Tom Udall

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. (Mr. UDALL of New Mexico asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Madam Speaker, S. 1936 authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to sell or exchange seven administrative sites and facilities on approximately 1,325 acres on the Deschutes National Forest in Oregon. The bill provides that the City of Bend, Oregon, will be given the right of first refusal to purchase one particular site, the 210-acre Bend Pine Nursery, for the potential use as a park. Funds from the sale of these Federal assets will be used to construct new Forest Service administrative facilities for the Deschutes and Umatilla National Forests. The estimated value of the land to be conveyed is between $3 million and $4 million. The administration supports this legislation, and we do not object to it. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. (Mr. UDALL of New Mexico asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Madam Speaker, first let me thank the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. John) for his dedication and leadership on this legislation. This legislation would enable the Coushatta Tribe of Louisiana to transfer, sell, or lease fee lands without further approval of the United States. In addition to trust land held by the United States for the benefit of the tribe, the tribe also owns land outside the reservation system. This land, owned in fee status, is subject to State and local laws and taxes. Recently, however, there has been confusion with regard to the authority of the Coushatta Tribe in using these fee lands. H.R. 5398 would help by alleviating this confusion over the tribe's authority regarding fee lands. This bill would not apply to lands held in trust by the United States, but would allow the tribe to pursue future economic development activities as it determines. This legislation is good, just policy; and I urge my colleagues to support it.

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. (Mr. UDALL of New Mexico asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Madam Speaker, I want to recognize the leadership and foresight of the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. DeFazio) on this bill. He played an instrumental role in this legislation. H.R. 1444 establishes a fish screen construction program for irrigation projects in Idaho, Washington, Montana, and Oregon. The purpose of this legislation is to protect endangered fish species in the Pacific Northwest. Construction of fish screens authorized by this bill will help decrease fish mortality rates by preventing juvenile salmon from straying into water diversion projects. Participation in the program is voluntary, and a local share of 35 percent of the cost of the project is required. Under this amended version of H.R. 1444, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will have responsibility for administering the new fish screen program, in consultation with other Federal agencies. The Fish and Wildlife Service was chosen as the lead agency in recognition that the Fish and Wildlife Service has the experience, the expertise and on-the-ground capability to most effectively administer the fish screen program. However, other Federal agencies have an interest in this program; and, in fact, the water project construction agency, such as the Corps of Engineering and the Bureau of Reclamation are usually responsible for funding the mitigation of adverse environmental impacts caused by project construction and operation. The bill requires consultation with such agencies. In addition to a consultive role, we expect these other agencies to actively participate in fish screen projects and also to contribute funds, when appropriate, for projects developed under the authority of this legislation. Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 1444. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. (Mr. UDALL of New Mexico asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Alaska (Mr. Young) for that answer. I appreciate very much his response. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present.

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I would ask the gentleman from Alaska (Mr. Young) if it is his understanding that Senator Daschle supports this bill in its entirety.

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. I yield to the gentleman from Alaska.

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the bill S. 964 as passed by the Senate. However, without notice to Members, a number of other bills and language have been added to this text. Some of these may have merit; others are controversial and expensive. One matter involves an issue that is within the jurisdiction of the Committee on Commerce, not the Committee on Resources. This is not the right approach. It is not the way to do business. I do not think it is fair to Members; nor is it fair to the public. Mr. Speaker, I would ask the chairman, and yield him time to answer this question, of how much notice have Members had to study this bill and know what is coming up in these additional titles that have been added.

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not present.

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, for years, and most recently during our CARA deliberations, we have heard about the success and the proven track record of Pittman-Robertson and the Dingell-Johnson Sport Fish and Wildlife Restoration Programs administered by the Fish and Wildlife Service. It was the prospect of CARA contributing an additional $350 million a year in outer continental shelf oil revenues to Pittman-Robertson that first spurred the request of the gentleman from Alaska (Chairman Young) of December 1999 for a General Accounting Office review of the Federal Aid Program. This in turn led to the gentleman from Alaska (Chairman Young) initiating the majority's own investigation into the financial conduct of the program. As it turned out, these investigations did identify problems concerning how the Fish and Wildlife Service administers and executes these programs, some considerable, several recurrent, but none criminal or even illegal. Nonetheless, I am convinced that the Federal Aid Program was long overdue for an administrative and financial overhaul. I believe all members of this committee share that view. I think it is also important to note that the Fish and Wildlife Service has recognized and admitted that substantial errors have been made in the enforcement of financial policies and procedures. Serious reforms initiated by Fish and Wildlife Service Director Jamie Clark, including the termination of discretionary grant programs, the hiring of a new Federal aid expert to closely oversee the Federal Aid Office, and the establishment of strict new policies for travel and expenses indicate to me that the service is aggressively moving on reform. The other body has improved this legislation. I am especially pleased that it will now provide approximately an increase of $4 million for administration, ensure some flexibility for unexpected administrative costs up to $25,000, streamline the reporting and certification requirements so that they are less cumbersome and tied into the annual budget process. I am also pleased that additional provisions were accepted in the conference. Those provisions would require States to file annual certifications that they have spent their grant funds in accordance to the law, allow Puerto Rico to be eligible to receive hunter education funding. And finally, I support the additional changes made by the other body to attach to this legislation a clean reauthorization for the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and a clean bill to establish a Centennial Commission for the National Wildlife Refuge System. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Hoeffel). I first would like to just say that the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Hoeffel) has worked very diligently with the House Committee on Resources to get us to understand the importance of this legislation. He has been a very strong advocate for the preservation and interpretation of this region's resources. We very much appreciate his hard work on this bill.

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, this bill is a great example of bipartisanship, and it is the way that we should work with each other. We have two freshmen Members here, the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Hoeffel) and the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Sherwood), who have worked diligently on this bill. We also have the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Holden) who has participated and been a part of this. I would just say that this is a good example of us working together. I congratulate all of the parties, including the gentleman from California (Mr. George Miller), for I know of his very hard work on this bill. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 940, as amended, establishes the Lackawanna Valley and Schuylkill Valley Heritage Areas in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The bill originally passed the House by voice vote on September 13, 1999. The Senate passed the bill on Monday of this week and has returned the measure to the House with amendments. The Senate amendments make a number of technical, clarifying and conforming changes to the bill. These are noncontroversial changes which we support. The Lackawanna Valley covers the four counties of Lackawanna, Luzerne, Wayne, and Susquehanna counties in northeastern Pennsylvania. The proposed heritage area would preserve and interpret the Valley's historic, cultural, and natural resources, especially as they relate to anthracite coal. In addition, the bill provides for the designation of a Schuylkill River National Valley Heritage Area so that the preservation and interpretation of the resources of the anthracite coal region will also include the significant resources found in the Schuylkill River Valley. The Schuylkill River Valley Heritage Area would include the districts of our colleagues, the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Holden) and the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Hoeffel). These two Members have been strong advocates for the preservation and interpretation of the region's resources, and I want to commend them for their efforts in this regard. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 940, as amended, is a good heritage preservation proposal, and I urge my colleagues to support the bill with the Senate amendments so that we can complete action on this measure and send the bill to the President for his signature. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Holden), who has been a strong advocate of the preservation and interpretation of this region's resources, and we appreciate his assistance in letting the Committee on Resources know the importance of this legislation.

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, Friday, September 15 marked the beginning of ``Hispanic Heritage Month.'' Our country's history has been richly enhanced by the contributions Hispanic-Americans have given us. I am happy to take part in recognizing these contributions. In my home state of New Mexico we are proud of our Hispanic heritage, which reflects the influence of many cultures. Not only has New Mexico's history been shaped in part by its Hispanic heritage, but so has the history of our entire Southwest. Indeed, the reach of that Hispanic heritage extended into our eastern manufacturing centers in the 19th Century. It is sad that this rich contribution to our national history is often overlooked. But as the Hispanic presence in our country grows, we cannot continue to ignore the part of the American heritage that played itself out predominantly in--but not only in--the huge territory comprised of what is now the states of New Mexico, Arizona, Texas, California, Colorado, Utah, Nevada and even Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri and Louisiana. (I say ``predominantly in'' because the first continuing Hispanic presence in our country is generally recognized as having occurred in St. Augustine, Florida.) To return to New Mexico and my district, New Mexico may have been traversed by Alvaro Nunez Cabeza de Baca as early as 1536. However, New Mexico became the object of focused exploration in 1540. In that year Francisco Vasquez de Coronado led an expedition into New Mexico and then out across the Great Plains. This was the first documented encounter between New Mexico's Native American communities and Hispanic explorers--encounters that varied in the degree of conflict that occurred between the members of our indigenous cultures and those explorers, but encounters that also began a centuries-long process of cultural exchange and mutual adaptation that eventually shaped the Hispanic Southwest. Unfortunately, the next 400 years of Hispanic history in New Mexico-- and, indeed, in the Southwest--have been neglected and overlooked. And this rich history has also been inappropriately obscured under the cover of past prejudices. Even the use of the term ``Spaniard'' in referring to those early European explorers and settlers ignores the fact that many of those Spaniards came from other European countries-- Italy, Flanders, Germany, Greece and even Ireland and England. And while some Spaniards undoubtedly visited and explored New Mexico in search of riches, and Spanish missionaries were intent on converting Native Americans to Christianity, it is clear that most of the early Spanish colonists came to find a new life for themselves in a new land. And others, it has become increasingly clear, came to escape the Inquisition and find a measure of religious freedom for themselves. The Spanish Crown's first effort to actually settle New Mexico occurred in 1590. Gaspar Castano de Sosa led a wagon train of Spanish and Portuguese settlers--many of them possibly Sefarad, Iberian Jews-- from the area near present-day Monterrey, Mexico up the Rio Grande and then north along the Pecos River to ``winter over'' at Pecos Pueblo in New Mexico. The Jamestown, Virginia settlement was still seventeen years in the future. And Plymouth Rock, Massachusetts, was thirty years away. In the spring of 1591 Castano de Sosa was arrested at Santo Domingo Pueblo, New Mexico through the machinations of a rival Spanish government official. Castano de Sosa had moved his fledgling colony to this location by that time. Following his arrest he was marched back to Mexico City, tried, convicted of illegal settlement and then ordered to serve a sentence of hard labor on Spanish ships employed in the Oriental trade. He was killed in a shipboard uprising without ever learning that his appeal of the sentence had been successful and the Spanish Crown had ordered him back to New Mexico as its first governor. In 1597, after it was clear that Castano de Sosa had forfeited his life, the Spanish Crown selected Juan de Onate y Salazar to resettle New Mexico. A number of the members of the Onate settlement expedition had participated in the original settlement efforts led by Gaspar Castano de Sosa. Juan de Onate established his first capitol and settlement--named San Gabriel del Yunque-Yunque--at the Pueblo of San Juan de los Caballeros, NM. By about 1605 the capitol had been moved to the location it has occupied continuously for almost four hundred years--Santa Fe, New Mexico. This makes Santa Fe the oldest State capital in the United States, pre-dating the landing at Plymouth Rock by more than ten years. While its founding has been attributed to Don Pedro de Peralta in 1610, more recent evidence indicates that it was actually settled at an earlier date. Hispanic influence now permeates New Mexico. From the dawn of the 16th century, supplies and communications came into the area along the Camino Real del Tierra Adentro--the Royal Road of the Interior--that still stretches 2,000 miles from Mexico City to Santa Fe. For the next two centuries and better, caravans periodically made the six-month trek northward. They brought new crops and agricultural techniques, which were combined with those of New Mexico's pre-historic Native American Pueblo communities. They brought cattle and sheep and taught the Native Americans how to raise them. They introduced horses and the wheel, opening the door to the worlds of transportation, commerce and technology. They brought mining and metal-working techniques that were used to produce weapons, tools and jewelry. They brought their cuisine, which over the ensuing centuries has been synthesized into the unique cooking tradition that is so quintessentially New Mexican. Over the two centuries that followed this original settlement effort, New Mexico found itself increasingly on the fringe of the portion of the Spanish empire administered from Mexico City--the portion referred to as ``New Spain.'' New Mexico's early economic promise failed to develop. It was a frontier long before the pioneers on our Atlantic seaboard began their westward venturing, then trekking. And while that frontier was The descendants of those original ``Spanish'' settlers of multi- national origin were joined by a second wave of settlers following the Native American uprising of 1680 and the resettlement of New Mexico by the forces of the Spanish Crown led by Diego de Vargas in 1692. At annual trade fairs in Taos, Santa Fe or other locations, the Spanish settlers joined with members of the Native American Pueblos to trade with the nomadic Comanche, Navajo, Apache, Kiowa, Ute and other tribes. Members of those tribes left their tribal communities to settle among the Spanish settlers--sometimes willingly, and sometimes because they were captured and forcibly kept as servants. Spanish settlers also were forcibly patriated to nomadic tribes. And in the process, New Mexican culture gained many unique characteristics. And to the degree intermarriage occurred between the Native Americans in the Pueblo communities and the Spanish settlers there also occurred an exchange of cultures. By the middle of the 18th century a new culture was added to the general mix as French traders began to enter New Mexico and to marry into New Mexico's families. In the 19th Century, New Mexico took, for a time, a more prominent place in the stream of our national commerce when the Santa Fe Trail opened. Hispanic New Mexicans quickly took advantage of this play of fortune, and by the time that the United States incorporated the Southwest into our national territory, Hispanics dominated trade on the Santa Fe Trail. This created the longest continuous trade route in North America, extending from East Coast factories and import houses all the way to Mexico City and beyond. However, as patterns of commerce began to shift around the time of the Civil War, Hispanic New Mexican traders found difficulty in shifting to the larger-scale operations necessary to survive in an increasingly competitive world of national commerce. The place of New Mexico as an important juncture for national and international commerce also began to lose ground as the Santa Fe Trail began to be displaced by the Oregon Trail and then the trans-national failroads. By the late 19th Century, New Mexico had, once again, been relegated to a ``frontier.'' Nonetheless, New Mexico has thrived in spite of its struggle to recapture its former place in our national framework. It has slowly begun to turn the tide at the same time that it has hung onto a treasured way of life steeped in cultural tradition. To this day, many--if not most--of the Hispanic communities in my district still hold their annual fiestas celebrating nearly a half-millenium of New Mexican religious traditions and beliefs. The Santa Fe Fiesta--the oldest continuing festival in our country--draws thousands of visitors every year. Family and community life and values sustain our communities. And cultural traditions and institutions are everywhere. This blending of cultures that occurred in New Mexico has followed the general pattern of what occurred throughout New Spain--and, indeed, throughout the sphere of Spanish influence in the New World. While there were many hostile conflicts during that process, what cannot be disputed is that the accommodation of ``Old World'' ideas and culture to the ``New World'' was nowhere as complete as within the limits of the Spanish Empire. Almost nowhere else in our country did so many Native American communities manage to survive their contact with the settlers of European heritage. Throughout the Hispanic world the pervasiveness of the Spanish-flavored outlook of this new blending of cultures led to the application of the term ``la Raza.'' While this term has often been translated as ``the Race,'' this literalist translation misses the meaning--because the term is a predominantly cultural, not racial or ethnic reference. And it is a term--like its contemporary English twin ``Hispanic''--that expresses pride in those whose cultural tradition incorporates this blending of cultures under the auspices of the world view inherited from not only the first Spanish settlers of the New World, but also of the peoples who joined them in expanding and broadening that world view. So while New Mexico has its own unique place in the history and culture of Hispanics, it also shares so much in common with those other parts of the Western Hemisphere that evolved and developed under the same process. We celebrate that richness during Hispanic Heritage Month every year. It is only fitting. We must recognize and embrace the part of our national heritage that not only represents a coming together of so many cultures, but that continues to embrace and welcome those who want to enlarge their world. And so New Mexico, as one stirring example of the history and culture of Hispanics--a mosaic where various cultural ingredients intermingle and complement each other, while often retaining a basic identity--serves as a model for the highest ideals of our society. Let us then look toward the future during this time of celebration and recognition of Hispanics. As opportunities begin to multiply in new and advanced fields, we must assure that Hispanics are afforded the education and training that will allow them to continue to contribute in much-need ways to our society. And in New Mexico, let us share our pride in our Hispanic heritage. We are living proof that people from different backgrounds can work together for common goals. I join all my colleagues in celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15 to October 15.

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I am both delighted and honored to be able to share my thoughts with my colleagues on this occasion of the consideration by this body of a bill that would designate the El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro as a National Historic Trail. I also want to congratulate and applaud the efforts of the gentleman from the great State of Texas and from El Paso for his leadership on this issue. The Camino Real has already been designated as a Millennium Legacy Trail and has been the object of a Sisters Area agreement between two waystops on this historic trail, San Francisco del Oro located in Chihuahua, Mexico, and Socorro, New Mexico, situated in the heart of my home State. It has given rise to other sister cities agreements between many other communities in New Mexico and in Mexico. For those of my colleagues who may share my love of Southwest history, by the way, although portions of this historic trail were used in prehistoric times, it was first blazed as a complete trail by the expedition led by Juan de Onate in 1598 when he made his way to New Mexico to assure its settlement by the Spanish Crown. I am told that there is still a plaque in the city of Zacatecas that marks the place where this expedition departed on its year-long trek. This winding 1,800 mile long roadway was the first European trade route in what is now the United States. My home State of New Mexico as one of the trailheads for this incredible road, and the other trailhead lies in Mexico City, has a great veneration for this historic route, a route which for too long has been overshadowed by younger but better-publicized national trails. Yet, this trail has left its indelible imprint on my home State and on our national history. New Mexico, to this very day, is peopled by Hispanics who trace their ancestry directly to many of those original settlers who accompanied Juan de Onate in 1598. New Mexico Hispanics still treasure the way of life that they tended and shaped over the past 4 centuries and more. Hispanic institutions that were carried by the Camino Real del Tierra Adentro in the minds and hearts of those Hispanic settlers are part of New Mexico's enchanted way of life. New Mexico's old missions, scattered along the Camino Real and its branches, date back to the 17th century. In the 16th, 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, and long before the existence of the Santa Fe Trail or the Oregon Trail or the rise of the Appalachian Trail in the 18th century, there was already an established pattern of commerce over the Camino Real, a pattern that even reached out into our vast Great Plains. The flow of people and goods that were part of that commerce created and supported strong historic ties between New Mexico and Mexico. Indeed, to this day, many Mexican families and many New Mexican manito families can trace their roots back to the same ancestors who lived in the 16th, 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries. Before the middle of the last century, the Camino Real de Tierra Adentro was still uninterrupted by a frontera, an international border. By even before taking of the Southwest by our national government just before the middle of the last century, the Camino Real also nurtured our country by giving viability to the Santa Fe Trail. As a result, the national commerce flowing across the late-opening branch of the Camino Real, the Santa Fe Trail, nurtured our Nation's economy when it sorely needed that sustenance. I am confident that the passage of this legislation today will do the same thing. I know that enactment of the legislation we consider today will strengthen many common ties between the United States and Mexico that are symbolized by and embodied in the Camino Real, important ties such as transportation, commerce, and education. I say strengthen because we know in New Mexico the Camino Real never closed. It may have changed its course slightly as well as the ease with which it could be traveled, all trails eventually do, but over the centuries and through today, it has continued to connect the people of Mexico and the United States. Revitalizing it will, undoubtedly, lead to many future discoveries that reconnect Hispanic citizens of our two countries even more closely through the ties of common family historical and cultural heritage. Revitalizing the Camino Real will also allow the larger family of Americans to participate in and benefit from that effort. It will lead to a more rounded, more holistic view of the history of our continent, one that will enable us to continue to discover and explore the commonalities that bond our two countries. On March 22 of this year, I was privileged to have my office host officials of Mexico's Instituto Nacional de Antropologia e Historia when they signed a landmark agreement with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management concerning the recognition, protection, and promotion of the Camino Real. Consideration of this legislation today demonstrates that the agreement signed on March 22 was not a mere paper agreement; rather, it provided a remarkable beginning that will lead to increased understanding in the future, an understanding that says, when people of goodwill will come together to share their fortunes through family, historical, cultural and economic connections, they enrich not only each other but all of those around them.

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. (Mr. UDALL of New Mexico asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico

Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. (Mr. UDALL of New Mexico asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)