[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 138 (Tuesday, August 3, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E869-E870]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, EDUCATION, AGRICULTURE, RURAL 
   DEVELOPMENT, ENERGY AND WATER DEVELOPMENT, FINANCIAL SERVICES AND 
   GENERAL GOVERNMENT, INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, 
  VETERANS AFFAIRS, TRANSPORTATION, AND HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT 
                        APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2022

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                     HON. ROBERT C. ``BOBBY'' SCOTT

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 27, 2021

  Mr. SCOTT of Virginia. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 
4502, the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education; Agriculture, 
Rural Development; Energy and Water Development; Financial Services and 
General Government; Interior, Environment; Military Construction, 
Veterans Affairs; Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development 
Appropriations Act of 2022.
  I sponsored the 400 Years of African American History Commission Act 
with Senator Tim Kaine. This bill includes $3.3 million for the 
Commission to continue their critical work. Since the Commission was 
first funded in Fiscal Year 2020, it facilitated participation in the 
400-year anniversary commemoration of the arrival of Africans in the 
U.S. colonies at Fort Monroe in Hampton, Virginia; initiated the 400 
Distinguished Award to honor African American social justice leaders; 
supported programing to engage students in historic preservation; and 
sponsored a documentary film on Black economic empowerment. More 
recently, the Commission has also launched a series of virtual public 
education meetings to continue its mission during the COVID-19 
pandemic.
  The legislation also includes a major federal investment in Hampton 
Roads by including $83.7 million for the deepening and widening of the 
Norfolk Harbor's channels. This project, while authorized, has not yet 
received its share of federal funds; however, the Port of Virginia has 
already begun construction on this critical project and these funds 
will ensure that the project maintains its timeline. The deepening and 
widening at the Port will allow for larger container and bulk ships 
visiting the Port of Virginia to arrive and depart fully loaded, 
providing for safer and more timely passage. The project is expected to 
deliver nearly $4 billion of benefits to the national economy.
  As a co-chair of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Taskforce, I am also 
pleased that this package includes much needed support for the 
restoration of the Chesapeake Bay. This bill provides $90.5 million for 
the Environmental Protection Agency's Chesapeake Bay program as well as 
$15 million for the Chesapeake WILD (Watershed Investments in Landscape 
Defense) Program. I sponsored legislation, with Reps. Sarbanes and 
Wittman, to

[[Page E870]]

create Chesapeake WILD grants to leverage the expertise of the U.S. 
Fish and Wildlife Service throughout the Bay's 64,000 square mile 
watershed. These grants will fund on-the-ground work to enhance water 
quality, mitigate flooding, provide opportunities for recreation, and 
protect habitat. This funding and these projects will advance efforts 
to restore the Chesapeake Bay by the 2025 deadline.
  I am also pleased that my amendments supporting essential funding for 
our National Labs were adopted. These changes highlighted the need for 
funding for Nuclear Physics and Medium Energy Operations within the 
Department of Energy's Office of Science. Scientists and researchers at 
Jefferson Lab, located in the heart of my district in Newport News, 
train the next generation of scientists, advance lifesaving cancer 
radiation therapies, and have been awarded more than 150 patents. The 
funding included in the President's Budget for the Electron-Ion 
Collider and the design of a High Performance Data Facility at 
Jefferson Lab would advance our understanding of nuclear physics and 
increase the National Laboratories' computing power, supporting 
experiments that contribute to our understanding of matter and enhance 
our safety, quality of life, and even medical care.
  Also included in the legislation is funding for eight Community 
Projects in Hampton Roads. These projects include the expansion of 
rural broadband in Isle of Wight; an inventory of lead drinking water 
pipes in Portsmouth; the buildout and expansion of an LGBT community 
center on the Peninsula; an expansion of mobile health services in 
Franklin and Isle of Wight; the sidewalk extension for safe pedestrian 
connectivity in the South Norfolk community of Chesapeake; replacing 
athletic field lighting at public schools and a community center in 
Newport News; the development of a Maritime Trades magnet program for 
K-12 students; and the relocation of a frequently flooded YMCA in 
Norfolk. Federal investments like these are critical to the development 
and resilience of communities in Hampton Roads.
  This bill helps us move forward by spurring innovation, creating 
jobs, enhancing opportunities for trade and economic development, 
restoring ecosystems, and making necessary local investments. I urge my 
colleagues to support this bill.

                          ____________________