Date: 2006-06-07
Speaker: GEORGE MILLER (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: California

Mr. Speaker. I yield myself the balance of the time. Mr. Speaker. I want to thank my colleagues who spoke to this issue. All of them have worked very hard on behalf of mine safety. not just in the aftermath of these most recent tragedies but throughout their entire congressional careers. We share that in common. This is not an adversarial relationship. This is a difference of opinion. and I think it is an important difference of opinion. I think that when we went back and we went over these tragedies and saw what it was that killed these miners. we saw that we also had the capabilities to address the causes and to address them now. and not wait 3 years to do some of this. We also understood that the quantities of oxygen required for trapped miners would be a minimum of 48 hours. It was after some 20 hours that Junior Hamner at Sago wrote a note (that was found from him) that said. I am in no pain now. but I dont know how long the air will last. If we pass this legislation without these amendments. we do not know how long the air will last. There is no minimum standard in this bill and it should be made explicit on behalf of the miners. Other miners told us that the airpack units were not working adequately. We. need random spot checks to make sure that there is reliability in the airpacks. We heard the stories of the trapped Sago miners struggling to communicate as they would have 100 years ago in the mines. by banging on pipes and banging rocks together. The fact of the matter is it is now within our grasp to address these problems and address them now. Under this legislation. as it is currently written. if a Sagotype mine accident were to happen again. a month from now or 6 months from now. we do not provide the remedies that are necessary to save lives. Given what we learned from the Sago mine accident. I would hope that the Congress would do that. This is not about speed. Its about getting it right. I have been here 30 years. and so very often I have been told if this amendment passes. that is the end of the process. and later that night. we pass the bill with the amendment. We all understand what the attempt here is. and I understand the desire of my colleagues who are so deeply impacted by these tragedies to get this legislation on the books. I would hope that my colleagues would pause for a moment because maybe when I first spoke of them. there was some controversy about these amendments. But the judgment that I have brought to this bill and the determination that I have brought to this bill. has now been ratified by the coal commission in West Virginia and by the State legislature in Illinois. These are key components for the survivability of these kinds of accidents since the Sago miners were not killed by the ifitial explosion. rockfall or other incident that took place. And thats why I am so compelled to stand here. Its not easy. I have gotten more interesting phone calls from the Senate from Members who are interested in the bill than I probably have in the last 5 years. These are men I have worked with my entire career: Senator ROBERT C. BYRD. Senator JOHN D. .ROCKEFEILER. Senator KENNEDY. They are friends. They are heroes of mine. But we have a disagreement here. It is fundamental. I believe it is important. and I would hope that we could be able to do this. I would urge my colleagues to vote against this suspension of the rules so we would have a chance to address this in limited open debate. with upordown votes. I am not here to delay the bill at all. and I would hope that that would be the outcome of this debate.. Again. I think all of us. whether people agree with me or disagree with me. all of us share the desire to increase the margins of safety for those individuals who go into the mines and for their families who remain on the surface. We have talked a great deal about energy. This is a key component of energy. We need these people to continue to go into the mines. and all of us desire to increase those margins of safety for them. Mr. Speaker. I yield back the balance of my time.