[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 106 (Thursday, June 28, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1434-E1435]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, AND RELATED AGENCIES 
                        APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2008

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                          HON. SILVESTRE REYES

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 26, 2007

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2643) making 
     appropriations for the Department of the Interior, 
     environment, and related agencies for the fiscal year ending 
     September 30, 2008, and for other purposes:

  Mr. REYES. Madam Chairman, I rise today in strong support of an 
amendment by my friend and colleague, Chairman Dicks, to increase 
funding for the Border Environment Infrastructure Fund, or BEIF, under 
the U.S.-Mexico Border Program by $15 million.
  I also want to thank Chairman Dicks for producing a good piece of 
legislation and for being so responsive to me and other concerned 
Members from border districts. His willingness to listen to and take 
into account new information regarding the program are true marking of 
a fine chairman. As my friend the chairman noted, BEIF has recently 
instituted measures to ensure that program funds are

[[Page E1435]]

disbursed more quickly. I am happy that his concerns regarding the 
balance of obligated but unspent funds have been resolved. It is an 
efficient program with strong fiduciary controls. I was pleased to work 
with Mr. Dicks on this amendment.
  BEIF, which was created under the North American Free Trade Agreement 
(NAFTA), makes environmental infrastructure projects affordable for 
communities throughout the U.S.-Mexico border region by combining grant 
funds with loans or other forms of financing. It was created with the 
understanding that a healthy and economically strong border region is 
critical to a secure border and to the flow of commerce. Economic 
development rests on a foundation of strong infrastructure. In many 
poorer border communities, however, the capital does not often exist to 
build water and wastewater infrastructure. BEIF funds go toward 
increasing water and wastewater capacity--bringing services to people 
who have not previously had them, improving public health, supporting 
economic development in poor border communities, and ultimately 
strengthening our southern border.
  Every million dollars in BEIF water and wastewater investment results 
in the following over 10 years: $11.1 million in private sector 
investment, 221 new jobs, $1.7 million in tax revenue, and $52.2 
million in goods produced by the private sector. Generally, BEIF and 
accompanying efforts have aided 185 projects that have benefitted over 
7.5 million residents.
  In my own district of El Paso, Texas, water and wastewater projects 
have received about $65 million in funding under the U.S.-Mexico Border 
Program. That funding has gone toward innovative water planning for a 
growing city in the middle of the desert, toward technical assistance 
for smaller waterworks, and toward bringing water and wastewater 
infrastructure to unincorporated settlements, or colonias. This 
irreplaceable funding source for border communities must be maintained.
  Let's bring water and wastewater to those who don't have it. Let's 
bring economic development to poor communities in the U.S.-Mexico 
border region. Let's invest in a strong and secure border. I urge my 
colleagues to join our chairman, Mr. Dicks, and me in supporting this 
critical amendment.

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