention. In result, they 
made no banking and bore out a 50-foot channel. I could have done that 
in one afternoon with my bulldozer, and saved the taxpayer money.''
  Another landowner and constituent of mine, Page Will, observed that 
once the Army Corps of Engineers relaxed some permitting requirements, 
regular folks dug in and the work was completed. This is the impetus 
and spirit of my bill. Once we get the federal bureaucrats and their 
political way of prioritizing emergency projects out of the way, stream 
beds were cleared, banks were stabilized, and debris removed from 
pastures.''
  My bill prohibits the Secretary of Agriculture, or other executive 
branch officials, from preventing a State or local government to remove 
any rocks or other debris from land or water when the primary purpose 
of the removal operation is to reduce the risk and severity of 
subsequent flooding. I fail to see the need for federal intervention in 
what is seemingly their right to fix as landowners.
  It's as simple as that. Why does the federal government have to get 
involved if it isn't being asked to supply the equipment or human 
resources to get the removal projects underway? My constituents and I 
strongly believe that they should not be.
  I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

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