[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 89 (Tuesday, June 21, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3962-S3964]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT REVITALIZATION ACT OF 2011
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Senate will
resume consideration of S. 782, which the clerk will report.
The legislative clerk read as follows:
A bill (S. 782) to amend the Public Works and Economic
Development Act of 1965 to reauthorize that Act, and for
other purposes.
Pending:
DeMint amendment No. 394, to repeal the Dodd-Frank Wall
Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.
Paul amendment No. 414, to implement the President's
request to increase the statutory limit on the public debt.
Cardin amendment No. 407, to require the FHA to equitably
treat home buyers who have repaid in full their FHA-insured
mortgages.
Merkley/Snowe amendment No. 428, to establish clear
regulatory standards for mortgage servicers.
Kohl amendment No. 389, to amend the Sherman Act to make
oil-producing and exporting cartels illegal.
Hutchison amendment No. 423, to delay the implementation of
the health reform law in the United States until there is
final resolution in pending lawsuits.
Portman amendment No. 417, to provide for the inclusion of
independent regulatory agencies in the application of the
Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.).
Portman amendment No. 418, to amend the Unfunded Mandates
Reform Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.) to strengthen the
economic impact analyses for major rules, require agencies to
analyze the effect of major rules on jobs, and require
adoption of the least burdensome regulatory means.
McCain amendment No. 412, to repeal the wage rate
requirements commonly known as the Davis-Bacon Act.
Merkley amendment No. 440, to require the Secretary of
Energy to establish an Energy Efficiency Loan Program under
which the Secretary shall make funds available to States to
support financial assistance provided by qualified financing
entities for making qualified energy efficiency or renewable
efficiency improvements.
Coburn modified amendment No. 436, to repeal the Volumetric
Ethanol Excise Tax Credit.
Brown (MA)/Snowe amendment No. 405, to repeal the
imposition of withholding on certain payments made to vendors
by government entities.
Inhofe amendment No. 430, to reduce amounts authorized to
be appropriated.
Inhofe amendment No. 438, to provide for the establishment
of a committee to assess the effects of certain Federal
regulatory mandates.
Merkley amendment No. 427, to make a technical correction
to the HUBZone designation process.
McCain amendment No. 441 (to Coburn modified amendment No.
436), to prohibit the use of Federal funds to construct
ethanol blender pumps or ethanol storage facilities.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, there will be 10
minutes of debate only equally divided between the two leaders or their
designees.
Who yields time?
The Senator from Wyoming.
Mr. BARRASSO. Madam President, I yield back Republican time.
Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, the one thing that all Members of
Congress agree we need more of is jobs.
Illinois recently published its most recent statewide unemployment
numbers and there is no question that the numbers are disappointing.
Following 15 straight months of declining unemployment, unemployment
rates rose for the first time to 8.9 percent. The only way to decrease
the unemployment rate is to ensure robust job growth in all parts of
the country. And while Members from different parties often disagree on
how to help create jobs, the Economic Development Administration, EDA,
reauthorization before us today is a great example of bipartisan
legislation that can help.
On May 1, 1961, President Kennedy signed into law a bill creating the
precursor of the Economic Development Agency, the Area Redevelopment
Administration, ARA. The ARA was championed by another Illinois Senator
and the man who gave me my start as an intern in this building, Senator
Paul Douglas.
ARA provided assistance to distressed areas through loans and grants
for public facilities; technology and market information; and research
grants in order to spur economic growth. Sound familiar? Paul Douglas
believed then, as I believe now, there is a proper role for government
to play in assisting distressed communities and regions.
Now for 50 years, the ARA and then the EDA have helped communities
identify the best strategies for creating economic growth and
leveraging private investment to help create jobs. EDA remains focused
on assisting distressed communities and communities recovering from
disasters.
And it has been very effective. Every Federal dollar invested in EDA
projects attracts $7 additional dollars in private investments in these
distressed communities. And even in the midst of this last recession
and sparse private investments, EDA-funded public/private projects
created an estimated 161,500 jobs in the last 2\1/2\ years.
In Illinois in 2009 and 2010 alone, EDA funded 52 projects that
resulted in nearly $70 million in new investments in the State. But
beyond just the numbers, I want to give you some real life examples of
EDA's impact in Illinois communities
Under the 2010 EDA Community Trade Adjustment Assistance Program, the
city of Galesburg and Knox County identified themselves as
significantly impacted by trade. EDA funded a project that allowed for
the creation of the Entrepreneurs Innovate & Go Global Initiative to
help develop entrepreneurs at every level. The grantees are putting
together workshops and training that focuses on entrepreneurship,
innovation and globalization. EDA assistance also includes technical
[[Page S3963]]
assistance in commercialization that will ultimately help small
businesses and new entrepreneurs streamline business plans and create
new jobs.
Under the Recovery Act, EDA helped fund the creation of a micro
revolving loan fund for Accion Chicago, a spinoff of an international
nonprofit organization dedicated to microfinance. ACCION is using the
project funds to expand its existing microlending activities in Cook
County and to promote entrepreneurship by providing loan capital and
financial literacy counseling to clients who don't have access to
traditional bank credit. The $1,200,000 revolving loan fund is
projected to make 120 loans in the initial round of lending--creating
or saving about 400 jobs.
After terrible flooding in 2008 and the subsequent disaster
declaration, EDA was able to award $677,000 in disaster supplemental
funding to the city of Princeton. The city of Princeton used these
funds to build infrastructure for a 137-acre industrial site, including
rehabilitation of existing roadway, construction of new roadway, water-
main, sewer lines, and city-owned electric and fiber optic cable. This
project not only will improve the long-term economic options for the
community, but is expected to create 500 jobs and induce $50,000,000 in
private investment in the region.
The bill on the floor right now would reauthorize EDA to continue
making these necessary investments for an additional 5 years. And it
would also improve flexibility and efficiency at the agency. For
example, the bill would allow EDA to do more in the most distressed
communities by increasing the cap on the Federal share of projects in
areas that have very high unemployment rates and very low per capita
income. And it would allow communities using EDA's revolving loan fund
to more easily shift those dollars to the economic development project
with the greatest potential to help the region.
When Senator Douglas led the effort to create ADA he faced opposition
from none other than Senator Goldwater. Senator Goldwater argued that
distressed regions are, and I quote, ``perfectly normal to the economic
cycle of American enterprise, and not in need of government
intervention.''
While history has proven he is wrong, at least this is a debatable
argument. At least he was grappling with policy issues actually being
considered. The reality is, if Congress wants to help create jobs and
bring down the unemployment rate, we need to be able to pass simple
pieces of legislation that will help create jobs with little to no
costs. Instead for the second time in 2 months, we find a jobs bills
fillibustered by amendment.
If we can't find a way to work together on bills like EDA
reauthorization or SBIR/STTR reauthorization, the American public is
justified in believing that we will do nothing to help create jobs. And
to borrow a quote from Paul Douglas during his work on ADA, ``The lives
of too many human beings are at stake to sit by and do nothing . . .''
I urge my colleagues to support the legislation and move quickly to
final passage.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from California.
Mrs. BOXER. Madam President, we have spent many days talking about
the importance of the bill before us which would reauthorize the
Economic Development Administration. The EDA is a proven success. I
think it is instructive that no one on the other side is speaking out
against it. It is amazing to me they do not speak out against it, but I
have a feeling we may not get this cloture vote. I hope I am wrong.
As I look at ways for us to be bipartisan, there are a couple of
areas where I think we can come together. One would certainly be
deficit reduction. We Democrats know how to do it. We did it under Bill
Clinton, and we are the only party in 50 years to pass a budget that
actually brought us to a surplus. We can do that with our friends on
the other side, and I am glad there are talks going on.
The other area is job creation and job preservation. The other side
says they want to do it with us. This is a golden opportunity for them
to join with us. We have seen--and Leader Reid knows this because he
has selected various jobs bills to bring to the Senate floor. It was
not by chance this bill came. He wanted committee chairmen to say which
bills had bipartisan support in their committees. We voted this bill
out nearly unanimously. We had one objection in a time when things are
pretty contentious. Why is it? I will tell you why it is.
One of the best ways to tell you is to quote Senator John Cornyn, who
said a $2 million EDA grant for a water tower in Texas will ``pave the
way for creation of new jobs and business opportunities.'' That says it
all.
We have 27 Republicans who went on the record saying the EDA was a
good job creation bill. We know that historically $1 of EDA investment
attracts $7 in private sector investment. So while this is a $500
billion bill, if you see that it is $7 for each $1, it is into the
millions in terms of the job creation that will follow. As a matter of
fact, we know the jobs created will be between about 250,000 and 1
million over the life of the bill. One million jobs. All we need is a
cloture vote.
This EDA started in 1965, and it has been supported by Democrats and
Republicans. I gave you an example of Senator Cornyn and what he said.
These are just some of the people who are supporting us: the Conference
of Mayors, the Public Works Association--it goes on into all of our
States--the University Economic Development Association--why do they
support it? They know this particular program is a spark plug. Put in
$1 and attract $7 of private sector investment. People get to work
again.
I am just hopeful that we do not see this bill die today. This is a
moment in time we can show that we mean what we say. Senator Crapo said
the EDA business grant will help ``keep Idaho firms on the cutting
edge.''
Senator Lugar said EDA funding is ``essential in our efforts to
improve the quality of life and the standard of living for Hoosier
families.''
It goes on. Senator Collins has some beautiful statements. Twenty-
seven of our colleagues, Republicans and Democrats, have always
supported this legislation. The last time it was signed into law was by
George W. Bush, yes, and it passed this Senate unanimously. If this
bill goes down because our friends on the other side keep wanting to
offer--they have offered tens of amendments. It is up to about 100
amendments: one about the prairie chicken, another one about a lizard--
all fine but do not belong on this bill. This bill is about jobs.
I hope our friends will vote with their hearts and will look back on
their press releases. I certainly think if they did that, they would
cast an ``aye'' vote, and we would pass this bill and do something for
jobs in this Nation.
Thank you very much.
I yield back my time, and I ask for the yeas and nays.
Cloture Motion
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Pursuant to rule XXII of the Standing Rules of
the Senate, the Chair lays before the Senate the pending cloture
motion, which the clerk will report.
The legislative clerk read as follows:
Cloture Motion
We, the undersigned Senators, in accordance with the
provisions of rule XXII of the Standing Rules of the Senate,
hereby move to bring to a close debate on the motion to
proceed to Calendar No. 38, S. 782, a bill to amend the
Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965 to
reauthorize that act, and for other purposes.
Harry Reid, Barbara Boxer, Kent Conrad, John F. Kerry,
Sheldon Whitehouse, Amy Klobuchar, Benjamin L. Cardin,
Jeff Bingaman, Jeff Merkley, Patty Murray, Robert
Menendez, Jeanne Shaheen, Bernard Sanders, Frank R.
Lautenberg, Jack Reed, Richard J. Durbin, Daniel K.
Akaka.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. By unanimous consent, the mandatory quorum
call has been waived.
The question is, Is it the sense of the Senate that debate on S. 782,
a bill to amend the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 1965
to reauthorize that act, and for other purposes, shall be brought to a
close?
The yeas and nays are mandatory under the rule.
The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk called the roll.
The yeas and nays resulted--yeas 49, nays 51, as follows:
[Rollcall Vote No. 94 Leg.]
YEAS--49
Akaka
Baucus
Begich
Bennet
Bingaman
Blumenthal
[[Page S3964]]
Boxer
Brown (OH)
Cantwell
Cardin
Carper
Casey
Conrad
Coons
Durbin
Feinstein
Franken
Gillibrand
Hagan
Harkin
Inouye
Kerry
Kohl
Landrieu
Lautenberg
Leahy
Levin
Lieberman
Manchin
Menendez
Merkley
Mikulski
Murray
Nelson (FL)
Pryor
Reed
Reid
Rockefeller
Sanders
Schumer
Shaheen
Stabenow
Tester
Udall (CO)
Udall (NM)
Warner
Webb
Whitehouse
Wyden
NAYS--51
Alexander
Ayotte
Barrasso
Blunt
Boozman
Brown (MA)
Burr
Chambliss
Coats
Coburn
Cochran
Collins
Corker
Cornyn
Crapo
DeMint
Enzi
Graham
Grassley
Hatch
Heller
Hoeven
Hutchison
Inhofe
Isakson
Johanns
Johnson (SD)
Johnson (WI)
Kirk
Klobuchar
Kyl
Lee
Lugar
McCain
McCaskill
McConnell
Moran
Murkowski
Nelson (NE)
Paul
Portman
Risch
Roberts
Rubio
Sessions
Shelby
Snowe
Thune
Toomey
Vitter
Wicker
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Casey). On this vote, the yeas are 49, the
nays are 51. Three-fifths of the Senators duly chosen and sworn not
having voted in the affirmative, the motion is rejected.
The majority leader is recognized.
Mr. REID. If we could have the attention of the Senate.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senate will come to order.
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