[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 1 (Wednesday, January 23, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S15-S16]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   NEW YORK'S GROUND ZERO CLEANUP: AHEAD OF SCHEDULE AND UNDER BUDGET

  Mrs. CLINTON. Madam President, along with my colleague Senator 
Schumer, and Congressman Nadler in the House, I reaffirm the commitment 
of this Congress and this Nation to the rebuilding of New York.
  One hundred thirty-five days after the worst attacks in history on 
U.S. soil, I ask my colleagues to join me in a pledge to fulfill our 
promise to all Americans to make New York--our financial, our cultural, 
and media heart--whole again.
  The World Trade Center attacks claimed the lives of close to 3,000 of 
our fellow citizens, as well as those who had come from other countries 
to America seeking a better life. The emotional toll has been 
staggering. I have met with countless family members who lost mothers 
and fathers, sisters and brothers, husbands and wives, daughters and 
sons. While there is nothing we can say or do that will bring these 
loved ones back to their families, the outpouring of compassion and 
kindness from all over the Nation has brought comfort to many.
  Along with this heartfelt sympathy, I believe we have an obligation 
to help not only those who lost their loved ones but also help those 
who lost their livelihoods rebuild their lives and reclaim their 
futures.
  New Yorkers were comforted when the President and leaders from the 
House and the Senate came to ground zero and stood in the House and 
Senate promising to make New York whole again. Their determination in 
the face of what seemed at the time great odds reinforced the workers 
who labored day after day, night after night, at ground zero. Despite 
the many obstacles, the recovery effort has moved forward faster than 
anyone could have predicted.
  Some months ago, I told my colleagues our best estimate was that with 
24-hour-day shifts, we would perhaps have to take an entire year to 
clear the site to be ready to rebuild. I am very proud of the 
construction workers who have been working day in and day out, often at 
great personal sacrifice and risk, as well as the contractors who have 
worked with the city, to the end that we now believe this cleanup 
effort will be completed 4 months ahead of schedule and billions of 
dollars under budget.
  That does not in any way take away from the fact that the financial 
toll has been enormous. In fact, the terrorist attacks are estimated to 
cost New York City and its businesses over $100 billion in financial 
losses over the next 2 years. Lower Manhattan's business district has 
been decimated. Nearly 25 million square feet of office space, 20 
percent of all of downtown New York's office space, was damaged or 
destroyed by the attacks, leaving 850 businesses and over 125,000 
workers physically displaced.
  The effects of these attacks have also been staggering on New York's 
workforce. New York City's unemployment rate spiked to 7.4 percent in 
December, nearly a 3-year high, from 6.9 percent in November. The 
September 11 attacks ruined our small businesses, destroying and 
severely impacting nearly 15,000 of them. Businesses that were thriving 
on September 10, employing people, building a positive future for 
themselves, were destroyed, and they remain out of business 4\1/2\ 
months later. We are expected to lose nearly 150,000 jobs, and that is 
an unsustainable loss.
  The number of private sector jobs sank 3 percent last year, more than 
twice the national rate. We are struggling to make sure the aid that 
was voted for at the end of last year gets out as quickly as possible, 
and especially gets into the hands of these small businesses that are 
desperate for some kind of assistance.

  We also face a big job in cleaning up, repairing, and rebuilding the 
infrastructure. The attacks left 42 percent of Lower Manhattan's subway 
system unusable. That translates into significant disruptions in the 
daily commutes of 335,000 passengers who ride to Lower Manhattan every 
day.
  We are going to be getting some positive plans adopted soon, we hope, 
that will show what needs to be done to repair this infrastructure. I 
know this body will be there to help.
  I have been especially concerned about the air quality at and near 
ground zero. Many of our rescue workers, firefighters, police officers, 
construction workers, residents, and others have been complaining of 
respiratory problems. Some call them the World Trade Center cough or 
the 9-11 cough. It is a significant health problem.
  I have visited with physicians who are treating the firefighters and 
the construction workers. They are concerned because a lot of people 
are really encountering severe respiratory problems and developing 
asthma. We have many families and residents who still are afraid to 
move back into their homes, leaving large parts of Lower Manhattan 
uninhabited, leaving buildings that were once prime real estate nearly 
empty.
  I am pleased the Clean Air, Wetlands and Climate Change Subcommittee 
of the Environment and Public Works Committee has honored my request 
and will hold a hearing in New York City on these issues in a few 
weeks. We really do not know the effects of the exposure on those who 
have been most directly involved in the work at ground zero and others 
who are within the vicinity, but we owe it to them to find answers. We 
have to make sure we know what the health risks are for the children 
who are being asked to move back into the elementary schools that were 
vacated near ground zero. I am hopeful this hearing will get to the 
bottom of some of these issues.
  We also have to be sure our workforce is not forgotten. So many of 
them need some extra unemployment insurance. So many are about to lose 
their health insurance.
  I went to a hearing last week that was held with hundreds and 
hundreds of people. We had testimony from representatives of various 
groups, and the biggest concern among the workers who had worked in the 
World Trade Center or at a neighboring business

[[Page S16]]

was that their health insurance policies were about to run out and they 
did not know where to turn.
  We have been discussing what should be done on a recovery package for 
the Nation, but I know from firsthand experience we really must focus 
attention on New York's needs in terms of unemployment insurance, 
disaster unemployment assistance, and the extension of health care 
benefits in order to give some help to those people who, through no 
fault of their own, were left unemployed directly because of the 
attacks.
  Similarly, we have to continue to support both the public and the 
private sector in meeting the needs that come out of 9-11.
  I thank Chairman Baucus and ranking member Senator Grassley for their 
help to Senator Schumer and myself as we have tried to draft policies 
that will make a direct impact on the financial burdens being 
shouldered by the public and private sector. We need tax incentives. We 
need bonding authority. We need advanced refunding authority. All of 
that has been worked through the Finance Committee. A similar proposal 
has passed the House. I am hopeful we will be able to get something 
along those lines through the Congress and to the President very soon, 
either standing alone or as part of a larger economic recovery 
proposal.
  One issue that is now more pressing than when we left a month ago is 
the impact on States across the Nation of the economic slowdown and of 
9-11. We are seeing increases in unemployment in many parts of the 
country. We see many people lose their health insurance. We expect to 
see millions more added to the Medicaid roles. It has been predicted 
that the number of children on Medicaid could increase as much as 11.3 
percent. At a time when State budgets are already reeling from reduced 
revenues, when States--unlike the Federal Government--have to run a 
balanced budget, they cannot spend more than they take in. They may not 
have the resources needed to address these increasing health needs.
  That is why I hope, in a bipartisan manner, we can provide some 
relief to States. They are desperate for it. Whether Republican or 
Democratic Governor, we are hearing they need help. They need help not 
only to meet health needs but also law enforcement and homeland 
security needs. If we do not provide direct assistance to cities and 
counties, they are going to be running in the red, with the overtime 
they are now paying and with the additional responsibilities imposed on 
police, firefighters, and emergency workers.
  We have our work cut out for us. I am confident that under the 
leadership in this body and in the House and with the support of the 
administration we can meet the needs of New York and we can assure the 
people who were so directly devastated by these attacks that we stand 
with them.
  Earlier today I was privileged to be at the White House. It was a 
nostalgic return visit for me, sitting in the East Room, surrounded by 
my colleagues from New York, New Jersey, and Virginia, all of whom had 
gathered to witness the President signing the Victims Tax Relief Act, 
something I fought very hard for because it was a tangible way of 
providing assistance to those who were directly impacted with the loss 
of a loved one on 9-11. I am proud we included Oklahoma City victims 
and victims of the anthrax attacks because we need to demonstrate 
America is united not only in our war against terrorism but on behalf 
of the victims of terrorism. I was very proud when the President signed 
that bill, surrounded by so many of the families from New York and New 
Jersey with whom I have met, as well as other families from around the 
country who lost a loved one on one of the planes in the Pentagon 
attack or in the fields of Pennsylvania.
  It was a very reassuring moment to see how all levels of government 
were supporting those who woke up on September 11--on a beautiful 
autumn day for flying, for going to work, for minding one's own 
business--and ended a day having lost a relative, a friend, knowing 
their lives would never be the same.

  I strongly hope Congress will pass this resolution and reaffirm our 
commitment to New York by continuing to provide the much needed Federal 
assistance that New Yorkers require to recover from these horrific 
attacks that were, as we know so well, attacks on America.
  I appreciate this opportunity to take a few minutes to set the stage 
and remind everyone that, although we face future challenges with the 
continuing war on terrorism to make sure national security is as strong 
as we can make it, to ensure we are doing everything possible to 
enhance our homeland security and that we take necessary steps to 
assure economic security in the face of the economic downturn and the 
attacks on 9-11, that we also remain united behind the needs of New 
York.
  It is an honor to represent New York. It is often a challenge to 
convey the needs I see every day. I try to do my best to speak for 
those who will never stand in this Chamber but who are living every day 
with the consequences of those horrific attacks. It is such an honor to 
represent such brave and courageous Americans as I do in New York. I 
look forward to the continuing help I have received with such 
graciousness from my colleagues to make sure that New Yorkers know 
America stands with us.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. DASCHLE. Madam President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mrs. Carnahan). Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

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