kids who are in the plot on the uniform and serve our country and these are kids who i think deserve the senator's vote today angela kelley stephen cammarata thank you both for being here we appreciate it thank you for having me that does it for today's washington journal thank you for watching enjoy the rest of your day lord we gather here this morning representatives of millions to use your gifts of the power of words of debate and of laws to serve their needs yet we dare ask for even the awesome power of your spirit and so we pray rush upon us oh spirit of god from this time rush upon us like living water like leaping fire like fresh do an open window for this time rush upon us so holy spirit with wisdom and knowledge with understanding and counsel with wonder and recognition and all just in  time upon us so spirit of god in life giving words in songs for the powerless in a passion for service at this time rush upon us oh holy spirit this hopeful time this planning time this renewing time this new time this full time all the time rush upon us oh spirit of god the tears examiner journal of the last days proceeding and announces to the house her approval there pursuant to clause one of rule one the general stands approved the pledge of allegiance will be led by the gentleman from new that objection that speaker the congressional budget office just released at analysis that on top of the half a trillion dollars that we have already spent on the war in iraq will cost us another two trillion dollars over the next decade that includes five hundred sixty four million dollars of interest because every dime of this war in iraq has been borrowed from our children and from our grandchildren it will come to a greater cost than the cost of korean the vietnam war and all three theaters of operation in world war two boils down to about seven thousand dollars for every man woman and child and here we thought the only real sacrifice was being borne by our soldiers and their families were beginning to see the real implications for all of america in fact just last week the president vetoed a bill that would have cost thirty five billion dollars to but would have provided health care to ten news is there isn't any news that's right across all of iraq there were there were no fatalities and shootings in bombs going off and as the media is starting to recognize that we've turned the corner a winning the war in iraq this pressing question once again comes before the house and that is what are the democrats going to do with the bill that we've already passed that the senate's already passed to provide money for our veterans eighteen million dollars every day is being wasted for the last hundred thirty days because we won't bring this veterans funding bill back for final approval and has the votes what are we waiting for post traumatic stress syndrome veterans hospital veterans clinics we have to ask the democrat leadership why one hundred thirty day wait it's time for us to fund our veterans thank you you know back home and you'll be back  pay honor to my hometown the city of galesburg illinois for publicly speaking out against a crimes galesburg has a rich tradition of promoting equality for all of its citizens it was a stop on the underground railroad and home to the first anti slavery society in the state of illinois mayor gary smith recently declared october not in our town month an effort to combat violent but i was motivated crimes designed to cause fear and intimidation among an entire group of people the not in our town month proclamation states hate group shall not divide communities it also urges the residents of galesburg to join together to eliminate racism and violence and to declare that respect department the bill provides more than sen more than thirty seven billion for veterans programs this is four point four billion dollar increase over last year yet as pointed out earlier it's been over one hundred thirty days since the house passed the v a military construction funding yet they have refused to appoint conferees like the senate their counterparts has already done so at this point the bill can't move forward and be signed by the president by the democrats failure to move forward on this bill veterans are losing out six hundred million for post traumatic stress disorder care traumatic brain injury research and care four point one billion to through v a facilities hospitals and clinics and lastly four hundred eighty million for prosthetic research to help our wounded veterans retain a positive quality of life mr speaker we urge our democrat colleagues to move forward on this bill and have boiled our president our veterans day down the time is expired what purpose a gentleman from oregon arise to see this as the house for one minute without objection our hearts go out to the almost million people forced to flee their homes from wildfires in southern california at the same time a drought has gripped north carolina and georgia which in the long run may end up being as devastating these disasters are almost unimaginable except we've been there before like in southern california in two thousand two and two thirds of the development in the last ten years in southern california has been in areas we know are subject to wildfire what are we going to do about it the administration's refusal to deal meaningfully with gut local warming is the most glaring example of behaviors that dooms us to reruns for years to come georgia has no real plan to deal with its water and doesn't even know what supplies it can count upon and here in congress we fail to prioritize the right infrastructure and give billions of dollars for relief after a disaster and won't spend millions to invest in programs to protect before it happens i hope and pray that the message sinks in and that we use this disaster as a wake up call to get our act to speaker i rise this morning to express in behalf of california's congressional delegation our appreciation to our colleagues here in the house of representatives to the administration  secretary chertoff and director paulison and others in the administration who are at this moment on the ground in southern california and to the courageous firefighters and governor schwarzenegger and his entire team for all that is being done to deal with what has been described by one battalion chief in san diego california as the worst fire that the state has ever faced last night brian williams of n b c news said that the fact that nearly a million people have been evacuated from their homes means that this is the largest movement of people since the civil war we are going to go through some very difficult and challenging days ahead and to the firefighters to those who have suffered losses our thoughts and prayers are with you and again my appreciation to our colleagues who represent states across this country north carolina wyoming arizona idaho states all across this country arizona mr speaker that have stepped up to the plate to help us and i also want to express my appreciation is filled with losses fire what purpose gentleman from new jersey right one without objection mr speaker the bipartisanship authorization act out the support of all but two thirds of the u s senate nearly every u s governor and the all but lonely majority of the american people unfortunately it did not have the support spending and instead he proposes to spend just five billion dollars more than we do now on the chip program i quote it with a congressional budget office the president's plan will lead to more than eight hundred thousand children losing that coverage secret mission to address the house for one minute without objection thank you mr speaker i rise today in urge my colleagues to join with me in our colleague mr kirk in co sponsoring h r thirty nine zero one the emerald ash bore municipality assistance what is an emerald ash bore you may ask well it's a nasty little bug that has found its way onto our shores and has a very aggressive disposition towards ash trees in particular it's a native of china and there are no known natural predators here in the united states if you think of the districts that we all represent many of them have beautiful canopies of trees that line our streets and create wonderful natural ways all throughout our districts and yet this bug has shown up in illinois in my state indiana michigan ohio pennsylvania maryland and west virginia as one reach researcher of the morton arboretum which i represent said the emerald ash board doesn't just kill a majority of the ash trees it encounters it seems to kill them all this legislation creates a revolving loan fund whereby municipalities have access to those monies and they my colleagues on the republican side of the aisle chose to stand with president bush over the children it's disappointing that some of our colleagues stood with the president and stood with the smoke and mirrors campaign to distort what the what the s chip legislation was but this is not the end it is only the beginning of the effort of this congress to stand with american families to protect health care for our children democrats in this body will long with sixty eight members of the senate and forty three of our nation's governors and over eighty percent of the american public want this piece of legislation to move we're committed to ensuring that states have the resources and flexibility necessary to enroll these children mr speaker the american people governors many members of congress both democrat and republican were disappointed that more of our colleagues on the republican side of the aisle didn't vote to override the veto however we will give them the opportunity soon and often to change that vote stand with america's children and reject the president's veto with that i yield back gentleman yield back it's time for what purpose the gentle lady from tennessee wri without objection thank you mr speaker you know more than four months ago the house passed an appropriations bill designed to provide benefits for our soldiers and veterans h r twenty six forty two passed the house by an overwhelming four zero nine to two vote a similar bill went through the senate ninety two to one but since then nothing has happened it has been a hundred and thirty one days since we passed the legislation and still nothing has been sent to the president's desk for him to sign the senate appoint conferees to hammer out a compromise between the two bills six weeks ago but the house leadership nothing has been done the question is why why would the new majority play politics with the health care of our brave men and women in uniform there is no reason months into this fiscal year that the bill isn't resolved i ask all my colleagues all four hundred right and eight of them who voted for this bill to demand that the house appoint conferees stop doing nothing do what needs to be done to make the needs of our men and women in uniform i yell back and you'll great city of san francisco california to make the cause of international peace and security a global montra and launched the united nations it was a good idea then and sixty years later sixty do later years later it's still a good idea in a world that is tense with war the u n fights for peace every day where hunger plagues the poor the u n provides food aid to more than eighty million people every day every year in a hundred sixty six nations that sever devastating poverty the n offers proactive programs to buttress economic development and most important of all the u n deploys one hundred thousand peacekeepers around the world on missions vital to stabilization of regions under threat and conflict the answer to global distress is found in solving the problems that are the root causes of poverty the lack of health care shelter and education the un is the only organization worldwide dedicated to this grand mission i congratulate the united nations for its hard work and as the us mr speaker i rise to be in support of reauthorizing the children's health insurance program president bush as you know has callously denied health care for ten million poor children due to his misplaced priorities more than eight hundred thousand children in my home state of california depend on the healthy families program more than half of those children happen to be hispanic they help of millions of children will be endangered and millions more will continue to suffer if we do not  congress have an incredible opportunity to do what is right for our children if specially those children who are disadvantaged and come from low income families all children regardless of race income geography geography deserve a healthy start in life it's time to end this false allegation that undocumented immigrants are receiving this coverage ten million children are counting on us to do the right thing we have a moral obligation to protect the health and well being of all of our children i award one point one billion dollars in contracts to iranian and chinese companies to build a pair of enormous power plants that's what the iraqi minister of electricity said on tuesday word of the project prompted serious concerns among american military officials who fear that iranian commercial investments can mask military activities at a time of a heightened tension with iran mr speaker at a time when young americans are dying in iraq and when the u s is spending billions of dollars in iraq this makes absolutely no sense at all the elected iraqi electricity minister said that the uranium project would be built in sat a city a shiite enclave in baghdad that is controlled by followers of the anti american cleric  outsider he added that iran had also agreed to provide cheap electricity from its own grill to southern iraq and to build a large power plant essentially free of charge in an area between two shiite holy cities the expansion of  ties tween iraq and iran comes as the u s and iran clash on nuclear issues and about what american officials have repeatedly said it's already in support for on groups this is an outrage and should not stand so much time has expired what purpose does the gentleman from new york ri one without objection this is speaker earlier this week president bush proposed that our nation spend another one hundred ninety six billion dollars in iraq next year today we spend we will spend three hundred thirty million dollars fighting the war in iraq imagine that every day three hundred thirty million in text payer dollars is going to iraq just imagine for one moment what we could do here in the united states with that money instead we could hire an additional one thousand seven hundred border patrol agents to work our borders for an entire year we could provide health care to fifty thousand more veterans so they receive the essential health care treatment that they need we could enroll forty six thousand more children in head start four years so they can receive early childhood education if we took one day of funding from the iraq war we could help nearly eight hundred thousand families keep their heat on this winter through the light he program we could provide two hundred seventy thousand more children health care coverage through the chip program mr speaker while president bush has no problem sending billions of dollars to iraq he is neglecting essential needs here in america the democratic majority in this congress refuses provide health care coverage to ten million american children he said the spending was excessive the bipartisan bill invested thirty five billion more in children's health over a five year period three weeks later president bush announces that he need one hundred  ninety six billion to fight the war in iraq over the next year if thirty five billion for children's health is excessive what exactly is request for the war i know the president believes that congress is his personal a t m machine but article one of the constitution says different and we will not rubber stamp his funding request for the war as we have had in the past democrats will continue to exert pressure on the administration to change course in iraq so that we can begin to bring the troops home there's no military solution to the war yet the bush administration refuses to put pressure on the iraqi government to exert the political and that the political reforms that are necessary to bring about stability in the country and while we push the administration to change course in iraq we also remain firm in our conviction to pass the children's health care bill that covers ten million american children i yield back gentlemen just baucus time for what purpose does the gentleman from west virginia right mr speaker pursu printed in house report one can dash for all five is adopted and the bill as amended is considered red the gentleman from west virginia mr a hall and the gentleman from utah mr bishop well each control consume the gentleman is recognized today as america continues to grapple with the war and citizens throughout the united states deal with their daily struggles i think it is important for us to hearken back to our heritage and to celebrate our culture from the coal fields of southern west virginia to the land of lincoln in illinois from the austin reedy of niagara falls to the muscle shoals of alabama from the ho ground of the virginia piedmont where battles were fought to unify this nation to the santa cruz valley of new mexico this is the fabric of america this is her heartbeat let us take time to listen to it and to celebrate it the legislation we are considering today was introduced by my friend and colleague the gentleman from ohio to represent you ralph regular who has been a strong and effective advocate for heritage areas not only in the area he represents but also throughout the country and i commend and salute him for that leadership heritage areas have to preserve and geological history the natural history and the human history of an area in a comprehensive fashion so that we and our children will better understand how our land has shaped our history and how our history has shaped our land national heritage areas our local community driven preservation projects most of them arise out of the concerns of a core group of committed local folks who want to work together to preserve the places and resources that make their country our town or region unique the citizens bring their proposals to their elected representatives in congress because they need technical and planning assistance from their government and matching funds to uses seed money to help get their program off the ground and now twenty three years after the first national heritage area was designated the program is at a crossroads the congress can either provide the program with the tools and support it needs to continue maturing into a successful preservation model or the congress can turn our backs on heritage areas and leave local communities to fend for themselves as they try to save those things that make them special that make america special we are moving this legislation today because we support national heritage areas and we want to see them succeed ever since congress established the illinois and michigan canal national heritage corridor in one thousand nine hundred eighty four heritage tourism has been growing and today it is a significant economic engine these areas are worthwhile not only as a way to help local economies but also is a crucial tool for preserving our communities in our people's links to the past by providing federal recognition and financial support we encourage preservation and interpretation of important periods in our nation's history in a way that traditional units of the national park system cannot do our initial investment problems a pump if you will and ensures that those areas get a solid start toward financial an operational independence given that each federal dollar is matched by local funds the federal investment in the heritage area program is money well spent in addressing the rules committee monday my colleague mr regular noted that the eight million dollars federal investment made in his heritage area has yielded more than two hundred seventy million dollars and not on federal funding for affected local communities heritage areas are a program that works h r fourteen eighty three as amended would establish six new heritage areas increase of funding authorisation for non existing areas and make mostly technical changes in establishing legislation for several of those areas to be also includes a study the northern neck of virginia requested by our late colleague representative joanne davis bringing this bill before the house today a response to the frequent and energetic requests of numerous members both sides of the hour republicans and democrat in total eight h r fourteen eighty three includes bills that are co sponsored by dozens of members and both parties including the entire house delegation in illinois and new jersey we also had very helpful input from the administration on this legislation including details studies of the suitability of each new heritage area most of the changes being made to existing heritage areas were added at t request of the national park service this is a good bill mr speaker and i want to commend my colleague from ohio mr regular chris commitment and his leadership on heritage areas we support passage of fourteen eighty three and urges adoption by the house today and i reserve the balance of my time gentleman reserves the time gentleman from utah thank you mr speaker i'm actually saddened to arrive today on this particular bill of the sixteen heritage areas that are either can or existing or proposed many of them are very good things that i would readily support unfortunately they have been packaged into what the government but my high school students read called a christmas tree and a very real way in which bad proposals can be packaged around the few good proposals that are now here in hopes that people will tolerate the bad in hopes of getting in favorable recommendation from the good my state and most state legislatures would never have tolerated this time bill this bill would be split up in our state so that each proposal would stand on its own merits and go up or down unfortunately do not use that procedure here we ought to but we do not even in areas where something like an appropriations can be justified by lumping things together in an authorization it should not so mr speaker that is why i rise in opposition to h r fourteen eighty three when this bill was originally introduced it was nine heritage areas reach each giving each and additional ten million dollars now since the reauthorization on these nine regional areas does lapse until two thousand and twelve b or five years hence it was interesting why we're taking the time now to revisit these particular areas and even though some of these areas are simple technical corrections and changes for most of the peers that the reason we're doing it again is because they've gone through their money and they want more it is difficult have this proposal that the process of a heritage area supposed become self sufficient is somewhat of an affront to heritage areas that are trying to become self sufficient and break themselves from federal defense dependence in one thousand nine hundred four when these same nine areas were being discussed the democrats hero of heritage areas the advocate the chairman of the then subcommittee the late bruce vento stated there is a limit to the length of time or the amount of money the federal government can be in a heritage area not totally grammatical but you get the point of what he was trying to say he went on to say in ten years we are out of there then they are on their own and we get the benefit of that conservation thirteen years later that has not been the case in fact is been said that for every dollar they spend on these heritage areas there's a ten or twenty dollar from the private sector that comes back to it sounds like a great return our investment if it could be independently verified in fact during the hearings on these this the national park service testified that no herod jerry has become self sufficient and unfortunate gets worse the heritage area alliance the association with represent all heritage area has now told us in committee hearing that they should never become self sufficient and they should always rely on continuous federal appropriations for every heritage and in fact the heritage area alliance has become a cottage industry where groups get get grants from the federal government to go around telling other people how to get more grants from the federal government and this performance we're now wishing to reward while a public private partnership genuine positive results this program has taken a life of its own and the resource committee of the amended bill was amended to cut back additional funds to existing heritage areas from ten million to five mi i compliment chairman greg hall the for his amendment and the right of the chairman of the full committee for accepting it it's like taking the bulbs of the balls off the bottom branches of the christmas tree so the cat won't play with it and after having taken that positive step they unfortunately then reversed course and tacked on six new heritage areas they have had hearings but in fairness only one of them has gone through the regular order that the chairman the full committee established when we first met together this year they also the democrats decided to make changes that were never part of the hearing the new heritage areas will now receive fifteen million dollars each up from the tan that they requested it's great and lucky to receive a fifty percent bonus even without asking for this gracious move by the democrats means the total cost of this bill is now one hundred and thirty five million dollars some of our committee say that that was a paltry sum but one hundred thirty five million is the total annual federal income tax paid by thirty three thousand two hundred seventy six middle class taxpayers and this is how we can wring responsible for their particular money we have some problems concerned with some of the subtitles included in this new omnibus christmas tree bill journey through the house and grand heritage area it's been diligent sought by my my colleague from virginia mr wolf i can man him for his dedication this cause and there is much of his his proposed area that i like and i pod however one of the problems still is that there are issues that still persist there is both support and opposition within this proposed area two of our colleagues have asked that their particular congressional district be removed from this designation in committee and a memo was offered to remove their districts but it was rejected and because this is a closed rule our colleagues do not have the opportunity of coming down here on the floor of the house presenting their reasons why they wish to be withdrawn from this particular district we should not take federal designations lightly when we create a federal designation a member of whom who is  to that should be respected in his particular wishes we were told that this would destroy the continuity of this of this heritage area well this heritage area spans four states and it's supposed to still be locally operated one must ask how a virginia based management and of the will represent the local interests of four states so the legitimate question but the bottom line we still should respect our colleagues privilege to represent their constituencies there's been criticism that private property protections in this bill inadequate the majority claims that the protections in this bill are sufficient because it states that participation is voluntary volunteer if two of our members want to ballance or an opt out of this particular bill and are not allowed to do so how will any property owner sitting in one of these new proposed districts get any kind of company confidence that they are safe when it is not ballance harry for any member to move remove their districts from these types of recommendations in the resource committee i offered an amendment that would have simply provided for the right of private property owners to withdraw his or her land from a heritage area boundary this is the exact same provision that's been on the twelve prior heritage area this is the same provision that mr wolf added in his bill and was taken out by the committee up even though he objected to the removal of that language from his own particular provision why are we treating these heritage areas different than the precedent we have stablished for the other heritage areas it is not an additional burden to the management it would go a long way to assuring constituents that their rights would be protected unfortunately the men that was a feed it again because the democrats claimed their language was sufficient an argument that has proved inaccurate on other occasions in light the infamous hilo decision we need to be extra cautious in the house when we deliberate on property rights the other side will claim that there is no risk to property rights well i hope that is correct we need to be very sure because boundaries have a consequence or why should we have the proponents of this bill on the one hand say we need boundaries protect heritage historical properties but on the other hand there is no regulatory authority you can't have it both ways it is an invitation to lawsuits we've already seen cases brought to bright to opt out of the boundary we proposed would have prevented this type of situation in the future in some respects this legislation is simply not ready for prime time the muscle sculls proposal which is another one i'd like a lot i think  has good but has not yet completed its feasibility study in other words we don't have the assurances heritage area get off the ground before we wish to actually make the check more than we were promised in this particular bill that there would be a map included if you see in the self executing rule of the rules committee they put a number in place that used to be a blank small little detail but we have not been provided with a map of what the boundaries of this new heritage actually are so how can we tell people they can be there is another there is another area in this bill that was created a nag or falls region at the behest of the very powerful chairwoman of the rules committee is slaughter proponents claim that it's needed to protect the faults protect the falls from want what potential harm to the falls can be protected by the provisions of this particular bill remember proponents say there are no restrictions or regulations imposed perhaps a totally unique commission that is established in this portion of the  a secretary of interior creating a new entity staffing with federal employees and paying for it can find the answer that particular question there is little more in this particular provision than using the national park service to conduct economic redevelopment project the park service does not have the expertise or the funds or the desire to be burdened with this subject at the center of the economic development plan for an iron falls is a new casino maybe the agra falls honeymoons gambling there may be a nexus there somewhere for us but while the state of new york has the right to pursue casinos and help its develop it's inappropriate to use national heritage areas to promote the casino an amendment was offered when the niagara falls heritage bill originally went to the committee to put a firewall between the federal funds in this bill and the casino committee democrats rejected again this simple amendment wherever mike whatever my colleagues feel on the issue of gaming is irrelevant we should all agree though that this is not an appropriate use of federal funds especially when one area is given an advantage over the other finding mr chairman concerns have been raised that these heritage areas and their boundaries may be used to impede the placement of energy transmission lines while this may not be the full intent of the sponsors we must proceed cautiously before we further damage our ability to keep up with the demand for energy in the grid is already heavily taxed and would be a tragedy to see block blackout as an unintended consequence of these designations chairman because we did not have an opportunity to improve this bill by amendment with closed rules i have to urge my colleagues to oppose this legislation unfortunately i reserve the balance of my time gentleman reserves this time gentleman from west virginia mr speaker i am honored to disappoint to yield to the gentle lady that the gentleman from utah has already referenced the chair lady of our powerful house rules committee the gentlewoman from new york representative louise slaughter has been a true fighter for niagara falls national heritage area t existing national heritage areas most important to me and my district and i think to the country the bill authorizes the creation of the niagara falls heritage area is truly is a monumental day for the city of niagara falls and surrounding communities in the millions of people who visit niagara falls each year every time i drive across my congressional district i am reminded of a fortunate i am to represent such a beautiful part of the country who shores of lake ontario to our vineyards and apple orchards mother nature has bestowed some of her fine treasures upon western new york but none is as widely recognized in home and around the world as niagara falls every year was fifteen million people travel to  take in this all inspiring natural phenomenon it is high time mr speaker that the national treasures that are and i will fall and then i agree river be granted the official status they are wrong deserve that of a national heritage area niagara falls has always been a source of energy for our region i don't need to remind you that is the foremost sorts of agra like power in north america as well as the birthplace of modern hydroelectric power just built on help to solidify and  standing is something more an engine for the revitalization promotion of our region's national historic in c resources to residents and visitors alike and we are not ashamed of that we have  obviously one of the areas the country most devastated the canonically as you know that here it is air gary designation ties together private and public lands linked by geography and history with the approval of this designation the national park service will assist our local and state organizations to develop and implement a plane and to conserve and promote niagara's natural act of the niagara falls is one of the seven natural wonders the world we should all gentleman from utah i would be happy to yield three minutes to the sponsor of this particular bill the gentleman from ohio the conclusion of which it would be very nice if the other side yielding time i could spend all day on this i've had ten years of experience with this with a quarter heritage corridor and it's been such a tremendous asset as a matter of fact our chamber camors brought in an expert on economic development as to what we could do to keep young families in our community and she said your number one asset see corridor the trail because the young families want to use it and they do use it and putting a human face on it not only young families and i see them all the time out on the towpath with their bicycles with their family groups but i see handicapped people who are trying their will bears down the trail so they too can benefit from the value open space a touch of environment and touch of nature it's a triffitt gas set in our community over three million people use it in terms of cost and by the way this is is an authorization so let's not be confused here by the what it costs and will be a decision for the appropriations committees to make as to how much they want to commit all this does is authorize this  expenditure but what we've found is that we get a huge outpouring of community support foundations village councils private individuals who support this we've raised for every dollar federal support there's probably been ten dollars of local community involvement because they appreciate the recreational value they appreciate the fallow family values that come from using these facilities they appreciate what it means to have this kind of thing in our community the high in erie canal towpath is was originally there as part of the canal system that brought prosperity joe ohio many years ago and fact we had a system a canals that were the original riginal expressways of yesteryear and it started with george washington and john quincy adams who pushed this  people and of course we all know about the granddaddy of all canals the scieno canal this was saved it was originally designated to be a highway the highway folks this is wonderful we've got one hundred sixty miles here of corridor where the canal and the towpath run so we'll put a highway on it and justice william o douglas got the washington press corps together and said ok come with me we'll hike this piece of history and they did i suppose that was a little strenuous at the time but they managed it and they wrote such glowing ita torrijos about it that they was preserved and it's today it's the scieno can now national park way and all you need to do is go out here on a sunday afternoon or for any weekday weekday and you see people thousands of people from the city of washington in the area using the scieno canal for recreation for an understanding of environment for an understanding of history it's a terrific asset and i think what we're saying here is that other communities want to preserve their heritage carders to tell the story of how their communities were built originally and this was the case in ohio but you get all these additional benefits of of help walking and bicycling on a on a towpath the benefits of being tied together as a family the benefits of having a community asset and you know as mentioned about the cost but i don't think we are ready to charge for yellowstone or gettysburg we preserve these things and it's part of the national responsibility to preserve these historic artifacts and places that are very much a part of our nation's history so i would urge my colleagues to support support this management to my very good friend then dear colleague the gentleman from peoria illinois mr regular who does whose bipartisan nature and friendly relations we're going to truly miss in this congress next year fourteen eighty three legislation to amend the ominous parks and public lands management act to establish six new national heritage areas including one running through my congressional district known as the abraham lincoln national heritage area mr speaker i believe the establishment of heritage areas provides us with a unique opportunity to take a closer look at some of the most culturally significant areas of our country as a former schoolteacher i believe very strongly in the need to study the past in order to understand how we got to where we are today many of the issues that shaped president lincoln's legacy are still relevant today and it's worthwhile to continue to explore these issues the establishment of the abraham lincoln national heritage area within this bill would accomplish these goals the purpose of creating this national heritage area in illinois to manage study and promote lincoln's related historical sites to sites scattered throughout central illinois landscape are countless places where lincoln traveled and lived as children we are taught the basic history of our country including the basic fact of president lincoln's life and legacy what the history books books usually don't teach are the experiences and events that shaped president lincoln and made him the man he became by designating  we can tie these many lincoln sites together in order to create a tapestry that will allow us to better understand the influences that shaped president lincoln's life during my time in congress i've had the unique honor of representing all eleven counties that originally formed abraham lincoln's congressional district when he served one term in this very house the year two thousand represents the two hundredth anniversary of president lincoln's birth and as a co chair of the abraham lincoln bicentennial commission which is in charge of celebrating this of the what a better way to honor one of the most prominent figures in american history who affected millions of lives and preserving and studying for those places where he lived and worked in that had a profound effect on his later life urge my colleagues to support this important legislation as it will lead to an opportunity for all in illinois and all in our country to really have a better understanding of president lincoln i yield back gentleman yield back a time gentleman little bit more generous than last time with their giving him some additional time i beg your pardon it's your saturday out it's you should be out in the time totally but i'll be glad you know the jumma for jan you know who has been very instrumental to crafting this help and is support and your staff also an honor mr regular who has probably made such an impact on these issues over the many many many years i rise is strong support of this the journey through hell the ground is hallowed ground it begins with money chello where jefferson cam out of a rojos word that all men are created equal endowed by their creator ronald reagan said those words were a covenant a covenant with not only americans but with the entire world then we move because when you walk in one day twenty eighth thousand people died and then we move up the gettysburg get us work where president lincoln probably the greatest or second greatest president after president washington gave that famous speech that make sure the union came together this is hallowed ground it is areas that we have helped define ourselves in who we are and why we are who we are also in this area is montrose house oco kill montpelier shame we will bring upon ourselves if we destroy them for those who have the checked nothing this is what the bill says nothing in the subtitle alters any duly adopted land use regulation approved land use plan or other regulatory authority of any federal state tribal or local agency it goes on to say nothing in the subtitle conveys any land use or any regulatory authority any local or coronated entity in the bottom line is this bill cannot and does not affect the rights of any property owner in closing let me say here's what lincoln said when lincoln was in this area he said we cannot dedicate we cannot concentrate consecrate we cannot hallow this ground the brave m living and dead who struggle here have how that far above our poor power to add or detract this region in this area is sacred it is hello i strongly urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle please pass this well so we can preserve and protect and promote together to educate our young people so when they hear the word antietam they understood what took place when they hear about get is broke they understood what took place when they read the of these park issues and all these important preservation issues over the many many years and you know back to balance a gentleman yield back a time gentleman from west virginia misspeak or you know dad to m six i would like to applaud chairman right hall and his commitment to preserving our nation's heritage i would also like to thank subcommittee chairman greg hall the and members of the national parks forests and public land subcommittee for their consideration of this important legislation also i would like to congratulate mr regular for his leadership over many years and offering today yes basic underlying bill there's been some harsh criticism of this process my area the muscle shoals national heritage area is one of the six new heritage areas included in this bill this process has worked the way i would assume a process like this should work it has taken us two years to bring our counties together six counties in the northwest corner of alabama the birthplace of helen keller the birthplace of w c handy there's so much rich history there but we have not had the opportunity to partner with  private sector to develop a management plan a feasibility study to come up with a management into tea that could further the issues that we want to help preserve for our area this whole process has allowed us to do that and i think that's the way this process should work look we will have the public sector much more involved with us we have a helen keller festival every year at her birthplace abi green they are her home is deteriorated it is a an embarrassment to the country it's an embarrassment to our area how much it's deteriorated but now the public and private sector are coming together to preserve that home place and to make sure that the festival that honors her heritage there is one that's carried on in surroundings that it should be carried on as i said earlier about the process woman there nancy got steamed with the university of north alabama and brought together resources from all over that section of alabama to make sure that we had the chance to have this national heritage area determined there i congratulate this process and urge the passage of this bill you'll back balance a bo manuals back a time telamon from utah i'm pleased to yield the gentleman from maryland five minutes gentleman from maryland is recognized for five minutes without objection thank you very much for your olding mr speaker i rise in opposition to h r fourteen eighty three and urge my colleagues to vote no on this bill the journey through hallowed ground is not mr  democrat substitute bill has been added to a larger bill h r fourteen eighty three that is also a democrat and substitute bill h r fourteen eighty three vs likes a big government big spending philosophy that tramples over tax payers interest and private property rights as have pledged and considered fundamental by revier american leaders such as thomas jefferson and abraham lincoln what's more it is being brought up under a close rule an amendment i offered to ensure a majority voting control of my congressional district residents over decisions by management and of these affecting sites in their district located within heritage area this was rejected i was an enthusiastic supporter of the establishment of the journey through hallowed ground when it was perceived as a collective marketing effort but gee what a great idea to include in one marketing effort all these grand historic sites in these four states many of which are grand name for it the journey through hallowed ground in fact this was such a great idea with such a fantastic name that i was a little embarrassed when i thought to myself gee roscoe why didn't you think of that such a great idea and then regrettably it's metamorphosed into this they government spending bill and if you read the fine print in this bill you will see that that there is a virginia based virginia control designated management entity that has an exclusive vision that i don't think is consistent with most of the voters in my district i can still leave stated and testified in both september twenty eighth two thousand and six and march eighth two thousand and seven that any federal legislation to create the journey through hallowed ground heritage area should retain local control of its management by marylanders concerning sites in maryland i also believe that if the value of land is reduced to the result of actions by the management entity or local zoning ordinances for instance then affected property owners should be compensated at fair market value only think this mr speaker this is a requirement of the fifth amendment of the constitution we have taken value from their land and we need to compensate them for that we almost never ever do that if the fifth amendment the constitution were in fact honored most of government would be bankrupt because they couldn't pay for the value they taken from their taxpayers land it is unwarranted to spend fifteen million dollars of taxpayers money protect and promote the ground this is such a great idea there is plenty of money out there in the private sector we don't need federal money to do this supporters of h r four hundred eighty three have consistently refused to incorporate protections of tax payers and private property owners that is why i introduced an alternate bill h r twelve seventy and approved an amendment to remove the sixth district of maryland if we couldn't have majority voting rights that was defeated in committee on a party line vote actions by management entities and one hundred thirty five million taxpayers money that will be matched and spent by management entities speak louder than the weak and toothless language and section two thousand and nine let me just quote a couple of things from some outside groups that have looked at this first from americans for tax reform property rights alert they say we are all members to side with americans and protect the right of land use by voting no in h r fourteen eighty three from the national taxpayers union and to you are just all members to vote no on h r fourteen eighty three and two you congress from the heritage foundation and a report that they issued called national heritage areas costly economic development schemes that threaten property rights backgrounder two thousand and eighty in fact they say non national park service funds amount to nearly seventy percent of the cost associated with the national heritage areas this pattern continues h r four hundred eighty three would lead to an additional two hundred seventy million dollars in n h a spending by federal state local and not for profit entities one of th controversial aspects of h r four hundred eighty three they say is the establishment of the journey through hallowed ground in my district effort is sponsored and promoted mainly by two factions virginia based environmental groups with a long history of opposition to most residential or to force it into directions agreeable to those who guide the management of the and ha let me review members may be concerned that h r fourteen eighty three would want increased federal funding by fifty percent from ten million to fifteen million for a national heritage area and i'm out neither requested nor reviewed and hearings with total additional federal spending of one hundred thirty five million dollars to it would expand the boundaries of three existing national heritage areas and additionally create six new national heritage areas including the journey through hell and ground and ended at a total initial authorization of ninety million dollars and it would reauthorize increase and extend federal funding for nine existing national heritage areas through two thousand and twelve at additional cost of forty five million dollars all of our nation's founders knew of the intimate connection between personal liberty taxpayers interest and property right h r fourteen eighty three tramples over rather than honors these how load princip speaker i i thank the gentleman from west virginia for yielding time and for his dedicated leadership of the resources committee mr speaker i rise in strong support of h r fourteen eighty three but i will address my specific comments the subtitle d of title two which authorizes the freedoms away national heritage area mr speaker new england provided for of our and regional thirteen states been long associated with our nation's formative years our major social and intellectual movements and of course great national natural beauty the area that comprises the proposed freedoms way national heritage area which is included in this bill has provided the backdrop for many of the events and movements achieved america freedom's way includes thirty seven communities in massachusetts and eight in new hampshire that are historically rich freedom's white chronicles and it celebrates the revolutionary war stories of lexington and concord additionally the free religious expression and social movements of the shakers in the transcendentalists had their roots in the region the area also hosted the social justice and social criticism development found in the writings of emerson little hawthorne aka fuller and thorough and finally the movements for the both abolition of slavery women's rights and environmental conservation all have roots within the boundary of freedoms away the proposed it's initiative and bodies the national park services criteria for national heritage areas it will conserve historic cultural scenic and natural resources for the benefit of current and future generations the idea has received widespread support from local residents and has the support from every member of the house whose district includes a portion of the proposed area with this designation the communities included will benefit from better resources to create a cohesive learning experience using the natural setting and historical and cultural artifacts to tell the story of american democracy i urge committee mr young of alaska who is not here today as well as to introduce a letter signed by a hundred and ten organizations intern property rights posed to this particular bill including such groups as the taxpayers union cat a supervisor affected area property rights foundation family research council and a mayor in my district without objection that i reserve general reserve this time senator from west virginia mr speaker and with the development of such a strong legislation of this nature it obviously takes a lot of work by members staffers on both sad the owl and by members of the originating committee are can be our natural resources as well one of those gentlemen has taken the reins of leadership th  for the time and i'm pleased to be here to support h r forty three as chairman of the subcommittee but also supported the the the larger heritage area bill one section in particular that applies to my community is the designation of a new heritage area in the center cruz valley of arizona the santa cruz valley has national significance and deserves this recognition this designation would bring  highlight what is a shared border with mexico the sadequee valley encompasses many diverse cultures histories including native peoples which dates back thirteen thousand years the descendants of spanish mexican american territorial settle settle settlements and settlers who shaped the region its land its customs and its traditions from beyond sixty ninety to the present day for me at the important designation i grew of on a ranch canola ranch that is located within the santa cruz rally it's because it's a historic let ranch been designated as such and presently is being renovated to bring and highlight what that life was ranch life was in the eighteen hundreds and one thousand nine hundred the towns and cities of the santa cruz valley support this the amount of support that this proposal has is truly outstanding and i want to say something not only about the santa cruz valley and it importance but i think it transcends the discussion that we're having about heritage areas heritage areas through the designation is also a recognition of a mosaic a mosaic of history people traditions the environment a mosaic that shakes this country and each one is different and diverse as it is our nation and that to get to a designation point takes a great deal of work and cooperation among communities and peoples and that's what we're a knowledging with heritage area the work that went into it the diversity of this great nation of ours and the mosaic that that made this nation of ours special and privileged as it is in the world speaker i think also i'd like to say that we're going to hear things about taking property rights the cost a g a o study was commissioned and many of the organizations who have been submitted for the record  private right private property rights advocates were solicited to provide specific examples where heritage areas did indeed interfere with take or prohibit the use of someone's private property not one instance came up in that in that study just to reaffirm that these projects are these heritage areas are cooperative bipartisan and truly deserving of the designations i want to thank the chairman for the entire bill and yield back the balance of my time gentleman yield back the time gentleman from utah mr speaker the g a o report to which was just reference one of those unique things not wishing to actually criticize the federal government for what they do but in the entire report not one property owner was interviewed not a single property attorney was interviewed nor realtor nor appraiser nor local zoning officials simply put their report neglected to ask those who actually know what the impact of the set of a heritage area has on the property rights and mr chairman for yielding it's a pleasure to rise as a former member of this committee and to grass congratulate the chairman and the ranking member and the fellow committee members for bringing this bill to the floor much of the committee work in the past i think was focused a lot on the federal lands in the west this bill interesting unless focuses on land mostly west east of the mississippi congressional authorization is essential to sound management of these important places but this just isn't about land designation it's about the beauty and heritage of american spirit our cultural spirit as co chair of the house tourism caucus we've learned that we need to increase travel in this country particularly to outreaching to foreign visitors because the image of the world right now the image of the united states around the world is not that good however visitors coming to this country seeing this beautiful land and meeting the people in this country and looking at our history and our sort of that that beauty of what i think is so is of the best culture in the world the american spirit and it can only be done by showing in places that we preserved so that it's just not all sort of sprawled out urban ism and these special places need to be protected because they need the guidance of a good governor government structure like the federal government along in partnership with state and local government and i  want to so shape myself with the words of of the other speakers about the long involved in land use planning and land use and there's never been a eminent domain and taking of this land in fact the prices if they do buy them are great upon by the land o and their greed upon without having to have any disputes so i think it's worked very very well america is a beautiful place but it's beautiful beauty is not just in its scenery it's also in its people and the people's heritage i urge my colleagues to authorize the celebration of america's great asset this bill the heritage of our people back a time gentleman from utah on this this is the people's bill because it's what it does is allows the local communities to develop their heritage legacy as mr wolfe pointed out the historic carter says  was pointed out also by mr la hood it would bring these things to life that would bring these battlefields to life to understand what happened there and how important that is to our nation's heritage as  decision to make these things work is up to the people in our own experience as i say we've raised over two hundred fifty million private dollars to match something like eight or nine million of federal dollars but putting the permanent perimeter on this gives it a certain status that allows foundations that allows private individuals to contribute to making these cards a success and as i said earlier it enhanced his family values it enhanced his property values it enhances understanding never forget going out and when he had a group of students from the inner city as part of a summer work program cleaning up this right of way where we now have the towpath in east two fellows for the first time in our life saw turtle it was a whole new experience for him and i said to him keep your finger out of that turtles m and but it illustrates how these are so much a part of once heritage to understand environmental values to understand historical value is to understand what is made is nation reserve the right clothes that i'm prepared to close as well that's ok if you are from utah we have as i said the very beginning of this particular debate on this particular bill there are elements of this bill that i fully support and i think are wise good moves forward there are some things in there that simply are not we have talked a lot and heard a lot about some of the better parts of this bill however we're talking about heritage areas and i'm sorry in all due respect  casino as a heritage area for for niagara falls those are some of the structures that we have in this particular element when we had our committee hearing there were several people that were talking about the need for these new heritage areas one particular one particular  individual who was testifying told of the importance of having this federal designation so i try to zero in on that and ask what it is specifically about this designation that cannot be done by local levels by state government a local entity give me one thing that cannot be done and only the federal government can do it there was not one element it was given till someone behind me simply measured that the correct answer is there are fifteen million reasons why you have this designation and each one has a portrait of george washington on it we have all been lobbied on this bill even though lobbying is not allowed in this bill we have tried to put amendments into this pertain to this in the provisions of these parts that would clarify clarify that lobbying could not be used by this federal money going to these entities and yet the chairman argument against this what it would be making it too difficult for hitler have heritage areas to then ask for money had we not have a cab a closed rule some common sense changes as as for example where the map actually is should there be a law being allowed should there be a real protection for private property owners should we actually define what these are they would have been allowed to be discussed and lease voted on this particular bill and fortune the rules committee cut out that opportunity and now we're here with a close bill many my colleagues who did not serve on the resources committee may not be aware that the department does not support these bills each and every heritage area that we've had recommended to the committee the department has asked the committee to the further action until  tyria for heritage areas is established and i can see why some of the firmament makes sense perhaps we wouldn't be here debating heritage areas that have not yet finished their feasibility studies or had their maps paired and we listen to that advice lot of good things but this is still a classic christmas tree with a lot of bad things that are hidden by the good ones urge my colleagues not to support this omnibus lands bill this christmas tree of lands bill simply because there are too many bad things that need to be fixed before it moves on and with that i will yield back the balance of my time gentleman yield back the time to learn from west virginia mr speaker and some ation you know these are not good times for the ratings of the united states congress in the public opinion polls we all know that in this body yet i think if congress would if the american people read it would see congress in action this very moment if those poll ratings might very well go up we seen examples on this legislation of members on both sides of the alley in a bipartisan nonpartisan manner working to preserve what is the best of america  look at the gentleman from ohio mr regular i like the gentleman from virginia mr wolf i look the gentleman from illinois mr loued on the other side of the al and i look at the many members on this saturday are from different parts of the country south north west that have joined together in bringing this legislation to the floor today yes we have respectful disagreements and i respect the gentleman from utah as a position but we also have worked very hard and what i think the american people want to see and that is a nonpartisan effort to solve this country's problems now if you looked up the word red herring in which webster's dictionary definition would be the property rights arguments that the critics of this bill are using against this legislation heritage areas have no regulatory authority over sixty million americans live in heritage areas in stier state of tennessee for example the entire state of tennessee is a heritage area almost my entire congressional district is a heritage area there's been no impacts on private property rights mining road building economic development i believe we've done quite well in each of those areas in my congressional district most of which is a heritage area those that have expressed concern about property provisions in this bill let me be clear in the twenty years plus of this program's existence opponents have not been able to identify one single instance in which someone has been deprived of the use of their property as a result of such designations that were considered in this bill and nevertheless as the gentleman from virginia mr wolf has quoted we do in this legislation provide extensive property private property provisions these private property protections are the same language approved by the senate the same language proposed by the administration and heritage area systems bills under consideration and this congress and the same language included in heritage areas bill is passed by the previous congress under the other party's control the history this program as we have seen in repeated debate on the floor and in committee not to mention the g a o report which has been referenced have proven that there are simply no legitimate private property rights issues here it's time to stop this move on stop flogging this dead horse and bringing up this red herring now the gentleman from utah mentioned our late colleague gentleman that was elected to congress with me the light representing bruce vento the former chairman of the park subcommittee and the general from utah mentioned that he did not intend for the federal and heritage areas to last longer than ten years i am reasonably sure however that our late colleague did not foresee these areas having to contend with close to ninety dollars a barrel oil and the other increase in costs i might add that the numerous heritage areas created under the public and congresses that were all authorized for fifteen years we have provided an increase in authorized funding for heritage areas to ensure that heritage areas have enough funds to get on their feet so the issue here is not private property rights issues not gaming these areas the issue is not earmarks i would say to m colleagues imagine for example if yellowstone national park did not exist and members of congress introduce legislation to provide for such a crown jewel of our national park system would that be ca earmark the issues not lobbying by local people who are local legislators they have a right to try to secure that additional state and local funding necessary to match federal funding we provide protections federal law prohibits any other lobbying by local groups so the issue is act include mr speaker is not about earmarking not about lobby and not about private property rights it's about the american people and protection of what is theirs and providing our american people a place in which they can take their families can spend quality time of life in these times when it's so hard to spend quantity time together that they spend quality time together and that's what we're talking about in this legislation that's what we're talking about in our heritage areas in america's heritage so act conclude by urging my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to continue the nonpartisan bipartisan spirit that has brought this  house a following and rolled bill the question is on grossman and third reading part report h r three twenty seven and act a man title thirty eight yes report the motion in its entirety mr bishop if you thought on this to recommit to bill h r fourteen eighty three to the committee on natural resources with instructions to report the same to the house forthwith with with the following amendment at the end of the bill add the following title title six application of certain law section six zero zero one application of certain state in local law all designated in teacher designated lands in any natural heritage area for which funding is provided and does this actual be exclusively governed by relevant state and local laws regarding hunting fishing and the possession or use of a weapon trap or net pursuant to the rule the gentleman from utah is recognized for five minutes in support of his motion thank you mr speaker this particular motion to recommit ensures that their rights the state and local governments within the heritage area designations will be able to regulate hunting and it will be honest harmed by this legislation this bill currently provides heritage areas ignition shall not diminish the right of states to regulate hunting but it is silent on the issue including the right to carry firearms the motion to recommit also clarifies that laws regarding fishing and possession or use of a weapon or trap should be governed exclusively by state and localities second amendment is a critical right we want to protect our constituents against consequences of this legislation that would harm that right national parks have regulations that limit hunting and the right to carry or possess firearms even in states and localities where it is legally permitted the text you see to my left is title thirty six for the national park service department and they are this is the this is the language that w prohibit inheritage areas those rights even are currently allowed by state and local legislation these regulations harm wildlife in the environment because even local wildlife manager management officials are impeded in their work before any attempt is made to restrict the rights of gun owners and second amendment defenders this motion to recommit protects their legal existing rights now in the future is important he said and he said clearly that the speaker you mr speaker this is an issue as is typical of a minority of the minority that has not been mentioned one i any of today's debate in any of the committee debate develop on a bipartisan nonpartisan nature and bringing this bill to the floor not in any way brought up in any of the has brought up at this last second out of the clear blue which again i say should not be surprising because it is typical of a minority of the minority to make such efforts but i would general from utah is he referring to all federal lands because as i'm sure he knows the heritage areas are not part of the national park system the chart if you just  forward nor are they under the jurisdiction of the national parks service the heritage areas are part of a cooperative effort between federal and state and local people with local governing units with matching dollars not all federal dollars as i'm sure the gentleman knows so and so i ask that question  are you intending this language for all federal lands as i'm sure the dissing are you know and from west virginia thank you knows that each and every one of the divisions within the department of interior has different sets of rules and regulations would not be a problem national park as ignition would be so any of these heritage areas were that were under the direction of the national park service and there are some within this new bill would fall under title thirty six and that's why this this legislation desperately needs to be there the same amendment that we actually did present at a at another time in one of our committees so yes it's still significant it's still important it needs to be there to clarify specifically if the intent is not to change what has been happening by the locals this clearly says in all these areas what has been sufficient number having risen the a's and they are ordered members will record their votes by electronic device pursuant to clause nine of rule twenty the chair will reduce to five minutes the minimum time for any electronic vote on the question of passing this will be a fifteen minute vote for the past hour or so