[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 11]
[House]
[Pages 14788-14789]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              WAR ON COAL

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from West 
Virginia (Mr. Jenkins) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. JENKINS of West Virginia. Mr. Speaker, coal communities 
throughout West Virginia and Appalachia are struggling. This 
administration's war on coal and market forces have combined to close 
coal mines and send thousands of coal miners to the unemployment lines.
  While we work to repeal onerous and overreaching regulations and 
reopen mines, we also need to diversify our economy. That means 
attracting new industries to our coal communities and creating new 
opportunities for investment.
  I have introduced, today, H.R. 6403, legislation that will help us do 
just

[[Page 14789]]

that. The Creating Opportunities for Rural Economies Act would allocate 
a portion of available new markets tax credits to be used for 
development in communities impacted by the downturn in coal.
  Over the next 3 years, it would mean $525 million in credits for 
heavily impacted communities in West Virginia and Appalachia. These tax 
credits can be used to help spur investment for new businesses. They 
can go toward developing new mixed-use facilities, food and grocery 
stores in underserved communities, manufacturing, healthcare services, 
and so much more.
  I want to thank Senator Shelley Moore Capito for her leadership in 
the Senate on this important issue and legislation. Our coal 
communities deserve our support and help as they work to diversify 
their economies.


                            Miners' Pensions

  Mr. JENKINS of West Virginia. Mr. Speaker, with only weeks left in 
this Congress--2, to be exact--our retired coal miners and widows are 
wondering if we will act to protect them. At the end of the year, the 
healthcare benefits for many miners and their widows will dry up, and 
their pensions could be cut in the months and years ahead.
  When they went down into the mines, they were made a promise: when 
you retire, you will have a good pension and healthcare benefits. Now 
that promise is in jeopardy. The pensions and benefits they worked 
their whole lives for are in jeopardy.
  Mr. Speaker, time is running out to do the right thing by our miners 
and their families. But we have a solution: the Coal Healthcare and 
Pensions Protection Act, legislation I am a proud cosponsor of. It is a 
bipartisan bill, and a similar bill is pending in the Senate.
  Congress needs to act to fulfill this promise, to keep our word to 
the miners of West Virginia and other coal States. These miners and 
their families deserve no less than what they worked their entire lives 
to earn: the peace of mind that comes with a pension.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to keep the promise and support 
this important legislation. Time is running out to stand up for our 
miners and their families.




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