[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 15]
[Senate]
[Pages 21223-21224]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                    ENERGY AND WATER APPROPRIATIONS

  Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, the Congress has wisely passed and will 
send to the President for signature H.R. 4733, the energy and water 
development appropriations bill for fiscal year 2001. I strongly urge 
the President to sign this vital legislation.
  Proper management of our Nation's rivers is a concern for many 
Americans. Our rivers provide us drinking water, transportation, and 
recreation. They also provide habitat for aquatic life, wildlife, and 
birds. Good management techniques provide that all of these purposes 
are taken into account and managed appropriately and fairly. I firmly 
believe that H.R. 4733 provides for good river management. 
Specifically, section 103 prohibits the use of funds to revise the 
Missouri River Master Water Control Manual if the revision provides for 
increases in springtime water releases during spring heavy rainfall or 
snow melt. Many Iowans see this as just good common sense.
  Increased spring water releases could easily cause the wild Missouri, 
and its many tributaries, to once again flood low-lying areas, 
including farmland and communities. Floods would cause a severe 
economic hardship on those affected. Farmers would be unable to plant 
crops, and home and business owners would experience property damage. 
Economic activity in the flood areas would decrease or cease during and 
immediately after the flooding, causing a loss of income for those 
impacted.
  Many Americans forget what it was like to live along the Missouri 
prior to the construction of the dams. They forgot that the Missouri 
was truly wild. They forgot what it was like not to be able to safely 
plant your crops, grow them with some security that there would not be 
summer floods, and then be able to harvest them safely. They forgot 
what it was like to lose all or part of a crop. That meant the loss of 
your investment in time, labor, seed and other inputs. And that meant 
no income coming in after the harvest.
  The folks in town were hurt, too. Houses and businesses were swept 
away. Basements were flooded with water, muck and other debris. 
Sometimes the water level went higher than that to the first floor, or 
even higher. Furniture and family keepsakes were destroyed. Businesses 
lost inventories. They could not serve their customers if the store was 
closed. Public drinking water system suffered damage, as did sewer 
systems. The economic devastation was high. The quality of life 
suffered. Increased spring water releases would also cause less water 
to be released during the summer months. The

[[Page 21224]]

lower river levels would halt river barge transportation. Barges are a 
key part of the agricultural transportation system. Loss of barge 
traffic would delivery the western part of America's great grain belt 
into the monopolistic hands of the rail roads. Iowa farmers have 
clearly told me that this is unacceptable.
  Loss of the use of barges to transport agricultural commodities will 
drive up farm transportation prices. That in turn will drive up the 
overall price of our agricultural goods that must compete in the 
international marketplace. This is unfair to our hardworking farmers, 
as it puts them in jeopardy of losing markets.
  While the farm crops travel down-river to reach markets, the loss of 
barge traffic would also affect bulk commodities and other items that 
travel up-river to Iowa. They include fertilizer for farm use, salt for 
highways in winter, steel for processing plants, and the like. The 
potential for moving cement for construction purposes would also be 
lost with lower summer water levels. I have talked to many Iowans who 
live along the Missouri River. They have told me of the devastation 
left from past floods. That devastation was more than economic. It 
produced heartache and broken dreams. Though Iowans are a strong 
people, the past floods have left their scars on individuals and in 
community life. Those Iowans have joined together on a nonpartisan 
basis to say, ``No more floods!'' That is the message for the President 
to consider as he deliberates on the energy and water appropriations 
bill. The President is in a powerful position to either do good or to 
inflict harm. It is almost as if he were actually God, able to exercise 
the power to flood or not to flood. That is how powerful he is on this 
issue. It is an awesome power that I hope that he uses wisely. It is my 
hope that he will decide to prevent flooding. It is my hope that he 
will listen to our farmers and not make their jobs more difficult than 
they already are. It is my hope that he will sign this bill.
  Mr. President, let the people live in their homes, work in their 
businesses and farm their farms in safety.
  Clearly, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has violated Federal law 
in its ordering of the Corps of Engineers to begin a spring flood. It 
ignored the process set forth in the Endangered Species Act. These 
processes are there to protect everyone, and they were not followed. It 
has also based much of its opinion on speculation, not facts. The 
President must depend upon facts and protect due process. H.R. 4733 is 
good legislation which should be signed into law. It does not deserve a 
veto. Mr. President, please sign this important legislation.
  President Clinton, one time, in private conversation with me, you 
told me how you understood the problems of the farmers more than most 
Presidents ever did because you had studied them so much.
  Mr. President, you have been in the White House 8 years. I do not 
know how long it has been since you have visited a supermarket. But 
remember, food grows on farms, it does not grow in supermarkets. You 
have an opportunity here to help the farmers in the States of Iowa, 
Nebraska, Kansas, and Missouri to be able to put their crops in in the 
spring, to be able to take those crops out in the fall, to be able to 
ship the harvest down the river when it is most needed, so that the 
farmers are not the captives of a monopolistic railroad if the barge 
traffic isn't there for competition.
  So, Mr. President, show us that you do, in fact, understand the 
problems of the farmers and sign this legislation.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor and suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Gorton). Without objection, it is so 
ordered.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I know Members are waiting to determine 
whether or not we are going to have a vote today. The majority leader 
has indicated we likely will have one. From the minority's perspective, 
we badly want to move to the Transportation appropriations bill which, 
as we speak, the House is discussing.
  But we have a number of Members who are rightfully unwilling to do 
that until we get the legislation and are able to look at the 
conference report, which we don't now have. I hope we can start talking 
about the conference report, with the hope of getting the actual 
document as soon as possible so that Senators can look at it.
  I know one Senator indicated he would like to be able to have a day 
to look at the conference report. I will check with this Senator and 
others to see if that can be expedited, if they have an opportunity to 
review the conference report.
  In short, the minority is saying that we are ready to move forward 
and we are willing, in the late days of the session, to expedite things 
as much as we can, but there are certain basic things we need to read, 
such as a bill or a conference report, before we vote on it.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Illinois is recognized.

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