[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 107 (Thursday, September 1, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9594-S9597]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
HURRICANE KATRINA RELIEF
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I begin by offering my thoughts and my
prayers to the victims of Hurricane Katrina. They have experienced
untold horrors in the past few days, and the road to recovery will be
long and hard. As we approach the start of our regular fall work
period, there can be no more important challenge facing this body in
the days ahead than providing relief to the victims of this
catastrophe. It will be weeks before we know the full toll this storm
has exacted. The only thing we know for sure is that we have
experienced a national crisis, and the people of the Gulf Coast need
and deserve our help.
In these crucial hours, thousands of Americans are engaged in search
and rescue efforts. I hope these brave men and women performing these
heroic duties know that they, too, are in our thoughts and our prayers.
Tonight, in the Senate, we are taking a critical first step toward
bringing relief to the victims of this disaster. I support President
Bush for submitting this $10.5 billion request, and I thank my
colleagues for permitting us to take up and pass this important
legislation tonight.
Our unified response sends a powerful signal to victims of this
tragedy, looking for signs that their Government sees their plight and
stands with them during this dark time.
In these days ahead, it is important we continue to send a strong
unified message. We must work together--not together as Democrats and
Republicans but as Americans--united in helping families torn apart by
this devastating storm.
It is my hope that our actions following the 9/11 attacks will be a
model for what we do tonight and in the future. Our action after 9/11
was bipartisan. It was our top priority, and it moved significant
resources to the victims of the terrorist attacks, and in a timely
manner.
Our response to the tragedy of September 2005 must be every bit as
bipartisan and direct as the tragedy of September 2001. We did not
handle 9/11 with a Democratic or Republican aid package, and we should
not handle this crisis any differently. This is not the time for
partisanship. The victims of this terrible tragedy come first.
With that principle guiding us, it is important we begin to consider
our next steps. The $10.5 billion we are sending now represents a good
first effort, but we all know much more needs to be done. I am deeply
concerned about the security situation on the ground as I speak. Unless
we establish security in this area, we cannot mount
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an effective rescue operation, let alone begin rebuilding.
We have all seen the images of families stranded in the Superdome or
sitting outside the Convention Center in filth and squalor. They do not
have food. They do not have water. They do not have medicine. They are
living in unsanitary conditions, and because we cannot keep the area
safe, they have been unable to get out. They are trapped. This is not
acceptable.
This is America. These are Americans we see suffering. We must find
ways to get them the resources they need and bring them to safety. We
must restore security, accelerate our rescue operations, and expedite
our relief efforts as soon as possible. We must get these people the
help they need and they deserve.
When we reconvene on Tuesday, just a few hours from today, the
security and safety of the Gulf Coast residents must be our first order
of business. These families are counting on us. They are suffering, and
they have nowhere else to turn. We owe it to them to make their
survival our top priority, and we should give them nothing less.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Frist). The Senator from Mississippi.
Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, let me first of all thank the majority
leader, who is now presiding over the Senate, for responding so quickly
to the request of the President for a supplemental appropriations bill
providing needed funds to the Federal Emergency Management
Administration and to the Department of Defense to carry on the
disaster relief efforts that they have begun in the States that were so
seriously affected by Hurricane Katrina.
The President has submitted a letter describing the reasons for the
request for this appropriations bill. Rather than reading the entire
letter, which has been made available to everyone--the letter is
actually addressed to the Speaker of the House--I will just read the
first two paragraphs:
As I informed the Nation yesterday, we are dealing with one
of the worst natural disasters in our country's history.
Residents of the Gulf Coast states affected by the hurricane
have lost loved ones, have lost homes, and have been
displaced from their communities. My Administration is
committed to ensuring that they will have the full support of
the Federal Government.
Due to the catastrophic nature of Hurricane Katrina, I am
asking the Congress to consider expeditiously the enclosed
request totaling $10.5 billion, for an emergency FY 2005
supplemental appropriation for the Departments of Homeland
Security and Defense. These funds will ensure that Federal
response and recovery efforts continue uninterrupted.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the letter from the
President be printed in full in the Record.
Mr. REID. No objection.
There being no objection, the letter was ordered to be printed in the
Record, as follows:
September 1, 2005.
The Hon. J. Dennis Hastert,
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Speaker: As I informed the Nation yesterday, we
are dealing with one of the worst natural disasters in our
country's history. Residents of the Gulf Coast states
affected by the hurricane have lost loved ones, have lost
homes, and have been displaced from their communities. My
Administration is committed to ensuring that they will have
the full support of the Federal Government.
Due to the catastrophic nature of Hurricane Katrina, I am
asking the Congress to consider expeditiously the enclosed
request, totaling $10.5 billion, for an emergency FY 2005
supplemental appropriation for the Departments of Homeland
Security and Defense. These funds will ensure that Federal
response and recovery efforts continue uninterrupted.
I hereby designate this proposal in the amount requested
herein as an emergency requirement. This request responds to
urgent needs associated with immediate response and recovery
efforts associated with Hurricane Katrina in Mississippi,
Louisiana, Alabama and other affected areas.
The enclosed request requires immediate action by the
Congress to ensure that the Federal response to this disaster
continues uninterrupted. I anticipate making a further
request in the coming weeks that will provide for a
comprehensive response and recovery effort after fully
assessing the impact of the hurricane.
The details of this request are set forth in the enclosed
letter from the Director of the Office of Management and
Budget.
Sincerely,
George W. Bush,
The White House.
Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, the letter also contains a copy of a
letter to the President from the Director of the Office of Management
and Budget, Joshua B. Bolton. In this letter, he delineates
specifically where the funds are needed, when they will be exhausted
under current authority, and why this emergency appropriation is needed
so that we can continue the aggressive disaster relief efforts in the
coming weeks. And then he suggests:
I anticipate recommending to you an additional request in
the coming weeks to provide for a comprehensive response to
this hurricane, once reliable estimates can be developed that
recognize the extent of this disaster.
This request fulfills known and urgent requirements that
cannot reasonably be met under the current [fiscal year] 2005
funding levels. I recommend that you designate the proposal
contained in this transmittal as an emergency requirement.
I ask unanimous consent that the complete text of the letter from the
Director of the Office of Management and Budget to the President be
printed in the Record.
Mr. REID. No objection.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
September 1, 2005.
The President,
The White House.
Submitted for your consideration is a request for fiscal
year 2005 supplemental appropriations totaling $10.5 billion
to fund immediate emergency response and recovery needs
associated with Hurricane Katrina.
Immediate Federal response and recovery efforts to date
have been extensive. The Federal Emergency Management Agency
(FEMA) has deployed more than 50 Disaster Medical Assistance
Teams, more than 25 Urban Search and Rescue task forces,
eight swift water rescue teams, and two Incident Support
Teams to the region. FEMA is also delivering water, meals,
medical supplies, generators, tents, and tarps and is working
to help relocate those displaced by the hurricane.
The Department of Defense (DOD) is moving significant
military resources into the Gulf States to aid in rescue and
recovery. Eight Navy ships have moved into the area with
water, food, medicine, hospital facilities, berthing, and
more. DOD has responded to all FEMA requests and is providing
logistical help, including strategic lift support for search
and rescue efforts. Other agencies are also participating in
response and recovery efforts. For example, Health and Human
Services (HHS) Secretary Mike Leavitt has declared a public
health emergency and HHS has delivered requested medical
supplies to Louisiana, including basic first aid materials,
blankets and patient clothing and comprehensive lifesaving
medical equipment. HHS has placed 415 Public Health Service
Officers on standby for deployment to support medical
response in the affected states and CDC officials are working
with local officials to identify hospital facilities,
distribute medical supplies, and execute a public health plan
to control disease and other risks to public health.
The funds that I recommend you request today will ensure
that these immediate response and recovery efforts continue
uninterrupted. The $10 billion requested for the Department
of Homeland Security will enable FEMA to continue ongoing
response efforts, including assistance to families and
individuals so that they can be sheltered, fed and provided
with emergency medical care. These funds will also support
emergency protective measures and debris removal in the
affected areas, and urgent response activities performed by
other Federal agencies, as delegated by FEMA under the
Stafford Act.
The $500 million requested for DOD will enable DOD to cover
the costs associated with deployment of military personnel to
assist communities, save lives, and provide relief supplies
for the next several weeks. DOD's immediate crisis response
costs include immediate facilities repairs of DOD property,
evacuation of DOD personnel debris clean-up, transportation
costs, and emergency utility costs.
I anticipate recommending to you an additional request in
the coming weeks to provide for a comprehensive response to
this hurricane, once reliable estimates can be developed that
recognize the extent of this disaster.
This request fulfills known and urgent requirements that
cannot reasonably be met under the current FY 2005 funding
levels. I recommend that you designate the proposal contained
in this transmittal as an emergency requirement.
I have carefully reviewed this proposal and am satisfied
that it is necessary at this time. Therefore, I join the
Secretary of Homeland Security and the Secretary of Defense
in recommending you transmit the proposal to the Congress.
Sincerely,
Joshua B. Bolten,
Director.
Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, in response to this request, the House of
Representatives, I am advised, will be prepared to adopt a bill making
emergency supplemental appropriations to
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meet immediate needs arising from the consequences of Hurricane Katrina
for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2005. And the text of the bill
is that it:
Be enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives
of the United States of America in Congress assembled, that
the following sums are appropriated out of any money in the
Treasury not otherwise appropriated for the fiscal year
ending September 30, 2005, namely the Department of Homeland
Security:
For an additional amount for ``Disaster Relief'',
$10,000,000,000, to remain available until expended . . .
And then a provision, provided $500 million to the Department of
Defense:
. . . for emergency hurricane expenses, to support costs of
evacuation, emergency repairs, deployment of personnel, and
other costs resulting from immediate relief efforts, to
remain available until September 30, 2006.
I ask unanimous consent that a copy of that bill, which we are
advised will be adopted by the House of Representatives, be printed in
the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the
following sums are appropriated, out of any money in the
Treasury not otherwise appropriated, for the fiscal year
ending September 30, 2005, namely:
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS AND RESPONSE
Disaster Relief
For an additional amount for ``Disaster Relief'',
$10,000,000,000, to remain available until expended:
Provided, That the amount provided herein is designated as an
emergency requirement pursuant to section 402 of H. Con. Res.
95 (109th Congress).
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE
Operation and Maintenance, Defense-Wide
(Including Transfer of Funds)
For an additional amount for ``Operation and Maintenance,
Defense-Wide'', $500,000,000 for emergency hurricane
expenses, to support costs of evacuation, emergency repairs,
deployment of personnel, and other costs resulting from
immediate relief efforts, to remain available until September
30, 2006: Provided, That the Secretary of Defense may
transfer these funds to appropriations for military
personnel, operation and maintenance, procurement, family
housing, Defense Health Program, and working capital funds:
Provided further, That funds transferred shall be merged with
and be available for the same purposes and for the same time
period as the appropriation or fund to which transferred:
Provided further, That this transfer authority is in addition
to any other transfer authority available to the Department
of Defense: Provided further, That upon a determination that
all or part of the funds transferred from this appropriation
are not necessary for the purposes provided herein, such
amounts may be transferred back to this appropriation:
Provided further, That the Secretary of Defense shall, not
more than 5 days after making transfers from this
appropriation, notify the congressional defense committees in
writing of any such transfer: Provided further, That the
amount provided herein is designated as an emergency
requirement pursuant to section 402 of H. Con. Res. 95 (109th
Congress).
This Act may be cited as the ``Emergency Supplemental
Appropriations Act to Meet Immediate Needs Arising From the
Consequences of Hurricane Katrina, 2005''.
Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I commend the majority leader, with the
concurrence and support of the minority leader, for calling the Senate
into session tonight under these emergency conditions, to approve as if
passed by the House, and when passed by the House and it is received
here in the Senate, an emergency supplemental appropriations bill to
fund disaster relief efforts.
These efforts are ongoing. We have all had an opportunity to see on
television sets and to hear and read newspaper accounts of the work
that has been going on the last several days. I had the opportunity to
travel to my State of Mississippi yesterday and spent the day touring
the ravaged areas along the Mississippi Gulf Coast and then traveled to
Jackson, the Capitol of the State, where I was able to meet with
Governor Haley Barbour and his disaster assistance team that he had
assembled and was supervising in their efforts to make all of the
resources of our State government available to disaster victims and to
help them in the effort to recover from this terrible hurricane.
I have never seen any storm inflict such great damage as I saw
yesterday. I was on the Gulf Coast immediately following Hurricane
Camille in 1969. I was a practicing lawyer at the time. We were trying
to help one of our clients ensure that the employees of their company,
Standard Oil Company refinery, were able to present their claims to
their insurance companies and otherwise be compensated, as they were
entitled to under their policies, for the damages sustained throughout
the area where those employees were living along the Gulf Coast. That
was the worst storm that anybody in my age group had ever heard of,
before or since--until Hurricane Katrina.
I can tell you, looking along the coastline, flying in a Mississippi
National Guard helicopter, the whole coastline, the whole coastal area
of the State has been virtually destroyed. There are a few buildings
that are left standing--a few. Those may not be habitable, and the
businesses that they house may not be able to continue to function
until extensive repairs are made on those buildings, so it is virtually
all a total loss for blocks and blocks beyond the beach area.
Everything was quiet. There was nobody moving around; it wasn't until
today that many people could have access to the areas where those
houses once stood. It was quiet. It was eerie. It was a horrible sight
to behold. I don't know of anything that has depressed me more than
seeing what I saw yesterday in my State of Mississippi.
So I am confident the Senate will continue to follow the progress of
the disaster assistance effort to be sure that we make available to all
Federal agencies and departments the funds they need to do the job to
help in the recovery efforts in Mississippi and in Alabama and
Louisiana and in the other States. There have been damages in Florida
and Georgia and Texas as well.
The primary use of the funds that we give to the Department of
Homeland Security, as requested by the President, will be used to
reimburse Federal agencies for providing the relief effort that we have
come to appreciate. The Coast Guard, Army Corps of Engineers, Health
and Human Services Department, Housing and Urban Development--all are
able to share in these funds that will be disbursed to reimburse those
departments for participating in the disaster relief effort. So it is
not only this one agency but others that will be sustained and assisted
as they continue to work in this effort.
The President has appointed this task force as we all know now:
Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff is chairing the task
force on Hurricane Katrina; Mike Brown, the Director of FEMA, has been
on the ground since the very beginning of this effort, coordinating the
activities on the ground. Fifty-two counties in Mississippi have been
identified as eligible for disaster declarations; thirty-two parishes
in Louisiana; six counties in Alabama. The three Governors of those
States have requested that the President waive cost-share requirements
because of the expensive nature of these expenses for emergency
response activities, and the President has granted this waiver.
I ask unanimous consent that a description of the challenges and
accomplishments of this disaster relief effort be printed in the
Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
Life-Saving Efforts
Over 3,000 people have been rescued by the United States
Coast Guard and other operations. The Coast Guard has
deployed 57 aircraft and 27 cutters.
More than 25 urban search and rescue task forces are
operating with 1,800 personnel.
More than 50 National Disaster Medical System teams have
deployed to deal with medical needs.
1,700 trucks have been mobilized to supply water, ice,
food, medicine, and medical supplies.
450 buses are moving people out of the affected areas in
Louisiana.
Over 78,000 people are in shelters across the region.
13.4 million liters of water and 3.4 million pounds of ice
have been shipped to the impacted areas.
Electricity/Energy
2.3 million citizens are without power in the Gulf Coast
States.
Gasoline and diesel fuel is being routed to emergency
personnel and services first.
The Department of Energy has authorized the release of oil
from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
The Environmental Protection Agency has temporarily waived
standards for gasoline and diesel fuels to make sure that
more fuel is available for emergency services.
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Military
State and local law enforcement and the National Guard are
working to restore order throughout the affected areas.
13,000 National Guard are stationed in Mississippi,
Louisiana, Alabama, and Florida, under control of the
Governors. Approximately 6,000 members of the National Guard
are stationed in Mississippi.
The total number of National Guard is expected to increase
to more than 20,000 by Friday.
The Department of Defense has sent eight Navy ships to the
area, including a hospital ship with 100 beds and 800 medical
personnel.
The Department of Defense has provided over 20 million
ready-to-eat meals.
Infrastructure
The Army Corps of Engineers is coordinating efforts to
repair levees in New Orleans and remove water from the city.
Federal and State departments of transportation are working
to repair and reopen highways and interstates.
Interstates 55, 59, 49, and 20 have been reopened in
Mississippi. Interstate 10 is open with one lane of traffic
for emergency vehicles only.
Health and Human Services
The Department of Health and Human Services has declared a
public health emergency in the affected areas.
A network of 40 medical shelters with 10,000 beds is
staffed by 4,000 medical personnel.
2,600 beds have been identified in the immediate area, with
40,000 more beds nationwide.
Agriculture
USDA's Food and Nutrition Service is providing shelters and
mass feedings sites and issuing emergency food stamps and
infant formula. Over 80,000 pounds of commodities arrived in
New Orleans today.
Other
The Internal Revenue Service announced special relief for
taxpayers in the disaster areas.
The Small Business Administration will position loan
officers in disaster recovery centers to help small business
owners.
The American Red Cross is providing a safe haven for nearly
46,000 evacuees in more than 230 shelters across the region.
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