Mike Thompson

Mr. THOMPSON of California

Mr. THOMPSON of California. I thank the gentleman for yielding. I rise today in opposition to this legislation. Whether or not you're a fan of the IPAB, I strongly urge you to oppose the bill. This bill is not about IPAB. This bill is nothing more than a political maneuver to attack the Affordable Care Act on the 2-year anniversary of its enactment. I challenge anyone to talk to one of the over 7,000 young adults in my district who now have health care insurance coverage and ask them if the Affordable Care Act should be repealed. Or maybe the 6,000 seniors in my district who have saved over $3 million on the cost of prescription drugs. Or the 30,000 children and 120,000 adults who now have health care insurance that actually covers preventive services without burdensome copayments. Or the thousands of children with preexisting health conditions who will no longer be denied coverage by health insurers or told they've hit their lifetime cap for services because of a disease with which they were born. Ask them if they'd like to repeal the Affordable Health Care Act. No one has ever suggested that this bill was the perfect solution to health care, but we should be working together to fix it, not trying to repeal it for cheap political points. And to add the medical malpractice provision that they added in this bill, that is so wrong- headed that the doctors in California have come out in opposition to this bill. Any doctor will tell you there's work that needs to be done in regard to medical malpractice, but the way this was done has even brought the doctors to the table in opposition. So, on behalf of the millions of Americans who are already benefiting from the Affordable Care Act, I ask you to join with me and with the California doctors in opposition to this legislation that does no one any good at all.

Mr. THOMPSON of California

Mr. THOMPSON of California. I thank the gentleman for yielding. The Governors of seven States, fishermen, hunters and farmers, a whole list of people, oppose this bill. Our amendment states that the Central Valley Project and State Water Project shall be operated in a manner that meets all obligation under State and Federal law with operational constraints that are based on the best available science. More than 750 plant and animal species depend upon the delta for their survival. Many of these then support important industries, such as the fishermen, hunters, recreational industries, and farmers that promote local and State economies. We've seen what happens when science is ignored and environmental protections are gutted for the sake of politics. In 2008 and 2009, salmon fisheries were forced to close because of low-water flows in the rivers. This resulted in the loss of over a half a billion dollars and nearly 5,000 jobs--the same number that the proponents of the bill claim that their bill would create. This bill would prevent the use of the best available science and adaptive management in the bay and delta by permanently limiting agencies from acting on new scientific information developed since 1994. This alone ignores the last 15 years of the best available science. I urge a ``yes'' vote on this amendment and a ``no'' vote on this terrible piece of legislation.

Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Speaker, just a couple of comments on some of the previous speaker's remarks. I'm glad to add forestry in one of the areas if there's any jobs lost that the bill won't go into effect if that would garner my friend's support of this amendment. And as he mentioned, he said it himself: it creates winners and losers. That's not what we're about. We're about creating jobs, not moving jobs from one area to another. My friend from California mentioned that there was no salmon fishing and it caused these problems. Well, there's no salmon fishing because the last politically motivated water policy killed 80,000 spawning salmon. It shut down the season--it shut it down. It cost people their boats, and it cost people their jobs. Motels, gas stations, bait shops, grocery stores--everybody was hurt tremendously by that matter, and now we're back at it again trying, once again, to politically move water from one portion of the State to another. It's a job killer and it preempts State law. It's a bad bill, it ought to be killed, and this amendment ought to be added to it. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. The Thompson-Eshoo amendment states that nothing in this bill can go into effect if the Secretary of the Interior determines that any agricultural, fishery, or related jobs will be lost in northern California counties as a result of this bill. I represent a community with varied economic interests: agriculture, fisheries, and tourism. Our amendment would protect these jobs from this politically driven legislation that would divert water to south-of-delta private agricultural interests. Proponents of this bill claim that the bill protects jobs. The bill does the exact opposite of what it claims to do. It's a job-killer bill. It creates economic winners and losers based on south-of-delta interests. The livelihoods and concerns of individuals outside of this limited area are ignored in order to support well-heeled agricultural interests south of the delta. In my home district, over 2 million acres of farmland support a greater than $1 billion market value of products. Over 10 percent of these farms depend on irrigation. I do not believe that these farmers are less important than the south-of-delta farmers. Their jobs, their income, their families should not be sacrificed. However, this is not simply a northern farmer versus southern farmer issue. Fishermen on the north coast of California saw the result of politically driven water resources decisions in '08 and '09, and they paid the price in almost 5,000 jobs and the economic loss of over $534 million. The Thompson-Eshoo amendment would prevent any provisions of this bill from going into effect that would result in the loss of jobs in northern California. Join me in protecting jobs from this politically driven bill that prioritizes the agricultural economies south of the delta over all others. And I now yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Eshoo), my friend and colleague.

Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. THOMPSON of California. So please join me and over 100 outdoor and fishing organizations and the Western States Water Council to protect northern Californians from political agendas that harm our economy, wildlife, and the people. Vote ``no'' on this bill.

Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong opposition to this jobs killer act that ignores more than 20 years of established science. Tens of thousands of people depend on the Bay-Delta for their livelihoods, including many farmers, fishermen, and sportsmen who contribute billions of dollars to our economy every year. Sadly, the sponsors of this bill are using the legislation to create winners and losers by preempting California State law. This bill would take water from folks in northern California for use in California's Central Valley. This means even less water to sports fishermen and to commercial fishermen, the basis of two thriving industries in our State. The Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations strongly opposes the bill. They estimate that over 25,000 jobs were lost in the salmon fishing industry due to the 2008 and 2009 closures. The American Sportsfishing Association shows that California's economy suffers $1.4 billion in loss each year that the salmon fishery season is closed. If this bill becomes law, these jobs would be lost forever, and the economic losses would be permanent. Appropriate amounts of water are also critical to support the economies for wildlife-associated recreation. In California, 7.4 million sportsmen contribute over $8 billion to the economy every year. Without water, many of these hunting, fishing, and wildlife-watching activities will be lost. More than 200 sportsmen's organizations have written to express their opposition to this bill. These men and women recognize the extreme consequences of this measure. Mr. Chairman, I'd like to insert this letter that I have signed by those over 200 organizations into the Record. February 26, 2012. Hon. John Boehner, Speaker of the House, House of Representatives, Washington, DC. Hon. Nancy Pelosi, Minority Leader, House of Representatives, Washington, DC. Dear Speaker Boehner and Minority Leader Pelosi: The California Environmental Water Caucus, and the numerous environmental, environmental justice, recreational and commercial fishing groups, legal and advocacy groups, and Indian tribes, whose logos and names are attached to this letter, would collectively like to express our strong opposition to the ill-conceived and regressive legislation contained in H.R. 1837, the misleadingly entitled ``Sacramento-San Joaquin Valley Water Reliability Act.'' We do not believe that this bill merits a vote by the U.S. House of Representatives. In summary, this radical legislation preempts state water law, eliminates environmental protections for salmon and other commercially valuable species, guts the 1992 Central Valley Project Improvement Act, and overturns the broadly supported, court approved settlement to restore the San Joaquin River. As a result, this bill threatens thousands of salmon fishing jobs and communities in California and Oregon, water quality in the Bay-Delta, and the reliability of California's water supplies. H.R. 1837 would overturn the fundamental Congressional principle which requires the federal government to follow state water law whenever possible. This principle has been a bulwark of rights reserved to the individual states and should not be violated by this kind of legislation. Even more specifically, this radical legislation would preempt the public trust doctrine as defined in the California Constitution and eliminate the implementation of a bipartisan package of water policy reform legislation adopted by the State of California in 2009. H.R. 1837 would defeat efforts to restore fish populations in the Delta. Science-based protections for salmon and other endangered species are required under both California state law and the Endangered Species Act. In order to support recovery of endangered fish species, the State of California has consistently opposed legislation that would weaken the Endangered Species Act in the San Francisco Bay-Delta and Estuary. H.R. 1837 would strip those protections. H.R. 1837 would gut the Central Valley Project Improvement Act of 1992, which corrected numerous deficiencies built into the federal Central Valley Project. The Act requires compliance with state law, encourages water conservation, makes modest reforms to reduce water subsidies, and contributes water for the recovery of endangered fish species. H.R. 1837 would overturn the 2009 court approved San Joaquin River Restoration Settlement Act which ended twenty years of litigation on the San Joaquin River. The Settlement and the Act were supported by all parties to the litigation and numerous water districts in the San Joaquin Valley and across the State, along with Members of Congress from both sides of the aisle. H.R. 1837 attempts to preempt state law that requires river restoration, and eliminates flood protection and water supply projects for farmers that were approved as part of the Settlement and Act. H.R. 1837 would reduce water quality and water reliability for Delta communities and Delta farmers. It seeks to ensure water flows to agribusiness in the western and southern San Joaquin Valley at the expense of smaller Delta family farmers. The recently released Economic Sustainability Report authored by the Delta Protection Commission shows that Delta agriculture is worth $4.2 billion annually and provides tens of thousands of jobs. Delta agriculture and jobs should not be sacrificed to benefit water users in other parts of the state, some of whom do not even use that water for agriculture. This legislation would further aggravate the water supply divide within the state and would help perpetuate the destructive ``water wars'' which characterize water rules in California. In summary, H.R. 1837 is an unprecedented assault on a state's ability to enact and support its own water laws, and it is an undisguised water grab in favor of one district to the detriment of other parts of the state, all engineered by the federal government. For all of the above reasons, we oppose H.R. 1837 and request that you withdraw the legislation. David Nesmith, Co-Facilitator. Nick Di Croce, Co-Facilitator. The following 190 organizations are signatories to this comment letter: Bill Jennings, Executive Director, California Sportfishing Protection Alliance; Dave Britts, President, Pacific Coast Federation of Fisherman's Associations; Carolee Krieger, Executive Director, California Water Impact Network; Jonas Minton, Senior Water Policy Advisor, Planning and Conservation League; Ron Stork, Senior Policy Advocate Friends of the River; Jennifer Clary, Water Policy Analyst Clean Water Action. David Lewis, Executive Director Save the Bay; Joan Clayburg, Executive Director, Sierra Nevada Alliance; Deb Self, Executive Director, San Francisco Baykeeper; Jim Metropulos, Senior Advocate, Sierra Club California; Chris Wright, Executive Director Foothills Conservancy; John Merz, President, Sacramento River Preservation Trust. Conner Everts, Executive Director, Southern California Watershed Alliance; Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla Executive Director, Restore the Delta; Caleb Dardick, Executive Director, South Yuba River Citizens League; Barbara Vlamis, Executive Director AquAlliance; Caleen Sisk-Franco, Spirtual Leader & Traditional Chief Winnemen Wintu Tribe; Victor Gonella, President, Golden Gate Salmon Association. Geoffey McQuilkin Executive Director Mono Lake Committee; Huey D. Johnson, President, Resource Renewal Institute; Adam Scow, California Campaign Director Food and Water Watch; Linda Sheehan, Executive Director Earth Law Center; Leda Huta, Executive Director, Endangered Species Coalition; Capt. Roger Thomas, President, Golden Gate Fishermen's Association. Mondy Lariz, Director, Santa Clara County Creeks Coalition; Larry Collins, President, San Francisco Crab Boat Owners Association; Leaf G. Hillman, Director, Karuk Department of Natural Resources, Karuk Tribe; Lloyd Carter, President, California Save Our Streams Council; Eric Wesselman, Executive Director Tuolumne River Trust; Don Rivenes, Conservation Chair, Sierra Foothills Audubon. Esmeralda Soria, Legislative Advocate, California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation; Mark Rockwell, Co-Conservation Director, Northern California Council Federation of Fly Fishers; Dan Bacher Editor, Fish Sniffer; Alan Levine, Director, Coast Action Group; Zeke Grader, Executive Director, Institute for Fisheries Resources; Siobahn Dolan, Director, Desal Response Group. Andrew J. Orahoske, Conservation Director, Environmental Protection Information Center; Scott Greacen, Executive Director, Friends of the Eel River; Mati Waiya Executive Director Wishtoyo Foundation, Karen Schamback, California Field Director, California Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility; Rich Cimino, President, Alameda Creek Alliance; Milo Vukovich, President, Sonoma County Abalone Network. Jeff Miller, Conservation Advocate, Center for Biological Diversity; Bill Wells, Executive Director, California Delta Chambers & Visitors Bureau; Dave Steindorf, California Stewardship Director American Whitewater; Bill Ferrero, Owner, President, Mokelumne River Outfitters; Lorna Elness, President, San Joaquin Audubon; Carol Perkins, Water Resources Advocate Butte Environmental Council. Michael Warburton, Executive Director, The Public Trust Alliance; Sylvia Kothe, Chairperson, Concerned Citizens Coalition of Stockton; Frank Egger, President, North Coast Rivers Alliance; Luke Breit, Legislative Advocate Forests Forever; Marily Woodhouse, Director, Battle Creek Alliance; Jeremy Terhune, Coordinator, Friends of the Calaveras. Don McEnhill, Riverkeeper, Russian Riverkeeper; Tim Little, Co-Director, Rose Foundation; Steve Shimek, Chief Executive The Otter Project, Greywolf, Jeff Kelly Chief, Modoc Nation; Alan Harthorn, Executive Director Friends of Butte Creek; Larry Hanson, Manager, Northern California River Watch. Steve Shimek, Program Manager Monterey Coastkeeper; Steve Pedery, Conservation Director, Oregon Wild; Melanie Winter, Founder & Director, The River Project; Larry Glass, President, Safe Alternatives for our Forest Environment; Lynne Plambeck, Executive Director, Santa Clarita for Planning and the Environment; Marie Logan & Jessie Raeder, Co-Presidents, SalmonAid Foundation. Karen Schambach, President, Center for Sierra Nevada Conservation; Rain Ananacel, Executive Director, Northcoast Environmental Center; Michael Schweit, President, Southwest Council Federation of Fly Fishers; Chris Poehlmann, President, Friends of the Gualala River; Brenda S. Adelman, Chairperson, Russian River Watershed Protection Committee; Nate Rangel, President, California Outdoors. Chet Ogan, Conservation Chair, Redwood Regional Audubon Society; Susan Robinson, Board Member, Ebbetts Pass Forest Watch; Bob Dean, President, Upper Mokelumne River Watershed Council; Trevor Kennedy, Executive Director, Fishery Foundation; Dan Silver, Executive Director, Endangered Habitats League; Jane Humes, Chair, Waldo Holt Conservancy. Michael Garabedian, Friends of the North Fork American River; Mike Hudson, Small Boat Commercial Salmon Fisherman's Association; Allison Boucher, Project Manager, Tuolumne Conservancy; Michael Martin, Ph.D., Director, Merced River Conservation Committee; Beth Werner, Baykeeper, Humboldt Baykeeper; Kelli Gant, President, Trinity Lake Revitalization Alliance. Rick Coates, Executive Director, Forest Unlimited; Sue Lynn, Secretary, Cascade Action Now; Larry Glass, President, South Fort Mountain Defense Committee; Seymour Singer, President, Pasadena Casting Club; Dick Harris, President, Santa Clarita Casting Club; Ken Javorsky, President, Tri- Valley Fly Fishers. Jim Cox, President, West Delta Chapter, California Striped Bass Association; Jackson Chapman, President, Sacramento Chapter, California Striped Bass Association; Roger Mammon, President, Lower Sherman Island Duck Club; Larry Dennis, Conservation Chair, Mission Peak Fly Anglers; Henry Sandigo, Conservation Chair, Granite Bay Flycasters; Jim Tolonen, Conservation Chair, Santa Cruz Fly Fishermen. Tom Bartos, President, Foothills Angler Coalition; Bill Carnazzo, President, Spring Creek Guide Service; Grant Fraser, President, Auburn Flycasters; Mark Allen, General Manager, Adventure Connections, Inc.; Greg King, Siskiyou Land Conservancy; Jim Yarnall, President, Humboldt Area Saltwater Anglers; Joesph Vaile, Campaign Director, KS Wild. Ron Forbes, Conservation Chair, Delta Fly Fishers; Denise Boggs, Executive Director, Conservation Congress; Kim Glazzard, Executive Director, Organic Sacramento; Bill O'Kelly, President, Sierra Pacific Flyfishers; Cindy Charles, Conservation Chair, Golden West Women Flyfishers; Ted Shapas, Conservation Chair, Diablo Valley Fly Fishermen. Darrell Tichurst, Chairman, Coastside Fishing Club; Steve Burke, Spokesperson, Protect Our Water; Lillian Light, President, Palos Verdes Audubon Chapter; John Weisheit, Conservation Chair, Living Rivers/Colorado Riverkeeper; Spreck Rosenkrans, Restore Hetch Hetchy; Don Schmoldt, President, Sacramento Audubon Society; Diane Hichwa, Conservation Chair, Madrone Audubon. Stephen Fuller-Rowell, Co-Founder, Oregon Waterwatch; Tom Chandler, Editor, Trout Underground; Will Harling, Executive Director, Mid-Klamath Watershed Council; Don Gillespie, President, Friends of Del Norte; Randa Solick, Co-Chair, Santa Cruz WILPF; Ken Franke, Executive Director, Sportfishing Association of California. Jim Martin, Recreational Fishing Alliance; Sep Hendrickson, Executive Director, California Inland Fisheries Foundation; Aaron Newman, President, Humboldt Fisherman's Marketing Association; Mark Micoch, Co-Chairman, Northern California Guides Association; Dan Blanton, Chairman, StriperFest; Mike Augney, Co-Owner, USA Fishing. Jim Martin, Director, Berkeley Conservation Institute; Bob Mellinger, Vice-President, Water for Fish; Bart Hall, Producer, Fred Hall Shows; Randy Repass, Chairman & Founder, West Marine; Bruce Tokars, President, Salmon Water Now; Galen Onizuka, Owner, President, Johnson Hicks Marine. Angelo Pucci, President, P Line; Dick Pool, President, Pro- Troll Fishing Products; Liz Hamilton, Executive Director, Northwest Sportfishing Ind. Assn.; Bob Rees, President, North West Guides and Anglers Assoc.; Peter Grenell, Manager, San Mateo County Harbor District; Ken Elie, Owner, President, Outdoor Pro Shop. Bill Divens, Salmon King Lodge West; Paul Johnson, Owner, Monterey Fish Market; Bob Kotula, Outwest Marketing; Danny Layne, Hawkeye Marketing; Roy Gray, Owner, Roy Gray & Associates; Dan Pamel, President, Leisure Sales; Paul Johnson, Owner, Monterey Fish Market. Michael Scaglione, Pacific Catch Fish Grill; Bill Boyce, Boyce Image, World Fishing Network; Rich Kato, Sport Sales; Jack Swanson, Sales Manager, Repala USA; Chuck Cappotto, Bodega Bay Fisherman's Marketing Assoc.; Gary Coe, Kokanee Power. Angelo Pucci, President, G. Pucci and Sons Mfg.; Capt Brian Smith, Riptide Charters; Capt Bob Ingles, Queen of Hearts Charters; Capt Brian Cutty, Chubasco Charters; Capt Brian Guiles, Flying Fish Charters; Capt Chris Chan, Ankeny St. Sportfishing. Capt Craig Shimokosu, New Salmon Queen Charters; Capt Dale Walters, Que Sera Sera Charters; Capt Dennis Baxter, New Captain Pete Charters; Capt Don Franklin, Soleman Sportfishing Charters; Capt Ed Gallia, New Easy Rider Charters; Capt Frank Rescino, Lovely Martha Charters; Capt Harry Necees, Checkmate Charters; Capt Jack Chapman, Lovely Linda Sportfishing; Capt Jacky Douglas, Wacky Jacky Charters; Capt Jay Yokomozo, Huck Finn Charters; Jimmy Robertson, Outer Limits Charters; Capt Joe Gallia, El Dorado III Charters; Capt John Atkinson, New Ray Ann Charters; Capt John Kluzmier, Sir Randy Charters; Capt Nick Lemons, Star of Monterey Charters; Capt Ken Stagnaro, Stagnaro's Charters; Capt Randy Thornton, Telstar Charters. Capt Richard Thornton, Trek II; Capt Rick Powers, Bodega Bay Sportfishing; Capt Peter Bruno, Randy's Fishing Trips; Bob Sparre, Bob Sparre's Guide Service; Capt Sean Hodges, Hog Heaven Charters; George Catagnoia, Owner, Sandy Ann Charters; Capt Steve Talmadge, Flash Sportfishing Charters; Sal Vallone, Bob Sands Fishing; Capt Tim Klassen, Reel Steel Sportfishing; Vance Staplin, Vance's Tackle. Barbara Emley, F/V Autumn Gale; Capt Chris Acacelo, Chris' Fishing Charters; Jim Cox, Owner, Jim Cox Sport Fishing Charters; Jonah Li, Hi's Tackle Box; Sunny Lampre, Owner, Sunny's Electric Marine; Ron La Force, President, United Outdoorsmen; Danny Layne, Fish'n Dan's Guide Service; Marilyn Hendrickson, Sep's Outdoors Inc.; Mike Chamberlain, Ted's Sports Center; Craig Stone, Emeryville Sportfishing. That's 200. That's more than the 12 or 14 members of the State legislature that wrote you a letter. In the end, H.R. 1837 is nothing more than an attempt by well-funded water contractors to steal water from other users with no regard for the fishers, sportsmen, the farmers north of the delta, the families and the businesses who depend on their delta for their livelihood. It guts environmental protections and kills local jobs. It should be rejected, and solutions to California's water challenges should be based on strong and sound science; and it should be done with all of the stakeholders at the table, not in the proverbial back room.

Mr. THOMPSON of California

Mr. THOMPSON of California. I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker and Members, I think it was Einstein that said: If you start with the wrong numbers in your equation, you can never get to the correct solution. What we just heard was a textbook perfect example of that. The idea that there's 30,000 to 60,000 lost jobs as a result of what is happening south of the delta, I don't know where those numbers came from. You're certainly welcome to your own opinion, but you're not welcome to your own facts. The facts tell a whole different story. If you look at what UC Davis did, if you look at what the University of the Pacific did, UC Berkeley, all their numbers point to a loss associated with certain things: a loss of jobs associated with the drought, a loss of jobs associated with an endangered species. But these are in the hundreds or the single-digit thousands, not anywhere close to 30,000 or 60,000. We need to get this thing right. My friend from California was absolutely correct when he called for us to work together. That's exactly what we've been trying to do, to work together. This bill was not crafted with the stakeholders at the table. This bill was crafted in the proverbial back room with not all of the stakeholders present. None of us who have a legitimate dog in this fight were included in this. If this bill were to pass, there will be thousands of jobs lost. They'll be north of the delta. They'll be farming jobs; they'll be fisheries jobs; they'll be recreational jobs. They'll be all kinds of jobs associated with the economy north of the delta. You can't come to this floor with legislation that creates winners and losers in the marketplace without bringing everybody to the table to work on that. That's exactly what this bill does--it creates winners and losers. It chooses jobs south of the delta at the expense of jobs north of the delta. That's wrong and this bill should be defeated.

Mr. THOMPSON of California

Mr. THOMPSON of California. Thank you. I just want to point out that my amendment doesn't affect southern California. It only affects the area in the counties that I mentioned--Del Norte, Humboldt, Mendocino, Sonoma and Marin--an area that has been designated by the scientists and the people in the oil business that there is not enough oil there to bother with and an area that I pointed out before that is very, very important.

Mr. THOMPSON of California. Do you believe that we should be drilling off the coast of northern California in an area that's one of four major upwellings in the world's oceans, in an area that is prone to earthquakes, in an area that everyone knowledgeable about this particular issue claims that there's not enough resources to drill for?

Mr. THOMPSON of California. Will the gentleman yield?

Mr. THOMPSON of California. I don't see how this is going to do anything to affect oil production or jobs if your own Web site says that there's little oil there and we wouldn't be drilling there. So you can't have it both ways. Either there's little oil there and we're not going to drill there, or you have something else up your sleeve. I want to point out that this area is an area that's historically prone to earthquakes, which would make any kind of drilling there extremely dangerous, and that it's one of four major upwellings in the entire world's oceans. This is a critical area to our marine life and the businesses that thrive because of it. And my friend from Washington is 100 percent right on one thing that he said, and that is that this coastline belongs to all the people of the United States of America; and for that reason alone, we ought to break our pick to make sure that we do everything to protect it, to protect the fisheries jobs, the tourism jobs and that beautiful area, so that not only the people today can enjoy it, but for future generations to enjoy, as well. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. THOMPSON of California. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I represent a coastal community and we take seriously threats to our Nation's coastline. The Thompson-Woolsey amendment would clarify that H.R. 3408 would not open drilling along the northern California coast. Proponents of H.R. 3408 claim that northern California does not meet the minimum production potential to be eligible for offshore drilling; however, I do not simply want to take the House majority's word for it. In a Congress that has seen an unprecedented push to weaken safety standards for our environment, I don't want to leave the door open for alternative interpretations. The people of the north coast of California want to make sure that their environmentally unique and critical coast is protected, period. Because this amendment is a clarification of the legislation's intent, there is no cost associated with it. It's important to me and to my constituents that H.R. 3408 makes clear that drilling will not occur in the northern California planning area along the coast of Mendocino, Humboldt, Del Norte, Sonoma, and Marin Counties. The coastal area of my district is one of the most productive ecosystems in the world and supports salmon, Dungeness crab, rockfish, sole, and urchin populations. It also boasts an important and successful tourism industry which represents millions of dollars to the local economies and to the working families of our area. If an oil spill were to occur in this area, the environmental and economic cost would be staggering. Response and cleanup efforts would be hazardous and minimally effective given the rocky shores and rough waters. Drilling for oil or gas off California's north coast would cause serious harm to a unique and productive ecosystem, abundant marine life, and tourism businesses. This amendment will simply clarify that this bill does not require drilling off the north coast of California. I urge a ``yes'' vote on the amendment, and I yield 2 minutes to Ms. Woolsey.

Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.

Mr. THOMPSON of California

Mr. THOMPSON of California. I thank the gentleman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 1892, the Intelligence Authorization Act for FY12. As the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Terrorism, Human Intelligence, Analysis, and Counterintelligence, I am pleased that we were able to work together to bring a bipartisan, bicameral intelligence authorization bill to the House floor for the third year in a row. This is a testament to the hard work and leadership of our chairman, Mr. Rogers, and ranking member, Mr. Ruppersberger. This bill will increase information sharing throughout the intelligence community. It includes a provision that is important to my home State of California, requiring the Director of National Intelligence to compile a threat assessment of foreign drug traffickers that are destroying our public lands here in the United States and causing unacceptable levels of violence because of their drug-growing operations in our public parks and forests. This bill requires the DNI to share this information with Federal land management agencies like the Forest Service so that we can take back our public lands. The bill also includes a provision that I authored, working with my friend and former committee colleague, Representative Anna Eshoo from California, requiring the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency to provide a full report on the events surrounding the May 2011 Osama bin Laden raid. We are all very proud of the intelligence community's extraordinary efforts in carrying out this operation. We believe it's important that the intelligence community document this operation in our permanent record as to how the operation was conducted and its importance on our counterterrorism efforts. Mr. Speaker, this legislation will improve our national security, will enhance the capabilities of the intelligence community, and will make our Nation stronger. I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

Mr. THOMPSON of California

Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize, along with my colleague, Rep. Geoff Davis, the date of November 15 as America Recycles Day, an annual event intended to raise awareness and promote the social, environmental, and economic benefits of recycling and purchasing products made from recycled materials. I also wish to highlight the automotive recycling industry, which reduces our need for already scarce landfill space, and makes important strides toward preserving precious natural resources. During the recycling process, more than 80 percent of an entire automobile by weight can be reused, remanufactured or recycled. This process saves an estimated 85 million barrels of oil, which would have otherwise been used in the manufacturing of new or replacement parts. In addition, the automotive recycling industry employs more than 108,000 workers throughout the United States. A majority of the businesses in this industry are small, and in many cases are owned and operated by families. The Automotive Recycler's Association (ARA) is an international trade association which represents businesses in an industry devoted to the removal and reuse of still-viable automotive parts, and to the safe disposal of inoperable motor vehicles. Our Nation owes a great debt to the 4,500 automotive recycling facilities represented by the ARA, which help to recycle more than 11 million retired vehicles each year. ARA also serves as a regulatory body, utilizing a program that ensures each automotive recycling facility meets specific business, environmental, safety and licensing standards. Mr. Speaker, please join me in recognizing the annual occurrence of America Recycles Day, and in my commendation of the automotive recycling industry for all that it does to protect our environment.

Mr. THOMPSON of California

Mr. THOMPSON of California. I thank the gentleman from Texas for bringing this bill to the floor. I also thank the ranking member for his good work on this and for yielding me time to speak on this. This is very near and dear to me. The California Veterans Home in Yountville, California, is in the heart of my district and my home county. I've known it my entire life, and it's been home to many brave men and women who have served courageously in our military. These are heroes and heroines who put their lives on the line for everything that we as Americans believe in and everything that we enjoy today. There is a post office on that facility that provides mail service for 1,100 heroes and heroines at the California Veterans Home. These guys get their mail there every day. It saves them from having to make an impossible trek to the closest town. If they were forced to do that, it would put them again in harm's way because it is a very dangerous route to travel; and in their advanced age, it makes no sense for them to have to do that. So this is a very, very important facility. And here just recently, a very distinguished hero at the California Veterans Home, Alejandro Ruiz, passed away. The reason we want to name the post office after Alejandro Ruiz is because he earned a Congressional Medal of Honor. Now, it has already been noted on the floor the heroic activities of the day in question, but here's a man who, without any concern for his own safety, charged an enemy pillbox filled with enemy combatants, avoiding rifle fire, avoiding grenades, and took this responsibility on to save his comrades who were there fighting with him. When his weapon became disabled, he returned, got another weapon, more ammunition, and again charged this pillbox. On the second attempt, he was able to reach the pillbox, get on top of it, and dispatch all those who were trying to kill his comrades. Had it not been for his activities, many Americans would have lost their lives that day, and the advancement of the American troops would have been stopped. This man is a true hero, and that is probably redundant given he has received the Congressional Medal of Honor, and I think it is the appropriate tribute to name this postal facility after Alejandro Ruiz.

Mr. THOMPSON of California

Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Kelley House on the Mendocino Coast in Northern California. Located in the picturesque village of Mendocino, the Kelley House was originally a private home. Since 1972 the Kelley House has been a museum and quality research facility which collects, protects, preserves, and shares the rich history of the coastal community through its museum and quality research facility. William Henry Kelley first came to Mendocino in 1852 to work for the California Lumber Manufacturing Company. After working his way up in rank, he returned to his birthplace of Prince Edward Island, Canada, married Eliza Lee Owen, and returned to Mendocino with his new bride in 1855. William built the Kelley House in 1861 on an acre of beautifully landscaped, ocean view property in downtown Mendocino. The gardens include a pond and two resident geese. William had the pond built and stocked so that the neighborhood children could fish. Through its staffed research office, the museum has preserved over three thousand entries of maps, documents, books, photographs, oral histories, and artifacts representing more than 150 years of history along the Mendocino Coast. Through the combined efforts of a dedicated board of directors and staff, volunteers, local sponsors and generous donations from community members, the Kelley House Museum continues to serve its community with annual events and accessible historic information. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, it is my honor and pleasure to recognize the 150th anniversary of the Kelley House, a fixture of downtown Mendocino, for its invaluable service and historic importance to the community.

Mr. THOMPSON of California

Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of Doctor Robert W. Darter's receiving the Frederick K.M. Plessner Award for serving families in a rural county by the Napa County Medical Society. Dr. Darter was born and raised in Berkeley. He graduated from UC Berkeley with honors in public health in 1954 and received his medical degree from Northwestern University in 1958. He began working as an Epidemic Intelligence Service Office with the Center for Disease Control in 1959 and continues to be the Chief Epidemiologist at the St. Helena Hospital and Health Center. In 1970 he and his two partners formed what is now the Napa Valley Family Medical Group, which was one of the first incorporated medical groups in the state of California and who now includes eight family physicians. Dr. Darter also had the vision in 1976 to buy a 16mb IBM to document finances, patient appointments and other aspects of a medical practice. In 1976 he became President of the Napa County Medical Society and has been active in several organizations throughout the years, such as the Napa County Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health Advisory Board, and the Napa County Health and Disability Prevention Board. He obtained the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006 from the St. Helena Chamber of Commerce. He has also given back to his community by being a founding member of the St. Helena Public Library and is working on obtaining a charitable status for the St. Helena Public Library Foundation. Dr. Darter began serving as the side line team physician in 1970 for the St. Helena High School Saints and he continues to follow to the team to away games. Through the Kiwanis Club of St. Helena he has made several trips to El Fuerte, Mexico to bring much needed medical care to the local hospital. Yet, his long time passion has been the Boy Scouts, starting as a Troop One assistant scout master in 1962 through 1982. In 1991 he won the Silver Beaver Award, which is the Boy Scouts highest award given to adult leaders. Dr. Darter is well known in the Napa Valley for his continued work in the community and is fortunate enough to be surrounded by his loving family and life-long friends. He and his wife Jan have five children, Robert Darter IV, Michael Darter, James Darter, John Darter and Kimberly Darter. Mr. Speaker, it is appropriate at this time that we acknowledge Dr. Robert W. Darter for his decades of devoted service to the Napa Valley community on this day.

Mr. THOMPSON of California

Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of the tremendous public service of Mr. James Charles Robbins, who served honorably and admirably for 44 years as a fireman, 37 of which were as a fire chief of the Lucerne Volunteer Fire Department in Clearlake Oaks, California. In addition to his duties with the Fire Department, Chief Robbins worked with the Lucerne Business Association and held the title of the ``Moose'' of Clearlake Oaks. Chief Robbins coached football and baseball for youth and high school teams, mentoring several generations of athletes and teaching them the values of team sports and leadership. His professional activities were always dedicated to the betterment of the fire department and the protection of his district. He was instrumental in maintaining the special fire tax, which keeps the doors open at Lucerne Volunteer Fire Department. Perhaps, Chief Robbins' greatest accomplishment of his career was the reorganization and consolidation of four fire districts into one, known now as the Northshore Fire Protection District. This district is one of the largest in California, covering more than 350 square miles. Chief Robbins was born in San Francisco and went to high school in Upper Lake, California. He pursued his degree at Santa Rosa Junior College, taking many classes related to fire science and management of personnel. Therefore, Mr. Speaker, I believe it is appropriate at this time that we recognize and honor James Charles Robbins for his career of fire protection and community leadership. We congratulate him on his retirement, and extend our best wishes for many years of health and happiness. His dedication to the safety and protection of Northern California is truly commendable, and his leadership will be missed.

Mr. THOMPSON of California

Mr. THOMPSON of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today with my colleague, Representative Lynn Woolsey, to honor Dennis Ziemienski, the 2011 Sonoma Treasure Artist. An internationally known artist from Glenn Ellen, California, Mr. Ziemienski is also a prominent supporter of art events in the Sonoma Valley. Born and raised in San Francisco, Dennis graduated from the California College of Arts and Crafts before moving to New York for a successful career in illustration and painting. He worked with Time- Life, Levi-Straus, Rolling Stone, and the New York Times and has created compelling images for many high profile clients such as Super Bowl XXIX, the Napa Mustard Festival, the Kentucky Derby, the California Railway Museum, and the San Francisco Zoo. An internationally acclaimed painter, Dennis has had several solo exhibitions, won numerous awards, taught at prominent art schools, and illustrated well-known book covers. He has also volunteered his teaching skills at local schools and has donated auction paintings or created posters for local Sonoma Valley nonprofits. Dennis' work is marked by fine draftsmanship and strong, richly colored images inspired by early 20th century painting and posters. He travels frequently to develop different ideas and sensibilities. ``I love to paint my native California and the West,'' he says, ``but the land of my ancestors, Italy and the Mediterranean, has also been a frequent subject . . . it is also important for me to use a romantic sense of history and place, when required, to create a vision that lures the viewer into the picture, creating the desire to `be there.' '' Dennis is married to artist Anne Ziemienski, and the couple's daughter, Sofia, attends the University of the Redlands. Mr. Speaker, we are pleased to congratulate Dennis Ziemienski for his designation as the Sonoma Treasure Artist of the Year for 2011. Please join us and the Sonoma Valley Community in celebrating his accomplishments and contributions.