Robert Wittman

Mr. WITTMAN

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express my support for the military exchange and commissary program. The Defense Commissary Agency in the Department of Defense operates an efficient, worldwide chain of commissaries providing affordable groceries to military personnel and their families, and retirees. This benefit is critical for the men and women of the military and their families. It helps military personnel adequately provide for their families' nutrition and well-being, both here at home and across the globe. While our Federal budget is under pressure, the benefits to our military personnel must not be targeted as a means to reduce our national debt. The exchange and commissary program is essential for retention, well-being, and our Nation's military readiness. This is a vital service, and I will continue to fight for these services to be preserved here, and especially across the globe. This program is critical to our Nation's military readiness and must be maintained.

Mr. WITTMAN

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize those men and women who have served this great Nation with honor, men such as Lieutenant Commander Daniel ``Prozac'' Prochazka, United States Navy. For the past year, Lieutenant Commander Prochazka, a proud naval aviator and graduate of Georgia Tech, served on my staff as a Congressional Defense Fellow. During his assignment, he served as a senior member of my staff responsible for defense, veterans, foreign affairs and intelligence matters. Lieutenant Commander Prochazka executed his work as a liaison to the constituents of the First District and the numerous defense installations in the First District with distinction. Furthermore, he provided exceptional support to me as my staff liaison to the House Armed Services Committee in my role as a Subcommittee Chairman and as the Co-Chair of the Congressional Shipbuilding Caucus. Lieutenant Commander Prochazka directly contributed to my goal of providing excellent constituent service to the people of the First District. He was responsible for bringing numerous constituent inquiries to a successful conclusion and he was able to leverage his personal and operational experience to respond to the most challenging inquiries. In addition to his efforts on behalf of the First District, Lieutenant Commander Prochazka took on projects with regional, state and national implications, demonstrating his ability to view a challenge from many angles and develop innovative solutions often requiring collaboration across many levels of government. Lieutenant Commander Prochazka's work ethic, duty to mission, and commitment to servant leadership is without equal. I believe that his personal drive to achieve excellence in his work has and will set a very high standard for his peers. I would also like to thank Lieutenant Commander Prochazka for the service and sacrifice he has made, and continues to make, for our Nation and our great Navy. His keen sense of honor, impeccable integrity, boundless work ethic, and loyal devotion to duty earned him the respect and admiration of my staff and the First District of Virginia. After spending the last 12 years as an E-2C Hawkeye pilot in Japan and Virginia and completing eight deployments, which included flying combat support missions over Iraq and Afghanistan, Lieutenant Commander Prochazka and his family are headed to Norfolk, VA where he will become the Executive Officer of VAW-125, the ``Tiger Tails.'' Lieutenant Commander Prochazka, who has been selected for the rank of Commander, will return to sea and to leading Sailors as he goes back into harm's way to execute his trade as naval aviator in the service of this great Nation, flying the new E-2D Hawkeye. I have no doubt that Lieutenant Commander Prochazka will continue to serve the United States Navy honorably and with distinction. I wish him, his wife Jen, and his daughter Amelia the best of luck as they continue their journey together as a Navy family. It was an honor and a pleasure having him serve on my staff. We all can sleep soundly at night knowing that men and women like Lieutenant Commander Dan Prochazka are members of our all-volunteer force and they stand ready to defend our country and take the fight to our enemies; far away from their families and the comforts of the United States of America. Lieutenant Commander Prochazka, thank you. Best of luck to you and God bless you, your family, and all the Sailors you are charged with leading. Fair winds and following seas.

Mr. WITTMAN

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of the National Defense Authorization Act. I would like to thank Chairman McKeon and Ranking Member Smith for their hard work on this, as well as the ranking member of the Readiness Subcommittee, Madeleine Bordallo. This bill addresses the impact of sequestration on our national security and, perhaps most importantly, the most damaging effects on our soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines, over 51,000 of whom are fighting for us today in Afghanistan. Specifically, this bill allocates nearly $3 billion readiness dollars across the components--Active, Guard and Reserve--providing needed funds for critical programs, including the flying hour program, facilities maintenance and sustainment, depot maintenance, and combat support. The bill boosts DOD's ability to respond to crises like Benghazi by adding $75 million for the expansion of the Marine Security Guard program at our diplomatic posts around the world. It prohibits DOD from initiating another round of BRAC to ensure appropriate focus on the orderly and secure withdrawal from Afghanistan and a well-informed assessment of our Nation's defense strategy moving forward. It also provides $11 million for MILCON projects for urgently needed base infrastructure. It reauthorizes 1.5 million acres of public land for training range access to ensure our forces have the ability to train the way we expect them to fight. And it ensures adequate funding for reset and retrograde from our Nation's longest war in Afghanistan. As we vote, we need to be mindful that our highest duty is to ensure the readiness of our force. This starts with our men and women who volunteer to wear the uniform with the right training and equipment to do their missions with the advantage of overwhelming military superiority. We must ensure they never enter a fair fight on our behalf, and that they can complete their missions and come home safe. I would like to thank the HASC staff director, the entire HASC staff, especially the readiness staff--Michele Pearce, Ryan Crumpler, Jamie Lynch, Dave Sienicki and Nicholas Rodman--for their diligent and dedicated work to get this bill completed.

Mr. WITTMAN

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the efforts of the Lance Corporal Caleb Power Young Marine Unit in the First District of Virginia to promote Red Ribbon Week. Their efforts in this national drug prevention campaign are impressive. The work these young men and women are doing is vital to our community and shows their commitment to making our schools, cities, counties, Commonwealth and Nation drug free. I am proud to represent the First District of Virginia, where young women and men are striving to make our communities better. The Young Marine Program is a drug demand reduction program for children ages 8 through the completion of high school that instills the Corps values of teamwork, leadership, and discipline. The mission of the Young Marines is to positively impact America's future by providing quality youth development programs for boys and girls that nurtures and develops its members into responsible citizens who enjoy and promote a healthy, drug free lifestyle. Red Ribbon Week serves as a vehicle for communities and individuals to take a stand for the hopes and dreams of our children through a commitment to drug prevention and education and a personal commitment to live drug free lives, with the ultimate goal being the creation of a drug free America. The Fredericksburg unit of the Young Marines is named after Lance Corporal Caleb John Powers, a Fredericksburg resident and former Young Marine who joined the United States Marine Corps and was killed in action in Iraq in 2004. Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in thanking these Young Marines and their families for their dedication to improving this great Nation.

Mr. WITTMAN

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the memory and the spirit of a true community leader, Ruth Herrink. Ruth served as the editor and publisher of the King George Journal in King George County, Virginia. Ruth passed away on Saturday, October 12, at the age of 87 after decades of service to her community. Ruth was ``indomitable,'' in the words of her daughter, Jessica, and ``always wanted to promote things that were positive for the community.'' The communities in and around King George County and our great Commonwealth of Virginia have lost an eminent spirit that connected and energized those around her. Ruth's daughter, Jessica, will assume her mother's duties at the King George Journal and no doubt has a difficult, yet wonderful, challenge ahead of her to continue in the spirit of Ruth's intentions for the community. My condolences extend to Ruth's family and the entire community of King George County. To truly honor Ruth, we can all learn from her example and her passion to truly improve her community and the lives of those around her.

Mr. WITTMAN

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Speaker, in July, I stood at this same podium arguing it shouldn't take a government shutdown threat each year to force Congress to do its job. I voted against Congress adjourning for the month of August, insisting that Congress remain to complete critical business. The work of the people remains unfinished. Today is day 11 of the government shutdown. Thousands of workers stay home, without a paycheck, and yet Congress has not done its job. This shutdown has failed to will Congress and the administration to the finish line, and we have seen a cycle of crisis management rather than responsible governing. Mr. Speaker, Washington is broken. This is not governing. This is not what our Founding Fathers intended. I urge Congress and the leadership in Washington to return to regular order of business. Instead of governing by crisis, let's responsibly govern, by getting the people's business completed on time.

Mr. WITTMAN

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Speaker, I too would like to recognize the gentlemen from Virginia, Mr. Wolf and Mr. Moran, for their leadership in bringing this forward and for the leadership on both sides of the aisle. This is absolutely necessary. I rise today in strong support of the Federal Employee Retroactive Pay Fairness Act. And I'm proud to be part of a bipartisan group of cosponsors to make sure that this is something that got done and is being done in the best interests of our great Federal workforce. This bill should really be called the ``Pay Certainty Act'' because that's exactly what it will do, provide certainty for our Federal employees who, through no fault of their own, were told that they were not allowed to come to work effective October 1. Our Nation's dedicated civil servants have already been asked to shoulder the burden of numerous efforts to reduce government spending. We all know that it is a shared sacrifice. But they don't expect to do it alone. And I've talked to many Federal employees who are willing to do their part. But like everyone else has said, they don't expect to shoulder these cuts alone. These furloughs have had devastating impacts on people's lives, on the doctors and nurses at veterans hospitals who are responsible for taking care of the men and women who have faithfully served our Nation, on the law enforcement officers running down leads on terrorist threats and protecting our homeland, on the firefighters stationed at military installations around the globe, on our Capitol Police who protect your Congress and Capitol, and on the multitudes of other Federal employees who do a great job serving their Nation day in and day out. The only thing that they want is the ability to serve. And they have all done that in the greatest way possible. And for that, they have my deepest gratitude and sincere thanks, and I know they have the deepest gratitude and sincere thanks from all Members of this body. We deeply appreciate what they do for our Nation. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation and to work together to get the work of the Nation done.

Mr. WITTMAN

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the gentleman from Georgia for yielding. I have come to the floor many times this year to remind my colleagues that our Nation has no greater asset than the folks serving our Nation, including those who make up our Department of Defense, both military and civilian alike. And today I am glad to support this bill, and I am pleased to see the House is moving to ensure that our servicemembers and civilian Department of Defense employees and contractors will be paid, but we must also not forget all of the other Federal employees who serve our Nation on a daily basis. They do a fantastic job also. I am proud to represent tens of thousands of Federal employees and retirees who live in the First District of Virginia. These hardworking patriots serve our Nation on a daily basis, whether it be keeping our skies safe for travelers with the FAA, or supporting our troops on the front lines of the war on terror through the FBI and CIA, or the nurses and doctors in our veterans' hospitals. I firmly believe that the government must continue to operate to ensure our servicemembers and all of our Federal employees continue to be paid and the government operations that folks count on each and every day are not interrupted. The American public and the Nation's public servants deserve our extraordinary efforts to make sure this happens. They deserve our best.

Mr. WITTMAN

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize September 3, 2013, as the 230th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Paris. The Treaty of Paris was signed on September 3, 1783, thus ending American Revolutionary War and declaring the ``United States to be free, sovereign and independent states.'' The Continental Congress ratified the Treaty of Paris on January 14, 1784. I am proud to represent Virginia's First District, frequently referred to as ``America's First District,'' which is home to Yorktown where the Revolutionary War ended on October 19, 1781. With the help of our French allies, the decisive Battle of Yorktown resulted in the surrender of the British Army commanded by British lord and Lieutenant General Lord Cornwallis. A resolution of the Continental Congress, dated October 29, 1781, called for a ``Yorktown Monument to the Alliance and Victory''. The Senate Committee on Military Affairs in its report dated March 16, 1880, stated that ``the surrender at Yorktown was the crowning success of the revolution, and its event should be commemorated by national authority.'' The grounds were secured and the cornerstone laid on October 18, 1881. Today, the Yorktown Battlefield, site of the last major battle of the American Revolutionary War, is administered by the National Park Service and is part of Colonial National Historical Park. Virginia's First District has a rich history of military service, beginning with the Revolutionary War and continuing today. I ask my colleagues to join me in commemorating the 230th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Paris and recognizing the significance of the Battle of Yorktown.

Mr. WITTMAN

Mr. WITTMAN. Thank you, Representative Forbes. I want to thank you for your leadership in the Congressional Prayer Caucus and for taking the time to make sure we got together today to recognize the importance of today's date and the efforts by our forefathers to make sure that we have those liberties and freedoms to make sure that we can freely practice our religious beliefs here. I'm pleased to be here as a member of our Prayer Caucus and join with my other colleagues on the Prayer Caucus to honor Constitution Day and the religious freedoms of all our citizens. September 17, 2013, marks the 226th anniversary of the signing of the greatest governing document the world has ever known: our Constitution. Religious freedom is the very first freedom protected in the First Amendment. And just as Chairman Forbes has spoken of, it was really a discussion that took place years ago in Virginia. Governor Patrick Henry, there in the church at St. John's in Richmond, got up and spoke about the importance of the individual liberties and freedoms and the importance to make sure that we as a Nation had a Constitution that preserved those. As you know, he led that fight to make sure that James Madison, the author of the Constitution, provided in the Constitution just those individual liberties and freedoms. In fact, I think a lot of folks don't know he actually voted against ratifying the Constitution originally because it did not contain those basic individual liberties and freedoms, and it was his work that made sure that we enjoyed those individual liberties and freedoms today, based on our Constitution. It was that First Amendment that read: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof. In today's world, there are far too many obstacles for many of our citizens to truly practice what is promised in the First Amendment. There are challenges to religious symbols. Religious freedom for members of our military is under attack. Air Force Senior Master Sergeant Phillip Monk was recently dismissed from his position and reassigned after he refused to voice his opinion when his commanding officer asked him if he could agree with her belief that openly voicing a religious or moral opposition to same-sex marriage is discrimination. He stood by his beliefs and paid the price professionally for that. Religious liberties are threatened, for many, each and every day. The Commonwealth of Virginia, as has been so eloquently stated, has a direct tie to the First Amendment. I stated Governor Patrick Henry's efforts there; but also Thomas Jefferson was very, very adamant and passionate about preserving those religious freedoms. The Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom was authored by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison in 1779, and it states: No man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship place, or ministry whatsoever, nor shall be enforced, restrained, molested, or burthened in his body or goods, nor shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions or belief; but that all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinions in matters of religion, and that the same shall in no wise diminish, enlarge, or affect their civil capacities. Thomas Jefferson, the second President of the United States, and one of our Nation's Founding Fathers, understood the need for protecting our natural rights, those provided to us by our Creator, those protected by our government, all of which were more important to him than any other element of what he espoused in the creation of our government. And we know that none meant more to him or to our Nation than the freedom of religion. The statute declares that compulsory religion is wrong, that no religion should be forced on an individual, and that the freedom of religion is a natural right. The statute's doctrine and principles have inspired individuals throughout the Commonwealth and across our Nation. Thomas Jefferson requested that three of his greatest accomplishments be listed on his epitaph. Freedom of religion was so important to him that the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom was listed along with the founding of the University of Virginia and the writing of the United States Declaration of Independence as his greatest lifetime achievements. Thomas Jefferson believed deeply in that freedom of religion and wanted to make sure that it was something that our Nation continued to espouse today, and it was his moral foundation. The statute ultimately facilitated the path to complete religious freedom in the United States. As we know, the discussions that took place took place based upon that Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom. That was eventually included in the First Amendment to our Constitution. It is our duty to ensure that the Congress continues to protect our First Amendment freedoms for now and for future generations. And I want to thank all of my colleagues in the Congressional Prayer Caucus to make sure that we remember each and every day as we are here the practice of religious freedom, and to make sure that we understand that our projection of that freedom is what makes us the great Nation that we are today.

Mr. WITTMAN

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today with disappointment because Congress plans to adjourn without addressing critical issues important to the American people. It shouldn't take a government shutdown threat in September each year to will Congress to do its job. It also should not be difficult to achieve an efficient, lean, and functional government with a real budget and appropriations blueprint. I appreciate that district work periods allow Members to visit with folks back in their community, but this August the work is too important. Unfortunately, Congress has not completed the job it needs to. It has not completed the work of the people. Too much unfinished business requires some overtime and it begs Members to stay and finish. Let's clear our schedules, vote against the adjournment of Congress for the month of August, and stay in Washington to finish the business of the people. As I was last August, I'm prepared to stay in Washington as long as it takes. These issues are too important to wait.

Mr. WITTMAN

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Speaker on July 24, 2013, I missed rollcall vote No. 408. Had I been present, I would have voted ``nay''.

Mr. WITTMAN

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Speaker, yesterday, the House passed important legislation: the Defense appropriations bill. This bill prohibits furloughs on employees serving our Department of Defense in fiscal year 2014. These employees are now in their third week of furloughs. This week, we heard from Under Secretary of Defense Comptroller Bob Hale about the adverse impacts, which are expected to worsen if furloughs continue. His message made clear the harm furloughs already have on our force readiness. He echoed what I am hearing from my constituents that I talk to on a daily basis: these dedicated patriots employed by DOD are disappointed and frustrated they cannot support the warfighter and are fearful of an unknown future. While it may be too late for the 11 days of furlough through September, Congress has the opportunity and I believe the obligation to get this important provision prohibiting furloughs signed into law as soon as possible. I urge the Senate to join the House in passing this important measure.

Mr. WITTMAN

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Chairman, I would say to the gentleman that, in light of what we have today, with the uncertainty, with the sequester, with the reduction in funds where we are saving money by furloughing Federal employees, now is not the time to spend more money in this realm of uncertainty, especially when the Secretary of Defense is undertaking a strategic choice in management review to determine what our strategy should be going forward. We certainly want to determine the strategy first before we're going to make additional expenditures on closing bases. Also, there's a current evaluation going on with our facilities in Europe and our facilities in the Pacific. Shouldn't we finish that first before we start even considering closing bases here in the United States where, by the way, we still haven't gotten to the point of saving money from the last BRAC round, which will take at least 13 years to save money? So if we start another one that would take another 13 years, are we in the position to spend more money to do that while we have these areas of uncertainty surrounding us, a sequester resulting in furloughs, an evaluation of the current strategy for the United States, an evaluation of base structures in other areas of the world? I say that this is absolutely the wrong time to pursue a BRAC in any way, shape or form, to propose, plan or execute a BRAC in all those areas. Let's create some certainty with what's happening right now with this Nation's defense, with what we're doing with planning, to make sure it's a logical, a thoughtful process where there's some certainty, not throwing more uncertainty in the process, which is what a BRAC round would do now. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, the amendment that I have before you today provides that none of the funds in this year's Defense appropriations act may be made available to propose, plan for, or execute an additional Base Realignment and Closure round, better known as BRAC. Remember, we have a current BRAC in place that continues to cost our Nation dollars in the defense budget; and I want to remind folks, too, that this same language passed in this year's National Defense Authorization Act by a vote of 315-108 on June 14, and it says that we want to make sure that we're making the right decisions in the context of what's going on around us. We have an existing BRAC that will not save a penny until 2018. The original cost-savings estimates on that BRAC were $21 billion. Today, the cost of that BRAC is estimated at $35 billion, and the Nation won't break even until 2018. In fact, in this year's President's budget, the estimated cost of that BRAC is $450 million. Now, we wouldn't want to proceed with another BRAC with potential cost savings somewhere in the future while we're still paying for the additional BRAC, especially in light of the budgetary needs that are before us with our Nation's defense budget. With the sequester going on, with those reductions, and with the uncertainty surrounding the current state of affairs with our national defense, why would we want to continue in the realm of uncertainty spending more dollars with an uncertain future about when savings would occur, when we haven't even accrued savings from the 2005 BRAC? Again, just not the time to go about this, not the time to put in place another Base Realignment and Closure commission. Mr. Chairman, at this point, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Chairman, again, I want to emphasize, at this time in our Nation's defense budgeting, we ought to be looking at where we can save dollars, where we can apply dollars to those areas of greatest need. And I argue those areas of greatest need are for this Nation's readiness, the training of our troops, the operation and maintenance of our equipment, making sure that we get those dollars there; and that before we pursue a BRAC, we ought to know what the areas are, where we are going to go with this Nation's strategy, what our base structure should be in other areas of the world. After being at war for nearly 12 years, now we have a well-trained, battle-hardened, combat-tested force, and they are an all-volunteer force that's more joint than ever. We want to understand where we need to be going forward to make sure that we provide for them. Closing these bases now, or even pursuing a Base Realignment and Closure commission, this is not the time to do that. Mr. Chairman, again, this is the wrong time. We ought to be looking at the place in time where we have actually accrued the savings on the last BRAC, which started in 2005. Before we pursue another, we ought to make sure we know what this Nation's strategy is, militarily, before we pursue a Base Realignment and Closure commission. We ought to know what should our base structures be elsewhere in the world. Before we pursue a Base Realignment and Closure commission here in the United States, we ought to make sure we understand where we're going with the sequester, where we're going with furloughs, where we're going with end-strength with our military before we close bases. If we're going to be reducing end-strength by 100,000 and say, by the way, let's pursue a Base Realignment and Closure commission now, how do we know where we need to be? That uncertainty is not where we need to be, and I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of this amendment. With that, Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. WITTMAN

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Speaker, this week, our civilian defense employees are at their desks, working fervently, after staying home for their first furlough day last week. Now they're having to take a furlough day each week for the next 11 weeks. I have talked with folks in my district who are, to say the least, frustrated as our Nation and they are deeply, deeply affected by these furloughs. As one constituent said, they are ``being held hostage.'' The United States is the greatest Nation in the world and has the greatest military the world has ever known because we have citizens dedicated to serve--dedicated in spite of a lack of true leadership in Washington. While the administration had other choices rather than to furlough these essential employees, they chose instead to make a political statement on the backs of our fellow citizens to spread the pain far and wide. Our Nation's defense will undoubtedly suffer. I continue to urge the administration to utilize the flexibility it has, and I urge Congress to get to work on our Nation's defense legislation.

Mr. WITTMAN

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Speaker, instead of combating terrorism or working to support our troops deployed around the globe, civilian workers across the country are, instead, spending 20 percent of their workweek on a forced furlough. Furloughed workers face personal and professional challenges, lost income and less time to get the same amount of work done. From the Associated Press: Civilian employees, ranging from top-level policy advisers to school teachers and depot workers, will not be answering their phones or responding to emails for 1 day a week. There is no doubt those who wish harm upon the United States are pleased with these cuts. The administration had flexibility to make other choices and avoid furloughs. Further, this unfortunate choice may not be over on September 30. Yesterday, Secretary Hagel suggested furloughs may continue under certain circumstances. Compounding budget cuts are devastating military readiness. I urge the administration to make better choices and for the Congress to work the will of the American people and support our Nation's defense to the fullest.

Mr. WITTMAN

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to the memory of a proud citizen of Morattico, Virginia, a man whose friendship I have valued for many years. The late Weston ``Bitzie'' Conley was truly a pillar of his community, and his legacy will undoubtedly live on in Lancaster County and across Virginia's Northern Neck. During our time working together in both the seafood and the banking industries, Bitzie was a first-class Virginia gentleman, exhibiting the highest qualities of integrity, selflessness, and compassion for his neighbors. My thoughts and prayers go out to his wife, Dorothy Lee, his daughter, Connie, and to his many loved ones in this time of mourning. I would like to submit an article from the Rappahannock Record about Bitzie's life and his many passions. [From Rappahannock Record, June 13, 2013] Weston `Bitzie' Conley, Seafood Industry and Community Leader, Dies (By Audrey Thomasson) Morattico.--He was known as ``Bitzie'' to his friends and family. But Weston Franklin Conley Jr. was a giant when it came to serving the community he loved. On Friday, the 78- year-old businessman and local philanthropist quietly passed away at his Morattico home with his wife of 56 years, Dorothy Lee Clark, and daughter, Constance Elaine, by his side. Conley was a force of inspiration in this community and a motivator for others, according to community leaders. ``He was a tremendous asset in how to conduct business and was a great help to me on the YMCA board,'' said District 4 supervisor William Lee, who succeeded Conley as board chairman. ``I gained so much from just listening to him.'' Lee, who served on several community boards with Conley, noted he was a man of integrity and generosity in both his business and personal endeavors. ``He was not slanted or biased. He always gave his honest opinion. Once he said to me, 'Bill, I wouldn't have what I have now if it wasn't for the black community.' I think he was referring to all the men and women who worked for his seafood company picking crabs. Anybody that needed something could go to him. He gave of his time and talents beyond his resources,'' said Lee. Legacy Part of Conley's legacy is evident in the growth and success of the Northern Neck YMCA. Mark Favazza, branch executive of the YMCA, said Conley's fiscal wisdom, integrity, strategic thinking and coalition building made him an important leader in the development of the Kilmarnock facility, including heading the capital campaign that led to the Wiley Child Development Center. ``He wanted a place where children could be safe, families could find support, and everyone was welcome . . . He was the kind of man who worked privately and led behind the scenes . . . His humble service left an enduring impact on our YMCA, the Wiley Center . . . and me,'' said Favazza. Morattico's ``mayor'' Conley's devotion to his heritage and home town exemplified his all-in style when he purchased Morattico's General Store in 2003 and donated it to the community as the Morattico Waterfront Museum, which he helped establish. No doubt Conley wanted to preserve fond memories of growing up and working in the general store his parents owned and operated for 18 years beginning in 1935, a year after his birth in Baltimore. Today, the museum also serves as a community center for the families of Morattico. The first floor remains much like the general store of his youth while the second floor pays homage to the town's watermen. ``Everyone here called him Morattico's unofficial mayor,'' said Liz Failmezger, a village resident and former member of the museum board. ``This is the saddest loss. He was one of the first people to welcome those of us who moved here. He was so genuine--and a true gentleman. He was our go-to guy for everything.'' Mentor and friend ``The county has lost one of its most prominent and charitable citizens,'' said District 1 supervisor and board chairman Butch Jenkins, a longtime friend. Jenkins was only five years old when he met the ``hard- charging'' Conley, a man he always knew as Bitzie. ``He treated me as a little adult,'' said Jenkins. ``I do not know when I became his friend, but he was my friend by the time I was six years old.'' Later, when Jenkins decided to run for supervisor, he sought his older friend's counsel. ``And good advice his proved to be,'' he said. ``Over my time on the board, I often sought his feelings on pending issues . . ., although we sometimes disagreed. ``When I persisted, he told me, `Butch, you usually do all right, but sometimes, you can be a little hard-headed.' '' Jenkins described Conley as ``a gifted friend who cared enough to tell me exactly what he thought and, as my friend, forgave me anyway for doing what he believed to be wrong. ``My sense of loss, as strong as it is to me, must pale to that experienced by his widow, Dorothy Lee, and daughter, Connie . . . and all the members of the extended family he broadened so freely and gladly. I can only hope . . . that the mercy of our Savior will relieve us in time of the pain of our loss and allow us only to revel in the joy of... sharing in the life of this good, caring man,'' Jenkins said. Leader Conley attended Lively High School and Richmond Professional Institute. After serving in the U.S. Army, he returned to the region, working in Richmond and Norfolk before moving back to Lancaster to begin a career in the seafood industry. He became co-owner of RCV (Richardson, Chase and Venable) Seafood Corporation, Smith Point Seafood Inc. in Reedville and Rappahannock Seafood Company in Kilmarnock, processing plants mostly for crabs shipped to national chains like Giant Food and Campbell Soup. Conley proceeded to become a leading member of many industry and professional organizations, including the Virginia Marine Products Commission, Shellfish Institute of North America and National Blue Crab Industry Association. He was a long-standing member of many boards including 25 years with Bank of Lancaster, Bay Banks of Virginia Inc., chairing the loan committee for 20 years, Northern Neck Planning Commission, Lancaster-Middlesex Community Reinvestment Advisory and chairman of the Lancaster County Economic Development Authority (formerly the Industrial Development Authority). He had perfect attendance at the Lancaster Ruritan Club for 50 years and was a 25-year member of the Chesapeake District Ruritan National Crab Feast Committee. As a dedicated, lifelong member of Emmanuel United Methodist Church, he served the church in many leadership roles, including on the board of trustees. Funeral services were held Tuesday. Memorial gifts may be made to the Norwood Baptist Church Cemetery Fund, P.O. Box 85, Morattico, VA 22523, Northern Neck Family YMCA, Morattico Waterfront Museum or Hospice of Virginia.

Mr. WITTMAN

Mr. WITTMAN. I rise in support of the gentleman from Virginia's amendment that sets a deadline for the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to complete an environmental review to allow offshore Atlantic seismic studies to go forward. I have joined 42 bipartisan House colleagues urging President Obama to move quickly to complete the environmental analysis. Unfortunately, the Department of Interior is well over a year behind in completing its work. As you know, delays continue to prevent the creation of thousands of good-paying jobs and around $19.5 billion in Federal, State, and local revenue. I'm glad to join with Chairman Hastings in support of the Offshore Energy and Jobs Act. These measures are important for Virginia and this Nation, supporting domestic energy security, revenue sharing, and job creation. This is about jobs, energy independence, and just plain, old common sense. I urge my colleagues to support this amendment and this important energy bill. Congress of the United States, Washington, DC, March 21, 2013. Hon. Barack Obama, President of the United States of America, Washington, DC. Dear Mr. President: We are writing to urge that your Administration act to diligently complete the long-delayed Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the conduct of a safe, environmentally protective seismic assessment of the oil and natural gas resources offshore the Atlantic outer continental shelf (OCS). The gathering of such information represents a critical step toward making science-based decisions with regard to any future commercial or recreational activities in the federal waters off our Atlantic coastline that could provide the nation much needed energy, economic, and environmental benefits. It has been nearly two generations since seismic testing was last conducted along our eastern seaboard. Since that time, technological advancements have rendered those previous findings nearly irrelevant. For example, while 2-D imaging was restricted by certain geological characteristics, today's 3-D and 4-D imaging techniques allow us to identify resources previously unknown to exist. By relying solely on outdated technology and information, we are blindly assessing offshore resource potential and making uninformed decisions without the benefit of sound science. To further illustrate this point, in 1987 the Minerals Management Service estimated that there were 9.57 billion barrels of oil within the Gulf of Mexico. In 2011, with more recent seismic data and exploration, they adjusted that estimate to 48.4 billion barrels of oil--roughly a 500% increase. Contrary to the hyperbolic comments of many opposed to this simple information-gathering process, history tells us it can be done safely with great deference to our valuable ocean ecosystems. Industry employs a number of effective mitigation measures to reduce any potential impacts to wildlife in the seismic survey areas such as ramping up the sound levels to allow animals to leave the area before the full survey begins and placing marine mammal observers onboard the survey vessel to shut down the survey if an animal is spotted in the vicinity. Industry has been performing seismic surveys around the world, including the Gulf of Mexico, for decades and there has never been a documented case where use of an air gun to perform a seismic survey has caused the death of an animal. Similarly, a report by the National Academy of Sciences' National Research Council stated that ``No scientific studies have conclusively demonstrated a link between exposure to sound and adverse effects on a marine mammal population.'' It is past time to continue your Administration's efforts to safely accumulate this information using modern technology. As you know, the Department of the Interior (DOI) held an initial scoping meeting on their EIS for Atlantic OCS seismic in April 2010. Previous to that in 2009, the FY 2010 House Interior Appropriations bill instructed DOI to indicate their expected timeline for completion of the EIS. DOI's response in February 2010 indicated a Final EIS being issued in April 2012. With nearly a full year having passed beyond this target date, we would urge the swift completion of this environmental analysis so that the many seismic permits already submitted to DOI may be properly considered, along with any future applications. Finally, in order to ensure a viable market for Atlantic seismic data, we also urge your reconsideration of current policies prohibiting any new oil and gas leasing in the Atlantic OCS. Only the prospect of future leasing provides proper market incentive to make the significant investments needed to obtain this data. We thank you for your consideration and hope to quickly move forward on Atlantic seismic testing to enable a science- based decision making process with regard to OCS access. Sincerely, Jeff Duncan; Doc Hastings; John Fleming; Steve Scalise; Joe Wilson, Morgan Griffith; Robert Wittman; Doug Lamborn; Rob Bishop; Tom Graves; Randy Forbes; Paul Broun. Mick Mulvaney; Virginia Foxx; Robert Hurt; Tom Rooney; Frank Wolf; Richard Hudson; Trey Gowdy; Glenn Thompson; Tom Rice; Renee Ellmers; Scott Rigell; Bob Goodlatte; Mark Meadows; Robert Pittenger; Lynn Westmoreland; Bill Cassidy. Cynthia Lummis; Michael Conaway; Steve Stivers; Kevin Cramer; Henry Cuellar; Gene Green; Blake Farenthold; Bill Flores; Chris Stewart; Mark Amodei; Tim Huelskamp; Charles Boustany; Bill Johnson; Andy Harris.

Mr. WITTMAN

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Chairman, as the largest estuary in the United States, the Chesapeake Bay watershed is home to more than 16 million people. The watershed encompasses six States and the District of Columbia; well over 1,000 local governments; 150 major tributaries; 100,000 streams and rivers; and more than 11,600 miles of shoreline, plus thousands of plant and animal species. In addition to generating billions of dollars in economic activity and recreational revenue, the bay provides tens of thousands of jobs in the commercial seafood and recreational fishing industries alone and is the site of multiple major ports and military bases. The bay draws millions of tourists each year. Clean and healthy waters encourage boating, fishing, and swimming, activities that are of great intrinsic value to the surrounding States and to our Nation. The bay watershed is also home to many farmers and agricultural lands. Virginia forestry and agriculture alone account for $79 billion in economic output and employs over 500,000 workers. Farmers have a vested interest in a clean Chesapeake Bay. Their commitment to the land and waters is reflected by multi-generational stewardship of farms across the watershed. My amendment includes similar legislation that passed in a bipartisan way in the House of Representatives in the 111th Congress by a vote of 418-1. Better accounting and more flexible management are essential to restoring the Chesapeake Bay. Crosscut budgeting and adaptive management provide performance-based measures to ensure Federal dollars currently being spent on bay restoration activities produce results. Both techniques will ensure that we're coordinating how restoration dollars are spent and making sure that everyone understands how individual projects fit into the bigger picture. That way, we're not duplicating efforts, spending money we don't need to or, worse, working at cross purposes. Crosscut budgeting, adaptive management, and an independent evaluator should be key components for the complex restoration activities for the Chesapeake Bay.

Mr. WITTMAN. I thank the gentleman from New York for yielding. Mr. Chairman, I have the privilege every evening to travel back to the northern neck of Virginia. It's just an hour and a half from D.C., and that area is not served by broadband. We all know how important it is to have that service. Folks there are stuck with 1990s' technology-- dial-up. If you've ever had to deal with that, you know how frustrating that is. We know for rural areas that economic development, job creation and educational opportunities are all tied to broadband access. Granted, there may be challenges with the Rural Utilities Service program, but, nonetheless, those areas need that particular service. I want to make sure that they get that. That's why I oppose this amendment, and I understand the gentleman's frustration with that. The RUS Broadband Loan Program does provide the needed leverage to fund construction. It also provides the ability to improve our systems in these areas and to acquire the facilities and equipment that are needed to provide broadband to these communities. Folks, this is absolutely critical. This amendment, unfortunately, takes us away from that. I want to make sure that reforms are put in place so the system works, not taking away that opportunity for our rural areas.

Mr. WITTMAN. I thank the gentleman for yielding. Just as he said, this is an effort just to modernize the list of eligible products under the Specialty Crops Competitiveness Act. It is just about making sure that those folks in rural coastal areas have the same opportunities as those farmers on land. In those coastal areas, shellfish, molluscan shellfish, are extraordinarily important as a part of the economy. Modern practices take the watermen from wild harvest now to farming shellfish products, just like on-land farmers do. What this does is it makes sure that those coastal economies have the same access to resources under this program as those farmers on land do. It really is just the situation of making sure that we have parity there. This doesn't add a new checkoff program. It doesn't add new taxes. It purely puts in place access to those dollars competitively, just like those farmers that farm other crops on land. Again, this is extraordinarily important to coastal communities in those areas where those watermen are now converting to being farmers on the water. So it really is, again, about making sure that we are fair in treating those farmers on the water the same as we do the farmers on the land.

Mr. WITTMAN. Mr. Chairman, I have an amendment at the desk.