[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 4]
[House]
[Page 4824]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               GE TRANSPORTATION RESTRUCTURING OPERATIONS

  (Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, GE Transportation, a 
division of General Electric, is a locomotive manufacturing facility in 
Lawrence Park, Erie County, which is located in Pennsylvania's Fifth 
Congressional District. The plant is one of the largest employers in 
the county with over 5,500 employees.
  Earlier today, GE announced its intent to restructure operations, 
which could result in over 950 employees being impacted--a tremendous 
loss for Erie County, especially for the individuals and families 
directly impacted. Company officials cited ``lower order and production 
volume within locomotive and mining businesses due to decreased coal 
demand'' as the justification for the decision.
  GE supplies locomotives to the freight-rail industry, which has 
relied more on coal than any other commodity. The announcement is 
another reminder of how the administration's regulatory agenda is 
impacting more and more businesses connected to the coal supply chain. 
Equally so, it raises questions as to what the Commonwealth of 
Pennsylvania can do to become more competitive and improve business 
retention.
  While this is a major upset and I am extremely disappointed, in 
moving forward we must pull together as a community and support those 
who have been affected by this decision.

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