[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 162 (2016), Part 4]
[House]
[Pages 5276-5277]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1215
                           FAMILIES OF FLINT

  (Mr. HIGGINS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)

[[Page 5277]]


  Mr. HIGGINS. Mr. Speaker, I am proud to cosponsor the Families of 
Flint bill, introduced by Mr. Kildee, who has been working tirelessly 
to help his community cope with the crisis there. It is our moral 
obligation to make sure that those families get the help they need.
  The tragedy in Flint has brought to light the danger of using lead 
pipes to deliver drinking water, particularly in older cities. 
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, 10 million American 
homes and buildings receive drinking water via pipes that contain lead, 
a known neurotoxin.
  The time to act is now, but Congress has cut infrastructure funding 
for this purpose. This year, Congress budgeted just $906 million for 
the safe drinking water fund. That is a cut of 34 percent compared to 
2010, and far below the $334 billion that is needed over the next 20 
years. We can do much better.
  I don't know whether a national lead pipe replacement program would 
have prevented the crisis in Flint, but I do know that without one, the 
next tragedy is inevitable.

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