bill as amended our way the previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill as amended the final passage without intervening medicine except one one hour to be equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking minority member of the under clause nine or ten or bill twenty one or demanded for division of the question shall be considered as  and shall be separately debatable for ten minutes equally divided in control by the proponent and an opponent and three one motion to recommit with or without instruction section two during could we ask that conversations be taken off the floor so that we can p may we have conversations to the right of the chair in the well so that we can proceed all time yielded during the consideration of the rules for debate only i ask unanimous consent that all members have five legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on house resolution seven sixty three without objection myself such time as i may consume spend for a moment could we ask the conversations be taken off the floor so we may proceed gentleman from california thank you mr speaker house resolution seven six three provides for consideration of h r ten eleven the virginia ridge and valley act of two thousand and seven under a structured rule the rule provides for one hour of general debate equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking members of the committees on natural resources the rule makes an order the substitute reported by the committee on natural resources and it makes an order the amendment from the gentleman from virginia mr good lot the only admitted amendment which was submitted to the committee on rules for consideration on this rule the rule waives all points of order against consideration of the bill except for clause nine and ten of rule twenty one and finally the rule provides one motion to recommit with or without instructions mr speaker the bill before us today h r ten eleven designates forty three thousand acres as wilderness and nearly twelve thousand acres as national scenic areas in the jefferson national forest in southwestern virginia the areas in the jefferson national forest are protected by this bill are some of the most beautiful areas of the country the areas offer numerous recreational activities including fishing hunting hiking camping canoeing horseback riding skiing and skiing these areas are virtually priceless and provide much needed opportunities for visitors and families to spend time in the great outdoors enjoying america's natural beauty h r ten eleven ensures that critical habitats are protected for bears songbirds wild turkeys brook trout and other species in addition to preserving countless stands of old growth trees a forty five foot cascading waterfall and breathtaking scenic views that encompasses wide areas preserving this habitat is also critical for the economy as tourism is the fastest growing industry in the region mr speaker each of these areas contained in h r ten eleven are either recommended as part of the jefferson national forest plan or have been endorsed by the relevant county boards of supervisors in the local areas t bill has broad bipartisan support from five other representatives from virginia both virginia senators governor tim kaine and four county boards of supervisors local businesses and state organizations faith groups the international mountain bicycle association and local bear hunters also support this bill finally mr speaker i would like to thank chairman ray hall and mr boucher for their dedication hard work and bringing this legislation to the floor today so that we can ensure that america's most treasured resources are protected once again for future generations i reserve the balance of my time mr speaker the gentleman reserves bellman from texas thank you mr speaker i thank the gentleman from i rise in opposition to the structured rule and to a number of the provisions included in the underlying legislation in its current form i oppose this legislation because it substitutes the deliberate and long studied recommendation of well trained forest service professionals with a purely political kola congressional action by designating twenty seven thousand additional acres which are land in the forest service today as wilderness beyond the forest service recommendation of sixteen thousand acres and southwestern virginia's jefferson national forest this means that despite having spent millions of congressionally appropriated tax dollars and investing tens of thousands on the ground federal employee at hours on starting this issue the democrat leadership will simply override the forest service well reasoned decision to force this additional acreage into wilderness status this also despite the fact that many of the areas proposed in this legislation do not meet the standards of the nine hundred sixty four wilderness act including roads utility corridor or so mountain biking areas and a federal aviation administration administration tower the should not be considered within a wilderness area and yet today that's exactly what is happening today's bill makes private land owners in the area vulnerable to the jefferson national forest plan ultimate goal of obtaining all private lands within these expanded wilderness boundaries including seven hundred twenty two total acres about standing privately held mineral rights what is even worse mr speaker is that thousands of acres in this proposed wilderness area are at high risk for wildfire and require mechanical thinning for proper fire risk mitigation many of these areas are next to the small communities that will be placed at even greater risk of catastrophe dystrophic wildfires if this land is not managed properly so even as the threat posed by wildfires to american communities all across this country is fresh on our minds as we watch with great concern and sympathy the unbelievable damage these wildfires are inflicting on southern california nonetheless the democrat leadership of this house has decided that the best course of action is to extremely limit and outright prohibit common sense reduction activities across the jefferson national forest in virginia besides the private land owners and homeowners adjacent to this land other losers created by this legislation include a number of animal species covered by the endangered species act including bats and bears currently several of the proposed wilderness areas added by this legislation are professionally managed to maintain threatened endangered and sensitive species habitat by passing legislation under this rule congress will be preventing the forest service from using the equipment that they need to comply with the de endangered species act this makes no sense mr speaker it makes absolutely no sense why this new democrat majority throws aside not only the expressed opportunities that the forest service have given us to understand proper management but they will override sessional who have studied this and do this for a living perhaps worst of all mr speaker because of this draconian wilderness designation prevents any road or trails from being improved in these areas a number of our bull populations such as the elderly and disabled will be effectively prevented from accessing and enjoin this piece of america under  absolutely makes no sense mr speaker i'm sorry we're having to be on the floor today to take this position because the republican party is in favor of our national parks is in favor of people utilizing our national parks and view these areas as very historic areas that we want to preserve and make right and keep them mr speaker this is bad public policy opposed a structured rule in the underlying legislation and i reserve the balance of my time the gentleman reserves gentleman from california thank you mr speaker i yield one minute to the gentlewoman from california and esteemed environmentalist and champion for our national resources the speaker of brought support h r one zero one one the virginia ridge and valley act of two thousand and seven i commend our our colleague mr boucher for his persistent and relentless leadership on this legislation  advancing this mr boucher you have advanced the cause of protecting our existing wilderness and all of us who care about the wilderness and our parklands are deeply in your debt as we come to the floor though today mr speaker i do want to call additional attention of my college igs that as we gather here this afternoon wildfires are raging in my home state of california the president has declared an emergency i hope that it will be limited to that but the way the fire raging on fareed it may come to the point of a major disaster the governor of california governor schwarzenegger has just reported that sixty a seven hundred fifty homes have been totally destroyed sixty eight thousand homes are endangered through two hundred fifty thousand acres of land area the size of the entire city of new york has been devastated by the fire much of it wilderness areas  and in addition to that three hundred sixty five thousand people have been evacuated from their homes in any consideration of what is happening there it's very important to salute our firefighters for their courage and the tireless effort to to end this fire which is it's a tough battle because of the winds and hopefully they will die down soon it is possible that if the bridge the fire continues to rage we may have to appeal to the president to declare this a major disaster and therefore eliminate any capping of support that we would have for california and that would have implications as we know for other fires that may occur in our country so this is when the american people look to government to step up to the plate and to be there for them the firefighters are doing their share the people are acting in a very responsible way in the evacuations the local government is is doing well according to what the governor says and of course the state of california has this as a emergency of the highest highest order so far they have been able to avail themselves of whatever is available from the federal government we may have to expand on that if the fire can see the fires continue to rage about to those who have suffered personal losses whether it's the loss of a loved one personal injury loss of their homes and their communities i extend the deepest sympathy and the fullest support as speaker of the house of representatives with that again i urge my colleagues to support mr boucher's bipartisan legislation to protect the virginia wilderness in advance and and in advance of any needs that we may have for the wildfires in california and for my colleagues a big extent of the damage that we know to also all all as always anytime there's a wildfire people who get in the way the brave men and women of the national park service and others who go to help fight those fires i know the nation is at this time very focused on the lives and the property and the effort that is going on in california for great respect to join gentlewoman from california for expressing our sincere appreciation for the firefighters who are trying to battle and save the property in the lives in california mr speaker for perhaps the same reason that the gentleman from california has come down to join in this discussion  today perhaps with an opposite result i too am down on the floor to talk about how wise management of our natural resources our park service is important you don't have to go back really as far as teddy roosevelt to understand what teddy roosevelt's all that this great nation had the abundance of beautiful woodlands hills mountains streams the acreage included within that the beautiful animals the birds the fish the walls that were a part of our landscape and that's why national parks were created national parks were created with an opportunity for the federal government to have a chance to allow people to come and see of this great country to see the beautiful country that we had as a young man growing up in scouting i remember well the opportunity that i had to not only visit national parks but a chance to get what is called the forestry merit badge and even back in one thousand nine hundred sixty five or sixty six when i was receiving this bad remember the not the term that was used in best practices but one that has become used as a term of best practice and that is wise management of our for us to not only sustain them but to protect them and to protect the animals and all that lives and counts on that forest surviving we learned wise these wise management techniques not just in scouting to get the forestry merit badge but we have learned them through the years we've that sometimes unwise management and doing things to our park system in fact caused more damage than it did good i remember back with the fires that we had in yellowstone how the national park service said just let it burn its so that's created by or created by an act of god but they really as a result of that learned that they had to learn a better practice to save millions of acres and millions of animals who could be destroyed well part of that best practice is what the national park service is attempting to do right now and has been attempting to do in this national park today it is against their recommendation that politically we override the best practices the best thoughts and ideas that people have who manage our park system who do see the balance who are there every day with a careful consideration by designating this area an extensive amount of area as wilderness it means that arbitrarily we're taking something that would never qualify under the intended statutes and added in i think this is  e this is how you do have problems this is how you do have fires that burn out of control when you're not able to come in and protect the forest properly as a result of that static nation this is how you have problems when you're not able to take care of the endangered species that are in there and properly protect them because it will have that wilderness designation and so with great respect for the same purpose that the gentleman from california came to notify and to remember of what america's paying attention to a today the wildfires in california i would say we we need that same sort of vision to avoid what could be in the time of drought in the time of of misdeed because of perhaps a lightning storm something that's an unintended consequence and that is to take this area and to move it into wilderness means that it will not receive  able to receive the same kind of regular work that happens to protect these wilderness areas and national parks from from destruction of a fire was a bad idea i think it's also a bad idea any time politicians in washington d c for political purposes decide to overrule common sense mr speaker this time i'd like you'll five minutes to the ranking member of the rules committee the gentleman from sandy miss california pelosi has taken time and that is to talk about what many have described as probably the worst fire that has ever hit southern california i was just talking to the dean of our delegation mr l who is going to be returning to california i know a number of our colleagues have gone now he represents the lake arrowhead area where governor schwarzenegger and other elected officials are looking at the situation as the speaker pointed out three hundred sixty five thousand people have been evacuated from their homes and literally hundreds of thousands of acres have been burned and mr lewis just reminded me that one of the things that we can be extraordinarily grateful for is that we have been able to learn from previous fires how to deal with this for example there we've had an increase in the number of what are known as the  airborne firefighting system aircraft the mass which are going to be coming from other states and we as californians are very grateful for the fact that other states are working with us to deal with california's challenge at this time of need  there are other environmental issues with which we've had to contend the by beetle which mr lewis just mentioned and making sure that we are able to go in and clean up areas which create a potential for fire and so  we've learned a lot from the horrible circumstances that we have faced in the past and i'm convinced mr speaker that we will in fact learn from this tragedy as well our thoughts and prayers are with those who have lost their homes and if there is any kind of silver lining when you think about the fact that three hundred sixty five thousand people have been evacuated hundreds of thousands of acres countless structures in the hundreds have been obliterated and yet the report now is that there is only one loss of life and obviously there are a number of firefighters have been injured and according report i just saw on the television another twenty five individuals have been injured and our thoughts and prayers are with them but we are very grateful for those who have stepped up governor schwarzenegger just mr speaker talked about the fact that at this time of need calling on those in the  grocery industry and wide range of others coming in providing water diapers baby formula other food stuffs that are necessary for those who have been evacuated and those who are engaged in firefighting is something that has as it has really been remarkable as is our governor just said and that your speaker i have to tell you that one of the things that been struck with is while some people try to to make things like this partisan we are coming together as a state delegation to deal with this is i said a number of our colleagues have have already gone to a california i know some members of the san diego delegation because that area has been hit particularly hard have already have already gone and so mr speaker i would simply like to express my appreciation to those who are on the front lines and to say as our governor has again the one thing we've all come together to try and provide assistance the one thing that we need to do now is pray for an improvement in both the wind and create the potential for some rain if that's at all possible to help provide some kind of relief and to again state that at this time of  disaster we want every level of government as well as individuals to continue to work together and i am convinced that we will we will be able to thank you very much for speaking with that i yield back the balance my time gentleman yield back gentleman from california i think  or i would like to say that i share the comments of our prior speakers both the speaker of the house and the gentleman from california spoke eloquently about the disasters that are happening in our home state it is certainly a time of great need and great need for us to come together to to figure out how we proceed from here and to battle this rage  see mr lewis in the audience i've been to his district a hearing about this very topic and ideas that are around his district and we've discussed it on a numerous occasions and our sympathies are with you and those of your constituents say mr l at this time i'd like to yield four minutes the gentleman from virginia mr moran gentleman from virginia is recognized for four minutes i thank my colleague and friend mr cut also from california and i also want to express  rising today is to express support for the legislation that has been introduced by my good friend and virginia colleague congressman rick boucher it's an extraordinary proposal for what it accomplishes in the way of conservation and wilderness protection but also for the collaborative effort it represents to bring different publicly end users together to the table and craft a proposal that almost everybody can and does support in fact  republican senator john warner the dean of our delegation has sponsored it over on the senate side the fridge in your original valley act will protect nearly forty three thousand acres of the jefferson national forest in southwestern virginia as well and there's a wilderness study areas and another twelve thousand acres a scenic areas now today world honest as ignatius are often very controversial that's because today our public lands of visited more frequently by a much more diverse public a public that now holds very different views oftentimes and expectations on how the public land should be used as a mature and fuel wilderness designations work their way through congress that's unfortunate because saving some of our last christine public lands from resource extraction is an obligation and should in fact be a legacy we can pass to future generations my colleague from virginia however ali and the time that he and the conservation community have invested found and build a consensus to support this legislation adil that other conservation groups of around the country should look to to enact wilderness legislation it can be done but it takes that kind of commitment and persistent dedication that mr boucher has shown this legislation will protect the scenic and undisturbed character of pristine areas of the jeffs a national forest now while all terrain and four wheel drive vehicles are prohibited in the wilderness areas recreational activities such as hunting fishing camping canoeing kayaking swimming picnicking backpacking birdwatching horseback riding cross country skiing king rock climbing and so many other outdoor activities are allowed and in fact encouraged so it's not that the public can't be fully and actively engaged in enjoying this land but motorised traffic will be permitted only in certain circumstances and the twelve thousand acres that have been designated this national scenic areas this legislation though will protect the recreational historic and natural resources in the delineated areas in a manner that is generally similar to the protections wilderness status affords and by finding consensus this bill has won the endorsement of all the local governments in the counties that it would affect it's supported by a broad array of local businesses and chambers of commerce and enjoys broad support from conservation organizations so i encourage all of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this bill it's a fine bill and i congratulate mr boucher during its fall and i thank my colleague from california for giving me the time thank you gentlemen time has expired gentleman from texas thank you mr speaker mr speaker as the entire country is focused upon the california fires the disasters that are occurring and the heroic efforts of the firefighters the people who live in california our working together community activities the entire country has been called into action and i'm sure every single one of us as not only members of congress but just as proud americans want to respond in a way that's appropriate the gentleman who represents abashed area that is included within those wildfires is with us now he's the gentleman from california i'd like to yield him ten minutes at this time gentlemen magellan's from california is recognized for ten minutes to speak i very much appreciate my colleagues yielding the time i i will not use anywhere near ten minutes but let me say that my colleagues have already expressed their support for the phenomenal work that has taken place over recent years as we've learned from past tragedies like this the law enforcement officials local government the state people with forestry service in california the u s forest service have been truly phenomenal we have learned an awful lot but i'd mention two things that the first is that in terms of managing our forest we usually find our way very quickly to develop those dollars that are necessary following a fire to respond to the immediate tragedy i doze dollars seem to flow almost upon our call are much more difficult are those that involve managing the forest long term it's so important that we recognize that the u s forest service does all that they can but they know full well that th difficulty of getting the money for managing that which makes up the ground fire that can destroy a forest and literally can obliterate this territory when we're not looking much to be a part of our federal responsibility there 's little doubt that that we will overcome this tragedy hundreds and hundreds of homes lost in my own district in or around lake arrowhead four new tragedies for each of those families but i would say be on remembering that we must find the money for managing the forests we also should talk to our constituents about the fact base with a fire tragedy the first thing that people should do is respond to those warnings that suggests when they're called to evacuate to evacuate one life loss isn't and the danger of fire attempting to overcome a fire near your home and indeed it is a critical decision i would urge all of our citizens who are faced with this difficulty to respond to those calls for that tuition and with that say my deepest can dull and says to the folks who have lost their property in your district mr lewis has been had hearings and frankly with all of the draw on and hopefully we will not lose any more life in our and  with regard to the billet hand h r ten eleven i would just like to say as has been said before that this measure is supported by the members of the virginia delegation we offered i will be offering the gentleman from virginia mr good lott the only amendment that was proposed for this under this rule it is supported by all the local boards of supervisors as well as senator warner governor kaine the and in fact we have listened to the community and mr sessions is right the local officials and local community leaders  citizens of a region should be can consulted when we do one of these wilderness areas and in fact this bill does incorporate those suggestions and comments of the local community they desire this wilderness designation for their area and it is truly going to be a national treasure when it already is and it will be preserved for our children and for their children with that i would reserve the balance of my from a colleague of he has any additional speakers or anticipates any at this time i do not i thank you gentlemen for responding that at this time he does not have additional speakers so i will go ahead and offer my clothes at this time gentleman is recognized misspeak or i will be asking members to oppose the previous question so that i may him in the rule to have speaker pelosi in consultation with republican leader boehner immediately appoint  r two six four two the military construction and veterans affairs appropriations bill for two thousand and eight yesterday a number of news publications including roll call reported that the democrat leadership intends to hold off sending appropriations bills to president bush so that they can use an upcoming anticipated veto of the labor h h s appropriations bill to serve as an extension and i quote this an extension of their successful campaign relations campaign on the state children's health insurance program while the democrat leadership plays politics on this issue however our nation's veterans are paying the price for every day that the democrats allow the veterans bundy and bill to languish without for their own political agenda our nation's veterans lose a eighteen point five million dollars which could be used for veterans health care veterans housing and other important support activities for veterans and their families i'd like to repeat that every single day there is eighteen point five million dollars that lost for our veterans and their families on on excuse me on october eighteenth the american legion national commander marty j kastner five national  commanders and all fifty five legion national executive committee committee members sent speaker pelosi a letter pleading with her to put partisanship aside and provide this funding now for veterans and troops i ask unanimous consent to insert this letter into congressional record without objection on the same day the commander in chief of the veterans of foreign wars george also urge speaker pelosi and the democrat leadership to put partisanship aside for the benefit of our nation's veterans and troops these pleas from the american legion and the v f w follow on the heels of requests from republican members to both speaker pelosi and democrat senate majority harry reid on september seventeenth and october the fourth urging them to begin conference work on the veterans appropriations bills unfortunately it appears as all these commonsense requests have fallen on deaf ears and our nation's veterans are being forced to pay the price for continued democrat partisanship and lack of leadership on this issue i ask unanimous consent to insert into the congressional heard these two letters so that everyone watching today's debate across the country can see the efforts that have been made by the republican party to end this impasse on this important issue of providing adequate funding for those who have sacrificed so much on behalf of our country and that objection mr speaker i will ask all of my colleagues to support this motion to defeat the previous question so that we can put partisanship aside and move this important legislation forward mr speaker this is a very important vote for each of the members of congress to decide whether we are going to move forward for the best interest of our military and veterans or whether we are going to play partisan politics i ask unanimous consent to have the text of the amendment and extraneous material in the record just prior to the vote on the previous question without objection and i yield back the balance of my time gentleman yield back the gentleman from california thank you mr speaker i yield to myself  much time as a may consume for a close mr speaker i want to start by saying that i couldn't disagree more with the gentleman's last comments than what i heard just does not even make any sense to me having spent the last five years of my life sitting here watching this house debate veterans issues the first four years that i was here we saw the republican congress that was in power at that time refused to take up a number of measures that were put forward by the democratic minority at that time in fact there were several discharge petitions that laid languishing at that desk for weeks and weeks on end until they finally died at the end of the session because they never got the attention of the republican majority at that time in fact this year since we have taken back the house and we've become a democratic majority we have been champions of veterans issues and to say that they want to now lay letters upon the table that they are demanding of the speaker attention we've been putting attention on this issue for a number of years and not only are we taking care of our nation's veterans now for the first time in twelve years but we are taking care of it and in a way that would surprise and and and our nation's veterans are very grateful that we are finally giving them the respect they deserve and i would tell you that this house by a vote of four zero nine to to pass the veterans appropriations bill and yes we do need to go to conference but we will do that when the conferees are appointed in the senate it is appropriate to do it we have passed this year an additional appropriation of three point four billion dollars to take care of our nation's veterans the general i will not yield i'm in my closer thank you that we will in fact make sure that all the veterans are taken care of and in fact on november eleventh of this year we will celebrate a tremendous respect for our nation's veterans and will in fact do everything that we have promised to do and more we just saw today three bills taken up by the veterans committee to in fact take care of the needs of our nation's veterans and i i'm highly offended by the insinuation that we are in some way acting in a partisan way not to take care of our nation's veterans mr speaker with regard to h r ten eleven this bill is in fact an important bill to protect the natural resources of the state of virginia vital area for our country sir boucher and the delegation from virginia has done a fabulous job  in crafting this proposal it is a bill that preserves tens of thousands of acres of pristine wilderness and jefferson national forest it is necessary that these beautiful natural landscapes remain protected and untouched so that they may be enjoyed by our children and our grandchildren for years to come it deserves the strong support of all the members on the floor today that is the bill that we will be moving the previous question on and mr speaker i urge a guest vote on the rule and on the previous question i yield back the balance of my time and i move the previous question from this resolution the gentleman yields back all time has expired the question is on ordering the previous question those in favor say aye those opposed no one in the opinion of the chair the ayes have it mr speaker gentleman from the asian age requested those favoring a vote by the asian age will rise a sufficient number having risen the yeas and nays are ordered pursuant to clause eight of rule twenty further proceedings on this question are postpone nine house resolution seven sixty five resolved that upon the adoption of this resolution it shall be an order to consider in the house a bill h r fourteen eighty three to him in the arm of a heart and public land management ac ninety six to extend the operation for certain national heritage areas and for other purposes all points of order against consideration of the bill are waived except those arising under close nine or ten of rule twenty one the amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by the committee on natural resources now printed in the bill modified by the amendment printed in the report of the committee on rules accompanying this resolution shall be considered as adopted and the bill as amended shall be considered as read all points of order against provisions of the bill as amended our way the previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill as amended to final passage of the intervening motion except one one hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking minority member of the committee on natural resources and to one motion to recommit with or without instructions section two during consideration of h r fourteen eighty three pursuant to this resolution notwithstanding the operation of the previous question the chair may postpone further consideration of the bill to such time as may be designated by the speaker the gentleman from ohio is recognized for one hour for the purpose of debate only i yield the customary thirty minutes to the gentleman from washington mr hastings alltime ilda during consideration of the role as for debate on lee i yelled myself resolution seven sixty five provides for consideration of h r fourteen eighty three the celebrating america's heritage act the rule provides one hour of general debate controlled by the committee on natural resources and makes an order the substitute reported by the committee on natural resources the role also contains a self executing provision to the base text consisting of a technical correction that inserts a map reference for a map that was not completed yet by the national park service prior to filing the reported bill the role also provides for one motion to recommit with or without instructions mr speaker before i begin to to address the role in the underlying bill i just want to also extend  my feelings of empathy and concern for those out in california dealing with the fires that are plaguing that area of our country we are all we are all watching and we are all in spirits hoping that  the fire ravaging will and we appreciate the hard work and the fearless dedication of our fire service and our firefighters and we hope that that situation is under control in the very very near future mr speaker i rise today in support of this role and the underlying bill and that the outset i would like to commend my republican colleague and neighbor congressman regularly for his leadership  sponsoring this bipartisan piece of legislation this bill will provide additional support to nine national heritage areas and allow for the designation of six new heritage areas making them eligible for federal support i'm proud that the ohio area national heritage canal way is among these nine national heritage areas and i can tell you from firsthand experience as i've had with the ohio area national heritage canal way that these heritage areas are an invaluable asset both to the local communities and to our nation from the preservation of local culture and history to increasing tourism and as center pieces for economic growth that does ignatius of heritage areas provide for a partnership approach to heritage development allowing the sites to be locally managed with the local organization coordinating in partnership with local residents these areas provide unique opportunities to understand the larger context of these regions traditions landscapes and people and the heritage of this great country the ohio in erie national heritage canal way is not a traditional park it's a lived in region where the natural call troll historic and recreational resources combine to form a nationally significant landscape it celebrates the significance of the ohio area canal and its contribution to the region the state of ohio and the united states the ohio an area canal helps connect the ohio frontier with new york and new orleans in the early one nine hundred centuries playing a key role in linking a previously isolated ohio with economic centers east and south and the canal was crucial to the development of ohio's economy attracting businesses to the area and providing a viable transportation route for emerging industries mr speaker i am confident that with increased federal support the ohio in erie national heritage can our way and other heritage areas included in this legislation will continue to play a central roles in their communities and equally important roles in our national heritage similarly mr chairman in addition to the ohio area national heritage can ou the celebrating america's heritage act will provide support to the national call heritage act and west virginia the tennessee civil war heritage area the augusta canal national heritage area enjoy the steel industry american heritage area and pennsylvania the essex national heritage area in massachusetts the south carolina national heritage corridor or america's agricultural partnership in iowa and the hudson river valley national heritage area in new york this legislation will also recognize and bring the benefits of our heritage areas to six new communities throughout the nation journey through hollowed ground heritage area and virginia niagara falls national heritage area  new york muscle shoals national heritage area and alabama freedom's way national heritage area in illinois and santa cruz valley national heritage area in arizona and it's important to note mr speaker that this legislation specifically includes includes language that protects private property rights and the bill makes clear that a national heritage area does that nation does not alter existing regulations or land use plan this is a good that will help communities and our country celebrate our heritage heritage and use our history for future prosperity and collective pride and i urge my colleagues to support it i'm proud to be a co sponsor of this bipartisan legislation and again i would like to think congressman ralph regulus from my home state of ohio for introducing this bill and for being a champion of ohio's heritage i urge all of my colleagues to support this important bipartisan legislation and i reserve the balance of my time the gentle eighty reserves the gentleman from washington thank you mr speaker and mr speaker i want to thank the gentleman from ohio mrs certain for you let me the customary thirty minutes so you'll myself as much time as they can  my consumer and ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks the gentleman is recognized and without a rule the house will be considering this year the democrats have not just broken their promise to the american people to operate in an open and honest manner they are actually doing it in a record setting manner in fact this democrat controlled say has considered more than twice as many close rules twice as many mr speaker as a previous republican controlled congress did at the same point in the session so they didn't just break their promise mr speaker they have shattered it most troubling of all is that this rule will prevent representatives from offering amendments to adjust and alter the bill out of concerns directly affecting the districts and people that those representatives were elected to represent the celebrating america's heritage act authorizes one hundred thirty five million dollars to be spent over the next fifteen years for nine already established national heritage areas and six new national heritage areas one of the new heritage areas created in the bill is a journey through hallowed ground national heritage area which includes land in pennsylvania maryland west virginia and virginia mr bartlett of maryland and mr good of virginia have because expressed concerns that the land in the districts they represent is included in this new national heritage area and that this bill does not guarantee local residents will be allowed to participate in decisions affecting the area in their districts if congress is going to dictate how land is to be used we must make sure that those who are directly affected by such designations are in fact supportive of the legislation i believe that all members should be afforded an opportunity to have their voices heard on behalf of those a represent when their district is directly impacted it was remarked yesterday in testimony before the rules committee by mr young of alaska and i quote that is just good government in quote of what he was referring to obviously is to have a member talk about issues that affect their district unfortunately if adopted this thirty nightclothes rule here will deny mr bartlett and mr gud and in fact all members of the house the opportunity to bring forth their concerns to attempt to amanda perfect this bill although national heritage areas typically do not create additional federal lands the federal government can significantly impact the use of the land in in surrounding national heritage areas speaker coming from an area in my area in central washington that is forty percent federally own i want to take this opportunity to get to discuss my concerns with future actions that could lead to additional federal lands as i have said many times before on this floor i believe federal land management agencies simply have too much land to manage effectively federal land agencies continue to struggle to maintain trails and facilities on public lands as well as to manage and unnaturally high fuel loads that can lead to catastrophic wildfires and we had that discussion on the previous rule yet year after year we are spending precious tax dollars to buy a more private property to take off local tax rolls there are form are far more pressing issues affecting public lands management that we could be considering today for example mr speaker we should be discussing the extension of payments to forests and counties for rural schools and roads or for development of clean energy on he claims these are far more pressing issues and they're not going to go away and i believe the house should act quickly in a bipartisan manner to address them mr speaker this is a closed rule as i mentioned in my opening remarks and in closing i would like to read a quote from the distinguished majority leader mr hoyer from congress da on december fifth two thousand and six a little more than ten months ago he said mr speaker and i quote we intend to have rules committee that gives opposition voices an alternative proposals ability to be heard and considered on the floor of the house and quote this is speaker distinguished majority leader said that less than ten more live more in ten months ago unfortunately the democrat majority is once again not living up to the promises they made to americans just less than a year ago we are shutting out the people in their representatives who are directly impacted by this legislation with this closed rule accordingly urge to to remind my colleague from washington that that this legislation does not affect private property rights the bill makes it clear that a national heritage area designation does not alter existing regulations or land use plans either with that said mr speaker i would inquire of my colleague the distinguished gentleman whether he has any additional speakers time from arizona ms giffords gentleman is recognized for three minutes thank you mr speaker i rise today to support this rule and the underlying bill h r fourteen eighty three amending on this parks and public management act early this year i introduced the santa cruz valley national heritage area act with congressman grijalva i am pleased that our bill has been included in h r four hundred eighty three by designating the santa cruz valley as a national heritage area this beautiful and thriving region will receive modest federal support for promoting the areas history cultural resources and indigenous wildlife habitat we are ensuring that the santa cruz valley visitors can experience the unique watershed and the diverse society it is supported native american tribes the sentence of spanish ancestors american pioneers and now members of our diverse sonoran arizona communities widely supported from iran ira's own at the patagonia the santa cruz valley will protect private broke protect private property rights and publicly use of these federally lanisha manage land so i support this bill i urge a yes vote on the rule and the underlining bill to support preserving arizona's natural heritage gentleman you'll back the will back my time gentleman from washington as speaker if i enquire now that my friend from ohio is a speaker for the past several weeks my colleagues on the rules committee and i have highlighted loopholes in the house rules related to the earmark transparency while this is an important issue that still must be addressed there is an even more pressing issue that the house must act on immediately this is speaker it has now been one hundred thirty days hundred thirty days since a veterans funding bill was approved by the house the senate passed a similar bill and mr speaker contrary to chosen to put partisan politics partisanship and politics ahead of ensuring our veterans needs are met every day the democrats choose not to act to move this bill forward our nation's veterans lose eighteen and a half million dollars last week republican leader boehner took a positive step toward naming the house republican conferees now speaker pelosi must follow suit and take the steps that sets necessary to ensure that work  begin on writing the final veterans funding bill that can be acted in acted into law and i might add mr speaker this is one of those bills that enjoys strong bipartisan support it is troubling to me that democrat leadership chose to consider a simple resolution today supporting and encouraging greater support for veterans day each year but thus far has refused to demonstrate meaningful support for our nation's veterans by working on this final funding bill our veterans and all americans want us to put partisanship and politics aside and work together to do what is best in the best interests our nation's veterans as a speaker i see no better time than right now therefore i will be asking my colleagues to vote no on the previous question so that i can amend the rule to allow the house to immediately act to go to conference with the senate on r twenty six forty two the military construction and veterans affairs funding bill and appoint conferees the member to the rule i am offering would allow the speaker to declare a recess for the purpose of consulting with the minority leader prior to the appointment of conferees there for their further it would provide that the motion to instruct conferees otherwise in order pending the appointment of conferees instead shall be in order only at a time designated by the speaker in a legislative schedule within two additional legislative legislative days after adopted dobson and this resolution now their words mr speaker we can act on this as quickly as we possibly can by defeating the previous question the house will send a strong message to our veterans that they have our commitment to write a final bill providing them the funding increase they need deserve and were promised s speaker i ask unanimous consent to have the text of the amendment and extraneous material entered into inserted into the record prior to the vote on the previous question without objection so this is pickard my colleagues who oppose a previous question on the thirty night clothes rule the house is considering this year you'll back the balance of my time gentleman yield back the gentle lady from ohio thank you mr speaker mr speaker i only wish the same commitment and tenacity on behalf of veteran that is being expressed here today continues into the future and i wish that it had been a little bit more at the surface in the past as you know mr speaker the democrats when they came into the majority in this house passed the biggest increase for veterans health care in history they passed in the military construction and veterans affair affairs appropriations bill six point seven billion dollars above the f while seven which was budget which by the way was the largest single increase in the seventy seven year history of the v a we're generally you i'm in the middle of my close thank you three point eight billion dollars above the president's request so we are indeed on the same page in terms of protecting these nation's veterans and we are working diligently not just with our words but with our votes and with our actions to make sure that we live up to the promise that we make to our veterans and i know i'm in the middle of my close i think the gentleman returning to the legislation and the role at hand mr speaker the celebrating america's heritage act would provide support for some of our nation's cultural treasures and we'll expand support to additional heritage areas i cannot over state the importance of many of these areas not only to the local communities and the regions in which they exist but to preserving the history of the united states that history that those veterans spot for by the way and these heritage areas stand out from national parks and that they are overseen by a coalition of local leaders community members and local organizations all with an interest in the preservation in their areas tradin gins and culture and in the continued vitality of their communities these heritage areas play a key role in spring out canonic development which serves as a bridge to the future for communities as well as a constant reminder of our past and a cumulative history that has led to where we are today i know that was the ohio in erie national heritage canal way means northeast ohio and i know what increased federal support will do to help it continue serving our community and our nation irons and yes vote on the previous question and on the roll and i yield back the balance of my time and i move the previous question on the resolution the question is on ordering the previous question adopting house resolution seven sixty three if ordered ordering the previous question on house resolution seven sixty five by the days and days adopting house resolution six seventy seven sixty five if ordered and suspending the rolls and passing h r nine hundred fifty five the first electronic vote will be conducted as a fifteen minute vote remaining electronic votes will be conducted as five minute votes the unfinished business is the vote on ordering the previous question on house resolution seven sixty three on which the yeas and nays are ordered the clerk will report the title of the resolution house resolution seven sixty three resolution providing for consideration of the bill it's our ten eleven to designate additional national forest system lands in the state of virginia as wilderness or a wilderness study area to designate the kimberlin creek potential wilderness area for eventual incorporation in the kimberley creek wilderness to establish to sing mountain and bear creek scenic areas to provide for the development of trail plans for the wilderness areas and scenic areas and for other purposes the question is on ordering the previous question members will record their vote by electronic device this will be a fifteen minute vote