Madeleine Bordallo

Ms. BORDALLO

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Ms. BORDALLO. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, the Puget Sound region of Washington State combines tremendous scenic beauty with numerous historic sites. Boaters and kayakers traveling these waters are surrounded by spectacular mountains and abundant wildlife. Through 15 years of diligent work by local advocates and volunteers, 54 campsites on a 150-mile route along the coast now constitute the Cascadia Marine Trail. The pending measure would authorize a study of this trail for its potential inclusion in the National Trails System. So, by all accounts, this trail is certainly worthy of this consideration. Mr. Speaker, I commend our colleague, Representative Jay Inslee, for his hard work and for his dedication to this legislation. I support the passage of H.R. 1641, and urge all Members to do so as well. I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as he may consume to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Inslee).

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1641) to amend the National Trails System Act to provide for a study of the Cascadia Marine Trail, as amended.

Ms. BORDALLO

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, I now would like to recognize for 1 minute the author of the bill, the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Inslee).

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, again, I urge all Members to support this piece of legislation. I commend the author, Mr. Hastings from the State of Washington, for authoring this, and I ask that all Members support this legislation.

Ms. BORDALLO. I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. BORDALLO. I yield myself as much time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2806, sponsored by Natural Resources Committee Ranking Member Doc Hastings, would allow the National Park Service to adjust the boundary of the Stephen Mather Wilderness, inside North Cascades National Park, to provide for a new road corridor. Flooding has repeatedly washed out significant portions of a road in the park. Today, the road is impassable for vehicles above what used to be the halfway point. The pending measure would authorize the Secretary of the Interior to redraw the boundaries of the wilderness within prescribed parameters to provide a new corridor so that the road could be partially rerouted out of the floodplain and rebuilt to its original end. The bill would require that any boundary changes made to accommodate the road result in no overall loss of acreage to the wilderness area. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2806) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to adjust the boundary of the Stephen Mather Wilderness and the North Cascades National Park in order to allow the rebuilding of a road outside of the floodplain while ensuring that there is no net loss of acreage to the Park or the Wilderness, and for other purposes, as amended.

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Ms. BORDALLO

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, I again urge Members to support the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve.

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2489) to authorize a comprehensive national cooperative geospatial imagery mapping program through the United States Geological Survey, to promote use of the program for education, workforce training and development, and applied research, and to support Federal, State, tribal, and local government programs, as amended.

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2489 would authorize a nationwide program sponsored by the U.S. Geological Survey to help States, communities, and universities use satellite imagery for research and education. I would like to commend the sponsor of this legislation, Representative Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, for championing valuable uses of satellite imagery and for her work with the minority to improve the pending measure. So I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 2489, which will facilitate remote sensing outreach partnerships in all 50 States and territories. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. BORDALLO

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1471) to expand the boundary of the Jimmy Carter National Historic Site in the State of Georgia, to redesignate the unit as a National Historical Park, and for other purposes, as amended.

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, I again urge Members to support the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, the Jimmy Carter National Historic Site in Plains, Georgia, was established in 1987 to preserve the boyhood home and current residence of our 39th President. The former President and his wife have a lifetime tenancy in their home and are actively involved in the work of the park. The pending measure would expand the current boyhood homesite from 15 acres to 18 acres and allow the National Park Service to acquire several additional properties. The bill would also redesignate the park from a national historic site to a national historic park. Mr. Speaker, the sponsor of this legislation, Representative Sanford Bishop, is to be commended for his commitment to preserving this important piece of Presidential history. This is an excellent piece of legislation, and I urge Members to support it. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. BORDALLO

Ms. BORDALLO. Madam Chair, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 3619, the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2010. In particular, I would like to express my support for Section 220, which requires that Coast Guard vessels homeported in Guam be repaired, overhauled and maintained at American facilities. This provision was included in H.R. 2830 the Coast Guard Reauthorization Act from the 110th Congress and which was included in a manager's amendment that was adopted on the floor. I appreciate Chairman Oberstar's and Chairman Cumming's continued support for including this provision in this bill. This section clarifies a current loophole in statute that will ensure that Coast Guard ships that protect the waterways of Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands as well as the Federated States of Micronesia will be repaired by American workers. Furthermore, the maintenance funds authorized and appropriated by this body will be re-invested in the American economy. This is a common sense provision that simply extends to Guam the same repair American provisions that already apply to the rest of the United States. Again, I would like to express my appreciation to Chairman Oberstar of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and to Chairman Cummings of the Coast Guard Subcommittee for their leadership on this bill and for including this provision.

Ms. BORDALLO

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of House Resolution 800, legislation introduced by my colleague, Congresswoman Jackie Speier of California. This resolution expresses sympathy for the citizens of the Philippines as they recover from Tropical Storm Ketsana and Typhoon Parma. Tropical Storm Ketsana and Typhoon Parma caused widespread landslides and flooding in the Philippines. More than 600 Filipinos have lost their lives due to these storms, and I offer my sincere condolences to their families and friends. H. Res. 800 encourages the U.S. government to work closely with the Philippine government to improve disaster response and also urges President Obama to continue his support of disaster relief efforts in the Philippines. Just last week, a 22-member team from the Guam National Guard flew to the Philippines to provide medical relief and to support the armed forces of the Philippines as they continue the recovery process. Many of my constituents have family members, who were affected by this storm, and I commend the Filipino community of Guam, who were the first to mobilize our larger Guam community to quickly come together to collect relief items and provide financial assistance to those affected by this natural disaster. I thank my colleague, Congresswoman Speier, for introducing this legislation, and I urge my colleagues to support H. Res. 800.

Ms. BORDALLO

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to offer my support and sympathy to the people of the U.S. Territory of American Samoa and Western Samoa in the aftermath of the devastating tsunami that hit the region last week. The wave claimed over 200 lives and left thousands more homeless. I ask that this body support our colleague, Congressman Faleomavaega and his community as they recover from this disaster. All necessary aid to this region in the South Pacific should be brought to bear for our fellow Americans. We on Guam have experienced our share of disasters. I recognize the efforts of my constituents, many of whom have banded together to raise money and donate clothes, blankets, and food to the relief effort for Samoa. The people of American Samoa and Western Samoa have shown great courage in the face of this tragedy. Following the disaster they have pulled together and expressed their determination to recover what was lost. They deserve our backing and support in their time of need. My thoughts and prayers will remain with the families and those impacted by this disaster.

Ms. BORDALLO

Ms. BORDALLO. Madam Speaker, today I introduced legislation to amend the Consolidated Natural Resources Act of 2008 (CNRA), Public Law 110- 229, for the purpose of providing for a transition period for the implementation of the new Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program. Section 702 of the CNRA extends the immigration laws of the United States to the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). It also provides for a visa waiver program for travel to Guam and the CNMI consistent with the new arrangements for control of immigration in the CNMI and that would be based on and succeed the highly successful Guam-only visa waiver program, which was authorized by the Omnibus Territories Act of 1986. The Department of Homeland Security will commence control of six ports of entry in the CNMI on November 28, 2009, in accordance with the CNRA. The bill I have introduced today would make a technical correction to the CNRA, by delaying for one year the start of the authorized joint Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program. Its effect would be to allow for federal control of immigration to commence in the CNMI on November 28, 2009, but also for the existing CNMI visitor entry program under CNMI law to continue but be controlled and administered by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) under the Department of Homeland Security. The current approved countries under the Guam-only visa waiver program and the CNMI visitor entry program would be maintained, respectively for each territory, for an additional year. Such a continuation of the visitor entry rules for both of these territories would afford the Department of Homeland Security additional time to devise rules and allocate the resources necessary in both the CNMI and Guam for the successful operation and administration of the new Guam- CNMI Visa Waiver Program consistent with Congressional intent. The additional time will also provide for an orderly transition to occur in both territories. Most importantly, this bill would allow the Department of Homeland Security to focus its resources initially on the standing-up and control of six ports of entry in the CNMI and also protect the economic interests of the CNMI with the continuation of its visitor entry program. The CNMI economy is heavily reliant on tourism and its visitor sector is accustomed to operating under the territory's visitor entry program. The bill also authorizes a study to be conducted by the Secretary of the Interior, analyzing the economic situation and forecast for the CNMI. This report will be provided to the committees with jurisdiction, the House Committee on Natural Resources and the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, within 30 days of enactment. This report will help the Committees exercise oversight of the implementation of the CNRA and the transition by the Department of Homeland Security to the new joint, Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program. I look forward to working with my colleagues as this bill moves forward in the legislative process.

Ms. BORDALLO

Ms. BORDALLO. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express my views on the final conference report on the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010. I want to thank Chairman Skelton and Ranking Member McKeon for working so closely with me on a compromise to H.R. 44, the Guam World War II Loyalty Recognition Act. I also want to thank Erin Conaton, Paul Arcangeli, Dave Sienicki, Eryn Robinson, Vickie Plunkett, Julie Unmacht, and Andrew Hunter. Unfortunately, I was disappointed that H.R. 44 was not included in the final Defense authorization bill, but I'm confident that the commitments made by the House and the Senate conferees to hold hearings and to readdress war claims in next year's Defense bill will be honored and that further debate on this important legislation will bring us closer to finally passing this bill. I, again, want to thank my colleagues in the House who have supported including H.R. 44: Speaker Pelosi, Majority Leader Hoyer, Congressman Larson of our caucus, Members across the aisle, and many others. Finally, Mr. Speaker, the conference committee report has significant funding commitments for the military buildup, and I thank the committee for this.

Ms. BORDALLO

Ms. BORDALLO. I thank my colleague for yielding, and I rise to clarify the application of the Travel Promotion Act to the territories. Of chief interest to me and my colleagues representing the territories is ensuring that the travel promotion mandates of this legislation fully encompass and take into account the territories. Tourism is a critical component of the economies of the territories Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and the Northern Mariana Islands. I support the underlying bill. Given the territories depend heavily on tourism and will make contributions to the Travel Promotion Fund, they should be included. I ask my colleagues, Mr. Delahunt and Mr. Blunt, to clarify its application of the territories.