Chellie Pingree

Ms. PINGREE

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, I claim time in opposition to this amendment.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, I am opposed to this amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, I claim the time in opposition to the amendment.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, this amendment is petty and punitive. Rather than pursuing grudges against public servants, my colleagues across the aisle should focus their energy on negotiating with the Senate on a bill to fund the government. Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to reject this amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, I demand a recorded vote.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, I claim the time in opposition to the amendment.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, this amendment prohibits the withdrawal for 20 years of public lands surrounding the Chaco Culture National Historical Park from mineral leasing in order to protect these lands and the greater connected landscape in New Mexico with a rich Puebloan and Tribal nation legacy from the impacts associated with oil and gas development activities. It does not impact valid existing rights nor non-Federal interests in the area that will be withdrawn. Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to reject this amendment, and I yield the balance of my time to the gentlewoman from New Mexico (Ms. Leger Fernandez).

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, I rise in opposition to the amendment.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, I am pleased to see my good friend on the other side of the aisle, and sorry that I so violently disagree with him on this particular issue, maybe not violently, but strongly disagree with him on this issue. This amendment seeks to force the Secretary of the Interior to issue more oil and gas lease sales instead of allowing for the transition to clean energy that will result in more resilient communities, mitigate the impacts of climate change, and protect our world for future generations. To not invest in strategies that minimize and prevent the acceleration of climate change instead of paying billions in disaster relief shows that my colleague is not thinking about what is best for the American taxpayer. Our economy and health and livelihood, food security, quality of life all depend on us making progress on climate change and renewable energies. I urge my colleagues to reject this amendment. Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, my colleagues are always saying we have to reduce our dependence on foreign oil, and I wholeheartedly agree. In fact, the United States is still a major producer of oil and gas, but we have to make the investments and force ourselves to move forward on renewable energy. We have done that through bills like the IRA. We continue to do that, and I just want to continue to support that and make sure that we are opposing expanding our oil and gas leases and just investing in renewable energy. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, I rise in opposition to this amendment.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, I demand a recorded vote.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, this amendment seeks to block air quality monitoring. So often, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle start their speeches by saying, We believe in clean air, we believe in clean water, but apparently they don't, and certainly, in this case, this amendment does not. Now, I come from a State with one of the highest rates of asthma. Asthma is directly attributed to not having clean air. One in nine people in Maine is experiencing asthma. Those are children. Those are adults. Those are people who have serious health impacts because of that, so why we would ever deny the opportunity to do more air quality monitoring to make sure our citizens are safe, to make sure our children don't have asthma, it is just beyond me. I urge my colleagues to reject this amendment. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, I rise in opposition to the amendment.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, I oppose this amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, I rise in opposition to the amendment.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, I appreciate my colleague's invitation for us all to come visit. I am sure it is a wonderful place. And, of course, being from Maine, we like anything that has the word crab in the title. Unfortunately, this amendment blocks the National Park Service from complying with the 1998 Concessions Act, which sets up the framework for evaluating commercial services and parks. It stops the Park Service from being able to complete its existing process to remain in compliance with the Act. The amendment would effectively grandfather in all permit holders from the prior year, regardless of whether the services are necessary and appropriate. The amendment also limits the National Park Service's ability to ensure public safety of commercial services. Currently, all vendors undergo public health, fire, and permit condition inspections throughout an operating season. These inspections have documented significant concerns such as food being cooked, held, or served at temperatures or conditions that do not meet public health standards; refueling processes that place workers and patrons at risk; lack of basic safety, and fire protection; and operating in violation of permit conditions. The amendment eliminates the ability to manage the issuance of a permit based on current or past performance, which creates conditions that place workers, visitors, and park resources at risk from some commercial services. I urge my colleagues to reject this amendment. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, I demand a recorded vote.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, I rise in opposition to the amendment.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, this amendment once again attempts to block the administration from ensuring that the air we breathe is clean. I truly think we can all agree that breathing clean air is a basic right. For that reason, I oppose this amendment. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, I rise in opposition to the amendment.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, this amendment would prohibit the use of any Federal funds to implement, administer, or enforce the Presidential proclamation that establishes the ancestral footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument in Arizona, an area significant to many Tribal nations. The Antiquities Act provides the President with the authority to designate national monuments in order to protect objects of historic or scientific interest. This amendment inappropriately restricts the President's ability to declare national monuments in specific parts of the country. Both Republican and Democratic Presidents have used this authority to increase the protection of special Federal lands. It goes against 100 years of American tradition to protect the nation's cultural and natural resources. The Antiquities Act represents an important achievement in the progress of conservation and preservation efforts in the United States. Congress should not stand in the way of these achievements. I urge my colleagues to oppose the amendment. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, I rise in opposition to this amendment.

Ms. PINGREE. Mr. Chair, I am opposing this amendment which would block the Bureau of Energy Management from implementing the terms of a stay agreement between NOAA and several NGOs related to mitigation measures to protect the Rice's whales in the Gulf of Mexico. I guess my confusion here is that this amendment has already been overtaken by events. On October 27, NOAA announced that it had denied the petition from several NGOs to establish a mandatory 10-knot speed limit and other vessel-related mitigation measures to protect the Rice's whales in the Gulf of Mexico. Further, NOAA stated that it will not be proceeding with the rulemaking at this time. I guess I would ask the gentleman, now that he is aware of this development, since this happened just on October 27, would he consider withdrawing this unnecessary amendment from a bill that is already bloated with riders? It seems to have no purpose. Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.