Ken Calvert

Mr. CALVERT

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, we have been working hard to improve this bill since its introduction. The amendment in the nature of a substitute is a bipartisan amendment that has been carefully crafted based on input from Senator Feinstein and her staff, the administration, the State of California, and water groups. This amendment was not crafted in a vacuum, and I believe it addresses many concerns voiced over the last several weeks. Reflecting the dynamic that differing regions of California represent, as opposed to the whole State, the amendment also includes necessary policy provisions: Bay-Delta water quality protections: Bay-Delta water quality issues have not been adequately addressed in the past and they need to be fixed now. It is not fair that the constituents of the gentleman from California (Mr. Pombo), or the constituents of the gentleman from California (Mr. George Miller), or the constituents of the gentleman from California (Mr. Cardoza) should bear the highest water quality burdens because of circumstances outside their control. These water quality provisions addressed in this bill are the results of discussions between water users throughout California, including in- Delta water uses. Most importantly, these provisions do not allow increased pumping unless water quality standards are met. Water storage: Everyone wants to have more flexibility delivering water supplies throughout the State. Increased storage will give us more flexibility and improve water quality. In fact, my good friends in districts in the Bay area and beyond recently supported the Los Vaqueros expansion for these very purposes. My amendment provides that CALFED storage projects are subject to appropriate feasibility studies and if Congress does not act to disapprove them in 120 days, then construction is authorized. Ensuring that adequate storage is part of a balanced CALFED is important here since CALFED expenditures so far have been imbalanced. This provision helps develop CALFED storage, and in no way undermines the regulatory process, including the Endangered Species Act, NEPA, SEQA, the Clean Water Act, and a number of other Federal acts and laws. Furthermore, these projects are still subject to appropriations. Ecosystem restoration: The amendment has a ``right to know'' provision on how taxpayer dollars are being spent on ecosystem restoration. These provisions ask the Federal agencies to submit a management plan for CALFED-related ecosystem projects. These management plans would require a cost analysis, possible alternatives, disclosure of impacts, and required mitigation. All other projects, like storage projects, require much more detailed feasibility reports. We are only asking for a management plan that sits before Congress, which has no veto authority over such a management plan. This is nothing more than a good government plan that in no way hinders ecosystem restoration. Mr. Speaker, there has never been a water bill that everybody likes. God knows I know that. But this is getting close. We have worked hard to resolve concerns and will continue to work with my colleagues and stakeholders on these issues. We cannot let the perfect be the enemy of the good. I urge my colleagues to support this amendment and the bill. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 711, I call up the bill (H.R. 2828), to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to implement water supply technology and infrastructure programs aimed at increasing and diversifying domestic water resources, and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H. R. 2828.

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, today's consideration of this bill is a giant step forward in resolving California's water supply problems. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from California (Mr. Pombo), the chairman of the full committee.

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Doolittle).

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 3\1/2\ minutes. Mr. Speaker, before I make a statement about this bill, I want to also thank the ranking member, the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Napolitano) for all her great work on this bill. She has spent many hours and days traveling across the State of California. I think we probably were in most congressional districts throughout California as this process took place. Certainly I thank her for her great work in this legislation. This bill represents great progress in helping solve the water problems of the west by making California more self-reliant and carefully using its own water supply. We have come a long way over the last few years. The Subcommittee on Water and Power conducted three field hearings in California, a legislative hearing, two mark-ups, and too many meetings to count to get where we are today. Individually, many of the members of our committee have helped to shepherd often contentious quantification settlement agreements, for instance, that was delayed, but we finally came to a decisive conclusion. My friends in the upper-lower basin States should know that this bill today is another positive step in California weaning itself from historically overdrafting the Colorado River. As we have found with the plumbing in California's water system, everything in the world of water is related to everything else. Thus, achievements like the quantification settlement agreement helped us conclude the carefully balanced agreement on CALFED that we have before us today. Water is not and should not be a partisan issue. I worked constructively with the Committee on Resources chairman, the gentleman from California (Mr. Pombo), Senator Feinstein, as I mentioned, the ranking Democratic member; the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Napolitano); the gentleman from California (Mr. Dooley); the gentleman from California (Mr. Cardoza); of course, the gentleman from California (Mr. George Miller); and the full committee ranking member, the gentleman from West Virginia (Mr. Rahall) and many, many more to make sure this bill before us is a consensus that I believe that it is. I am proud to have many Democratic members of the Committee on Resources supporting this bill. The original intent of CALFED was to provide balance to a complex water delivery system, to ensure that everybody gets better together. That is what this bill does. H.R. 2828 simply and truly means that the environment, recreation, drinking water, agriculture and industries gets better together. As our distinguished colleague, the gentleman from California (Mr. Pombo) said, This bill makes historic strides in water quality improvements in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Bay Delta. Improved water quality helps everyone across the board. We have also created new water supplies for southern California through my friend, the gentlewoman from California's (Mrs. Napolitano) water recycling amendment, and we enhanced surface storage to improve water quality for families in our colleagues' district in the Bay area and beyond as evidenced by the support of such water districts as the Northern California Water District, Contra Costa Water District, Central Contra Water District and many others. We have created a right to know provision by making Federal agencies report how they will spend the money. Congress and the American taxpayer deserve government accountability and this bill provides it. Mr. Speaker, I will continue to work with my colleagues in the House and the Senate to bring ultimate resolution to this bipartisan effort. Our bill includes and supports a diverse approach to solving our water problems, including conservation, reclamation, desalinization, conjunctive use, ground water storage and, of course, surface storage options that have been carefully studied and negotiated down to the bare minimum. We have made significant progress and we can see the light at the end of the tunnel. With today's vote, we will pass this bill and we will make that light shine even brighter. I urge support. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I offer an amendment in the nature of a substitute.

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume to close, and I want to again thank the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Napolitano) for her good work and her dedication on this legislation. She spent many hours and much of her time traveling through the State of California and throughout the western United States as we came to understand the issue of water. There are very few subjects that bring out more emotion and passion than water, and certainly I have grown to understand the subject much better over the last number of years. I am looking forward to passing this bill today and moving ahead.

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Radanovich).

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Dreier), the chairman of the Committee on Rules. (Mr. DREIER asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Thomas), the chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means. (Mr. THOMAS asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself what time I may consume for a short comment. Congressional approval of water projects from planning through construction is not a new concept. The Corps of Engineers has authority through the Water Resources Development Act, WRDA, to implement projects following a favorable Chief's, or some people call it feasibility, report. Through WRDA, Congress approves projects from planning through construction, subject to the conditions stated in a favorable Chief's report. Numerous examples of the corps' projects can be found in WRDA 1996, WRDA 1999, and WRDA 2000 which authorize construction following a favorable Chief's report. In the last three WRDAs, over 50 projects were approved from planning through construction, with conditional authorization subject to a favorable Chief's report. New projects were conditionally authorized, and there were additional project modifications that were conditionally authorized. WRDA projects conditionally authorized included the Bel Marin Keys Unit, California, well over $100 million; Kill Van Kull, New York and New Jersey navigation project, $325 million authorization to $750 million; the Savannah Harbor Expansion navigation project $230 million, and I can go on and on and on. Are my colleagues saying we should replace the 120-day congressional authorization which is in the present bill with extensively used WRDA language that Congress has accepted and continues to support? H.R. 2828 includes provisions that approve water recycling projects from planning through construction which was proposed by the Southern California Democrats. By the way, these four projects that are in this bill are in the Record of Decision which has been negotiated over the years, as all my friends know, and a very difficult negotiation, to bring this process of CALFED in a balanced manner forward. So I would say to my colleagues, this is nothing new. People would like to see these projects built if, in fact, they are feasible; and all the environmental processes, NEPA, CEPA, Endangered Species Act, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera, must be met to make sure that these projects are viable and feasible under the law. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, will the gentlewoman yield?

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman for her support and inquiry. As the gentlewoman knows, I strongly support recycling as a way to reduce Southern California's dependence on imported water and help drought-proof the region. That is why I supported H.R. 1156, a bill championed by our colleagues, the gentleman from California (Mr. Rohrabacher), whose district includes the Groundwater Replenishment System, and the gentlewoman here today from the 47th district. I am fully supportive of House passage of H.R. 1156, H.R. 2991, introduced by our colleague the gentleman from California (Mr. Dreier), and other recycling bills reported by the House Committee on Resources, but I know that it is up to the leadership on both sides of the aisle to determine which bills are debated on the House floor. In the meantime, I will continue to strongly support H.R. 1156, and I thank the gentlewoman's support for H.R. 2828.

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his support of the Salton Sea. I would like to assure him that I and many of our Southern California colleagues, including the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Bono) and certainly the gentleman from California (Mr. Hunter), continue to strongly support the restoration of the Salton Sea, and we will work with him and others in our delegation to continue these efforts.

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I yield 30 seconds to the gentleman from California (Mr. Ose).

Mr. CALVERT

Mr. CALVERT. I thank the gentleman from Washington for yielding me this time. Mr. Speaker, I rise in favor of this rule. Certainly water is extremely important, not just to California but the entire west, and certainly to all of those who have been associated with the current CALFED program, ecosystem restoration activities appears to be somewhat haphazard. The measurable outcome has focused on dollars spent rather than increased numbers of fish and wildlife. This legislation proposes new congressional oversight and accountability, requiring Federal agencies to report on certain ecosystem restoration program goals and accomplishments. For example, landowners want to see accomplishments of land and water management plans and how new ecosystem restoration plans will fit into the big picture. The manager's amendment to the bill will be reducing the Federal cost of implementation of this from over a billion dollars 4 years ago, and $890 million as introduced to a Federal authorization of $427 million. This bill has bipartisan support. H.R. 2828 is the product of congressional deliberation and lengthy negotiations. That is why it was reported by the Committee on Resources with bipartisan support. Democrats and Republicans throughout the State of California support this bill because it is balanced in nature and it will be, as I mentioned, not just good for California but the entire West. I urge the adoption of this rule.

Mr. CALVERT

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and pay tribute to an individual whose dedication and contributions to the community of Riverside County, CA, are exceptional. We have been fortunate to have dynamic and dedicated community leaders who willingly and unselfishly give their time and talent and make their communities a better place to live and work. Vic Jensen is one of these individuals. Vic Jensen will retire after 34 years of service as office manager of the Department of Motor Vehicles' Winnetka, Hemet, Corona, and Norco field offices on June 26, 2004. Vic Jensen was born in Sacramento, California, on January 27, 1937. He and his wife, Isabel, have been married for 40 years and have one daughter, Julie Kim. Vic served in the United States Navy for 4 years, before moving to Norco in 1981 and quickly becoming involved in a variety of community activities, including: Board Member and President of the Norco Chamber of Commerce for 9 years; Commissioner of the Norco Streets and Trails Commission for 7 years; Numerous positions-- President, Secretary, Zone Chairman, and Regional Chairman--over 14 years with the Norco Lions Club; Chairman of the Sight and Hearing Board for the Norco/Corona Unified School District; and Member of the Citizen's Advisory Committee for the California Rehabilitation Center. Recognition of Vic's contributions include the Riverside County Board of Supervisors, Assemblyman Ted Weggeland, State Senator Raymond Haynes, and former California Governor Pete Wilson, for his work as President of the Norco Chamber of Commerce in 1996. Additionally, he has received the Abdul Award for his work with Canine Companions, the Lyda Smiley Award for his work with the Norco/Corona Unified School District in obtaining glasses for children in need, and the Melvin Jones Fellowship Award in 1997 for all of his accomplishments as a member of the Norco Lions Club. Vic also spends countless hours in perfecting his passion for golf, golf, and more golf. Whenever a chance arrives he is fine-tuning his game. Mr. Speaker, Vic's tireless passion for community service has contributed immensely to the betterment of the community of Norco, California. He has been the heart and soul of many community organizations and events and I am proud to call him a fellow community member, American, and friend. I know that many community members are grateful for his service and salute him as he retires from professional service, but not from community service.

Mr. CALVERT

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and pay tribute to an individual whose dedication and contributions to the community of Riverside, CA, and the U.S. Navy Reserve are exceptional. On June 21, Captain Noreen Considine will retire from the Naval Reserves after 27 years of active and reserve military service. We are fortunate to have dynamic and dedicated military and community leaders who willingly and unselfishly give their time and talent to make their communities and nation a better place to live and work. Captain Considine is one of these individuals. Over the past 27 years Captain Considine has contributed to the Navy, Marine Corps, and Department of Defense in the areas of medical surveillance, hazardous materials management, preventative medicine, and occupational safety and health matters. She has also trained Navy Hospital Corpsmen in managing hazardous materials and workplace hazards. Since 1997, Captain Considine has served with the Chief of Naval Operations' Occupational Safety and Health Branch, working with full-time safety experts on pinpointing the causes of mishaps and targeting remedial actions that maximize force protection. She led the establishment of the Navy's 1,001 Safety Success Stories Project, which now serves as a web based showcase of the U.S. Navy's safety accomplishments. Additionally, Captain Considine developed a multimedia presentation of the Navy's occupational safety and health program for safety professionals and Navy Public Affairs. In fact, in March 2003, she was selected to speak on a panel before the Royal Australian Navy regarding military safety. Over the years, Captain Considine has been called up to active duty over a dozen times when her country needed her, including during Desert Storm. Captain Considine's awards include two U.S. Navy Commendations and the Alaska Humanitarian Services Medal, earned in 1995 as an Officer in charge of a medical detachment to the Northwest Arctic. Outside of her military accomplishments, Captain Considine is actively involved as an adult literacy program volunteer, a pro-bono technical book reviewer for the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a community advocate for school board accountability and public safety, and much more. As a recent example of her care and service to others, she purchased and shipped several hundred pounds of supplies and personal care items to our military members serving in the War on Terrorism out of her own pocketbook. Mr. Speaker, Captain Noreen Considine is a woman dedicated to her community and country. Her tireless dedication to the U.S. Navy Reserve and Riverside, CA, has contributed immensely to the betterment of those with whom she comes into contact. For all that Captain Considine has done and given over the years, I am privileged to recognize her accomplishments as she retires from a profession that she gave her heart and soul too, the U.S. Navy Reserve.

Mr. CALVERT

Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I thank my good friend from California, our dean, Chairman Lewis, our able chairman of the Subcommittee on Defense, for yielding me this time. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to one of the greatest Presidents in the history of our Nation, Ronald Wilson Reagan, the 40th President of the United States. He was a leader when our country needed it most, at a time when many Americans, including myself, had found ourselves disaffected by politics. His optimism gave our Nation the confidence and motivation to resume its place as a world leader. I well remember the 1970s after President Nixon's resignation and the pessimism that followed, when many Americans disassociated themselves from public service. Ronald Reagan came onto the Presidential scene and reminded us that the ``best was yet to come,'' that we are not to blame for the world's problems; and yet, as a great Nation, we had a place of responsibility and a role to play. President Reagan believed, as our Declaration of Independence states, all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Additionally, he knew better than most that strength comes from within, from the people. Therefore, first and foremost, Reagan used his first term as President to bring these rights back to Americans starting with what was then known as Reaganomics. He sought to restore America to the people by giving them back control of their pocketbooks. Uncle Sam was put on a diet of lower taxes, sound money and fewer regulations, allowing us the benefits of hard work. By the time that Reagan left office, only two income brackets existed, with a top rate of 28 percent, compared to the 14 income brackets, with the top rate of 70 percent, that existed when he took office. Additionally, government was scaled back and red tape eliminated, allowing Americans to take care of themselves. As Reagan was apt to say. ``Government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.'' He saw the rebuilding of America's military. After years of low morale and interest in the armed services, President Reagan made a return to the pre-Vietnam days of faith and professional appeal in our military. As Commander in Chief, he oversaw the largest peacetime buildup of military spending in history, leading to the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War. His revolutionary policies regarding investment in military technology, good training, and pay laid the foundation for a strong military that later claimed victory in Operation Desert Storm and continues to protect our national security well into the 21st century and, now, in the war on terror. Ronald Reagan lived a life worth living. He saw both the birth and death of Communism. He won the hearts of Americans and world leaders. How? He believed in peace through strength, and he lived his convictions based on experience, intuition, and love of life. I will end with one of my favorite quotes: ``Above all, we must realize that no arsenal, no weapon in the arsenal of the world is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women.'' Thank you, President Reagan. May God bless you and your family, and may God bless America.

Mr. CALVERT

Mr. CALVERT. As my friend from Texas understands also, this is about transformation. This is a time of transformation in the military. It is a time of transformation for NASA, to become refocused upon their primary mission; and their primary mission, I think we all agree, is the exploration of outer space. This is a great opportunity for this country to once again get back to our national dream of space exploration. As the gentleman from Florida mentioned, whether or not we can afford this, I would say we cannot afford not to. The type of technologies that we have been able to share with this country that have come out of the space program are irreplaceable. Look what we are doing with energy. The gentleman mentioned energy. Solar. We look at solar as a renewable resource. I cannot think of many folks that have done more work on solar research than NASA, because of what we use solar for today, to help get the energy that is necessary to keep the station going. The fuel cell technology really started with NASA. Hydrogen technology, fuel cell technology, that gives us a clean source of energy, some people really believe the next generation of energy that will sustain this country as we move away from an oil-based economy. Communications, where would we be without our cell phones? Sometimes I wonder. But it is those satellites up there that keep us communicating with one another. All of the types of technologies that come from this fantastic investment, and I say ``investment'' in the true sense, the return on this, I do not think of many things we do in government that we get a higher return than what we do with the money we put in this.

Mr. CALVERT. Madam Speaker, just in closing, I would like to point out that in this very building, we were in a conflict between the States and the President at that time. Abraham Lincoln made a determination that the business of the Union would go forward, and the dome of this very building was completed during the Civil War. The business of this Nation moves forward. As a matter of fact, the underpinnings of the great railroad that bound this Nation together was done while Abraham Lincoln was President of the United States while the Civil War was raging across this Nation, but the business of the Republic moved forward. So to say that we should stop the exploration of outer space for whatever reason is not a good reason, and I thank the gentleman for holding this Special Order.

Mr. CALVERT. Madam Speaker, I rise today to support NASA's new vision for our continued exploration of the universe. Forty-three years ago, President John F. Kennedy laid out a vision of space exploration that became a reality 8 years later when Neil Armstrong stepped onto the Moon. With the Apollo missions, America led the world in space exploration and propelled decades of technological and biological research that continue to benefit us to this day. Four decades later, President George W. Bush offered the Nation another bold and challenging vision of space exploration that will keep America economically, technologically, and militarily strong. Congress needs to support this mission so we can work with NASA to achieve the goal of returning Americans to the Moon and sending astronauts to Mars and beyond. NASA's new space exploration vision comes at a time when America faces increased competition from other nations. Aside from Russia, the People's Republic of China now has an ambitious space flight program. China has already launched a spacecraft into low-Earth orbit and is intent on developing a manned aerospace and lunar exploration program. We need to return the Space Shuttle to flight, complete the International Space Station, and extend our presence across the solar system by developing a new crew exploration vehicle. Space exploration not only advances the Nation's vision. It provides jobs, growth and opportunity to millions of American workers. Being the leader in space flight also makes America the leader in commercial research and development. The end of the last century witnessed rapid advances in science and technology that could only have been accomplished by astronauts conducting research in space. Microgravity experiments on the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station led to the creation of next-generation silicon computer chips and laser communication. Experiments on the Shuttle in the early 1990s fostered the development of a manufacturing process known as liquid phase centering that is now being used to produce over $20 billion worth of products in the United States. Human space flight stimulates our economy and increases our global competitiveness. A new vision must be launched if we are to maintain our lead in space and ensure our viability as a Nation for decades to come. Like it or not, other nations are sending their citizens into space and seeking to reap the rewards of those journeys. In an ever-changing and more unpredictable world, we cannot afford to cede our leadership role in space. We have come too far and paid too high a price to turn our backs on the future. Supporting NASA's new space exploration vision and a reasonable investment in NASA's budget this year will keep us on a path toward our nation's destiny.