Nick Rahall

Mr. RAHALL

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I am happy to yield such time as she may consume to the distinguished gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Napolitano), the chairlady of our Water and Power Subcommittee.

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to yield to the lead sponsor of this legislation, Mr. Ben Ray Lujan.

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material on H.R. 3342.

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 1017, I call up the bill (H.R. 3342) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Commissioner of Reclamation, to develop water infrastructure in the Rio Grande Basin, and to approve the settlement of the water rights claims of the Pueblos of Nambe, Pojoaque, San Ildefonso, and Tesuque, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. We are now proceeding with the second of three bills to implement Indian water rights settlement agreements being considered by this body today. The pending measure, like the previous bill, is sponsored by our colleague Ben Ray Lujan of New Mexico and cosponsored by Martin Heinrich of that State. This legislation would settle the water rights of four pueblos in New Mexico under an agreement with the State of New Mexico, Santa Fe County, the city of Santa Fe, and individual water users. It would end 44 years of active litigation involving over 2,500 defendants by ratifying the settlement agreement and funding a regional water system for all water users in the valley. The previous bill we considered would end 40 years of litigation. The one we are currently considering would end 44 years of litigation. I would say to my colleagues that today we are making history. The American people want certainty. During these tough economic times, we all want to have certainty in our lives. But for many, a long-year certainty with respect to water has not been the case in the Rio Grande watershed. Today we can provide that certainty. The pending measure would secure water to meet the current and future needs of the pueblos involved, protect water users that make the region unique, preserve irrigation in the area, and provide water for all the region's residents. As in the case of H.R. 3342, water rights settlements improve water management by providing certainty not just to the quantification of a tribe's water rights but also to the water rights of all users. Certainty provides opportunities for economic development, for Indian and non-Indians alike. Where Indian water rights are unquantified, there is often tension and conflict between tribes and their neighbors. The best settlements, like the ones before us today, replace tension with collaboration, mutual interdependence, and trust. I commend the team of Lujan and Heinrich for their hard work on this matter. I again would acknowledge the long hours of work that have been put into this measure by the distinguished gentlewoman from California, Grace Napolitano, in her position as chairwoman for our Subcommittee on Water and Power. She has gone through countless hours of hearings and discussions and meetings on these bills. I thank the four pueblos and their settlement partners for their hard work and dedication. With that, Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I am happy once again to yield such time as he may consume to the cosponsor of this litigation, the gentleman from New Mexico (Mr. Heinrich).

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, just to conclude and reiterate what I have already said, that 44 years of litigation is far too long, 40 years of litigation is far too long. We all know the tremendous costs involved in litigation to the Federal taxpayer, the amount of salaries paid to judges, lawyers. We could go on and on about the costs that the taxpayer ends up bearing over some 44 years of litigation, longer time period than Moses spent in the desert. So with that, I would say that this bill is certainly economical to the American taxpayers, and I would urge its passage. I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I am prepared to yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. RAHALL

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

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Let me conclude by noting that in a letter dated January 19 from the Department of the Interior and the Department of Justice, they noted, ``Both rancor and uncertainty can have substantial economic consequences. The existence of unquantified water rights claims casts a shadow over all water users in a water basin, as no other water user in the basin can ever be certain when these rights may be used and how this will impact other users.'' The pending bill solves this problem. It provides badly needed certainty. And before finally concluding, I would note to my colleagues, and I did not really want to do this for fear of scaring off support from my side of the aisle, but I will note that a third of these bills have a cosponsorship of the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Flake), not an individual known around here for his prolific spending habits. So I do that, again, with the trepidation of scaring off support from my side of the aisle for the pending measure. I will conclude, Mr. Speaker, by asking all Members to support this measure. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. RAHALL. I am prepared to close, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material on H.R. 3254.

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the lead sponsor of this bill, whom I referenced in my opening remarks, the gentleman from New Mexico (Mr. Lujan).

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, it's my honor to now yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from New Mexico, Martin Heinrich, another cosponsor of this legislation and a valued member of our Committee on Natural Resources.

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Today, the Committee on Natural Resources is bringing before this body for consideration three bills which would provide for the settlement of the legitimate water claims of several Indian tribes. Many Americans rarely give a thought to having clean, potable water in their homes. We turn on the taps in our kitchens, and we take it for granted that water will flow forth. But that, unfortunately, is not the case in all places. There is no scarcity of water in my home State of West Virginia. We are rich in water. It flows freely. Yet, today we continue to work to ensure that all of our citizens have access to clean, potable water, as well as to be served by sanitary wastewater systems; and I have and will continue to fight this fight every day of my tenure in this body. So it is with understanding and with compassion that I bring these three measures to the floor today. The pending measure, and I give him full credit for his leadership and bringing it to our attention, sponsored by the gentleman from New Mexico, Ben Ray Lujan, would adjudicate the water rights of the Pueblo of Taos and end 40 years of active litigation by ratifying a settlement agreement. Forty years, my colleagues, 40 years of litigation: that is what the pending legislation would end. And I cannot commend enough Mr. Lujan and Mr. Heinrich, the other gentleman from New Mexico and member of our Committee on Natural Resources, for their efforts in this matter. Similarly, I commend the chairwoman on the Subcommittee on Water and Power, the gentlewoman from California, Grace Napolitano, for the hearings and all of her hard work on the measures that we are considering today. This legislation implements a settlement agreement that was signed in May of 2006 by the Pueblo of Taos, the State of New Mexico, 55 community ditch associations, the town of Taos, El Prado Water and Sanitation District, and the 12 Taos-area Mutual Domestic Water Consumer Associations. Collectively, the parties to the agreement represent the majority of water users in the Taos Valley. Let me emphasize that point. This settlement provides water certainty to both tribal and non-tribal communities. Under this settlement agreement, funds would be authorized for the Taos Settlement Fund, the Taos Infrastructure and Watershed Fund, and for various projects that are mutually beneficial to the pueblo and non-pueblo parties. I would note that the Taos Pueblo has settled for a water right that is far less than what the claims asserted in litigation by the United States and the pueblo. This potential value is much more than the amount that is authorized to be appropriated in H.R. 3254, a clear financial benefit to all taxpayers. Yet we will hear from some on the other side of the aisle that they are just not sure whether or not this settlement agreement is a good deal. They just do not know, they will say. Well, all the parties which finally came together to settle 40 years of litigation, I remind you, believe that this is a good settlement. The gentleman from New Mexico who represents these people in this body believes it is a good deal. The gentlewoman from California, Grace Napolitano, who held hearings on this bill and worked with all the concerned parties, believes it is a good settlement. And the Committee on Natural Resources, which approved a pending measure, thought it was a good enough settlement to send to the full House. Let me be clear: Both the Departments of the Interior and Justice were involved in this settlement agreement. Rather than engage in protracted litigation, both Republican and Democrat administrations for over the last 20 years believe that negotiated Indian water rights settlements are the preferred course of action. In testimony before the Water and Power Subcommittee, the Commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation stated: ``Settlements improve water management by providing certainty not just as to the quantification of a tribe's water rights but also as to the rights of all water users.'' He added further: ``Indian water rights settlements are consistent with the Federal trust responsibility to Native Americans and with a policy of promoting Indian self-determination and economic self- sufficiency.'' We do indeed have a trust responsibility to Indian country, and fulfilling that responsibility is at the heart of what we are doing today. The Taos Pueblo has had to fight for its water rights against Spanish settlers, with Mexico, and then as part of the United States. Let us today end this long fight and provide certainty to all the water users in the Taos Valley. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 1017, I call up the bill (H.R. 3254) to approve the Taos Pueblo Indian Water Rights Settlement Agreement, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. RAHALL

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I strongly support designating an Early Detection Month for Breast Cancer and All Forms of Cancer (H. Con. Res. 158). As a cancer survivor myself, I stand here as proof that early detection can save lives. While the search for a cancer cure continues, much progress has been made in the areas of prevention, detection and treatment of cancers. However, there are still over 2 million new cases of cancer diagnosed each year. The statistics are alarming: Breast cancer remains one of the most prevalent cancers affecting women, and prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death among men. Only non-melanoma skin cancer remains more common for men and women overall. Right now, it is estimated that one in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime, and one in six men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer. Sadly, thousands of West Virginia women faced breast cancer diagnosis in 2009 alone. Yet each year, more women survive their battle with breast cancer due to medical advances in early detection and treatment. Medical researchers, including those at Marshall University's Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine in Huntington, West Virginia, are working hard to improve those figures--but early detection remains an important key to saving lives, which is why I strongly support this effort to designate an Early Detection Month to bring attention and focus to this critical issue. The steady decline in deaths resulting from breast cancer can be attributed to an increase in the number of women who receive mammograms and the development of powerful new drugs that successfully treat cancer. As many of you are aware, in 2006 I was diagnosed with prostate cancer and subsequently underwent surgery. I am very thankful for all of the West Virginians who contacted me, offering their prayers and support as I prepared for my procedures, through my recovery, and up to this day. I am also truly grateful to the doctors who were able to diagnose my cancer early and--with immediate treatment, they improved my chances for survival. Cancer screening is often quick and easy and many testing measures can be performed in a local doctor's office. So many lives can be saved and so many families spared a tragic heartache of dealing with cancer diagnosis. That is why I support H. Con. Res. 158 and the efforts to encourage early detection since the bottom line with cancer is raising awareness and early detection saves lives.

Mr. RAHALL

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, before yielding to the gentleman from Michigan to close on our side, I would just reiterate what has already been said by the gentlewoman from Arizona, that she is joined in her cosponsorship of this legislation by the gentleman considered the watchdog of fiscal spending in this body, Mr. Jeff Flake, in cosponsoring this bill. At this point, I yield the balance of my time to the co-Chair of our Native American Caucus in the Congress and a valued member of our Committee on Natural Resources, the gentleman from Michigan, Mr. Dale Kildee.

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

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

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I am happy to yield such time as she may consume to the lead cosponsor of this legislation who has worked so hard on this issue, the gentlewoman from Arizona (Mrs. Kirkpatrick).

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and insert extraneous material on H.R. 1065.

Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to House Resolution 1017, I call up the bill (H.R. 1065) to resolve water rights claims of the White Mountain Apache Tribe in the State of Arizona, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.