Greg Walden

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 1460 would amend the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo and the Alabama and Coushatta Indian Tribes of Texas Restoration Act to decrease the requisite blood quantum required for the membership in the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo tribe. The 1987 Act, which restored recognition to the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo tribe, requires that this tribe's members have a blood quantum of at least one-eighth in order to qualify for tribal membership. H.R. 1460 would amend the Ysleta Tribe's blood quantum requirement from one-eighth to one-sixteenth at the request of the tribe. There are currently 1,252 members of the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo Tribe. This is an important bill to the Ysleta Tribe and I ask Members for their support. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on H.R. 1460.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1460) to amend the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo and Alabama and Coushatta Indian Tribes of Texas Restoration Act to decrease the requisite blood quantum required for membership in the Ysleta del Sur Pueblo tribe.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on H.R. 755, as amended.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2296, legislation which would amend the Revised Organic Act of the Virgin Islands to provide that the number of members of the legislature of the Virgin Islands and the number of such members constituting a quorum shall be determined by the laws of the Virgin Islands. Mr. Speaker, I would ask support for passage of H.R. 2296, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on H.R. 2296.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on S. 624, as amended.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the Senate bill (S. 624) to authorize construction of the Fort Peck Reservation Rural Water System in the State of Montana, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

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

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. The Deschutes Resources Conservancy was authorized in 1996 as a 5- year pilot project designed to achieve local consensus for projects to improve the ecosystem health in the Deschutes River Basin. The existing authorization provides up to $1 million through the Bureau of Reclamation each year for projects. Projects funded through the Conservancy demonstration include: piping for irrigation district delivery systems to prevent water loss; securing water rights for instream flows to secure Squaw Creek habitat; providing fencing of riparian areas to project riverbanks; working with private timberland owners to restore riparian and wetland areas; and seeking donated water rights to enhance instream flows in the Deschutes River Basin. Mr. Speaker, the bill would reauthorize the 5-year pilot project from 2002 to 2006 and increase the authorization ceiling to $2 million annually. Mr. Speaker, this is an excellent piece of legislation. It is a great group that puts a lot of hard work into these projects, and I would encourage my colleagues to support its reauthorization. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on S. 1027.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the Senate bill (S. 1027) to reauthorize the participation of the Bureau of Reclamation in the Deschutes Resources Conservancy, and for other purposes.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

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

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3657 was introduced by the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Bono). This legislation would convey a little over an acre of Forest Service land to a radio station located in the San Bernardino National Forest in California for fair market value. During the subcommittee hearing on this bill, the administration requested that the bill be amended to include language that would require the radio station to prove that it had clear title to all existing structures on the site. During the markup, the legislation was amended to include that language. The bill is supported by the administration. I would urge Members to suspend the rules and pass H.R. 3657, as amended. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on H.R. 3657.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3657) to provide for the conveyance of a small parcel of public domain land in the San Bernardino National Forest in the State of California, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I offer a concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 394) directing the Secretary of the Senate to make technical corrections in the enrollment of the Senate bill (S. 1327), and I ask unanimous consent for its immediate consideration.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

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

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, S. 1937 was introduced by Senator Craig from Idaho. A companion bill, H.R. 4437, was introduced by the gentleman from Washington (Mr. Hastings). This legislation allows consumer-owned utility systems in the Pacific Northwest to aggregate their power contracts from the Bonneville Power Administration into a single contract. The purpose is to provide administrative and operational efficiencies for the power purchasers and for Bonneville. The bill does not expand any such customers' rights to purchase requirements for power from Bonneville and does not allow resale by the joint operating entity of such power to customers that are not its members or participants. Mr. Speaker, I include the following letters for the Record: House of Representatives, Committee on Resources, Washington, DC, 24 July 2000. Hon. Tom Bliley, Chairman, Committee on Commerce, Washington, DC. Dear Mr. Chairman: On July 19, 2000, the Committee on Resources ordered favorably reported without amendment S. 1937, to amend the Pacific Northwest Electric Power Planning and Conservation Act to provide for sales of electricity by the Bonneville Power Administration to joint operating entities. This bill was referred to the Committee on Resources and additionally to the Committee on Commerce, where the Subcommittee on Energy and Power has marked up and forwarded the bill to the Full Commerce Committee. Given the rapidly approaching adjournment date for the 106th Congress, and several of our Pacific Northwest Congressional Members' wish to move this bill as quickly as possible, I ask that you allow the Committee on Commerce to be discharged from further consideration of the bill. We can then schedule it for Floor consideration as soon as possible and send it onto the President. Of course, by allowing this to occur, the Committee on Commerce does not waive its jurisdiction over S. 1937 or any other similar matter. Although I have no reason to believe that the bill would not be passed without amendment and signed into law by the President, if a conference on the bill became necessary, I would support the Committee on Commerce's request to be named to the conference. Finally, this action should not be seen as precedent for any other Senate bill which affects the Committee on Commerce's jurisdiction. I would be pleased to place this letter and your response in the Committee on Resources' report on the bill to document this agreement. As always, I appreciate your cooperation and that of your staff in moving this bill. Sincerely, Don Young, Chairman.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on S. 1937.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I have no other speakers on this matter, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Wyoming (Mrs. Cubin).

Mr. WALDEN of Oregon. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, S. 1374, the Jackson Multi-Agency Campus Act of 1999, provides for an exchange of land for a building. The Forest Service will transfer approximately 12 acres of the Bridger-Teton National Forest to the State of Wyoming and to the town of Jackson, Wyoming in exchange for a building site and construction of a multi-agency office to house Forest Service and other Federal, State and local resource organizations. S. 1374 provides for a fair market exchange among willing sellers. The agencies gain a modern office location where employees from different organizations will be able to work closely together in partnership, which should lead to better decisions being made on the ground. The public gains a convenient facility for one-stop shopping when doing business with natural resource agencies. All parties to the agreement, Federal and local officials, as well as the public, are in favor of the bill, and I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of S. 1374. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.