[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 114 (Tuesday, September 13, 2005)]
[House]
[Page H7836]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           HURRICANE KATRINA

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from New York (Mrs. McCarthy) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mrs. McCARTHY. Mr. Speaker, my heart goes out to those affected by 
the tragic events of Hurricane Katrina. This disaster has presented 
challenges we could not imagine only a few weeks ago.
  A major American city needs to be rebuilt and hundreds of thousands 
of Americans need to find new homes and jobs. While this is a massive 
undertaking, this does present a unique opportunity. I happen to think 
that we should always look for a silver lining in any tragedy that we 
come across.
  We can build a better, stronger New Orleans without losing the 
character and charm that made the city so great and alive, a New 
Orleans that can serve as a model for other communities throughout the 
country. We can build a housing infrastructure that can help end the 
awful poverty cycle that entraps too many Americans.
  The rebuilding of this greet city will provide jobs to people who 
desperately need them. However, the administration has already adopted 
policies that will hurt those that need our help the most. The 
administration has suspended the law requiring Federal contractors to 
pay employees prevailing wages.
  By suspending the Davis-Bacon Act, the President is shortchanging 
newly unemployed Americans who are looking to rebuild their lives. 
Meanwhile, Government contractors can take advantage of cheap labor and 
drive up profits.
  The prevailing wage for construction in the gulf region was among the 
lowest in the Nation before Katrina. Without Davis-Bacon enforcement, 
residents of the gulf region will be working for less than a living 
wage.
  Paying working families less per hour saves taxpayers nothing. All 
the money earned from shortchanging workers goes into the profit 
margins of Government contractors.
  The people who are affected by Katrina deserve the same competitive 
wage protections as every other American worker. These people are 
willing to work hard to rebuild their beloved cities and their lives, 
and it is an insult to pay them a substandard wage.
  The rebuilding of our gulf coast has the potential to be the greatest 
economic development project of our time. We can create 21st century 
transportation, housing, communications and energy infrastructures for 
the region. Some might remember during the Depression when we had the 
WPA work program.
  The people of New Orleans want to work. The people of New Orleans 
want to put their lives back together. Let us give them their pride. 
Let us at least give them a wage that they can live with.
  The rebuilding of the gulf coast should create economic opportunities 
for its residents, not an opportunity to take advantage of people 
desperate to rebuild their lives.
  Mr. Speaker, we have already put the interests of Government 
contractors before those of the people of Iraq. It would be a travesty 
to do the same for the people of New Orleans.

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