Date: 2011-10-05
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Ive been to the floor before and Ive used these famous words. and I think Ive even used them in committee: Can we all get along? I just cant imagine that if we queried this industry that so many people would want to. if you will. ignore the facts that are impacting not only our community but our children. First of all. its important to note that the CBO has established that H.R. 2681 will cost $1 million. I want jobs to continue. I want jobs to be created. I think the service dealing with our industry is important. but I think lives are important. And I cannot imagine in this particular instance why we would want to block the EPA from finding a way to save lives. And so I rise today to introduce an amendment that would establish the fact that compliance would come by 3 years after the implementation of the resolution by the EPA. Remember now that every party has an opportunity to participate. but listen to what is happening with the impact of mercury on our children. If these safeguards are blocked. up to 34.300 premature deaths would be in place. These will be the consequences of it. Over 17.800 more heart attacks. over 180.000 additional asthma attacks. over 3 million more days of missed work or school. and billions of taxpayer dollars wasted treating these preventible accidentsor illnesses. if you will. In addition. I believe that the idea of jobs should not be a threat to life. Currently. the bill requires the cement industry to comply with EPA rules no earlier than 5 years after the rules have been finalized. The bill also allows indefinite noncompliance. There is no deadline set for the industry compliance. Thats an unfair imbalance between jobs and lives. and I know that we can find the right balance. These industry leaders are citizens in communities. They support Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts. They support PTOs and school athletic teams. Their very constituents are their workers and their families. some of those very families that will be subject to the conditions where schools are near concrete manufacturing companies. It is happening all over America. I have offered this amendment to ensure that the EPA has the ability to reduce toxic emissions from numerous industrial sources. including the cement industry. as theyre required to do under the Clean Air Act. The EPA has issued 100 rules targeting this and have resulted in savinga 1.7 million ton reduction of air pollution per year. My amendment simply says that to comply with the EPA rules. it should occur no later than 3 years after the rules have finalized. Let me tell you why this is a good amendment. It gets people to work. It gets you focusing quickly on the remedy. It helps you put the remedy in place. and it helps to save lives. This is a task that has been given to the EPA for 40 years. In fact. it was given to the EPA under a Republican administration. as I recall. Richard Nixon. We worked together then because we believed that America could be better by creating jobs but also protecting our environment. There has been a consistent theme of chipping away at the ability of the EPA to protect our air. but I believe we can do both. We can work together. There is pollution. it does exist. Just come to a city like Houston where asthma rates are up because of the pollution that we have. It is important to find a way to balance the lives of those who are impacted by things like chest pain. coughing. digestive problems. dizziness. fever. lethargy. sneezing. shortness of breath. throat irritation. watery eyes. while keeping our jobs. How do we do it? We rush toward fixing the problem. We rush toward creating the jobs by having the kind of technology that allows us to cure this problem and keep these jobs. Colleagues. I believe this is an important approach. It is to find the new technology that allows us to clean the air. It is not to stall and block the EPA. It is to find a way to get quickly to the solution to be able to save lives. Let me say that I am hopeful that the amendment will be perceived as an amendment that rushes toward helping those who are creating jobs. but it is rushing toward allowing the EPA to save lives. Let us not sacrifice lives for convenience. Let us save lives. My amendment is a very constructive amendment to allow compliance in 3 years. I would ask my colleagues to support this amendment. Madam Chair. I rise today in support of my amendment to H.R. 2681 the "Cement Sector Regulator Relief Act." My amendment requires the cement industry to comply with Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rules no later than 3 years after the rules have been finalized. Currently. the bill requires the cement industry to comply with EPA rules no earlier than five years after the rules have been finalized. The bill also allows indefinite noncompliance. there is no deadline set for industry compliance. I have offered this amendment to ensure that the EPA has the ability to reduce toxic emissions from numerous industrial sources. including the cement industry. as they are required to do under the Clean Air Act. The EPA has issued 100 rules targeting 170 different types of facilities which have resulted in a 1.7 million ton reduction in air pollution per year. EPA rules are now being finalized for the cement kiln industry and these bills are intended to indefinitely delay compliance with EPAs Maximum Achievable Control Technology (MACT) standards. prior to their promulgation. For more than 40 years the EPA has been charged with protecting our environment. There has been a consistent theme of chipping away at the ability of the EPA to protect our air. We have to consider the long term costs to public health if we fail to establish reasonable measures for clean air. Outdoor air pollution is caused by small particles and ground level ozone that comes from car exhaust. smoke. road dust and factory emissions. Outdoor air quality is also affected by pollen from plants. crops and weeds. Particle pollution can be high any time of year and are higher near busy roads and where people burn wood. When we inhale outdoor pollutants and pollen this can aggravate our lungs. and can lead us to developing the following conditions. chest pain. coughing. digestive problems. dizziness. fever. lethargy. sneezing. shortness of breath. throat irritation and watery eyes. Outdoor air pollution and pollen may also worsen chronic respiratory diseases. such as asthma. There are serious costs to our long term health. The EPA has promulgated rules and the public should be allowed to weigh in to determine if these rules are effective. The purpose of having so many checks and balances within the EPA is to ensure that the needs of industries and the needs of our communities are addressed. This bill is a step in the wrong direction. The EPA has spent years reviewing these standards before attempting to issue regulations. The proposed regulations to the industrial boiler industry will significantly reduce mercury and toxic air pollution from power plants and electric utilities. The EPA estimates that for every year this rule is not implemented. mercury and toxic air pollution will have a serious impact on public health. Think for a moment about the lives that can be saved. We are talking about thousands of health complications and deaths. What more do we need to know. According to the Natural Resources Defense Council. this rule would prevent the following: 9.000 premature deaths. 5.500 heart attacks. 58.000 asthma attacks. 6.000 hospital and emergency room visits. 6.000 cases of bronchitis. and 440.000 missed work days. The EPA has done its due diligence. a comprehensive review of all aspects of these regulations has been done. and the EPA is currently in the process of revising its proposed rules in order to reflect industry concerns. If the EPA is willing to compromise. the cement industry must be as well. I understand the economic impacts of regulation. but we must also act responsibly. We cannot ignore the public health risks of breathing polluted air. nor can we pretend that these emissions do not exacerbate global warming. Alternatively. we certainly do not want to hinder job creation and economic growth. Congress passed the Clean Air Act to allow the EPA to ensure that all Americans had access to clean air. and we must not strip the agency of that right. Lest we forget that since 1999. Houston has exchanged titles with Los Angeles for the poorest air quality in the nation. The poor air quality is attributed to the amount of aerosols. particles of carbon and sulfates in the air. The carcinogens found in the air have been known to cause cancer. particularly in children. The EPA is the very agency charged with issuing regulations that would address this serious problem. This bill may very well jeopardize the air that we breathe. the water that we drink. our public lands. and our public health by deep funding cuts in priority initiatives. My friends on the other side of the aisle seem much more interested in stripping the EPA of its authority than passing jobs legislation. It has been nearly 10 months since the Republicans took control of the House. promising the American people they would create jobs. As October begins. they have not offered a single jobs bill. nor have they brought President Obamas American Jobs Act to the floor for a vote. The focus of this Congress must be on passing President Obamas American Jobs Act and other legislation that will create jobs and put the American people back to work. Last weekend. I had the opportunity to visit several small businesses at home in the 18th Congressional District of Texas. I was able to roll up my sleeves and get involved with the hard working men and women of Houston. I visited Dr. German Ramos at the Canal Medical Center. where I had the opportunity to meet with Dr. Ramos and his employees. I visited Atlantic Petroleum and Mineral Resources where I met with President and CEO Donald Sheffield. and got to work at De Walt Construction Company. owned by single mother Wanda De Walt. who employs 15 people and wants to hire more. I also had the opportunity to visit floral shops. beauty salons. bakeries and other small businesses throughout Houston. I spoke with these entrepreneurs and small business owners who represent Americas biggest job creators. and their message was clear. These business owners and entrepreneurs encouraged me to work to pass powerful bipartisan. specific proposals to create jobs. It was a privilege to perform the hands on duties these hard working Houstonians do every day. We must engage and support entrepreneurs. innovators and small businesses to create jobs. I will be proposing a bill that will create jobs. and I look forward to bipartisan support. Madam Chair. there are times in which we are 50 individual states. and there are times when we exist as a single nation with national needs. One state did not defend the nation after the attacks on Pearl Harbor. One state. on its own. did not end segregation and establish civil rights. Every so often. there comes an issue so vital we must unite beyond our districts. and beyond our states. and act as a nation. and protecting the quality of our air is one of those times. I encourage my colleagues to support the Jackson Lee amendment in order to uphold the EPAs authority to enforce the Clean Air Act. By ensuring the cement industry must comply with finalized EPA regulations. we are protecting the quality of the air that all of our constituents breathe. Surely preventing illness and premature death by ensuring every American has access to clean air is not controversial. Again. I urge my colleagues to support my amendment.