[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 11]
[House]
[Pages 15163-15164]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




            NEW YORK CITY NATURAL GAS SUPPLY ENHANCEMENT ACT

  Mr. AMODEI. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and concur in 
the Senate amendment to the bill (H.R. 2606) to authorize the Secretary 
of the Interior to allow the construction and operation of natural gas 
pipeline facilities in the Gateway National Recreation Area, and for 
other purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the Senate amendment is as follows:

       Senate amendment:
       Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
     following:

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``New York City Natural Gas 
     Supply Enhancement Act''.

     SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act:
       (1) Permittee.--The term ``permittee'' means the 
     Transcontinental Gas Pipeline Company, LLC, (Transco), its 
     successors or assigns.
       (2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
     of the Interior.

     SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION FOR PERMIT.

       (a) In General.--The Secretary may issue permits for 
     rights-of-way or other necessary authorizations to allow the 
     permittee to construct, operate, and maintain a natural gas 
     pipeline and related facilities within the Gateway National 
     Recreation Area in New York, as described in Federal 
     Regulatory Commission Docket No. PF09-8.
       (b) Terms and Conditions.--A permit issued under this 
     section shall be--
       (1) consistent with the laws and regulations generally 
     applicable to utility rights-of-way within units of the 
     National Park System; and
       (2) subject to such terms and conditions as the Secretary 
     deems appropriate.
       (c) Fees.--The Secretary shall charge a fee for any permit 
     issued under this section. The fee shall be based on fair 
     market value and shall also provide for recovery of costs 
     incurred by the National Park Service associated with the 
     processing, issuance, and monitoring of the permit. The 
     Secretary shall retain any fees associated with the recovery 
     of costs.
       (d) Term.--Any permit issued under this section shall be 
     for a term of 10 years. The permit may be renewed at the 
     discretion of the Secretary in accordance with this section.

     SEC. 4. LEASE OF HISTORIC BUILDINGS AT FLOYD BENNETT FIELD.

       (a) In General.--The Secretary may enter into a non-
     competitive lease with the permittee to allow the occupancy 
     and use of buildings and associated property at Floyd Bennett 
     Field within the Gateway National Recreation Area to house 
     meter and regulating equipment and other equipment necessary 
     to the operation of the natural gas pipeline described in 
     section 3(a).
       (b) Terms and Conditions.--A lease entered into under this 
     section shall--
       (1) be in accordance with section 3(k) of the National Park 
     System General Authorities Act (16 U.S.C. 1a-2(k)), except 
     that the proceeds from rental payments may be used for 
     infrastructure needs, resource protection and restoration, 
     and visitor services at Gateway National Recreation Area; and
       (2) provide for the restoration and maintenance of the 
     buildings and associated property in accordance with section 
     106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (16 U.S.C. 
     470f) and applicable regulations and programmatic agreements.

     SEC. 5. ENFORCEMENT.

       The Secretary may impose citations or fines, or suspend or 
     revoke any authority under a permit or lease issued in 
     accordance with this Act for failure to comply with, or a 
     violation of any term or condition of such permit or lease.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Nevada (Mr. Amodei) and the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Grijalva) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Nevada.


                             General Leave

  Mr. AMODEI. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include 
extraneous materials on the bill under consideration.
  There was no objection.
  Mr. AMODEI. I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  H.R. 2606, introduced by Congressman Michael Grimm, authorizes 
construction of a lateral pipeline off the coast of New York City. The 
pipeline will pass under the Gateway National Recreation Area and 
deliver natural gas to residents of Brooklyn and Queens.
  Under current law, the National Park Service does not have the 
authority to approve the pipeline. Therefore, Congressman Grimm 
introduced H.R. 2606 to allow the project to move forward, benefiting 
not only New York residents but also visitors to the Gateway National 
Recreation Area.
  H.R. 2606 has bipartisan support and is supported by the National 
Park Service. The House approved this legislation in February. It has 
passed the

[[Page 15164]]

Senate with noncontroversial amendments, and we are now acting to send 
this to the President.
  I urge adoption of H.R. 2606 and reserve the balance of my time.

                              {time}  1230

  Mr. GRIJALVA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  We have no objection to the Senate amendments to H.R. 2606. As 
amended, this bill allows for the delivery of natural gas into an 
underserved area while also providing a revenue stream that will allow 
the National Park Service to rehabilitate important historic structures 
at Gateway National Recreation Area.
  We support enactment of H.R. 2606, as amended.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. AMODEI. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from the 
Empire State, Mr. Grimm.
  Mr. GRIMM. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague for all of 
his work on this as well.
  It is a great opportunity to speak on this bill, H.R. 2606, the New 
York City Natural Gas Supply Enhancement Act, which would authorize the 
Secretary of the Interior to allow the construction and operation of a 
natural gas pipeline facility in the New York portion of the Gateway 
National Recreation Area.
  I appreciate Chairman Hastings and Ranking Member Markey's support 
for the bill when it was first considered here in the House, and now as 
it is considered with the Senate modifications.
  Further, I wish to extend my sincerest appreciation to a good friend 
and my colleague from New York, Mr. Gregory Meeks. From start to 
finish, this bill has been a bipartisan effort and is an example of 
what exactly we can accomplish when we work together toward a common 
goal.
  This project will be the first bulk natural gas transmission project 
in Brooklyn, Staten Island, and Queens in more than 40 years. The 5.2 
million people living in these three boroughs are demanding more and 
more natural gas. Natural gas, as we all know, is reliable. It's clean, 
it's domestic, and it's economical.
  On September 15 of last year, New York City Deputy Mayor Cas Holloway 
testified before the National Parks Subcommittee in support of the 
Grimm-Meeks bill. I appreciate all of the courtesies shown to him on 
that day. In this testimony, the deputy mayor stated ``energy demand in 
New York City is increasing and will continue to grow.'' Therefore, 
getting the Gateway project done is a major effort that includes the 
private sector, the city, State, and Federal governments.
  The Gateway pipeline project will generate approximately $265 million 
in construction activity, create almost 300 local jobs, and bring in 
about $8 million in annual local revenue for the city of New York, 
providing much-needed short- and long-term boosts to our economy.
  Following House passage, my colleague Congressman Crowley praised the 
bill for reducing the use of two so-called dirtier fuels: No. 4 and No. 
6 oil. The Senate modification of H.R. 2606 resolves concerns raised by 
the National Park Service about the House bill and now has full 
National Park support, as well as that of the Partnership for New York 
City, the Regional Plan Association, organized labor, and Mayor 
Bloomberg.
  When I came to Congress, I promised my constituents in Staten Island 
and in Brooklyn that I would find fiscally conservative ways to create 
jobs and get our country moving again. Mr. Speaker, this bill does just 
that. Not only will it create a unique public-private partnership to 
revitalize Floyd Bennett Field, but it also creates well-paying jobs 
and it increases the supply of inexpensive natural gas, and does it all 
at absolutely no cost to the taxpayer, even bringing revenue to the 
Treasury.
  So, Mr. Speaker, I thank you again for the opportunity to speak in 
support of this bill. I urge my colleagues to support it.
  Mr. Speaker, thank you for the opportunity to speak in support of my 
bill, H.R. 2606, the New York City Natural Gas Supply Enhancement Act 
which would authorize the Secretary of Interior to allow the 
construction and operation of natural gas pipeline facilities in the 
New York portion of the Gateway National Recreation Area.
  I appreciate Chairman Hastings and Ranking Member Markey's support 
for the bill by when it was first considered by the House and now as we 
consider the Senate modification.
  Further, I wish to extend my sincerest appreciation to my friend and 
colleague from New York, Mr. Meeks. From start to finish this bill has 
been a bipartisan effort and an example of what we can accomplish when 
we work together towards a common goal.
  This project will be the first bulk natural gas transmission project 
in Brooklyn, Staten Island and Queens in more than 40 years. The 5.2 
million people living in these three boroughs are demanding more and 
more natural gas. Natural gas, as we all know, is reliable, clean, 
domestic and economical.
  On September 15 of last year, New York City Deputy Mayor Cas Holloway 
testified before the National Parks Subcommittee in support of the 
Grimm-Meeks bill and I appreciate all the courtesy shown him on that 
day.
  In his testimony Deputy Mayor Holloway stated the ``energy demand in 
New York City is increasing and will continue to grow'' and getting the 
Gateway project done ``is a major effort that includes the private 
sector, and the City, State, and Federal governments.''
  The Gateway pipeline project will generate approximately $265 million 
in construction activity, almost 300 local construction jobs, about $8 
million in annual local property taxes for New York City, providing a 
much-needed short-term and long-term boost to our economy.
  Following House passage, my colleague Congressman Crowley praised the 
bill for reducing the use of ``two dirtier fuels: number four and 
number six oil.''
  The Senate modification of H.R. 2606 resolves concerns raised by NPS 
about the House bill and has full NPS support as well as that of the 
Partnership for New York City, the Regional Plan Association, organized 
labor, and Mayor Bloomberg.
  When I came to Congress I promised my constituents on Staten Island 
and Brooklyn that I would find fiscally conservative ways to create 
jobs and get our country moving again. Mr. Speaker, this bill does just 
that. Not only will it create a unique public-private partnership to 
revitalize Floyd Bennett Field, but it also creates good paying jobs, 
increases our supply of inexpensive natural gas, and does it all at no 
cost to the taxpayer and even brings revenue into the Treasury.
  Mr. Speaker, thank you again for the opportunity to speak in support 
of the New York City Natural Gas Supply Enhancement Act. I urge my 
colleagues to support this bill.
  Mr. AMODEI. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Nevada (Mr. Amodei) that the House suspend the rules and 
concur in the Senate amendment to the bill, H.R. 2606.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the Senate amendment was concurred in.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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