John Culberson

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Cleanly and safely.

Mr. CULBERSON. I move to strike the last word.

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Chairman, in the 7 months before the blowout, there were 49 deepwater permits issued. And in the 7 months since the moratorium was allegedly lifted, there's only been seven deepwater permits issued. We in the committee adopted this amendment, which I was proud to offer, simply to shine sunlight on the process. All the language in this bill requires is that the agency report to the American people and report to Congress the reasons why a permit for exploration or for drilling has been slowed down or delayed. We're all committed to transparency. We all want to know where and how our tax dollars are being spent. And the slowdown in drilling in the Gulf of Mexico has had a catastrophic effect on employment. We've lost 60,000 jobs since 2008 in the Gulf of Mexico area. If we would get back to the levels of drilling, of permitting, both shallow and deepwater, that we were before the blowout, it's estimated that as many as 190,000 jobs could be created in the Gulf of Mexico in about 18 months, with about 400,000 industry-supported jobs across the United States supplying equipment to the offshore oil industry. No one has a stronger stake in protecting the environment than we have that live there. These folks that work for these great companies are my friends and my neighbors. I'm proud to represent so many of these companies. Houston, Texas, is to the oil industry what Silicon Valley is to the computer industry. These are engineers. These are the scientists. These are people who live and work in and around the Gulf of Mexico, who fish there, whose kids play on the beaches. Being a Houstonian and growing up along the gulf, I remember tarballs were common on the beach in Galveston. You just don't see it anymore.

Mr. CULBERSON. I yield to the gentleman from Washington.

Mr. CULBERSON. In reclaiming my time, as for the permits that have been approved, of course that's a matter of public record; but as for the permits that have been rejected and that are not yet a matter of public record, we want to see those and know why they've been rejected, why they've been delayed. That's all this language requires is that they shine sunlight on every corner of the process. Many of these permits have been rejected for reasons that are not directly tied to the substance of the application. I've seen permits that are rejected because the typeface wasn't, in the opinion of the permitter, correct. It is clear that there has been a slow-down and that this administration overreacted to the spill. It has deliberately slowed down the permitting process and has made it more difficult for Americans to find American oil and gas. We are committed to drill here and drill now in a way that is safe and clean, that protects the environment but yet takes advantage of the natural resources that God has so abundantly blessed this continent with. The Gulf of Mexico demonstrated that it can be done cleanly and safely; and there is no quicker way to generate high-paying jobs than to open up drilling in the continental United States, particularly in the Gulf of Mexico. Those rigs are gone, by the way, Mr. Dicks. Once those rigs leave the Gulf of Mexico, they don't come back.

Mr. CULBERSON. I would be happy to yield to my friend from Ohio.

Mr. CULBERSON. I thank the gentleman from Ohio, and I urge the House to defeat this amendment.

Mr. CULBERSON. I would be happy to yield to my friend from Washington.

Mr. CULBERSON. I yield to the gentleman from Washington.

Mr. CULBERSON. Reclaiming my time, I couldn't agree more. We find ourselves in agreement that sunshine is a healthy thing, and that's the purpose of the language in the bill. With all due respect, Mr. Dicks, it is important that the House reject this amendment so that we can have sunlight in every corner of the permitting process and so that the public and the Congress can know why these permits have been delayed or denied so that we can open up the Gulf of Mexico to drill here and drill now--cleanly and safely. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, today the House is honoring a pledge that we made to America in the largest landslide election in 70 years last November when the people of America spoke clearly and elected a new majority to govern the House to take America down the path to a balanced budget to restore prosperity, to restore jobs that had been lost under this President. The American people spoke decisively last November and asked this new constitutional conservative majority in the House to cut spending, to cap spending, to enact a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution, to shrink the size of the government, to get the government out of our lives and out of our pockets and put us back on a path of prosperity, which this legislation does. I am very proud to be a coauthor of the Cut, Cap, and Balance Act of the balanced budget amendment to the Constitution, which has worked so well in Texas. Texas is a beacon for other States. We have demonstrated in Texas when you live within your means, when you cut taxes, when you limit litigation, when you limit regulation, when you get the government out of our pockets and off our backs that American ingenuity, American entrepreneurship will thrive and the economy will grow. People have been voting with their feet to move to Texas, and we in this new constitutional conservative majority in the House are doing today what we promised America we would do last November. We are cutting. We're reaffirming the Ryan budget which, by the way, does not affect--anyone over the age of 55 is unaffected by the Ryan budget, is unaffected by this Cut, Cap, and Balance Act, but if we do nothing, if you are under the age of 55, you will be affected because Medicare is on a path to bankruptcy, as is Social Security. So we're taking decisive action today, Mr. Speaker, to put America back on a path to prosperity, to grow jobs, to get the Federal Government back within the bounds of the Constitution with a balanced budget amendment. I am very proud today, Mr. Speaker, to be here in support of this legislation, which will honor the promise we made to America.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, due to family obligations, I was unable to attend the vote on H. Res. 268 last Wednesday, July 7, 2011. However, I would like to make it known that as a co-sponsor of the resolution, I would have proudly voted for H. Res. 268 in support of Israel.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I would point out that the Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs has worked in an arm-in- arm, bipartisan way in support of our troops, in support of our veterans. And we have provided funding for every need that was presented to the committee to help our men and women in uniform do the job that they do every day defending this Nation, to help our veterans as they move out of active duty into retired status, to help the Veterans Administration treat not only the veterans who have suffered or been injured in combat in defense of this Nation, but also those veterans who have suffered in some way psychological trauma that would put them at risk of suicide, a growing problem, and one that the committee is deeply concerned about, and, in fact, the committee has fully funded at the President's request of $69.9 million. The committee has provided essentially $70 million at the President's request, at the request of the Veterans Administration. We have fully funded in every way the request of the professionals in this area, what they believe is necessary to meet the need that they have determined is out there among the veterans of this Nation. One of the great joys I know that all of us have as Members of Congress is to provide the support that is necessary for our men and women in uniform to do the extraordinarily difficult job that they confront every day and to ensure that their families have the peace of mind that their son, their daughter, their father, their husband, their loved one has been given every piece of equipment, every possible support logistically with the love and comfort and prayers that we all send them with their families. We as Members of Congress also have a sacred obligation to ensure that those men and women who are out there defending us don't ever need to look over their shoulder, that they don't ever need to worry that they are lacking in any way the equipment, the support. Everything that they might possibly need in the course of their day defending this Nation we have made sure, on the Appropriations Committee, that the men and women in uniform have. We've made sure that the Veterans Administration hospitals across the Nation have everything they need to take care of our men and women in uniform who have retired and gone on to the private sector to work in some other capacity. As a general rule, I've heard the number, the average time, that a man or woman serving the Nation may serve in uniform is--I think the numbers I've heard are about 36 months, but they will spend the rest of their life in the care of the Veterans Administration. And it's an extraordinarily important trust that our subcommittee takes very personally, as a truly sacred obligation on our part to make sure that these wonderful men and women, these extraordinarily courageous men and women who have sacrificed so much have everything they need when they move into the VA system, that the VA Hospital is providing them with the very best possible medical care, physically, mentally--and suicide prevention, in fact, is one of those areas that we on the subcommittee have fully funded and worked again in a bipartisan way. In fact, our committee as a whole has always worked together in a very bipartisan way, and particularly the subcommittees that deal with the men and women in uniform. Whether it be the Military Construction, the Veterans' Affairs Subcommittee, or the Defense Subcommittee, the members of the Appropriations Committee don't pay attention to party labels. We're focused on what's best for the men and women of the United States military. We're focused on what's best for their families and for the Veterans Administration, the health care that our men and women in uniform are given physically--again, mentally. And without regard to party, without regard to any other distinction other than what's good for these men and women who serve our Nation, we have worked together without really any real serious disagreements. We, of course, have a problem today in the Nation of unprecedented debt, unprecedented deficits, record unfunded liabilities. And the new conservative majority that controls the House today is determined to do everything we can to reduce the unconscionable burden that's being passed on to our children and grandchildren. So we have found savings in this bill in money that was unspent, in accounts where money has been set aside for years and unspent, where savings have been produced from reduced cost of concrete and steel, reduced bid savings, for example, that we then returned that money to the taxpayers. We found areas that we could save money, but not at the expense of our men and women in uniform.

Mr. CULBERSON. Yes, I do.

Mr. CULBERSON. I rise in opposition to the motion.

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I reserve a point of order against the gentleman's motion.

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Speaker, I wish to withdraw my reservation.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the amendment.

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the last word.

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong support of the gentleman's amendment. The United States is the Saudi Arabia of coal. We've been blessed by the good Lord with extraordinary resources. We have, apparently, the world's largest supply of shale gas, shale oil. Yet the administration is doing everything in their power to prevent us from even finding or locating additional shale oil or gas. The administration is doing everything in their power to prevent us from drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, which we've done for decades cleanly, safely, economically. We could create hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of thousands of high-paying jobs in the United States if the administration would simply get out of the way and let Texans run Texas, and let the gulf States and the energy community unleash American ingenuity to do what they do best--produce domestic oil and gas cleanly and safely. The jobs that are produced in the Gulf of Mexico in the energy industry across the United States are safe, high-paying, high-quality jobs that the economy and the people of America desperately need. Mr. Flores has brought a very important amendment to the floor which would expand the use of petroleum derived from coal. The United States is blessed with abundant amounts of coal. This Federal law, section 526 of the Energy Independence and Security Act, discourages the production of liquefied gas or fuel from coal--and that's a vital part of our energy future. We understand, as constitutional conservatives, as the new majority in the House, that the United States needs to continue to invest in alternative technologies for the future. We are all in support of finding new ways to generate electricity to move the United States into the next era of energy beyond petroleum. But in the meantime, in the short term, we need to drill here and drill now. We need to use every available resource that the good Lord has blessed this Nation with in a way that's obviously clean, safe, ecologically friendly. We've done it in Texas for years. Mr. Flores has extensive experience in the energy industry. I'm proud to represent the energy corridor of Texas. Houston is to the energy industry what California and Silicon Valley are to the computer industry. We've proven time and time again that we can produce oil and gas safely, cleanly. We desperately need to open up drilling in the gulf. This administration has deliberately and systematically shut down drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, which increases our dependence on foreign oil, while the administration has used our tax dollars and its influence in the International Monetary Fund to attempt to prop up and support Brazilian exploration for oil and gas, discouraging American development of oil and gas. It's a policy that continues to drive up the unemployment rate and drive down the production of American oil and gas. Mr. Flores' amendment will allow us to expand the production of one vital American resource that we have in abundance--and that's coal. So I strongly support the gentleman's amendment and urge its adoption. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. CULBERSON. I thank the gentleman from Michigan for bringing this important amendment. I strongly support this amendment and urge the House to adopt the gentleman's amendment because it will save, again, our children and grandchildren a significant amount of money. We are in an era of austerity unlike anything America has ever experienced. We are living on borrowed money. Every dollar the Federal Government brings in goes right out the back door to pay for the existing social safety net. Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, interest on the national debt and veterans' benefits consume 104 percent of America's revenue. Therefore, all the money we appropriate for the entire year for military construction, for the VA, for transportation, for homeland security, for the Defense Department, all of it, is borrowed. Therefore, we need to do everything we can to cut, to save money, to eliminate fraud, waste and abuse and to avoid spending more money than we should. Here, very straightforward, the gentleman's amendment would save American taxpayers a significant amount of money. It depends on what study you're looking at, but my very capable staff has looked at this and analyzed a whole variety of studies that indicate that there's a whole range of savings. The Chamber of Commerce believes that Davis- Bacon, or paying union prevailing wages in, for example, a free market environment like in Texas, we don't pay prevailing wage. We in Texas on a highway project pay the competitive free market wage. First of all, not only are we going to save money, but why would we discourage competition? Why, in this terrible economy, would we prevent contractors, businesses, from coming in and competing for a job? As on the last amendment, the LaTourette amendment, which I hope the House defeats, that amendment we need to defeat so that we could encourage companies to come in and compete for Federal contracts, this amendment needs to be adopted to encourage businesses to come in and compete for Federal contracts. This would expand the universe of companies that could compete and apply for work. As in Texas, for example, on a highway project, we pay the competitive, best price for bids, and in the Chamber of Commerce's opinion, if we eliminate the Davis-Bacon prevailing wage, it would save about 15 percent on average on project construction. The Cato Institute estimates a 10 percent savings.

Mr. CULBERSON. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the amendment. We will accept Mr. Meeks' amendment because it's vitally important that all Federal agencies, the VA included, understand that the Member of Congress representing that district, he's their voice. I represent Houston, Texas. I'm proud to do so. I have an obligation, obviously, to look after the entire Nation. But first and foremost, I am the Representative of the people of District Seven in Houston, Texas, as Mr. Meeks is the Representative of his constituents in New York. And I think it's vitally important that every Federal agency understand that they need to work with and earn the support of the Representative of that district before they move forward with a major project of any kind. And as Mr. Meeks has said, the community is opposed to the direction the VA is taking. And I would join with my friend, Mr. Bishop. And we strongly support the VA looking to the private sector to partner with the private sector to find innovative, cost-effective ways of providing better services to our veterans by partnering with the private sector. And certainly, the committee does not want to discourage in any way the VA's expansion of private partnerships to give better service to veterans. We encourage it. We want the VA to look for ways to save money, to provide better service to our veterans, to use the extraordinary expertise of hospitals and medical communities like the Texas Medical Center, which I represent. The work that Mr. Bishop is doing with Fort Benning and the VA in his district has created a marvelous partnership with private physicians to provide better services. We want the VA to continue that effort. But it is absolutely essential that the VA understand that they have to earn the support and approval of the community. That means they have to earn the support and approval of the Representative for that district. And in this instance, I hope the VA is tuned in and listening. The VA needs to earn the support and approval of Congressman Meeks before they move forward with this effort. So for that reason, we will accept the amendment. And I want to know that the VA is not only returning Mr. Meeks' phone calls, but they are listening to, responding to, and satisfying the needs of the community, the needs of his constituents, the needs of the veterans that he represents; and that the VA, once they have earned the support of the community, they are going to have the support of Mr. Meeks. And when Mr. Meeks comes to the subcommittee and says that the VA has earned his support, the community has earned his support, then the committee will be prepared to move forward and support the VA work at St. Albans. So for those reasons, we will accept the amendment. And I am looking forward to the day when Mr. Meeks comes and tells us the VA is in his office and earning his support and the support of the community. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. CULBERSON

Mr. CULBERSON. 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 H.R. 2055, and that I may include tabular material on the same.