Bill Shuster

Mr. SHUSTER

Mr. SHUSTER. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous materials on H.R. 3628.

Mr. SHUSTER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. H.R. 3628 eliminates, consolidates, and modifies 27 congressionally mandated reporting requirements of the executive branch agencies that fall within the jurisdiction of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. This bill does not reduce the congressional oversight of the affected agencies. Instead, it rids the agencies of outdated reporting requirements that are no longer utilized or have been replaced by different methods of information collected, thus enabling the agencies to concentrate on more pressing aspects of their mission. This legislation also consolidates and modifies certain existing reporting requirements, bringing consistency across law and regulation, eliminating duplicative and wasteful efforts, making technical corrections, and improving the ability of Congress to conduct effective oversight. This legislation makes several reporting requirements digital, resulting in reduced production and delivery cost, expedited delivery, and more useful and interactive formats. Additionally, the reports will now be made publicly available, enhancing transparency. According to the CBO this legislation could reduce the administrative costs of these agencies. This legislation is a basic, good-government, fiscally sound bill that just makes sense. I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SHUSTER

Mr. SHUSTER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the work of Dr. Frank Meloy and the positive impact he's had in Altoona and Logan Township in Blair County, Pennsylvania as both a professional educator and a dedicated public servant. Dr. Meloy is a retired administrator with the Altoona Area School District. During his 42 year tenure with the district, he rose from the ranks of Special Education Teacher to Assistant Superintendent--a position he held for twenty years. Dr. Meloy received his Bachelor of Science degree from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, a Master of Education degree from Pennsylvania State University and a Doctor of Education from Temple University. In addition to his esteemed career in education, Dr. Meloy has been an elected Supervisor in Logan Township since 1996. At the end of his current term in 2013, he will have served eighteen continuous years on the Township Board of Supervisors--the majority of those years as Chairman. Under Dr. Meloy's fiscal leadership, tax rates in Logan Township have remained among the lowest in the county, and he has saved his municipality thousands of dollars by refinancing several bond issues. He has been extremely instrumental in transforming the Township's system of fire protection into a modern, well-equipped and cost- effective unit. Dr. Meloy also has been the Township's representative on numerous committees and boards during his term, and has been recognized for his active volunteerism by several community organizations including the PA Homeless Children's Initiative, the Blair Bedford Central Labor Council AFL-CIO, and the Kiwanis Club of Altoona. Dr. Meloy will be honored on December 12, 2013 at his last official meeting as a Township Supervisor. I congratulate him on this recognition, and thank him for his distinguished careers in education and public service.

Mr. SHUSTER

Mr. SHUSTER. Mr. Speaker on rollcall No. 598, I was not present for the vote due to a family emergency. Had I been present, I would have voted ``nay.''

Mr. SHUSTER

Mr. SHUSTER. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 604, I was not present for the vote due to a family emergency. Had I been present, I would have voted ``aye.''

Mr. SHUSTER

Mr. SHUSTER. Mr. Chairman, I rise today in support of H.R. 1900, the Natural Gas Pipeline Permitting Reform Act. In my state of Pennsylvania, the Marcellus Shale boom has reinvigorated our economy and created thousands of jobs. American energy production is booming, and we need the infrastructure to keep up with demand and transport the gas from well to market. I have seen in my own state the frustration and delays in getting gas from well to market due to unnecessarily long permitting processes. These delays keep gas from flowing, hold up royalty payments to my constituents, and prevent tax revenue from making it into the state and local coffers. While we must ensure that pipelines are constructed safely, many times these delays have nothing to do with safety and everything to do with politics. We've seen President Obama and the EPA do everything they can to delay natural gas production and destroy the energy industry in this country in order to appease the radical environmentalist left. We must not allow this to happen. Congress must take action to ensure that our domestic energy production thrives and the United States can be energy independent. The Natural gas Pipeline Permitting Reform Act will expedites the federal review process for applications for natural gas pipeline certificates, allowing us to build this much needed infrastructure efficiently and safely. I support passage of H.R. 1900 and urge my colleagues to do the same.

Mr. SHUSTER

Mr. SHUSTER. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 601, I was not present for the vote due to a family emergency. Had I been present, I would have voted ``nay.''

Mr. SHUSTER

Mr. SHUSTER. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 603, I was not present for the vote due to a family emergency. Had I been present, I would have voted ``nay.''

Mr. SHUSTER

Mr. SHUSTER. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 602, I was not present for the vote due to a family emergency. Had I been present, I would have voted ``nay.''

Mr. SHUSTER

Mr. SHUSTER. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 590, I was not present for the vote due to a family emergency. Had I been present, I would have voted ``nay.''

Mr. SHUSTER

Mr. SHUSTER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor and introduce a good friend and community leader in my home State, Reverend Paul Taylor, and to thank him for offering today's invocation. Reverend Taylor made the trip to the Nation's Capital from the great city of Latrobe, Pennsylvania. I know my colleague, Tim Murphy, joins me in welcoming Reverend Taylor to the House of Representatives. For the past 17 years, Reverend Taylor has dedicated his life to the students and faculty at Saint Vincent College. As a member of the college, he has held several prominent positions, including dean of admission, dean of students, and his current role as executive vice president. Reverend Taylor's civic engagement and enthusiasm for improving the lives of others is not limited to higher education. Reverend Taylor also serves on the board of directors for the Latrobe Area Hospital Charitable Foundation and assists as a weekend parish priest. In his personal life, Reverend Taylor is an avid hunter and serves as the chaplain to the six-time Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers, and he performs mass every Sunday for every home game. Reverend Taylor is a warm and welcoming leader. He has helped build a strong foundation at Saint Vincent College that will last for decades to come. I am proud of the work he has done in the Pennsylvania community and am privileged to call him my friend. Announcement by the Speaker Pro Tempore

Mr. SHUSTER

Mr. SHUSTER. Madam Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SHUSTER. I would like to inquire, does the gentleman have other speakers?

Mr. SHUSTER. Madam Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SHUSTER. Madam Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SHUSTER. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to take from the Speaker's table the bill (H.R. 3080) to provide for improvements to the rivers and harbors of the United States, to provide for the conservation and development of water and related resources, and for other purposes, with the Senate amendment thereto, disagree to the Senate amendment, and agree to the conference requested by the Senate.

Mr. SHUSTER. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. The committee supports the National Dam Safety Program. In fact, I commend the gentleman from New York in his freshman term to be working on the Dam Act because, as a freshman several years ago--12 years ago-- my first piece of legislation that I authored was the dam bill. Again, this is a critical program. It saves lives, it protects communities, and that is why we included language in H.R. 3080--to improve the Dam Safety program. There are minor differences between the House and the Senate language. We look forward to working on reconciling those differences as the legislation moves forward; and while we expect we will continue to have some negotiations with the Senate on this issue, I am not opposed to the motion to instruct on this provision. With that, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SHUSTER. Madam Speaker, again, we expect to continue to work with the Senate on this language. It is a critical program. It saves lives and protects communities. So again, we accept the motion to instruct. With that, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SHUSTER

Mr. SHUSTER. Mr. Chairman, may I inquire how much time I have remaining?

Mr. SHUSTER. Mr. Chairman, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SHUSTER. I would like to engage in a colloquy, but first, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Cassidy) for the purpose of a colloquy.

Mr. SHUSTER. Mr. Chairman, I yield 30 seconds to the gentleman from New Mexico (Mr. Pearce).

Mr. SHUSTER. Mr. Chairman, I urge a ``no'' vote on the DeFazio amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SHUSTER. Mr. Chairman, pursuant to H. Res. 385, I offer amendments en bloc.

Mr. SHUSTER. I thank the gentleman, and all of my colleagues. At this point I would like to respond to them, and I yield myself such time as I may consume. One of the key principles in developing WRRDA was increasing transparency, accountability and congressional oversight without ceding constitutional congressional responsibility to the executive branch. WRRDA authorizes 23 vital water resources projects that have completed the technical review by the Corps of Engineers and have been recommended by the Corps of Engineers. The committee held a full committee hearing to review all the pending Chief's Reports on June 5, 2013. My position has been clear. In order to maintain our constitutional congressional authority, Congress must review the Chief's Reports and specifically authorize them. We cannot hand over our authority to the administration and the Corps of Engineers to self-authorize. Chief's Reports have been finalized on the three reports that the gentleman has questioned and will be reviewed and considered by the committee as we continue to work through WRRDA. To provide strong congressional oversight, I commit to holding a hearing at the appropriate time in the process so that the very important issues are fully considered and have the opportunity to be addressed. With that, I thank the gentlemen for engaging in colloquy, and I reserve the balance of my time.