CONSERVATION AND REINVESTMENT ACT OF 1999 -- (Extensions of Remarks -
May 19, 2000)
[Page: E779]
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SPEECH OF
HON. DEBBIE STABENOW
OF MICHIGAN
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Thursday, May 11, 2000
The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union had under
consideration the bill (H.R. 701) to provide Outer Continental Shelf Impact
Assistance to State and local governments, to amend the Land and Water
Conservation Fund Act of 1965, the Urban Park and Recreation Recovery Act of
1978, and the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act (commonly referred to as
the Pittman-Robertson Act) to establish a fund to meet the outdoor conservation
and recreation needs of the American people, and for other purposes;
- Ms. STABENOW. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of H.R. 701, the
Conservation and Reinvestment Act of 1999, and in support of the motion to
recommit the bill to guarantee that any expenditure of funds will not
jeopardize Social Security and Medicare. I strongly believe that eliminating
the national debt and securing the financial future of Social Security and
Medicare should be our top priorities. We must take advantage of our economic
good times to secure these successful programs and rid this nation of its
public debt.
- During consideration of H.R. 701, Congressman Shadegg offered an amendment
that purported to accomplish these goals. While I strongly supported the
spirit of my colleague's amendment, it appears that its real intent was to
prevent the strong conservation programs in the bill from being funded. The
amendment stated that the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) must provide
``certification'' that the public debt will be fully paid by 2013, that there
will not be an on-budget deficit, and that the Social Security and Medicare
trust funds will not fall into a deficit in the next five years before any
CARA funding could be dispersed. As the CBO has asserted, it is not able to
make such certifications, but can only provide estimates. Because of these
technical imperfections in the Shadegg proposal, I believe his amendment would
permanently block all CARA funding. For this reason, I joined 207 of my
colleagues in voting against this amendment, and supported the motion to
recommit the bill to ensure that Social Security and Medicare would truly be
protected.
- I am a cosponsor of the Conservation and Reinvestment Act CARA, because I
strongly support increasing the federal investment in conservation. This bill
will make an important, dramatic change in the funding of conservation
programs. It establishes a permanent funding source for these programs by
setting aside royalties earned from off-shore oil and gas drilling. This
funding will be directed toward, coastal conservation, land acquisition
through the Land and Water Conservation Fund, wildlife conservation, urban
parks and recreation, historic preservation, federal and Indian land
restoration, and endangered species recovery. Additional funds are also
designated to increase federal payments for the Payment in Lieu of Taxes
payments and the Refuge Revenue Sharing programs. I urge my colleagues to
support his bipartisan legislation.
END