[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 139 (Wednesday, December 8, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S12050-S12051]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                THANKING BOB KENNEY AND WISHING HIM WELL

  Mr. LAUTENBERG. Mr. President, I rise today to thank Robert (``Bob'') 
Kenney, a lawyer with the Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, for his 
significant contributions to my office this year as a Brookings 
Legislative fellow. We will miss his contributions, experience land 
knowledge, but it is heartening to know that EPA's rank and file 
includes dedicated and capable civil servants like Bob.
  Bob has worked at EPA for over 30 years implementing our clean air, 
clean water, and toxics laws. This is Bob's second year as a fellow in 
the Senate. In 1990, he helped draft parts of the Clean Air Act 
Amendments, the Oil Pollution Act, and Clean Water Act. He ill return 
later this month to his role as senior counsel at EPA, and I hope his 
experience in the Senate this year proves helpful to him in his future 
endeavors.
  I would like to mention some of the specific contributions Bob made 
to my office and to our country. Bob took the lead in developing 
legislation I am introducing today to amend the Oil Pollution Act. Two 
weeks ago, my home State of New Jersey suffered a devastating oil spill 
in the Delaware River. The consequences for our natural resources and 
economy will take some time to assess, but it is clear they will be 
substantial. In response to that s Dill and to provide incentives to 
shippers to shift to safer double-hull vessels faster, the Oil Spill 
Liability Act of 2004 would phase out the liability cap for single-hull 
tankers. The bill would double the liability limits for double-hull 
vessels and facilities since those limits have not changed since they 
were established 14 years ago. I thank Bob for his hard work on this 
important bill.
  Bob also took the lead on the brownfields tax provision that was 
successfully added to the JOBS bill which became law this year, Public 
Law 108-357. We all have so-called brownfields in our States--the long-
abandoned manufacturing facilities--and we know how important it is to 
get these properties cleaned up and put back productive use. My 
amendment provides developers interested in brownfields with greater 
access to capital--alleviating what developers say is their number one 
problem when it comes to investing in these properties and sites. It 
does this by exempting funds which originate with tax-exempt entities, 
such as pension funds and university endowments, from being subject to 
the ``unrelated business income tax'' or UBIT, when those funds are 
used to clean up and re-sell large brownfield properties. This 
provision will give developers access to up to $7 trillion in assets. 
It represents a tremendous opportunity, potentially, for new jobs and a 
cleaner environment.
  Based on Bob's research and recommendation, I worked to ensure that 
fiscal year 2005 funding to control the Asian longhorned beetle, ALB, 
ended up being more than triple the President's budget request. The ALB 
is a wood-boring insect native to China and Korea that has invaded New 
York, Illinois, and New Jersey via shipping containers. The beetle 
kills a wide variety of hardwood trees, but has a preference for sugar 
maples. In New Jersey, this insect's lethal damage to our forests is 
spreading, and these extra funds will help to combat that destruction.
  I also thank Bob for his work on the New Jersey Coastal Heritage 
Trail, a Coastal Restoration bill, a bill to protect captive exotic 
animals, and many other projects. It has not been an easy year to 
promote, what I believe, are common sense environmental protections and 
initiatives, so we did not achieve all the successes we had hoped for 
during the year. But Bob's impact will last far beyond his stay here in 
the Senate.
  It has become fashionable in some quarters to bash Government 
employees. This is unfortunate and unfair. I have to say that since I 
became a United States Senator, I have been impressed by the hard work 
and professionalism of the public servants I have encountered. Bob is 
no exception. He has tremendous expertise, he is diligent, and he 
obviously cares for our country. I appreciate his service during the 
past year he has been a member of my staff, more importantly, I 
appreciate an entire career spent in selfless service to our Nation. I 
extend my best wishes to Bob as he returns to EPA and resumes his 
career there.

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