[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 43 (Wednesday, March 11, 2009)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E642-E643]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   CALIFORNIA'S 49TH DISTRICT PROJECTS FUNDED IN THE FY2009 OMNIBUS 
                           APPROPRIATIONS ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. DARRELL E. ISSA

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, March 11, 2009

  Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, when I submitted my appropriation funding 
requests in March, 2008, the problems plaguing our Nation's banking and 
financial sectors were just starting to come to light. Few could 
foresee just how bad our economic situation would become. While I 
strongly opposed the action, the previous Congress spent over $700 
billion in TARP funding to bailout the banking sector. This Congress 
just approved a nearly $800 billion stimulus bill that ultimately 
provides more money for social services than it does for job producing 
highway and infrastructure projects.
  Overall, President Obama's spending priorities have more than tripled 
the federal budget deficit for fiscal year 2009 (FY09), ballooning it 
to $1.7 trillion. As a result, the state of our nation's finances is 
dire, and our federal spending plan does not in any way bear an 
appropriate relationship to the state of our nation's economy. The 
federal deficit has increased 385% over FY08 and 1089% over FY07 
levels. Spending decisions are occurring within this body without 
regard to available revenue or the harm that such irresponsible fiscal 
policies do to the economy and to future generations that, ultimately, 
will get stuck with the bill.
  I am highly disappointed that, faced with the enormity of the current 
federal deficit and the unprecedented amount of federal spending that 
has occurred, the House and Senate Leadership and Appropriators did not 
take the opportunity to start showing fiscal restraint by removing 
Congressional Earmarks from the fiscal year 2009 Omnibus Appropriations 
Act. When I made the below mentioned requests last year for projects in 
my Congressional district I believed they would provide necessary 
benefits to the local community and had a federal interest. I also 
believed that they were worthy of the limited federal funds that were 
available. That time, however, has passed. Member's need to think of 
the future of this Nation, rise above their own self-interests, and 
advocate for the removal of all earmarks from all present and future 
appropriations bills until we get the federal deficit under control.
  Congressional Appropriation project requests I made in 2008 in the 
H.R. 1105, FY 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act included:


                           San Luis Rey River

  The bill includes funding through the Energy and Water Appropriations 
Subcommittee for the San Luis Rey River Flood Protection Project, which 
includes the clearing of vegetation from the San Luis Rey River to 
protect the levee, the city of Oceanside's bridges, utilities, and 
public from threatened flooding. It is an authorized project and has 
received funding in previous Congresses.


                           Murrieta Creek, CA

  The bill includes funding through the Energy and Water Appropriations 
Subcommittee for the project, which will be constructed in four 
distinct phases, will include a 250 acre detention basin to attenuate 
flows from the over-150 square mile watershed and, once completed, will 
reduce citizens' and businesses' exposure to flooding that requires 
many of them to carry flood insurance. The project will create seven 
miles of soft earthen channelization as well as the development of a 
continuous riparian habitat corridor throughout the length of the 
project. The riparian corridor can become a safe home for several 
listed endangered species that have already been found to exist nearby. 
The channel will not only facilitate species movement and connectivity 
to existing wildlife preserves, but will also create an extensive 
natural wetlands system that can efficiently remove contaminants from 
stream flows and help ensure improved water quality for local residents 
and soldiers stationed at the Camp Pendleton Marine Base.


                South Perris Project--Perris II Desalter

  The bill includes funding through the Energy and Water Appropriations 
Subcommittee for the project, which will produce potable water from 
otherwise unusable groundwater through the construction of a five 
million gallons per day reverse osmosis desalter in the Perris South 
Groundwater Sub-basin. In addition to reducing future demand for 
imported water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and the Colorado 
River, project benefits include salinity management for expanded water 
recycling and protection of high-quality groundwater in basins adjacent 
to the Perris South Groundwater Sub-basin. The Perris II Desalter is a 
vital component of Eastern Municipal Water District's (EMWD) 
Desalination Program, which will ultimately generate up to 14,000 acre-
feet per year of potable water and remove up to 50,000 tons of salt out 
of the basin every year. This project will help push this water 
district towards its goal of drought-proofing its region and providing 
reliability and flexibility to its water supply.


             Santa Margarita River Conjunctive Use Project

  The bill includes funding through the Energy and Water Appropriations 
Subcommittee for the project, which provides for enhanced recharge and 
recovery from the groundwater basin on Camp Pendleton and will provide 
a water supply for both Camp Pendleton and Fallbrook, resolving a long-
standing water rights dispute between the United States and Fallbrook. 
In 1954, the Bureau of Reclamation was authorized to construct a dam on 
the Santa Margarita River for $22 million (approximately $333 million 
in 2008 dollars) with a yield of 14-16,000 acre-feet. This funding will 
complete a final design that is financially feasible, environmentally 
beneficial and result in the preservation of the entire Santa Margarita 
River from Temecula to the Pacific Ocean, while simultaneously 
providing 16,000 acre-feet per year of vitally needed local water to 
coastal Southern California.


                       Riverside County SAMP, CA

  Recognizing the interdependence between the area's future 
transportation, habitat, open space and land-use/housing needs, 
Riverside County, working with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, has 
undertaken a Special Area Management Plan (SAMP) for the San Jacinto & 
Upper Santa Margarita watersheds to determine how best to balance these 
factors for the future benefit of the area. To that end, in 2003, the 
County adopted a new General Plan and Multi-Species Habitat 
Conservation Plan (MSHCP) to address regional conservation

[[Page E643]]

and development plans that protect entire communities of native plants 
and animals, while streamlining the process for compatible economic 
development in other areas. When the SAMP is completed, the Corps will 
establish an abbreviated or expedited regulatory permitting process 
under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act to complement the Master 
Streambed Alteration Agreement the California Department of Fish and 
Game is currently preparing. Altogether, these new processes will allow 
for increased planning and smart development that will benefit the 
region well into the future.


 Oceanside Community Safety Partnership Collaborative--Gang Prevention 
                     Program City of Oceanside, CA

  The bill includes funding for this program through the Commerce, 
Justice, Science Appropriations Subcommittee. The goal of the Oceanside 
Community Safety Partnership Collaborative (OCSPC) is to provide 
intense intervention to divert youths away from gang membership. The 
second component of the program is to have North County Lifeline, a 
local nonprofit organization that provides diversion services in the 
City, offer more intensive services to those participants in their 
Juvenile Diversion Program when areas of additional need are 
identified, i.e., alcohol and drug issues. Youth would further be 
referred to Community Interfaith, another local service provider, for 
vocational and educational services when needed.


   Lake Elsinore Emergency Operations Center--City of Lake Elsinore, 
                               California

  The bill includes funding for this project through the Commerce, 
Justice, Science Appropriations Subcommittee. The funds will be used to 
equip a new Emergency Operations Center (EOC) in Lake Elsinore. The 
City of Lake Elsinore provides a unique service to the entirety of 
southern California because of the lake and the City's central 
location. During the recent wildfires, for instance, the City and lake 
served as the base for Hawaii-Mars water tankers which were used to 
fight fires throughout the entire region. The proposed EOC, which is 
set to be housed in a secure location within the police headquarters, 
will be used to manage the lake as an emergency resource as well as to 
provide the City and surrounding community with a base of operations 
during any emergency.


Regional Communications System Upgrade--County of San Diego, Sheriff's 
                               Department

  The Sheriff's continued vision is to increase and improve data 
sharing, automate officer alerts and notifications, improve disaster 
preparedness, and deliver of more intelligence to officers and first-
responders. The Sheriff's Department, with assistance from Federal and 
local agencies has, over several years, undertaken technology projects 
targeting this vision. These enhancements provide law enforcement with 
rapid access to critical information and knowledge with less human 
intervention producing quicker results with greater accuracy.
  This phase of the SDLaw Infrastructure Program will expand the search 
and aggregation of intelligence from even more data repositories, add 
additional business logic, further automate data mapping and workflow, 
further improving visualization of the information resulting from this 
convergence of data from State, Local, and Federal systems and now with 
the inclusion of County justice case management systems.


                             West Vista Way

  The bill includes funding for this project through the 
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies 
appropriations subcommittee. This project will enhance the development 
and traffic flow along W. Vista Way and reduce congestion on State 
Route 78. The project consists of approximately 2 miles of road 
widening (including right-of-way acquisitions), utility undergrounding, 
drainage and sewer upgrades. The project also includes intersection 
signalization, bus stops and other transit facilities, including Park-
And-Ride lots, pedestrian and bicycle facilities, and a safety barrier 
between the adjacent freeway and the street. The project limits extend 
from Melrose Drive on the east to Thunder Drive on the west, at the 
boundary with the city of Oceanside.


               Railroad Canyon/Interstate 15 Interchange

  The bill includes funding for this project through the 
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies 
appropriations subcommittee. The funding would be used for right-of-way 
acquisition for an improved interchange on Interstate 15 at Railroad 
Canyon Road. Railroad Canyon Road serves as a connector route between 
I-15 and I-215 in Southwest Riverside County. The current interchange 
with I-15 serves approximately 50,000 vehicles per day and in its 
current condition, during peak hours of travel, vehicles are backing 
onto the freeway mainline in both the north and southbound directions. 
The level of service at the intersections adjacent to this interchange 
is rated Service-F.


                         French Valley Airport

  The bill includes funding through the Transportation, Housing and 
Urban Development, and Related Agencies appropriations subcommittee for 
a feasibility study for the French Valley Airport to determine the 
necessary improvements and viability of an expansion of the airport to 
ensure safety of the neighboring communities. The project will review 
and analyze the feasibility of expanding the airport to accommodate 
large, private jets. This will greatly enhance the region's economic 
development and tourism opportunities.


                      MiraCosta College Foundation

  The bill includes funding through the Labor, Health and Human 
Services, Education Subcommittee for the MiraCosta College Foundation 
located in the 49th Congressional District in Vista, California. 
MiraCosta College is developing a national model project to meet the 
educational needs of both active-duty and exiting Navy corpsmen and 
army medics. The project creates military-specific assessment and 
instructional tools that will acknowledge that service members' 
military training while preparing them to meet state licensing 
requirements to enter the civilian nursing field. This unique project 
helps fill a national nursing shortage need and helps transitioning 
military personnel to find high-paying, skilled civilian employment.


                         Vista Community Clinic

  The bill includes funding through the Labor, Health and Human 
Services, Education Subcommittee for the Vista Community Clinic located 
in the 49th Congressional District in Vista, California. Due to 
increased demand, Vista Community Clinic is constructing a new 12,000 
square foot community health center facility providing obstetrics, 
pediatrics, family and internal medicine, pharmacy, health education to 
low-income, uninsured residents of North San Diego County. This new 
site will serve 16,000 patients in 50,000 medical visits annually. 
Ninety-five percent of Vista Community Clinic patients have an income 
qualifying them as low to moderate income by federal standards, making 
no more than $42,000 annually for a family of four. Nearly 50% of Vista 
Community Clinic patients are children who do not have any form of 
health insurance. Given that one in every 19 people living in the 
United States now relies on a U.S. Department of Health and Human 
Services' Health Resources and Services Administration funded clinic 
for primary care, this funding for construction and equipment purchases 
is critical to providing increasing access and expanding health 
services.

                          ____________________