| 00:00:00 | SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: THE GENTLEMAN'S TIME HAS EXPIRED. |
| 00:00:02 | THE CHAIR RECOGNIZES THE GENTLEMAN FROM ILLINOIS, MR. |
| 00:00:05 | DOLD, FOR FIVE MINUTES. |
| 00:00:06 | MR. |
| 00:00:07 | DOLD: MADAM SPEAKER, I ASK UNANIMOUS CONSENT TO ADDRESS THE HOUSE FOR FIVE MINUTES. |
| 00:00:11 | THE SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: WITHOUT OBJECTION. |
| 00:00:13 | THE GENTLEMAN IS RECOGNIZED FOR FIVE MINUTES. |
| 00:00:15 | MR. DOLD: THANK YOU, MADAM SPEAKER. |
| 00:00:18 | ONE OF THE CORE FUNCTIONS OF THE GOVERNMENT IS TO INVEST IN INFRASTRUCTURE AND TRANSPORTATION. |
| 00:00:23 | THIS IS NOT A REPUBLICAN IDEA OR A DEMOCRAT IDEA. |
| 00:00:27 | IT'S AN AMERICAN ONE. |
| 00:00:29 | AT A TIME WHEN PEOPLE ARE SO DESPERATELY LOOKING FOR WASHINGTON TO COME TOGETHER, THIS IS AN ISSUE THAT WE SHOULD AND CAN WORK TOGETHER ON. |
| 00:00:39 | THIS WEEK WE ARE DEBATING THE TRANSPORTATION BILL. |
| 00:00:42 | WHILE THERE ARE MANY GREAT QUALITIES ABOUT THIS BILL, THERE IS STILL NEED, AND I WOULD ARGUE A GREAT NEED, TO IMPROVE IT. |
| 00:00:49 | THAT'S WHY I'M PLEASED THAT THERE ARE LITERALLY HUNDREDS OF AMENDMENTS TO TRY TO STRENGTHEN THIS BILL. |
| 00:00:56 | I HAIL FROM THE STATE OF ILLINOIS. |
| 00:00:59 | ILLINOIS IS A DONOR STATE WHICH MEANS THAT WE ARE PUTTING IN MORE TRANSPORTATION FUNDS THAN WE ARE RECEIVING BACK FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. |
| 00:01:07 | THAT IS WHY I AM CONCERNED BY THE CUTS FACING OUR STATE. |
| 00:01:11 | WE STAND TO LOSE ALMOST $650 MILLION. |
| 00:01:16 | AS ONE OF THE LARGEST MANUFACTURING HUBS OF THE COUNTRY, OUR REGION CANNOT AFFORD TO LOSE THIS CRITICAL FUNDING. |
| 00:01:24 | OUR TRANSPORTATION FUNDS HELP STRENGTHEN OUR LOCAL ECONOMY AND KEEP JOBS AT HOME. |
| 00:01:29 | LET ME BE CLEAR, THERE ARE SOME VERY GOOD STEPS IN THIS BILL THAT I BELIEVE WE ALL SHOULD BE ABLE TO EMBRACE. |
| 00:01:36 | THE BILL PROVIDES LONG-TERM CERTAINTY TO STATES WHEN THEY ARE PLANNING THEIR TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS. |
| 00:01:43 | WE HAVEN'T HAD A TRANSPORTATION BILL IN A NUMBER OF YEARS, SINCE 2005, AND THIS WOULD PROVIDE A FIVE-YEAR STABILITY. |
| 00:01:51 | IT INCLUDES NUMEROUS REFORMS THAT ENABLE STATES TO CUT THROUGH THE RED TAPE. |
| 00:01:56 | SPEED UP COMPLETION OF PROJECTS, MANY TAKING ABOUT 5 YEARS AGO, THAT WOULD BE GOING DOWN TO SEVEN OR EIGHT YEARS IN THE FUTURE. |
| 00:02:03 | I'M PLEASED THAT THE BILL STRENGTHENS THE HARBOR MAINTENANCE TRUST FUND WHICH IMPACTS PLACES LIKE ROY KEEGAN HARBOR. |
| 00:02:13 | WAUKEGAN HARBOR IS A CRITICAL PART OF THE GREAT LAKES SYSTEM AND HELPS BRING JOBS HOME TO THE 10TH DISTRICT THAT SO DESPERATELY NEEDS THEM. |
| 00:02:21 | THAT BEING SAID, THERE ARE SEVERAL ASPECTS ABOUT THIS BILL THAT NEED TO BE RESOLVED. |
| 00:02:26 | ONE OF MY MAJOR AREAS OF CONCERN IS THAT OF THE ENVIRONMENT. |
| 00:02:30 | MADAM SPEAKER, THE BILL WOULD OPEN A PORTION OF THE ARCTIC NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE, BETTER REFERRED TO AS ANWR, TO OIL AND GAS DRILLING. |
| 00:02:40 | FOR OVER 50 YEARS THE DEVELOPMENT OF ANWR HAS BEEN DEBATED GREATLY. |
| 00:02:44 | WE HAVE AN OBLIGATION TO BE GOOD STEWARDS OF OUR NATIONAL TREASURES AND FISCALLY RESPONSIBLE IN FUNDING OUR NATION'S INFRASTRUCTURE. |
| 00:02:52 | HOWEVER, INCLUDING THE ARCTIC REFUGE DRILLING PROVISION WILL GREATLY COMPLICATE THE TRANSPORTATION BILL MOVING FORWARD AND MAKE AGREEMENT WITH THE SENATE FAR MORE DIFFICULT. |
| 00:03:04 | ANWR SHOULD BE THE LAST RESORT NOT THE FIRST ONE. |
| 00:03:08 | I'M ALSO CONCERNED WITH THE FUTURE SUSTAINABILITY OF TRANSIT FUNDING. |
| 00:03:13 | IN THE CHICAGOLAND REGION WE DEPEND ON MASS TRANSIT TO LESSEN CONGESTION ON OUR ROADS AND GET PEOPLE TO AND FROM WORK. |
| 00:03:21 | WE DO THIS FAR MORE EFFICIENTLY WITH MASS TRANSIT, 50% OF THE PEOPLE ON THE AREA'S HIGHWAYS AND INTERSTATES WOULD BE INCREASED IF IT WERE NOT FOR MASS TRANSIT. |
| 00:03:32 | SO THINK ABOUT THAT. |
| 00:03:33 | FOR THE PEOPLE BACK THERE THAT HAVE DRIVEN THROUGH CHICAGO, IF WE WERE TO ADD AN ADDITIONAL 50% ON THE ALREADY CONGUESTED -- CONGESTED ROADS, IT WOULD MAKE IT FAR MORE DIFFICULT FOR MOVING GOODS AND SERVICES AROUND AND PEOPLE TO WORK. |
| 00:03:49 | THIS IS NOT WHAT WE NEED. |
| 00:03:50 | MASS TRANSIT IS A VITAL PROGRAM AND ONE THAT WE NEED TO PRESERVE. |
| 00:03:54 | WE NEED TO HAVE THE CERTAINTY OUT THERE FOR FUNDING. |
| 00:03:57 | IN ILLINOIS OUR STATE WILL FACE A $137 MILLION SHORTFALL EACH AND EVERY YEAR IF THIS BILL IS ENACTED AS IT STANDS RIGHT NOW. |
| 00:04:05 | AND THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE. |
| 00:04:06 | WITH ALL THIS BEING SAID, I BELIEVE THAT WE HAVE MUCH NO DO AND WE CAN WORK TOGETHER TO BUILD THE TRANSPORTATION BILL THAT STATES AND GIVES LONG-TERM PLANNING AND COMPLETES PROJECTS FASTER. |
| 00:04:20 | BUT WE DO NOT NEED TO DO SO AT THE DETRIMENT OF MASS TRANSIT OR THE ENVIRONMENT. |
| 00:04:24 | SO LET'S WORK TOGETHER AND MAKE THIS A BETTER BILL THAT WE CAN ALL BE PROUD OF AND MOVE OUR COUNTRY FORWARD. |
| 00:04:31 | WITH THAT, MADAM SPEAKER, I YIELD BACK. |
| 00:04:33 | THE SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: THE GENTLEMAN YIELDS BACK. |
| 00:04:36 | THE CHAIR RECOGNIZES THE GENTLEWOMAN FROM CALIFORNIA, MS. |
| 00:04:39 | LEE, FOR FIVE MINUTES. |
| 00:04:41 | 7 -- MS. |
| 00:04:42 | LEE: THANK YOU, MADAM SPEAKER. |
| 00:04:44 | AS FOUNDER AND CO-CHAIR OF THE CONGRESSIONAL OUT-OF-POVERTY CAUCUS, |
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