[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 20]
[House]
[Pages 27369-27370]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




    WAIVING POINTS OF ORDER AGAINST CONFERENCE REPORT ON H.R. 3058, 
TRANSPORTATION, TREASURY, HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT, THE JUDICIARY, 
 THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, AND INDEPENDENT AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT 
                          FOR FISCAL YEAR 2006

  Mr. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART of Florida. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the 
Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 565 and ask for its 
immediate consideration.
  The Clerk read the resolution, as follows:

                              H. Res. 565

       Resolved, That upon adoption of this resolution it shall be 
     in order to consider the conference report to accompany the 
     bill (H.R. 3058) making appropriations for the Departments of 
     Transportation, Treasury, and Housing and Urban Development, 
     the Judiciary, District of Columbia, and independent agencies 
     for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2006, and for other 
     purposes. All points of order against the conference report 
     and against its consideration are waived. The conference 
     report shall be considered as read.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Florida (Mr. Lincoln 
Diaz-Balart) is recognized for 1 hour.
  Mr. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART of Florida. Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of 
debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentlewoman from 
California (Ms. Matsui), pending which I yield myself such time as I 
may consume. During consideration of this resolution, all time yielded 
is for the purpose of debate only.
  Mr. Speaker, House Resolution 565 is a standard, traditional rule for 
consideration of the conference report for the fiscal year 2006 
Departments of Transportation, Treasury, Housing and Urban Development, 
the Judiciary, District of Columbia, and Independent Agencies 
appropriations conference report. The rule waives all points of order 
against the conference report and against its consideration.
  The underlying legislation before us, Mr. Speaker, makes 
appropriations for

[[Page 27370]]

the departments that I have mentioned. The bill is fiscally sound. It 
represents our commitment to provide the necessary resources for 
programs and projects throughout the Nation ranging from transportation 
to housing and the judiciary and the Executive Office of the President 
and the District of Columbia.
  It is well-known that our transportation infrastructure is the 
backbone of the economy. Obviously, its continued strength is essential 
to economic growth, and the bill ensures that we continue to have a 
reliable and stable transportation infrastructure that will help the 
economy continue to grow.
  The bill includes almost $37 billion in funds for our highway system, 
an increase of $1.6 billion. These funds will serve the American people 
by contributing to a fast, safe, efficient, accessible and convenient 
highway system that meets the vital national interests and enhances the 
quality of life.
  The underlying legislation includes $13.8 billion for the Federal 
Aviation Administration. Included in this amount is $25 million to hire 
and train 595 new air traffic controllers. This is a vitally important 
aspect of this legislation and is critical as air traffic controllers 
begin to retire, and, nevertheless, air traffic continues to increase.
  Certainly in my district, home to Miami International Airport, the 
third largest international airport in the country, we are very well 
aware of how important the air traffic controllers are. Without an 
increase in the number of air traffic controllers, MIA would not be 
able to continue its projected growth to serve as really the hub of the 
Americas.
  Housing and Urban Development is funded at $34 billion. That is an 
increase of $2.1 billion over last year. The funds will permit the 
Department to administer programs that assist the public with housing 
needs, economic and community development, fair housing opportunities, 
and will also empower low- and moderate-income residents toward self-
sufficiency. Under HUD, the bill includes funding for such important 
programs as Tenant Based Rental Assistance, also known as section 8, 
and other important programs.
  H.R. 3058, Mr. Speaker, provides $5.8 billion for the Judiciary. It 
is an increase of 6 percent. This will fully fund the Judiciary's 
request for security improvements at Federal facilities and will enable 
the courts, obviously, to continue to effectively carry out their 
duties to guarantee the rule of law.
  This is a good bill, Mr. Speaker. I think it is essential to our 
continued commitment to our transportation needs and the needs 
obviously encompassed, dealt with, by the other departments that we are 
funding today.
  I want to thank Chairman Lewis, Chairman Knollenberg and everybody 
who has worked so hard on this legislation. I know it has been a tough, 
tough bill, and it has required a lot of work. I urge my colleagues to 
support both the rule and the underlying legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Florida for yielding me this 
time.
  Ms. MATSUI. Mr. Speaker, I yeild myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, we are considering a rule for H.R. 3058, which will 
appropriate funding for a broad section of the Federal Government, 
including the Departments of Transportation, Treasury, Housing and 
Urban Development, as well as the Federal judiciary and the District of 
Columbia. I commend all the conferees and particularly Chairman 
Knollenberg and Ranking Member Olver for their dedication to completing 
the conference report on this sprawling piece of legislation. It is a 
tremendous challenge to achieve consensus on such a broad range of 
priorities, and I believe this bill reflects outstanding leadership, 
considering the allotted resources for the job.
  I was particularly pleased with the final funding for Amtrak, 
especially when you consider where we started. While the original House 
bill provided funds at a level that would have decimated the Nation's 
passenger rail system, the conference report funding level will allow 
Amtrak to continue running its current operations. In my hometown of 
Sacramento, Amtrak is heavily relied upon, and I know my constituents 
will be relieved that the conferees have provided this funding.
  From the housing portion of the bill, I would like to highlight the 
importance of the Community Development Block Grant Program. CDBG is a 
highly effective program that provides the resources to improve, 
energize and revitalize communities across the Nation. Like hundreds of 
cities across the country, in Sacramento CDBG has enabled 
transformative improvements to downtown and the rest of the city. I 
thank the appropriators for recognizing the vital nature of CDBG in 
providing this funding.

                              {time}  0930

  Another vital community resource funded in this bill is the housing 
choice voucher program known as section 8. This program allows low-
income families, senior citizens and citizens with disabilities to 
obtain affordable housing.
  On several occasions, my constituents have told me that were it not 
for these vouchers, they would have faced the fear and uncertainty 
associated with not knowing if tomorrow you have someplace to call 
home. It is clear that this program makes a difference in people's 
lives. I hope that when we come back next year and start to put 
together the FY 2007 budget, we will remember the positive impact that 
these programs have on the lives of our constituents and all Americans.
  Even though we will again face limited resources, I hope that when 
the time comes to construct the budget, we will begin by determining 
who truly needs the government's help the most and which programs are 
most effective at delivering positive results. If we make that our top 
priority, I am sure this Congress and the Nation will be satisfied with 
the results.
  Again, I thank the appropriators for their hard work and leadership 
this year on this conference report and throughout the year. I hope my 
colleagues will support the rule and the underlying bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the 
balance of my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution.
  The previous question was ordered.
  The resolution was agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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