[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 120 (Wednesday, July 25, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1615-E1616]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  TRANSPORTATION, HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT, AND RELATED AGENCIES 
                        APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2008

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. CAROLYN B. MALONEY

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 24, 2007

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 3074) making 
     appropriations for the Departments of Transportation, and 
     Housing and Urban Development, and related agencies for the 
     fiscal year ending September 30, 2008, and for other 
     purposes:

  Mrs. MALONEY of New York. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of 
H.R. 3074, the FY2008 Transportation-HUD Appropriations Act.
  This legislation includes funding for many valuable programs 
including $1.4 billion for Amtrak, which serves as a critical 
transportation link not only for my constituents, but for people across 
the country.
  I especially want to thank Chairman Olver for the funding in the bill 
for the Second Avenue Subway. The President's budget request included 
funding for the Second Avenue Subway, which will be vital to commuters 
throughout the region and for thousands of tourists

[[Page E1616]]

who visit from around the country. The Second Avenue Subway will ease 
the incredibly overcrowded Lexington Avenue subway line, which is one 
of the busiest in the Nation. On day one, the Second Avenue Subway will 
carry nearly 200,000 riders, reducing crowding on the Lex line by 13 
percent. I am also pleased that the bill includes funding for the East 
Side Connector, which when completed will bring approximately 160,000 
new passengers, including 5,000 residents of western Queens, into Grand 
Central Station.
  Finally, I support the provisions in the bill to increase funding for 
Section 8 housing vouchers, the HOPE VI program, and the Community 
Development Block Grant, and to restore the President's proposed cuts 
to housing for the disabled and the elderly. This legislation addresses 
the needs of our constituents, and I urge my colleagues to support the 
bill.

                          ____________________