Cynthia Lummis

Mrs. LUMMIS

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from California (Mr. McClintock).

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, I would prefer to take it from the farmers who are desperate for water. These are people who have instituted conservation measures that cost them millions of dollars, changing their crops from things like lettuce and tomatoes to almond and pistachio trees with drip irrigation systems that conserve tremendous amounts of water. Still, those trees were allowed to dry up and die. Mr. Chairman, to close, I yield the remainder of my time to the gentleman from California (Mr. Valadao), the sponsor of this bill.

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mrs. LUMMIS. 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. 2898.

Mrs. LUMMIS. Will the gentleman yield?

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. Costa).

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. McCarthy).

Mrs. LUMMIS. I yield the gentleman an additional 1 minute.

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, we have no more speakers, and we are prepared to close.

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, I yield the remainder of my time to the gentleman from California (Mr. Costa).

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, facts are stubborn things. According to the Bureau of Reclamation, biological opinions involving species did reduce Central Valley's exports by 62,200 acre-feet in 2014. Already this year, according to the Bureau of Reclamation, species have reduced Central Valley project waters to farmers by 280,000 acre-feet. Again, my source is the Bureau of Reclamation. At this time, Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Utah (Mr. Bishop), chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee.

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, the American West is in the midst of a severe drought, especially central California. This problem demands swift action, with tens of thousands of trees, plants, jobs, food, and livelihoods at stake. H.R. 2898 will help bring our Western water supply infrastructure into the 21st century, making it more drought resistant. The bill also addresses the manmade Federal decisions that are exacerbating the drought. H.R. 2898 ensures scientific transparency in Federal actions that are literally taking water away from people that desperately need it, all for questionable benefit of endangered fish. The bill also requires the deployment of more effective management tools like addressing the nonnative fish that are harming the endangered fish. West-wide, the bill takes steps to build new water storage that is crucial to the well-being of Western communities and economies. To assist non-Federal projects, the bill creates a one-stop shop for water storage permitting at the Bureau of Reclamation. Oftentimes, Federal agencies overlap or conflict with each other when it comes to permitting non-Federal facilities. This provision forces them to sit down with one lead agency, the Bureau of Reclamation, to resolve issues and expedite permitting. For Federal projects, the bill creates a streamlined and transparent process for the Bureau that mirrors the Army Corps' provisions in the Water Resource Reform and Development Act of 2014, which was enacted by overwhelming bipartisan majorities in both Houses of Congress. To offset the bill's implementation costs and finance new water storage, the bill allows irrigation districts and water utilities to prepay their share of the capital costs of Federal water projects. Mr. Chairman, some water users are prohibited from paying off contracts early. This is nonsensical. Congress has lifted the restrictions in piecemeal fashion before, and it is time to dispense with it altogether. One way to efficiently construct new storage is to allow the Bureau of Reclamation to make water storage improvements during the course of making safety improvements. H.R. 2898 allows the Bureau to do just that. Finally, the bill prohibits the Departments of the Interior and Agriculture from holding public land permits hostage unless permittees give up their State-endowed water rights. This will put a stop to the Federal Government's repeated attempts to grab water rights at the expense of State authority from the Forest Service's interim directive for ski area permits to the Service's ill-fated groundwater directive. Mr. Chairman, this bill takes a commonsense approach to solving water problems in the West, and I urge its adoption. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time. House of Representatives, Committee on Agriculture, Washington, DC, July 8, 2015. Hon. Rob Bishop, Chairman, Committee on Natural Resources, House of Representatives, Washington, DC. Dear Chairman Bishop: I am writing concerning H.R. 2898, the ``Western Water and American Food Security Act of 2015.'' This legislation contains provisions within the Committee on Agriculture's Rule X jurisdiction. As a result of your having consulted with the Committee and in order to expedite this bill for floor consideration, the Committee on Agriculture will forego action on the bill. This is being done on the basis of our mutual understanding that doing so will in no way diminish or alter the jurisdiction of the Committee on Agriculture with respect to the appointment of conferees, or to any future jurisdictional claim over the subject matters contained in the bill or similar legislation. I would appreciate your response to this letter confirming this understanding, and would request that you include a copy of this letter and your response in the Committee Report and in the Congressional Record during the floor consideration of this bill. Thank you in advance for your cooperation. Sincerely, K. Michael Conaway, Chairman.

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. LaMalfa).

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Mimi Walters).

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, 18 hearings in 5 years have been held on this subject. Democrat Members were invited to attend hearings in California. Only one chose to attend. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Gosar).

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Rodney Davis).

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, respectfully, when I was in the Central Valley in California, I saw chaos. It is already happening, and the people are desperate for a solution. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from California (Mr. Nunes).

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

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Denham).

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chair, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Valadao), the sponsor of the bill.

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Tipton).

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Knight).

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. McClintock).

Mrs. LUMMIS. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Calvert), chairman of the Subcommittee on Interior and Environment of the House Appropriations Committee.