[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 152 (Tuesday, October 29, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1589]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           WATER RESOURCES REFORM AND DEVELOPMENT ACT OF 2013

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                          HON. JOHN GARAMENDI

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, October 23, 2013

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the state of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 3080) to 
     provide for improvements to the rivers and harbors of the 
     United States, to provide for the conservative and 
     development of water and related resources, and for other 
     purposes:

  Mr. GARAMENDI. Mr. Chair, I want to thank Committee Chairman Shuster 
and Ranking Member Rahall, as well as Subcommittee Chairman Gibbs and 
Ranking Member Bishop for their hard work in putting together a bill 
that all of us can support. There are many good things in the bill and 
a few things that still need some work.
  The Water Resources Reform and Development Act (WRRDA) is a vitally 
important bill to my constituents in the 3rd District of California. 
The levee projects that are authorized will provide life-saving 
protection for residents throughout California's flood prone Central 
Valley, while other construction projects will help to rebuild our 
crumbling water infrastructure and create jobs. The improvements to 
revitalize our ports and waterways will bolster business development 
and ensure that products grown and manufactured in the United States 
will continue to be exported around the world.
  I commend Committee leadership for finding a way to authorize much 
needed projects without violating the earmark ban. The Natomas Levee 
Improvement Project will be authorized when this bill becomes law, 
resulting in increased flood protection for thousands of residents in 
the Sacramento area. However, there is more we could do. There are 
approximately 15 projects that have Chief's Reports in the pipeline. 
They aren't yet completed, but should be in the next several months. I 
urge an expansion of the authorization to include those projects that 
will have completed Chief's Reports by the end of the Fiscal Year so 
that important projects like the one in the Sutter Basin can begin work 
without wondering when we might get around to passing another WRDA 
bill.
  Much needed language was included to instruct the Corps to revise its 
regulations regarding levee vegetation. Each part of the country is 
different and it is vital that the Corps have the flexibility to make 
determinations based on the individual community and what is needed to 
provide the most protection. As the bill moves forward in the process, 
I urge my colleagues to be open to discussing changes to the crediting 
provisions. Crediting is critical to ensure timely investments in 
public infrastructure and encourage local communities to start sooner 
than later to respond to flood threats. One slight change I would like 
to see would be to move the milestone earlier as to when a non-federal 
sponsor of a project could begin receiving credit. This does not 
obligate additional federal funds, nor does it guarantee a non-federal 
sponsor will receive credit. It merely lets local communities begin to 
address risks to the public safety as soon as possible.
  The Committee has taken strides to reform the way money in the Harbor 
Maintenance Trust Fund (HMTF) is spent. Over the next several years, 
more funding will be funneled back to our ports to ensure those paying 
into the fund actually receive the dollars back to maintain the 
infrastructure. Again, more can be done to make sure California gets a 
fair shake. Most of our ports are donors to the fund, but get little 
back. The world is only getting smaller and we must do all that we can 
to ensure American products can get out of our country and into the 
global market. All of our ports are important to international trade 
and all should get adequate funding to be the best they can be.
  This bill is a milestone in a divided Congress and represents 
compromise in an era of partisanship. A vote for this bill today is a 
vote for jobs and for our economy, two things we can all support.

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