[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 109 (Wednesday, June 23, 2021)]
[House]
[Pages H3014-H3015]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS CAN REBUILD INFRASTRUCTURE EFFECTIVELY FOR 
                               LESS MONEY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Kentucky (Mr. Barr) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak about the importance of 
our Nation's infrastructure and how to rebuild our transportation 
system the right way.
  While we are hearing about the various proposals from Congress and 
the administration that would raise taxes or add to the deficit to 
spend hundreds of billions of dollars and even trillions of dollars on 
infrastructure, I would suggest that this body take a closer look at 
how frequently infrastructure can be built effectively without further 
burdening the taxpayer or our children for generations to come.
  As a member of the House Financial Services Committee, I hear 
routinely from the private sector, the financial services industry, 
banks, insurance companies, asset managers, pension funds, private 
equity firms, life insurance firms, and the like that trillions of 
dollars of private capital is readily available to efficiently rebuild 
our Nation's infrastructure without undermining American 
competitiveness through higher taxes.
  Public-private partnerships utilize the best features of the public 
sector and the private sector to finance, design, build, and even 
operate our critical infrastructure necessary to support safe and 
efficient channels of commerce, grow our economy, and sustain our 
quality of life.
  The best example I have seen comes from my own State of Kentucky, 
where the small community of Brandenburg partnered with a contractor, 
The Walker Company, and GRW Engineers, to design, build, and finance a 
new wastewater treatment plant for Brandenburg. This project had 
significant urgency due to the announcement that Nucor Steel intended 
to build a new $1.7 billion steel mill on the property that included 
the site of the existing treatment plant.
  The P3 delivery method, authorized by Kentucky statutes passed in 
2016, was utilized to cut $3.5 million in cost from the $8.3 million 
project and to save at least one year over the normal taxpayer-
financed, design-bid-build process.
  Relocating this plant in a timely and cost-effective manner allowed 
Nucor Steel to begin construction of its facility, which soon will 
bring over 400 good-paying jobs to the region.
  Mr. Speaker, whatever infrastructure bill emerges from this Congress, 
I would urge my colleagues to reject the Biden administration's call 
for growth-destroying tax increases and instead look to America's deep 
and liquid capital markets as the solution and use public-private 
partnerships as a significant feature of the legislation.


                Recognizing Our Nation's Police Officers

  Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize our Nation's police 
officers and honor the sacrifices that many brave men and women of law 
enforcement make every single day.
  We mourn for Detective James Kirk, Officer Martez Hughes, and Special 
Deputy Sheriff Lee Daniel Manns from Kentucky, as well as the hundreds 
of other law enforcement officers from across the country who have 
given their lives in the line of duty over the last year.
  Beginning in 1962, President John F. Kennedy signed into law a 
proclamation designating May 15 as Peace Officers Memorial Day, and the 
week in which that date falls as National Police Week. Republicans and 
Democrats continued the tradition of honoring officers who serve and 
officers who died in the line of duty each year since.
  Sadly, Mr. Speaker, President Biden broke this tradition in his 
proclamation on May 7 and politicized this year's National Police Week 
and Peace Officers Memorial Day by criticizing police for the distrust 
that some Americans have of law enforcement.
  Mr. Speaker, blaming the police for the increase in antipolice 
sentiment is not how we honor those who swear an oath to uphold public 
trust, even though the officers may become targets for senseless acts 
of violence.

                              {time}  1030

  According to the FBI's Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted 
database, fatal felony attacks on officers spiked 31.6 percent in early 
2021. This comes on the heels of our Nation's major cities, Chicago, 
New York, and Los Angeles, all vowing to defund their police 
departments. It is no wonder why these cities have tragically seen a 
devastating and dramatic increase in homicides and shootings in 2021. 
This is what you get when you call for defunding the police.
  To our brave law enforcement officers who protect and serve our 
communities, I stand with you, and I am grateful for all you do to keep 
us safe.

[[Page H3015]]

I will always defend and fight against defunding the police.


                        Honoring Sheila Currans

  Mr. BARR. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor a dedicated leader in rural 
healthcare.
  After 48 years, Sheila Currans retires as the CEO of Harrison 
Memorial Hospital. Mrs. Currans' service began as a high school candy 
striper. She served as a medical-surgical nurse, an ICU/CCU head nurse, 
and supervisor of nursing. She led for 5 years as COO and then was 
named CEO in 2009.
  Harrison Memorial Hospital, located in rural Cynthiana, Kentucky, 
serves people from a seven-county region and is one of the few 
remaining independent, not-for-profit hospitals in Kentucky.
  The people of Harrison County and the surrounding counties have been 
fortunate to have a great leader in Mrs. Currans and her passion for 
healthcare excellence, leadership experience, and understanding of 
rural healthcare needs. She will be missed, and I wish Sheila Currans 
all the best in her well-deserved retirement.

                          ____________________