[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 143 (Tuesday, September 25, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S12048-S12050]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



  (At the request of Mr. Reid, the following statement was ordered to 
be printed in the Record.)

                    WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT ACT

 Mr. OBAMA. Mr. President, I applaud the Senator from 
California, Ms. Boxer, for her leadership and hard work in passing the 
Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) conference report yesterday. Had 
I been in Washington, DC, yesterday, I would have enthusiastically 
voted for the conference report on final passage.
  Typically these critical water infrastructure authorizations are 
enacted by Congress every two years. For almost eight years, however, 
these priorities have languished under the watch of the previous Senate 
leadership. At the beginning of the 110th Congress in January, when the 
Senator from California became Chairman of the Environment and Public 
Works Committee, she pledged that the Water Resources Development Act 
would be completed by the Senate in a timely fashion. She kept that 
pledge, and I applaud her commitment.
  By comparison, during the 109th Congress, those of us who supported 
swift

[[Page S12049]]

enactment of this bill encountered considerable obstacles. As a member 
of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, I was the only 
Democrat on the Committee to be an original cosponsor of the bill; when 
the bill passed out of committee in March 2005, I called upon then-
Majority Leader Frist to schedule floor time for the bill that summer. 
It did not occur.
  In September of 2005, the Senator from Missouri, Mr. Bond, and I 
worked together on a bipartisan letter, signed by 40 of our colleagues, 
calling upon Senate Republican leadership to schedule floor time for 
this bill. We were informed that the support of 40 Senators was 
insufficient, that 60 signatures would be necessary. So we gathered 80 
signatures. It was not until September 2006 that the Senate finally 
scheduled debate on WRDA, too late for the bill to be conferenced 
before the end of the 109th Congress.
  I will ask that the text of those letters be printed in the Record.
  Now it is September 2007, and at long last, the conference report has 
been completed. This bill authorizes almost $2 billion for upgrades to 
locks and dams along the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers. Illinois is 
the largest shipper of corn and soybeans on these rivers, and the 70 
year old system of locks and dams needs these upgrades to ensure 
swifter access to export markets--something, by the way, that 
competitors like Brazil are doing right now. A significant part of the 
farm economy is about reducing transportation costs, so if we are to 
strengthen our agriculture markets, we need to strengthen waterway 
transportation, and that means upgrading these locks and dams.
  The bill also authorizes funding for a number of noteworthy Illinois 
projects, including the Keith Creek dam to prevent flooding in 
Rockford, Illinois, a third-party review of the disagreement in 
reconstructing Promontory Point in Chicago, and dredging at the 
Beardstown, Illinois harbor.
  Remarkably, the President has proposed a veto of this bill, which 
includes approval for nationwide funding of critical flood control, 
navigation, environmental restoration, and storm damage reduction 
initiatives; the importance of such funding was tragically highlighted 
by Hurricane Katrina. I urge the President to drop that veto threat and 
support these long-delayed upgrades to our national infrastructure that 
were approved overwhelmingly by the House and Senate.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimously to have the letters to which I 
referred printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                                                      U.S. Senate,
                                 Washington, DC, January 25, 2006.
     Hon. Bill Frist,
     Senate Majority Leader,
     Hon. Harry Reid,
     Senate Minority Leader, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator Frist and Senator Reid: Wise investment in our 
     water resources remains an urgent need in our country. 
     America's communities continue to face the threats posed by 
     flooding and other natural disasters. The devastation along 
     the Gulf Coast last year underscores the importance of 
     shoring up our defenses against catastrophic floods in all 
     areas of the nation. With these points in mind, we urge you 
     to schedule floor time for the Water Resources Development 
     Act (S. 728) at the start of this session of Congress.
       As you know, this bill authorizes critical flood control, 
     shore protection, dam safety, storm damage reduction, and 
     environmental restoration projects across the country. These 
     projects, subject to appropriations, will help protect 
     America's communities from the destruction caused by severe 
     weather and flooding, as well as enhancing natural means of 
     protection by restoring our fragile ecosystems. Furthermore, 
     these projects save taxpayers money by decreasing the 
     recovery costs associated with disasters.
       In addition, this legislation is needed to support our 
     nation's vital waterways and ports--key components of our 
     national transportation system and the backbone of a healthy 
     economy.
       Recent hurricanes and severe storms have taught the nation 
     a tragic lesson: maintain and improve our aging flood control 
     and water resources infrastructure or risk the ruin and 
     destruction of our communities. This bill moves us in the 
     right direction toward addressing and preventing these grave 
     threats to public safety.
       It has been five years since the last WRDA was enacted into 
     law. In contrast, three WRDA bills were enacted from 1995 to 
     2000 with an accumulated authorized cost level that surpasses 
     the current bill. Local and state non-Federal cost-sharing 
     partners cannot afford any further delay. We urge you to act 
     expeditiously to bring this important bill to the full Senate 
     for immediate consideration.
           Sincerely,
         Sen. James Inhofe, Sen. Thad Cochran, Sen. Jim Jeffords, 
           Sen. Robert Byrd, Sen. Lindsey Graham, Sen. Arlen 
           Specter, Sen. Rick Santorum, Sen. Richard Durbin, Sen. 
           Debbie Stabenow, Sen. Norm Coleman, Sen. Sam Brownback, 
           Sen. Ted Stevens, Sen. Mike Crapo, Sen. Chuck Grassley, 
           Sen. Pete V. Domenici, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, Sen. 
           Lamar Alexander, Sen. Mel Martinez, Sen. John Cornyn, 
           Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski, Sen. Lisa Murkowski, Sen. 
           Bill Nelson, Sen. Maria Cantwell, Sen. Ron Wyden, Sen. 
           Lincoln Chafee, Sen. Johnny Isakson, Sen. Jim Talent, 
           Sen. Carl Levin, Sen. Tom Harkin, Sen. Jeff Bingaman, 
           Sen. Barack Obama, Sen. Patty Murray, Sen. Mark Dayton, 
           Sen. Gordon H. Smith, Sen. John Thune, Sen. John 
           Warner, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, Sen. Robert 
           Menendez, Sen. Pat Roberts, Sen. David Vitter, Sen. 
           Mark Pryor, Sen. Frank R. Lautenberg, Sen. Wayne 
           Allard, Sen. George Voinovich, Sen. John F. Kerry, Sen. 
           John D. Rockefeller, Sen. Mary Landrieu, Sen. Tim 
           Johnson, Sen. Barbara Boxer, Sen. Byron Dorgan, Sen. 
           Charles Schumer, Sen. Herb Kohl, Sen. Blanche Lincoln, 
           Sen. Richard Burr, Sen. Max Baucus, Sen. George Allen, 
           Sen. Elizabeth Dole, Sen. Paul Sarbanes, Sen. Daniel 
           Inouye, Sen. Hillary Clinton, Sen. Larry Craig, Sen. 
           Ken Salazar, Sen. Kent Conrad, Sen. Ben Nelson, Sen. 
           Tom Carper, Sen. Mike DeWine, Sen. Olympia Snowe, Sen. 
           Chuck Hagel, Sen. Saxby Chambliss, Sen. Jim Bunning, 
           Sen. Robert Bennett, Sen. Richard Shelby, Sen. 
           Christopher Bond, Sen. Conrad Burns, Sen. Orrin Hatch, 
           Sen. Richard Lugar, Sen. Jack Reed, Sen. Daniel Akaka.
                                  ____

                                                      U.S. Senate,
                                Washington, DC, February 16, 2006.
     Hon. Bill Frist,
     Senate Majority Leader,
     U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
     Hon. Harry Reid,
     Senate Minority Leader, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator Frist and Senator Reid: We are writing to you 
     to join our colleagues who sent you the attached letter 
     requesting that you schedule floor time for the Water 
     Resources Development Act (S. 728) at the beginning of this 
     session of Congress. The attached letter details the critical 
     needs for flood control, shore protection, dam safety, storm 
     damage reduction, and ecosystem restoration projects across 
     the country that this bill will authorize. There has not been 
     a WRDA bill enacted into law since 2000. It is time for the 
     Congress to act.
           Sincerely,
                                                        Evan Bayh.
     Patrick Leahy.
                                  ____

                                                      U.S. Senate,
                               Washington, DC, September 28, 2005.
     Hon. Bill Frist,
     Senate Majority Leader,
     Hon. Harry Reid,  Senate Minority Leader,
     U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator Frist and Senator Reid: Earlier this year, the 
     Senate Environment and Public Works Committee approved S. 
     728, the Water Resources Development Act of 2005 (WRDA). The 
     devastation along the Gulf Coast has served as a warning to 
     America to shore up our defenses against catastrophic floods. 
     With these vivid images in mind, we urge you to grant floor 
     time for this bill prior to the completion of this session of 
     Congress.
       As you know, this bill authorizes critical flood control, 
     storm damage reduction, and environmental restoration 
     projects across the country. These projects will help protect 
     America's communities from the destruction caused by severe 
     weather and flooding, as well as enhancing natural means of 
     protection by restoring our fragile ecosystems.
       In addition, this legislation is needed to support our 
     nation's vital waterways and ports--key components of our 
     national transportation system and our economy.
       Hurricane Katrina taught the nation a tragic lesson: 
     maintain and improve our aging flood control and water 
     resources infrastructure or risk the ruin and destruction of 
     our communities. This bill moves us in the right direction 
     toward addressing and preventing these grave threats to 
     public safety.
       It has been nearly five years since the last WRDA was 
     enacted into law. America's water resources and the 
     communities they serve cannot afford any further delay. We 
     urge you to act expeditiously to bring this very important 
     bill to the full Senate for immediate consideration.
           Sincerely,
         James M. Jeffords, Christopher S. Bond, Jim DeMint, 
           George V. Voinovich, Barack Obama, Jim Talent, Mike 
           Crapo, Barbara A. Mikulski, Mel Martinez, Norm Coleman, 
           Bill Nelson, David Vitter, John Warner, Jon S. Corzine, 
           Frank R. Lautenberg, Richard Durbin, Carl Levin, Sam 
           Brownback, Tim Johnson, Mark Dayton, Robert C. Byrd, 
           John Cornyn, Ron Wyden, James M. Inhofe, Johnny 
           Isakson, Lisa Murkowski, John Thune, Barbara Boxer, 
           Lincoln Chafee, Tom Harkin, Paul Sarbanes, Pete V. 
           Domenici, Chuck Grassley, Dianne Feinstein, Mary L. 
           Landrieu, Kay Bailey Hutchison, Debbie Stabenow, Pat 
           Roberts, Patty

[[Page S12050]]

           Murray, Gordon Smith, Mark Pryor, Lamar Alexander, 
           Blanche L. Lincoln, Maria Cantwell.

                          ____________________