[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 143 (Friday, September 23, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1703]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            MOTION TO CONCUR

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. HENRY A. WAXMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 22, 2011

  Mr. WAXMAN. Madam Speaker, I rise in opposition to H.R. 2608, the 
Continuing Resolution for the 2012 fiscal year.
  This year, our country has faced perhaps the worst string of natural 
disasters in a generation. Flooding in the Upper Midwest and Northeast, 
tornadoes in the Midwest and Southeast and wildfires in Texas have 
caused an estimating $35 billion in property damage in 2011. These 
disasters are yet another indication that our burning of dirty fossil 
fuels is causing our climate to change, resulting in more frequent and 
destructive severe weather events.
  The government has a responsibility to aid the victims of these 
events by funding cleanup and recovery efforts. But the Continuing 
Resolution that we are considering today pays for disaster relief by 
slashing funding for an important clean energy technology program--
undercutting the very solutions that are an essential part of combating 
the causes of climate change and building a clean energy, 21st century 
economy.
  This kind of reasoning could make sense only in Washington. It makes 
as much sense as cutting vaccine funding to pay the costs of a measles 
outbreak, or cutting funds for aerial fire retardant chemical stocks in 
order to pay for the horrific fires in Texas.
  In addition, this program, the Advanced Technology Vehicles 
Manufacturing Program (ATVM), has already created jobs for over 40,000 
Americans. The Center for Automotive Research credited the program with 
bringing the production of the Ford Focus, a vehicle that gets 40 
miles-per-gallon, from Mexico to Detroit. If Congress simply leaves 
ATVM alone, it will create employment opportunities for another 35,000 
to 40,000 Americans in the heart of the manufacturing belt, by the end 
of the year.
  In the past, Congress has always come to the aid of those affected by 
disaster by paying for federal recovery efforts without conditions. The 
Bush Administration requested supplemental emergency disaster funding 
on eight occasions, and each time Congress agreed, often passing these 
measures with large bipartisan majorities.
  This time should be no different. This disaster relief offset should 
be removed. This is not the way we care for our fellow Americans in a 
disaster. We're better than that. I urge my colleagues to support 
continued funding for clean energy technology to create jobs and invest 
in a 21st century economy and oppose this bill.

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