[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 115 (Thursday, July 28, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1435-E1436]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, AND RELATED AGENCIES 
                        APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2012

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                          HON. EMANUEL CLEAVER

                              of missouri

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, July 25, 2011

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the state of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2584) making 
     appropriations for the Department of the Interior, 
     environment, and related agencies for the fiscal year ending 
     September 30, 2012, and for other purposes:

  Mr. CLEAVER. Mr. Chair, I appreciate the House's need to reduce the 
deficit and cut back on spending. Tightening our belts is something we 
need to do. However, these cuts should be targeted--with a doctor's 
scalpel instead of a machete--so that we do not collapse the economy 
that we are trying so hard to build up. Unfortunately, the Interior 
bill we are currently debating is the work of a machete. This bill cuts 
or eliminates funding for countless programs that exist to help 
communities--including the Environmental Protection Agency's Smart 
Growth Programs and the Office of Sustainable Communities.
  The EPA Office of Sustainable Communities is part of an inter-agency 
partnership with the Department of Transportation and the Department of 
Housing and Urban Development. It was established to provide a resource 
for communities who need technical assistance to plan for economic 
growth and development and account for a changing population.
  The services offered by the EPA Sustainable Communities Office are in 
high demand--they have been able to assist only 9% of interested 
communities due to budget and time constraints. Since 2005, over 1,300 
communities have requested assistance from the EPA; 122 have been 
assisted, all for a total of $4.5 million.
  This is a program that helps local governments expand their economic 
development options and make their communities more attractive to 
business and local citizens. The EPA's Office of Sustainable 
Communities works with HUD and DOT to make government better at helping 
communities develop housing, transportation and energy efficiency 
plans. This partnership removes barriers and cuts bureaucratic red 
tape, which means more efficient investments.
  My home state of Missouri is already benefiting from the work of the 
Partnership for Sustainable Communities. Last fall, my district of 
Kansas City received a $4.5 million grant from the Partnership. The 
Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant brings together 
assistance from HUD, DOT, and EPA to study six development corridors 
that connect 30 communities to Kansas City's urban core and coordinate 
housing, transportation and environmental protection along these 
corridors. The Kansas City region also received a $50 million TIGER 
grant for investments in regional transit corridors, additional transit 
centers, bus stop improvements, as well as sidewalk, street, and 
transit improvements in the city's Green Impact Zone in the urban core.
  Kansas City also received a grant that will support outreach and 
production of a handbook of tools and incentives designed to facilitate 
the redevelopment of older commercial brownfield sites in urban and 
suburban locations throughout the city. Commercial brownfields sites 
often include contamination and can be challenging to redevelopment in 
suburban communities.
  The first phase of the project will inventory the tools, incentives, 
and techniques available locally to create smart growth designs and 
revitalize brownfields. Research will then be performed on relevant 
national models and best practices in these fields. A handbook will be 
compiled containing information on smart growth techniques for 
brownfield commercial sites that can cut development costs, offer 
unique amenities, and respond to environmental impacts. It will also 
highlight relevant brownfield incentives, tools, and strategies.
  A design workshop will be conducted for two local, commercial 
brownfield sites, one urban and one suburban. The results of the 
workshop will be incorporated into the handbook, which will be 
presented at a series of roundtable events held for developers, 
landowners, and others involved in the redevelopment process. The 
project will actively seek input from the community on methods to make 
commercial site reuse attractive and to determine the needs of 
communities near commercial brownfield sites. The results may be used 
to suggest improvements to city codes and policies to encourage reuse 
and smart growth design of brownfield sites. This project will help 
balance regional growth in urban and suburban locations through 
marketing assistance for both areas, and encourage mixed-use 
redevelopment to better meet community service and housing needs.
  Additionally, Missouri's capital, Jefferson City, has received EPA 
assistance to improve an area in the city core that serves as the 
gateway to the State Capitol and the larger Capital Complex.
  Smart Growth projects similar to the projects I highlighted in 
Missouri are in 200 communities and almost all 50 states. Seven members 
of the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee have at least one 
Sustainable Communities project in their district. These programs 
within EPA, HUD, and DOT provide

[[Page E1436]]

assistance to communities for the tools they need to create the 
community that people want to live in. This partnership removes 
barriers and cuts bureaucratic red tape, which means more efficient 
investments. If we are truly interested in cutting costs at the 
government level, we should be promoting efficient and cross-cutting 
government programs like this one, instead of de-funding them.

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