[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 80 (Thursday, May 19, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3021-S3022]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
TRANSPORTATION, HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT, AND MILITARY
CONSTRUCTION AND VETERANS AFFAIRS APPROPRIATIONS BILLS
Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, I am pleased that today the Senate
passed two annual spending bills--Transportation, Housing and Urban
Development, and Military Construction and Veterans Affairs--and
approved funding to combat the Zika virus.
Senators Collins, Reed, Kirk, and Tester worked hard to craft good,
bipartisan bills with no ideological, partisan policy riders.
They have reminded us of the way we should do business here in the
Senate.
I was proud to support both bills when they were considered by the
Appropriations Committee in recent weeks and proud to support them
again today.
I am pleased that the bill includes long-overdue funding to fight
Zika. The bill does not provide the full amount of funding that our
health and infectious disease experts say they need, but it does
provide a good down payment of $1.1 billion.
We must do more, and we must do it now, in order to protect pregnant
women nationwide.
This bill builds on the surface transportation bill, the FAST Act,
that Congress passed last year that provides funding over 5 years for
rail and highway infrastructure.
Illinois rail lines are at the center of our national transportation
network.
In 2014, 5 million people boarded or exited trains in Illinois,
giving residents a safe, affordable option when traveling.
The bill supports rail options by providing strong funding for
Amtrak, including $1.42 billion for the national network.
It increases funding for TIGER and Core Capacity Capital Investment
Grants, which supports transportation improvement projects across
Illinois like the CTA's Red Purple Modernization project to provide
more commuter passenger rail options to people in Chicago.
The bill also funds important rail safety programs across the
country.
First-time funding for passenger rail grant programs authorized in
the FAST Act will address gaps in supporting and growing our nation's
passenger rail infrastructure.
Rail line relocation and grade crossing enhancements will reduce
accidents and improve passenger safety in Illinois and around the
country.
Nearly 1.1 million barrels of crude oil are hauled on our nation's
railroads every day. Last year's derailment in Galena, IL, highlights
the need to invest in rail safety.
The bill continues funding for Positive Train Control programs and
supports the Safe Transport of Energy Products Program.
There is always more work to be done. According to the American
Society of Civil Engineers, America scores a D in investment in roads,
transit, and aviation and a C-plus in rail.
This bill is a good start. This bill not only invests in our
transportation infrastructure, but it also invests in our housing
infrastructure.
I want to thank Senators Collins and Reed again for their efforts to
address lead-based paint hazards in our Nation's low-income housing.
Since Flint, we have learned that exposure to lead, be it through our
drinking water or paint in our homes, is still a major problem in
communities across Illinois and the country.
We have also learned that, when government shortchanges our
infrastructure because of opposition to commonsense protections and
draconian spending cuts, families suffer the consequences.
In the case of Flint, local and State government was the problem, and
now, it, along with Federal Government, have to be part of the
solution.
And the provisions in this bill can help us do that. This bill
requires HUD to update its standards to the CDC's blood level standard,
which is currently four times the CDC level. It improves tenant
awareness and education of the lead-based paint hazards. And it
provides a modest increase in funding for the identification and
remediation of lead-based hazards found in federally assisted housing.
These are all good things, and they will go a long way in addressing
the government's abysmal and embarrassing record in dealing with this
problem, which has led to far too many children living in federally
subsidized housing suffering from lead poisoning, including one family
in Chicago. Lanice Walker's 4-year-old daughter was diagnosed with lead
poisoning less than 5 months after her and her family moved into a home
subsidized by a Housing Choice Voucher.
But Lanice Walker was not able to move without the risk of losing her
voucher because her daughter's blood lead level, which was two times
the CDC level, didn't meet the standards under HUD regulations. It
wasn't until all nine of her children had elevated blood levels and
legal advocates intervened on her behalf before she was granted
permission to move.
This is unacceptable, and we must do more to protect children in
affordable housing before they become poisoned by lead. We must ensure
that lead-based paint hazards are properly identified before a family
moves into a unit. We must update all outdated lead regulations using
the most recent science and enforce them. And we must adequately fund
programs designed to identify and eliminate lead paint hazards.
I hope that our efforts today are just the beginning of our
recommitment to addressing our lead epidemic.
The Senate also approved the Military Construction and Veterans
Affairs appropriations bill, which provides a $3.1 billion increase
above fiscal year 2016 enacted levels.
This funding will support a wide variety of projects to ensure the
military readiness and quality of life on military bases within the
United States and around the world.
It provides $70 million for Arlington National Cemetery to ensure
that the final resting place for our servicemembers is well maintained.
The bill ensures that we provide for our Nation's veterans and their
families, those who have sacrificed so much over the years and deserve
our gratitude.
The Veterans Benefits Administration will receive $2.8 billion more
than last year to help the VA modernize its claims processing as well
as help reduce and eliminate backlogs.
Forcing veterans to wait months and sometimes years to get the
benefits they deserve is unacceptable.
The bill increases funding for critical programs and emerging needs,
including hepatitis C treatment, whistleblower protection, as well as
family caregiver support.
For years, I have championed the caregivers program in Congress, so I
am pleased that this program is a priority in this bill.
Hundreds of veterans and their caregivers in Illinois and more than
23,000 nationwide participate in this program, with much success.
The bill increases medical and prosthetic research funding by $44
million compared to fiscal year 2016, at $675 million. These funds are
critical to continuing our national commitment
[[Page S3022]]
to medical research and will help our veterans that return home with
both the physical and mental wounds of war.
The number of veterans using VA services is dramatically increasing
as the population ages. The VA provides more care for veterans now than
ever before, and more of these veterans and their families have
increasingly critical needs.
I would also like to take a moment to address an amendment I offered
that was included as part of a managers package.
My amendment directs the Secretary of the VA to spend at least $21
million to fill critical staffing shortages in VA leadership at
networks, medical centers, and health care systems across the country.
At least three dozen key VA leadership positions are currently filled
by acting or interim directors, sometimes for years at a time. In my
home State of Illinois, for example, Hines VA Hospital has not had a
permanent director since 2014.
Permanently assigned leadership that is capable of overseeing and
managing networks and medical centers is critical to delivering high
quality care to our Nation's veterans in a timely fashion, especially
at a time when the VA faces a number of challenges.
This funding will help the VA prioritize filling these key positions,
as well as address staffing shortages in other management and clinical
positions, including in rural and underserved areas.
It is my hope that this funding will allow the VA to quickly fill
these important positions within the Department.
I am glad to say that overall, moving this bill is good for our
Nation's military and their families.
I hope today's action by the Senate is another step in the direction
of passing all 12 appropriations bills, all without ideological riders.
I urge my colleagues on the other side of the aisle to continue to
work with us in a bipartisan manner to pass additional appropriations
bills without ideological riders.
I would also like to urge my colleagues to quickly send these funding
measures to the President. Zika funding is needed now.
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