Cliff Stearns

Mr. STEARNS

Mr. STEARNS. With that, I yield that time to the gentleman from California (Mr. Radanovich).

Mr. STEARNS

Mr. STEARNS. Madam Speaker, thanks to new drilling technologies that are unlocking substantial amounts of natural gas from shale rock, the Nation's estimated gas reserves have surged by 35 percent, according to a recent study. The study conducted by the Potential Gas Committee, the authority on natural gas supplies, has indicated that the United States possesses a total natural gas reserve of 1,836 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, or enough to last almost a century at current consumption rates. This new estimate shows an exceptionally strong and optimistic gas supply picture for this country, according to the report, which is issued every 2 years by a group of academic and industry experts. The new estimate is the highest resource evaluation in the committee's 44- year history and some geologists say even this estimate is too conservative. Much of the 35 percent increase comes from estimated gas reserves that are trapped deep in dense shale rock which drilling companies have only recently learned how to tap. Shale formations are deep underground, 6,000 feet or more, and the rock is relatively impermeable. Deep drilling is expensive, and in the past the amount of gas that could be recovered was not sufficient to justify the cost. However, new advances in production techniques have boosted all previous estimates of financially recoverable natural gas. One shale formation that is receiving new attention is the Marcellus basin, a 400-million-year-old shale formation stretching from New York to West Virginia. That basin alone is believed to hold as much as 500 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, or the approximate equivalent of 80 billion barrels of oil. It's not clear, however, how much of this shale gas is recoverable. In recent years, natural gas producers have expanded the use of a technique called horizontal drilling. After drilling more than a mile below the Earth's surface to reach the shale layer below, a drill operator then slowly steers the drill bit to one side until it is heading sideways across the shale layer. This technique allows access to more of the shale than a traditional vertical well could provide. However, even with this new technique, the density of shale rock still traps most of the gas. Producers therefore use a process called hydraulic fracturing in which a water-and-sand mixture is forced at very high pressure into the well that creates millions of tiny cracks in the rock, enabling more of the gas to be released. And while shale gas only provides a small fraction of the Nation's total gas production, many experts believe the rising supply of natural gas means it can be substituted for other fossil fuels. Natural gas can also serve as a bridge between our current energy feedstocks and renewable energy production. According to Guy Caruso, the former administrator of the Energy Information Administration, ``natural gas has a role to play as a bridge because of the long lead time and scalability issues of renewable fuels. It's nice to have aspirations about renewable energy and efficiency, but we need to recognize these long-term goals and that we need something to get us there in the meantime.'' As an energy source, natural gas is cheaper than oil, and when burned it emits 30 percent less carbon dioxide than oil and 45 percent less carbon dioxide than coal on an energy equivalent basis. Natural gas is also highly efficient. Approximately 90 percent of the natural gas produced is delivered to consumers as useful energy. In contrast, only about 30 percent of the energy converted to electricity in conventional generating facilities ever reaches consumers. And with 84 percent of the natural gas consumed in the United States being produced domestically, an increase in the use of natural gas would not only dramatically lower greenhouse gas emissions but it would also reduce our dependence on foreign oil. Natural gas powered vehicles in use today are also helping to improve air quality by displacing petroleum powered vehicles which contribute about three-fourths of the carbon dioxide pollution found in urban areas. According to NGV America, one of out of every 10 transit buses and over 130,000 additional school buses, taxicabs, garbage trucks and other vehicles on U.S. roads are already fueled with cleaner burning natural gas. In fact, in 2008, the use of natural gas vehicles displaced almost 300 million gallons of petroleum use in the United States. Using natural gas instead of coal or oil is a low-cost, low-emissions solution for reducing our Nation's dependence on foreign energy sources while also reducing our greenhouse gas emissions.

Mr. STEARNS

Mr. STEARNS. Parliamentary inquiry, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. STEARNS. I notice that the gentleman who is advocating on the Democrats' side is not a member of the Veterans' Affairs Committee, at least not to my knowledge. Under the rules of the House, is this appropriate that a Member who is not on the committee in which the bill has passed through and has jurisdiction is the advocate for the Democrats in this case?

Mr. STEARNS. So, if I understand the Speaker, the Chair, at his discretion, can decide who can be the spokesman for the bill even if the person is not on the committee?

Mr. STEARNS. A further parliamentary inquiry.

Mr. STEARNS. Is this customary, or is this an unusual situation? I don't need a long dissertation, just a ``yes'' or ``no'' as to whether it is customary.

Mr. STEARNS. So what you are saying is you can do it, but you are not willing to answer the question as to whether this is customary or not, because I've been here 20 years, and I have not seen this in the 20 years I have been here.

Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I might consume. I rise in support of S. 475, the Military Spouses Residency Relief Act. I want to thank the ranking member of the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs, Senator Burr, for sponsoring this legislation. I also want to recognize and thank Mr. John Carter of Texas for his support on this issue by introducing the companion House bill, H.R. 1182. It has 206 bipartisan cosponsors, and I am proud to be one of those. Mr. Speaker, by its very nature, military service requires a significant sacrifice in terms of the quality of family life, especially of the spouses of servicemembers. Because servicemembers are routinely subject to transfer within and outside the continental United States, often with very short notice, spouses often find it difficult to obtain and/or to retain suitable employment. However, military spouses are not covered by the same residency protections that are available to the servicemembers under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. As a result, State laws regarding taxation, voting and ownership of property are often applied differently to the spouse and the servicemember. The SCRA allows servicemembers to determine their permanent residencies or domiciliaries. By allowing this, SCRA protects servicemembers from State taxation, property ownership, and voting laws that are not in their permanent residencies or domiciliaries. Because the law is silent to spouses in these matters, they do not receive the same protection as servicemembers. Therefore, they can be subject to States which aggressively seek to impose residency related to income and property ownership laws, despite, my colleagues, the fact that they no longer reside in the States due to the spouses' military orders. S. 475 addresses this issue by giving military spouses a choice to use either their current addresses where they are stationed because of their spouses' military orders or their permanent addresses to determine their residencies or domiciliaries for voting in any municipal, State, or Federal election. Simply, the bill would allow spouses to determine their residencies in the same manner as servicemembers regarding taxation, voting, and ownership of property with respect to land-use rights on Federal owned or controlled land in the same manner as servicemembers under section 508 of SCRA. My colleagues, this is a commonsense solution to give military spouses who have already sacrificed so much for the Nation the protection that servicemembers have when it comes to local residency laws related to taxation and voting. So, again, I want to compliment Senator Burr and also, for the companion bill in the House, Mr. Carter of Texas, for their sponsorship of this bill; and I urge my colleagues to support it. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. STEARNS. It's my honor to yield as much time as he may consume to the author of the companion bill, which is H.R. 1182, the sponsor, Mr. John Carter of Texas.

Mr. STEARNS. We have no further speakers. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time. General Leave

Mr. STEARNS

Mr. STEARNS. Will the gentleman yield?

Mr. STEARNS. Let me just say how delighted I am to have the gentleman on the floor. Mr. Walz is the highest NCO that has ever served in Congress. He was a command sergeant major, I think an E-9, so it is with a great deal of respect, for anybody who has served in the military like I have in the United States Air Force, that we look to gentlemen like Mr. Walz. We appreciate his participation on the Veterans' Affairs Committee. I am delighted he is here and is taking over this jurisdiction, which is important on these 13 bills.

Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself as much time as I may consume. I also rise in strong support of H. Res. 773, a resolution expressing the sense of the House of Representatives with respect to the United States Submarine Force. This resolution honors these servicemembers who served their country during World War II in the most unique of circumstances. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague Mr. Boozman of Arkansas, as mentioned earlier, for introducing this legislation, and I will shortly yield to him for further remarks on this resolution. I want to thank the chairman, Mr. Filner, and also Ranking Member Buyer for moving the bill so promptly to the floor for consideration. I urge my colleagues to support H. Res. 773. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the author of the bill, Mr. Boozman of Arkansas, for such time as he may consume.

Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, so I yield back the balance of my time. General Leave

Mr. STEARNS

Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I also rise in support of this bill, H.R. 1168, as amended, the Veterans Retraining Act of 2009. It is unfortunate this wasn't part of the stimulus package, because I think this could have been handled appropriately there. We have got a CBO estimate, but it is an authorization bill, and it is not an appropriations bill. But I think this is the kind of thing that would have been very pertinent to the stimulus bill. This would amend chapter 42 of title 38, United States Code, to provide eligible veterans with employment training assistance. Mr. Speaker, helping our returning veterans get back into the workforce is of the utmost importance. I believe this legislation will further that cause when, because of the recession, the unemployment level, particularly among veterans, continues to reach unacceptable levels. I will be yielding shortly to the author of the bill, Mr. Boozman, for a fuller explanation, but I would like to thank him for offering this bill, and also, as Mr. Walz had mentioned, Ms. Herseth Sandlin and the Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity for moving this bill through the legislative process, and also thank the chairman and the ranking member for their support. We must do more, obviously, to help our veterans today who have been hit especially hard by these tough economic times, particularly when they come back from Iraq or Afghanistan. So I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 1168, as amended. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the author of the bill, the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Boozman).

Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, so I yield back the balance of our time.

Mr. STEARNS

Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I also rise in support of House Resolution 828, a resolution recognizing October 24, 2009, the 20th chartered flight of World War II veterans through the Louisiana HonorAir, as Louisiana HonorAir Day, and to honor the invaluable service and dedication of World War II veterans nationwide. Founded in late 2006 by T.D. Smith of Louisiana, Louisiana HonorAir provides World War II veterans an all-expense-paid, day-long trip from Louisiana to Washington, D.C., to see the World War II Memorial, the Marine Corps Memorial, and to lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery. I want to congratulate them for their continued service to our Nation. Their flight on October 24, 2009, was the 20th Honor Flight organized by this organization, and I am sure it won't be the last. I have also had the experience and privilege of honoring these Honor Flights in my congressional district. We've had four of these. Last week, in fact, we have just had one, and I will recognize that Senator Dole and Senator Libby Dole also were participants at the site to meet and greet these veterans as a tribute to them. I know that I have been inspired by the veterans who have participated in honor flights from my district in Florida, and all Honor Flight Networks around our country deserve our support. Also on October 10, 2009, the 100th chartered flight of World War II veterans aboard U.S. Airways occurred during a Louisiana HonorAir Flight out of New Orleans, Louisiana, the home to the National World War II Museum. It is estimated by the National Honor Flight Network that over 42,000 veterans will have participated in honor flights by the end of this year. So I think it's a tribute to recognize this resolution, but it's also a tribute to my colleague Mr. Cao of Louisiana for introducing this resolution and honoring this worthy organization. I would like to thank both the chairman and the ranking member for moving this resolution so quickly, and I urge my colleagues to support it. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker I yield such time as he may consume to the author, Mr. Cao of Louisiana.

Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I yield back the balance of my time. General Leave

Mr. STEARNS

Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. It appears this legislation has a lot of wonderful components in it. It represents about seven individual bills. It would amend title 38 of the United States Code and the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to make certain improvements in the laws relating to benefits administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes. The bill, H.R. 3949, is designed to continue the Veterans' Advisory Committee on Education, improve protections under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, improve VA outreach programs, establish a VA scholarship program, and expand eligibility for burial in a national cemetery. Public Law 109-461 requires VA to maintain a database of veteran- and disabled veteran-owned small businesses and to validate the ownership and control any business included in the database. Implementing those provisions, VA has allowed any business that applies for inclusion in the database to be listed prior to being validated. The bill would require VA to list only those businesses that have been validated. This will prevent nonveteran-owned businesses from misrepresenting themselves as veteran-owned. Mr. Speaker, I did want to bring to my colleagues' attention the disappointment on this side of the aisle that the amended bill we are considering drops section 102 from H.R. 3949, which was unanimously reported by the Veterans' Affairs Committee. Section 102 would clarify that Congress intends to allow VA contracting officers at the Department of Veterans Affairs to award sole source contracts to service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses on the same basis as so-called 8(a) businesses under the Small Business Act. VA contracting officers often interpret the Small Business Act as giving 8(a) firms a higher priority than service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses, which we do not believe is consistent with congressional intent. All this provision would do is to give veterans a level playing field with 8(a), women- and minority-owned small businesses. So obviously we're disappointed. We're not clear why this happened, but we wanted to bring that to the attention of my colleagues. Furthermore, service-connected disabled veteran small business owners have earned and deserve an equal level of priority for VA contracts. Unfortunately, the Small Business Committee majority and the Oversight and Government Reform Committee majority have asserted jurisdiction and are holding up this important provision to help service-disabled veteran-owned small business, and this is just a week before Veterans Day, I might add. Service-disabled veteran-owned small business owners are men and women of all races and economic groups from all over the country. In these difficult economic times, they need the help section 102 would have provided. While I regret that this important provision isn't in the bill today, we hope to work with the Small Business Committee and the Oversight and Government Reform Committee to ultimately reach an agreement on a way to allow service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses just simply a fair opportunity to obtain sole source contracts from the Veterans Administration. Servicemembers continue to experience service contract and lease difficulties that are related to permanent change of duty stations and deployments. H.R. 3949 would clarify the member's rights and obligations under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act, or SCRA, when terminating a service contract or lease due to military orders. The bill also contains provisions that would authorize the United States Attorney General to initiate action in a U.S. district court on behalf of a veteran whose rights under SCRA may have been violated and allows courts to provide relief to the member, including monetary damages, and assess civil penalties up to $110,000. Unfortunately, courts sometimes fail to recognize the individual right of action that is implicit in the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act. As one hearing witness noted, it makes no sense to provide a right and then deny the individual the ability to enforce that right. Therefore, the legislation would also codify a private right of action to make it clear to all courts that an individual has a right to bring legal action to protect rights granted under SCRA. Title 3 of the bill includes an authorization to allow VA to provide up to $25 million in grants to State veterans agencies and to allow these agencies to provide all or a portion of these grants to county veterans service agencies to increase outreach to veterans. Such grants carry with them significant responsibility for the VA and State and local veterans agencies to ensure simply these funds are properly accounted for and to measure the results of this provision. One of the least discussed injuries due to the traumatic effects of improvised explosive devices is the damage to the body's visual system. Unfortunately, these effects may be subtle at first or not occur immediately after the event. To accommodate the increasing number of visually impaired veterans whose sight has been affected either directly by combat or the effects of aging and disease, title III also would authorize the VA to grant scholarships to persons in educational programs relating to treating visual impairment and mobility issues. Now persons receiving such scholarships would be required to commit to working within the VA health care system for a requisite number of years. The bill also stipulates conditions for repayment of the scholarships in the event that the individual fails to fulfill the conditions that are specified in this scholarship. Finally, my colleagues, the bill would define the conditions under which the parents of a deceased veteran could be buried with the veteran in a national cemetery. I support this bill. I urge my colleagues to support it. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. STEARNS. If the gentleman will yield, I thank my colleague for his support, and I look forward to working with him.

Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Boozman).