Lois Capps

Mrs. CAPPS

Mrs. CAPPS. Madam Speaker, could I inquire what time there is remaining on this side?

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker and my colleagues, may I go back to the underlying legislation, which is H.R. 3644, the Ocean, Coastal, and Watershed Educational Act. This is an educational program for children. They are not qualified to do natural resource surveys or to assess the impacts of oil seep. NOAA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, does not have jurisdiction over air quality and the mitigation of impacts. That would fall under jurisdiction of the Environmental Protection Agency. The proposal to level fund the program was rejected in the Natural Resources Committee and by the Rules Committee. The modest increases in this bill were negotiated with my colleague, Mr. Cassidy, in the Natural Resources Committee, in a very bipartisan discussion with negotiations that we made between the two sides, and I urge Members to oppose this motion and support the underlying bill. I remind my colleagues that these programs have a track record of being grant-making programs under NOAA for several years, and in all the places where they are currently being enacted, they are very popular. At a time when our public schools are being inundated with funding decreases and cuts and at a time when we're so concerned about the availability of our young people to learn the basics in science and math, this is a hands-on experience that they can have. It is an educational program that helps them appreciate their environment and take good care of it. We have 10 more applicants for every grant that's been available. So we made this modest agreement in a bipartisan way to increase over time by a very small amount the amount of money that can be available under this program through NOAA. I would hope that we would all get back to the basics of the legislation, oppose the motion to recommit, and support this underlying bill. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.

Mrs. CAPPS. I yield myself such time as I may consume. I thank the gentleman from Arizona for offering his amendment to ensure that funds appropriated to support the implementation of the B- WET and the ELG programs are not earmarked. One of the primary purposes of this legislation is to finally codify these programs as permanent educational programs within NOAA's larger educational initiative so that they can be incorporated into NOAA's base budget. In addition, this legislation will establish the purposes and policies of both programs, which should improve the ability of Congress to conduct its oversight to ensure that they remain effective and accountable. As it now stands, funds appropriated for these programs are not earmarked to benefit any one institution, but rather funds are distributed through regional programs or NOAA's education office through merit-based competitive processes. While this amendment will prohibit the earmarking of funds appropriated to implement both programs, it should have little direct effect on how B-WET or ELG grants are awarded in the future because, as the history of the programs demonstrates, funds have always been awarded competitively. Consequently, we can accept this amendment even though it is unnecessary, and thank the gentleman from Arizona for his interest in maintaining merit-based and competitive grant making for both programs. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. CAPPS. Madam Speaker, as I close my discussion of this amendment, let me remark that over the past 7 years these two programs, the environmental and coastal programs have cumulatively introduced millions of students to unique hands-on learning experiences. The National Academy of Sciences report that was requested by NOAA, not by Congress, reaffirms that each program has increased student interest in science, increased teacher capabilities to instruct science, and increased awareness and appreciation of the environment. So I urge Members to support the amendment and the bill. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mrs. CAPPS. I yield the gentleman an additional 30 seconds.

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased now to yield 4 minutes to the gentlewoman from Maryland (Ms. Edwards).

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to claim time in opposition to this motion to recommit.

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 2 minutes to my colleague, the gentleman from California (Mr. Farr) who is the pioneer in the area of coastal education.

Mrs. CAPPS. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mrs. CAPPS. I object.

Mrs. CAPPS. At this point I am very pleased to yield 1\1/2\ minutes to my colleague from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee).

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, I have an amendment at the desk made in order under the rule.

Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, my amendment in the nature of a substitute reflects changes to the bill, as ordered reported by the Committee on Natural Resources, that, as I mentioned, were negotiated between myself and Congressman Cassidy of Louisiana. I wish to thank Mr. Cassidy and his staff for their cooperation and thoughtful suggestions to improve this bill, and I think that the final bipartisan compromise does just that. In particular, the amendment makes several changes to reflect the significant economic importance of coastal areas and resources to the overall economy of the United States. As a Representative of a coastal district, I could not agree more that the economic health and viability of our coastal communities is intrinsically connected to the health of the natural resources of the watersheds in which we live. You cannot have one without the other. In addition, my amendment will authorize a gradual increase in authorized appropriations for fiscal years 2011 through 2015. This modest annual increase of 10 percent will allow for the responsible expansion of both programs to incorporate new regions that are not currently served, particularly by the regional B-WET programs. I applaud the gentleman from Louisiana for his leadership on this front. Both of our districts enjoy the benefits of the regional B-WET programs, and we would like to see those benefits extended to other watersheds around the country where, I can assure you, there is an overwhelming demand. Mr. Speaker, the changes reflected in this amendment serve to strengthen the overall purposes of this bill. I would like once more to thank Congressman Cassidy and his staff for their work on these revisions, and I do encourage support of my colleague's amendment. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mrs. CAPPS. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to claim the time in opposition to the amendment, although I am not opposed to it.

Mrs. CAPPS. Madam Speaker, I am pleased now to yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Maine (Ms. Pingree).

Mrs. CAPPS. At this point I'm pleased to yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Holt).

Mrs. CAPPS. I'd like now to yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fattah).

Mrs. CAPPS. Madam Speaker, could I again inquire of the time remaining.

Mrs. CAPPS. Madam Speaker, at this time I am pleased to yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern).

Mrs. CAPPS. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Sarbanes).

Mrs. CAPPS. I yield the gentleman an additional 30 seconds.

Mrs. CAPPS. Madam Speaker, I am pleased now to yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Ellison).

Mrs. CAPPS. Madam Speaker, I am pleased to yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Inslee).

Mrs. CAPPS. I'm pleased to yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Connolly).