Date: 2008-06-26
Speaker: LINCOLN DIAZ-BALART (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Florida

I would like to thank my friend from Florida for the time. and I yield myself such time as I may consume. With gas prices averaging over $4 a gallon. more and more Americans are using public transportation for their commuting needs. Reports from Metropolitan transit systems throughout the country are showing a significant increase in ridership. in some cases as much as 15 percentand perhaps even higherover last years figures. At the same time. highway vehicle miles traveled declined by 2 percent. Meeting this increased demand for public transportation is causing a burden on local transit agencies which. just like commuters. must pay record fuel prices to pay for buses and subway trains and light rail. To help meet this increased demand for public transportation. the underlying legislation. the Saving Energy Through Public Transportation Act. would provide $1.7 billion in funding to increase public transportation use across the United States. Transit agencies would be able to use those funds to reduce transit fares or expand transit services. I think this funding is important for communities throughout the country. certainly the community Im honored to represent. Recently. MiamiDade County. the 12th largest public transit agency in the country. announced that bus routes would be cut and others adjusted due to the rising cost of fuel. So this at a time when more and more commuters are looking to use public transportation. but public transportation systems are definitely being affected by the rise in energy costs. So it is my hope that the $36 million this legislation would provide South Florida would help reestablish some of the routes that were cut and would expand others so that commuters would have a more reliable public transportation system. To further promote the use of public transportation. the legislation establishes a nationwide Federal transit pass benefits program and requires all Federal agencies to offer transit passes to Federal employees working in urbanized areas with fixed route transit systems. To help alleviate the reliance on gasoline to power our transit systems. the bill will increase the Federal share for clean and alternative fuel transit projects. This will also have the beneficial effect of reducing transportationrelated emissions. I would like to congratulate Chairman OBERSTAR and Ranking Member MICA for working together to draft a bipartisan bill that both sides of the aisle can support. This legislation. the underlying legislation. will be a great benefit to transit systems throughout the country at a time when they are needing additional funding. Madam Speaker. once again. the bipartisan spirit of the bill. the underlying legislation. never made it past the doors of the Rules Committee. Yesterday. the majority in the Rules Committee only allowed one minority amendment to be debated today. while allowing three amendments from the majority. Before the new majority took control of the House in January of 2007. they published a document called "A New Direction for America." which set out their promises to the American people. Page 24 of that document says. "Bills should generally come to the floor under a procedure that allows open. full and fair debate consisting of a full amendment process that grants the minority the right to offer its alternative. including a substitute." Yet here we are today with a process that. contrary to their promise to the American people. blocks a full and fair debate and allows only one minority amendment. Actually. this one minority amendment is the only one the majority has allowed the minority to offer all week. Four bills. one amendment. Actually. it is more like six bills. one amendment. because this rule will allow the House to debate two additional bills under suspension of the rules. one against speculation in the oil market. and we have to speculate on what it says because we havent seen it. And the majoritys bringing those bills to floor without allowing the minority to offer any amendments or a motion to recommit. So. at a time when gas prices are hitting almost daily records. the majority should be offering a "full and fair debate" on this critical issue. a debate that considers ideas from both sides of the aisle. of all Members of this House. to help reduce gasoline prices. Polls across the country are consistent with a recent poll that I saw that said 71 percent want their elected leaders in Washington to focus on "increasing the energy supplies of the United States and lowering the cost of gasoline and electricity." But instead. the majority is offering nonewenergy legislation. obstructing debate. and impeding solutions to the energy crisis. contrary to what the American people wish. I urge all ofiny colleagues to vote against this unfair rule. which continues to block the minority from offering more than one amendment and blocks a thorough debate on the critical energy situation facing the Nation. At this time. I reserve.