Tom Petri

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Chairman, I ask that a letter from the National Association of State Park Directors in support of my amendment to H.R. 2989 regarding the transportation enhancements program (voted on September 4, 2003) be included in the Record. National Association of State Park Directors, September 4, 2003. Dear Congressman Petri: The National Association of State Part Directors (NASPD) is the organization that comprises the leadership of the State Park Systems in all fifty (50) States. We are writing to support your amendment to strike section 114 from the 2004 Transportation Appropriations Bill,

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Chairman, I make a point of order against the last two provisos of section 118 on page 28, line 19 beginning with ``provided'' and through page 29, line 3. Section 118 directs the Secretary of Transportation to modify a specific loan agreement and to have the proposed loan modification funded under the Transportation and Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act Program. By statute, eligibility for federally guaranteed loans under the TIFIA program is determined by the Secretary of Transportation in accordance with rigorous and selective criteria. It also waives existing law. Waiving existing law is legislative in nature and violates clause 2 of House rule XXI.

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Chairman, I make a point of order against section 110 which begins on page 18 and ends on page 23, line 15. Section 110 specifies the distribution of funds for the Federal-aid Highways Program. I expect that this Congress will extend the existing highway program for a period of time. If we do so, this provision will create confusion and conflict and is unnecessary. This entire section is legislative in nature, in violation of clause 2 of rule XXI.

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Chairman, I am joined by the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Olver) and several other Members in offering an amendment that would strike section 114 of the bill. This provision, as described in the committee report, ``discontinues the mandatory 10 percent set-aside from the surface transportation program for the transportation enhancement program.'' Mr. Chairman, this is wrong on many levels, and the provision should be stricken from the bill. Over the last 12 years, enhancements have become an appreciated and important part of our transportation program. Though individual projects are not costly, enhancements nevertheless pack a big punch in terms of promoting economic growth and tourism. They fund bike paths that are enjoyed by families on a Saturday morning. They complete street-scape projects that revitalize the neighborhood. They improve our quality of life and have become important to communities across our country. All of them have a transportation-related purpose. It has been said that we need to give State transportation departments the flexibility to decide how to spend their money. Well, the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, which is known by the phrase AASHTO, support the amendment. They have come to value the contributions of this program. In reference to diversions, I would like to point out that nonhighway recreational users contribute, according to the estimate of the Treasury Department and the Transportation Department, up to $268 million a year in gas taxes to the highway trust fund. I trust that in the last several decades recreational users still have contributed more than they have received since we created this program. It has been said that we need to eliminate the enhancements program because we are billions short for covering our basic highway and bridge needs. I am glad there is recognition of the need to invest in our transportation systems, but I daresay that eliminating this $600 million program is not the answer to our funding needs. Finally, Members should be aware that the President's reauthorization proposal, which was just recently submitted, continues to dedicate funding for 10 enhancement programs. While this amendment should pass on the merits of the program alone, I must also say that it is wrong to use the appropriations process to, in essence, rewrite the transportation program and allow funds now dedicated for enhancements to be used for other purposes. This is more appropriately the function of the authorizing committee. In short, Mr. Chairman, State Departments of Transportation through their organizations support this amendment; counties support the amendment; cities support this amendment; environmental groups support the amendment; AARP supports it; bike, architects, conservation and historic conservation groups support it. Recreation and travel groups support it. Even various health groups and the Paralyzed Veterans of America have expressed support. And the list goes on. It is not a State's rights issue. The States have spoken. They want to retain dedicated funding for transportation enhancements. Mr. Chairman, let us follow the lead of our President and continue dedicated funding for transportation enhancements by passing this amendment.

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.

Mr. PETRI. No. Page 51, line 12 is my next point of order.

Mr. PETRI. I have additional points of order, but they are starting on page 51 which would that be in order at this point?

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Chairman, I make a point of order against the phrase ``Notwithstanding any other provision of law'' found on page 46, line 25. This language clearly constitutes legislation on an appropriations bill in violation of clause 2 of rule XXI of the rules of the House of Representatives.

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Chairman, I make a point of order against the proviso that begins at the end of line 16 on page 45 through line 23. This proviso purports to transfer $50 million provided by TEA for the clean fuels bus formula grant program to the transit bus discretionary grant program, where it is distributed not by the statutory formula envisioned in TEA but rather by earmarks in report language. It also waives existing law. This proviso is legislative in nature in violation of rule XXI.

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Chairman, I make a point of order against the two provisos which begin on page 36, line 17 starting with the words ``provided further'' through page 37, line 5. These provisos of section 104 earmark the manner in which certain safety-related grants are to be used by the States. These unauthorized earmarks reduce both the amount of funding available to the States and the States' discretion in the use of these funds. I object to these earmarks on the grounds that they are unauthorized, in violation of rule XXI.

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Chairman, I make a point of order against the phrase ``Notwithstanding any other provision of law'' found on page 34, line 24. This language clearly constitutes legislation on an appropriations bill in violation of clause 2 of rule XXI of the rules of the House of Representatives.

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Chairman, I make a point of order against all of section 130 which begins on page 31, line 24. This section authorizes an administrative takedown that exceeds the one-third of 1 percent administrative takedown authorized by section 104(a)(1)(B) of Title 23. It also violates existing law. This increase is legislative in nature in violation of rule XXI.

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Chairman, I make a point of order against section 111 which begins on page 23, line 16 and ends on page 24, line 12. Section 111 increases the Federal Highway administrative takedown authorized in 23 USC 104(a) from one and one-sixth percent to 1.35 percent. It would also waive existing law. This is legislative in nature, in violation of clause 2 of rule XXI.

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Chairman, I have 15 points of order to the bill.

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Chairman, I submit for the Record letters in support of the amendment from the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials; the American Association of Retired People; the National Association of Counties, the National League of Cities, the U.S. Conference of Mayors; and the Transportation Enhancements Coalition. American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, Washington, DC, September 3, 2003. Dear Congressman: I am writing on behalf of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) to urge your support for an amendment sponsored by Congressmen Thomas Petri and John Olver to strike language in H.R. 2989, the FY 2004 Transportation, Treasury, and Independent Agencies Appropriations bill, that eliminates funding specifically dedicated for transportation enhancements. The Petri-Olver amendment would strike Section 114 from the bill, restoring the Transportation Enhancements (TE) Program set-aside first established in 1991 in the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA). The TE Program is one of the most popular of the federal transportation programs with over 17,000 projects in communities located in almost every congressional district across the country. Projects ranging from pedestrian, bike and trail facilities to historic bridges and rehabilitated train stations have significantly contributed to the quality of life in these communities. AASHTO, which represents transportation agencies in the fifty States, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, supports continuation of this popular and worthy program. Sincerely yours, James C. Codell, III, President

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Chairman, I make a point of order against the phrase ``to be derived from the Highway Trust Fund (other than the Mass Transit Account)'' on page 31, lines 19 through the word ``account'' on line 21. This section appropriates $47 million from the Highway Trust Fund for the border enforcement program. There is no current authorization of a border enforcement program. This language clearly constitutes an unauthorized appropriation in violation of clause 2 of rule XXI of the rules of the House of Representatives.

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Chairman, I make a point of order against the phrase ``Notwithstanding any other provision of law'' found on page 31, line 5. This language clearly constitutes legislation on an appropriations bill in violation of clause 2 of rule XXI of the rules of the House of Representatives.

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Chairman, on behalf of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, I make a point of order against the provision found on page 17, lines 6 through 11. This provision would rescind $137 million in unobligated balances of Highway Contract Authority. Under this provision, each State Department of Transportation would lose funds from the Surface Transportation Program, the Congestion Mitigation Air Quality Program, the National Highway System Program, the Interstate Maintenance Program, and the Bridge Program. This will reduce each State's ability to move funds from one category to another within its obligation limitation and will be particularly harmful given that States may soon need to use their unobligated balances to continue their programs pending enactment of a long term reauthorization of surface transportation programs. The creation and recision of contract authority is the exclusive jurisdiction of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. This decision is legislative in nature and in violation of clause 2 of rule XXI.

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of the Hyde/Lantos amendment, which would authorize the establishment of the Millennium Challenge Account and support the doubling of the number of Peace Corps volunteers to 14,000 by the year 2007. I served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Somalia for two years, which was a meaningful experience for me. The Peace Corps has proven to be a very cost-effective mechanism for disseminating foreign assistance-- from the bottom up. Doubling the number of Peace Corps volunteers will only make these efforts more effective, and allow more U.S. citizens to serve our country on the international level. The Hyde/Lantos amendment also provides for the establishment of a new and innovative foreign aid initiative, the Millennium Challenge Account. This initiative shows great promise as it would fund programs which already have shown impressive rates of performance. U.S. foreign aid would then be invested in those programs that actually work, not just those that promise to work. Expanding the Peace Corps and establishing the Millennium Challenge Account will make U.S. foreign aid more accountable and effective. I encourage my colleagues to support this amendment.

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing the Higher Education For Freedom Act. This legislation establishes a competitive grant program making available funds to institutions of higher education, centers within such institutions, and associated nonprofit foundations to promote programs focused on the teaching and study of traditional American history, free institutions, and the history and achievements of Western Civilization at both the graduate and undergraduate level, including those that serve students enrolled in K-12 teacher education programs. Several years ago I was involved in a congressional effort to highlight the decline in historical and civic literacy among American college students. This effort led to the unanimous, bicameral passage of a concurrent resolution, S. Con. Res. 129, which stated, in part, that ``the historical illiteracy of America's college and university graduates is a serious problem that should be addressed by the Nation's higher education community.'' Given the increased threat to American ideals in the trying times in which we live, it is easy to see how the lack of historical and civic literacy among today's college students has become a more pressing issue. Nevertheless, most of the Nation's colleges and universities no longer require U.S. history or systematic study of Western civilization and free institutions as a general prerequisite to graduation, or for completing a teacher education program. I believe it is time for Congress to take a more active role in addressing this matter. Our country's higher education system must do a better job of providing the basic knowledge that is essential to full and informed participation in civic life and to the larger vibrancy of the American experiment in self-government, binding together a diverse people into a single Nation with common purposes.

Mr. PETRI

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

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 166) expressing the sense of Congress in support of Buckle Up America Week.

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

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. This week is Buckle Up America Week. The legislation before us, House Concurrent Resolution 166, expresses the sense of Congress in support of Buckle Up America Week. This national campaign is dedicated to increasing the proper use of seat belts and child safety seats. For the first time in several years, highway fatalities increased from the previous year. Nearly 43,000 people died and over 3 million were injured on our Nation's highways last year. This is the highest number of highway fatalities since 1990. According to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration research, in the past 26 years safety belts prevented 135,000 and 3.8 million injuries, saving $585 billion in medical and other costs. If all vehicle occupants had used safety belts during that period, nearly 315,000 deaths and 5.2 million injuries could have been prevented and $913 billion in costs saved. We have made significant headway recently. Seat belt use has increased dramatically over the last 20 years. In 1984, seat belt use was only 15 percent. Today, the national average is 75 percent. But more needs to be done. Most vehicle occupants killed in motor vehicle crashes in recent years were not wearing seat belts. Even more disturbing is the fact that traffic crashes are the leading cause of death for children between the ages of 6 and 14. About half of children ages 4 to 7 who are fatally injured in motor vehicle accidents were completely unrestrained. Child safety seats save thousands of children's lives during motor vehicle crashes each year. This resolution draws much-needed attention to the pressing issue of increasing seat belt and child safety seat use. I applaud the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Vitter) for introducing this resolution, and I urge my colleagues to support it. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. PETRI

Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 186, had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.'' Stated against: