Ryan Zinke

Mr. ZINKE

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

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in firm support of H.R. 2080, which reinstates and extends the deadline for construction of the Clark Canyon Dam hydroelectric project. The dam is located outside of Dillon, Montana, and will provide critical electricity to both Montana and Idaho. That is why I am proud to have the entire Idaho delegation with me and the entirety of the Montana delegation in support of this bill. The issue is the red tape. Despite the importance of the project, the red tape with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has created an impassable deadlock in it that won't allow for construction of it. Even though we all recognize that hydroelectric power is clean and it is appropriate and the project is enormously important to Montana and Idaho, the bureaucratic red tape has just prevented it from going forward. This is why we are here. Congress must act, and Congress will act. I am sure my colleagues on the other side of the aisle will agree that this is a worthy project for Congress to use our authority and to introduce the legislation to authorize such projects and independently move ahead. This is why I urge all my colleagues to support H.R. 2080.

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in firm support of H.R. 2081, which reinstates and extends the deadline for construction of the Gibson Dam hydroelectric project. Similar to the project before, the Gibson Dam--this is situated in Augusta, Montana--is a partnership between the Greenfields Irrigation District of Fairfield, Montana, and Tollhouse Energy of Bellingham, Washington. The project was officially licensed by FERC in 2014, and a 2-year extension was also granted that year. Unfortunately, delays once again in paperwork and redtape require that Congress act to extend the deadline. I am fairly confident that my colleagues on the other side will also support this bill, being that the same issue before us is dams provide a clean source of power. The project has been reviewed multiple times, and it is in the best interests of Montana and our country. The dam itself is important not only to Montana and local farming communities, but it also protects pivotal wildlife in areas around it. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 2081. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong opposition to the Cartwright amendment to the STREAM Act.

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Chair, we in the coal-producing States in the West do pay the majority of AML fees every year, a reminder that Montana and Wyoming have more coal than anyone else in the world. Yet, this language would rip away funding of the AML from our coal-certified States like Montana, but also the tribes. The great Crow Nation depends on these funds. How can you justify ripping and robbing certified States that pay the majority of the AML funds and tribes away? What does it do? It rips away money that is used for restoration and protects small communities. Montana has been in the business of mining for over 100 years. We have over 6,700 known abandoned mines and mill sites across our State, and we have worked hard to reclaim many of these areas. Yet, removing the funds from those small communities poses a threat. Governor Bullock, a Democrat, has also expressed his deep concerns about ending these payments and asked all of the Montana delegation, which there are three of us, to help safeguard this valuable program for the good of all Montanans and the great Crow Nation. This amendment is disguised as a solution. It doesn't offer a solution. The underlying idea of it is to kill the coal industry. We have seen time and time again excessive overreach, not based on scientific data, but based on an agenda; and the agenda is to kill coal. In Montana, we love coal. In Wyoming, our neighbor to the south, we understand that coal drives our economy. It helps fund our schools, our bridges, our roads, and our community. I stand by Montana and I stand by the great Crow Nation and urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on this amendment. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Chairman, I yield the balance of my time to the gentlewoman from Wyoming (Mrs. Lummis).

Mr. ZINKE. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that my name be removed as a cosponsor of H.R. 1301.

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Chairman, to clarify, this amendment does not violate treaty rights, and to suggest it does is disingenuous and false. This is about fairness. It is not about two tribes. It is about fairness of a process. It would be unprecedented for the Army Corps of Engineers to bypass the EIS to make a decision, and that is what this amendment does. It is not about coal. It is not about commodities, nor is it about treaty rights because, quite frankly, the Crow Tribe in Montana has treaty rights, too. This is not to pit one poor nation against a rich nation. It is about simple fairness. It would be unprecedented for the Army Corps of Engineers or any government body to give judgment before the process is complete, and that is what we are asking for. The EIS is the process that needs to be done.

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Speaker, this week we celebrate National Forest Products Week, and I rise to recognize the important contributions of our wood products across Montana and the country. In my home State alone, we have more than 20 million acres of timber. We have 12 sawmills that employ thousands of Montanans; yet, we can't cut a tree in Montana. The number of lumber products has gone down because we can't figure out in this body how to cut a tree without a lawsuit. There is a bipartisan bill in the Senate, the Resilient Federal Forests Act, that passed out of this body bipartisan, and the Senate is not picking it up. We are not going to hear about forest fires from now until the end of winter, but they are there, and it is time to act. When a bipartisan bill comes out of this House and the Senate refuses to pick it up, it has consequences on Montana, and it has consequences on hardworking families that just want to make a living in the timber industry.

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Speaker, today I rise in opposition to the President's veto and ask my colleagues to override it. I come before this body not only as a Representative of the great State of Montana, but also a former commander of SEAL Team Six and a former deputy- and acting commander of Naval Special Warfare's efforts in the Persian Gulf. The job of the Commander in Chief is bound by the Constitution to support the troops, to be the leader, and yet this President vetoes a bipartisan bill to defend our country. I talk not only as a former commander, but also a father. My daughter is a Navy diver, and my son-in-law is an Active-Duty Navy SEAL. My wife watched her daughter, her husband, and her son-in-law all deploy. I have seen the consequences of war. I am probably the last individual that would advocate for war. I have seen the consequences and the pain. But when we go to war, the Commander in Chief is obligated to make sure we go to war to win. He has to make sure that our troops have the right training, the right equipment, the right leadership to win decisively on the field of battle. Before this Commander in Chief sends them into harm's way, it is his obligation and duty to make sure that we know the conditions to bring them home. His actions today are a dereliction of his duty. It affects every soldier, sailor, airman, and marine in harm's way. A veto and the subsequent continuing resolution causes harm to our troops. I call it garrisoning, where our troops don't train, our fleet can't go in and receive the maintenance necessary. Above all, it gives a message to the troops that are in harm's way that their Commander in Chief does not have their back. This isn't a Republican or Democratic issue. This is an American issue, because it is America's sons and daughters that we put in harm's way. It is the obligation of a great nation to make sure when we do that we give them everything they need to come home safely.

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of lifting the ban on crude oil exports. It means jobs, 500,000 to 1 million jobs across the country and 2,400 jobs in Montana, with a revenue of at least $120 million. As a former Navy SEAL commander, I understand the importance of national security. I do not want this Nation to be reliant on foreign energy sources and be held hostage by foreign countries for our energy needs. It has been a longstanding policy of this country to be energy independent, and lifting the crude oil ban is part of that. Lowering gas prices: All estimates look at lowering the gas prices by 1.5 to 13 cents a gallon. That is real savings to every American family. I urge the Senate to take this up. This is not a partisan issue. This is not a Republican or a Democrat issue. This is a national security issue. So I ask the Senate to take it up. I am confident it will come out of the House in numbers that are bipartisan. Anyone who votes against releasing the ban--there is only one country on the face of the planet that has a ban on crude oil, and that is here. Even Iraq and Iran can export their crude.

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 538, the Native American Energy Act. Mr. Young, my esteemed colleague from Alaska, I commend him on his efforts over the years. This represents a significant step for tribes across the country, especially in my State of Montana. I have only been in the seat for a few months, and I can tell you that the Federal Government has infringed on the sovereignty of our tribes to develop their own natural resources. What is sovereignty? Sovereignty is not going through a labyrinth of rules that are far greater than other Federal lands or State lands. It is not right. It is not right for the Crow people. It is not right for every Indian nation across this land. The government has infringed. The GAO report examines it and states as much. The Crow tribe, a proud tribe in Montana, wants to be self- sufficient. They want to make sure that they have a prosperous economy and do right by their people; yet, the chairman, Old Coyote, has said a war on coal is a war on the Crow people. And he is right. There is no better job on the Crow reservation than a coal job. There is no better future than to have access to the 9 billion tons of coal that are locked in the ground that they can't develop and they can't develop in the interest of their own people because the Federal Government is in the way. This bill doesn't skirt environmental rules or laws. What it does is it streamlines a position, streamlines their sovereignty and their rights, and that is important. So, Mr. Speaker, my colleagues, this is not a Democrat or a Republican issue. This is an American issue, and it is about respect. I ask all Members to respect the native tribes, respect their right to sovereignty, respect their right for self-determination.

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Speaker, I would like to recognize a great American patriot, Mr. Jesse M. Baltazar, on the occasion of his 95th birthday. His service to America covers three wars, four federal agencies, postings in nine countries and government travel to over 80 nations. He is a true and tested member of the Greatest Generation. Major Jesse M. Baltazar, USAF (Ret.) was born in Manila, Philippines on October 8th, 1920, and began his military career with the United States Armed Forces, Far East (USAFFE). He is a veteran of WWII, Korea, and Vietnam; a Japanese Prisoner of War and Bataan Death March Survivor. During Maj. Baltazar's Purple Heart ceremony on January 20, 2015, former Chief-of-Staff of the Army Gen. Ray Odierno summarized Maj. Baltazar's career to this country as follows: I am moved by Maj. Baltazar's humility, his selflessness, and his service to our Nation . . . It's a story about a young man from the Philippines who fought to defend both his home and our Nation following the fateful attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941; a story about a man who understands the importance of unparalleled national commitment and the willingness to volunteer and serve; a story of honor and courage; and a story about an American Patriot, Soldier, Airman, and Diplomat. And Gen. Odierno went on to describe the bravery of Maj. Baltazar during the Battle of Bataan, which earned him the Purple Heart: On March 15, 1942, Sergeant Baltazar was hit by shrapnel in the leg when the Japanese bombed an area near his camp. With the American and Filipino forces now having been cut off since January 1942, supplies were dwindling and facilities were limited. So he underwent surgery in an open air jungle hospital with minimal anesthesia and little time to recover. As the battle raged on and our Soldiers valiantly fought to hold the line, 76,000 American and Filipino soldiers eventually were forced to put down their arms and surrender on April 9, 1942. When the Bataan Death March began, Sergeant Baltazar was forced to use a bamboo stick as a cane to help him walk. He suffered brutality and starvation at the hands of his Japanese captors in conditions that led to the spread of disease. Exhausted and fearing that he was going to die, he seized an opportunity to escape on the third night into the infamous 66 mile march. Hiding in a fisherman's boat for a two-hour ride through the thick swamp, Sergeant Baltazar found his way back home, where he proceeded to join the Filipino resistance movement--what an incredible example of the strength of the human spirit. After being discharged from the army in 1945, he went on to become the first Filipino-born Officer in the United States Air Force in 1948. He served for 20 years in the Air Force, primarily overseas as a Special Agent in the Office of Special Investigations (OSI), where he authored the monthly Counter-Intelligence report for Korea (1950-52), West Berlin (1956-58) and France (1958-60). During the Korean War, he was one of a handful of American officers posted to Korea that spoke both Russian and Chinese. During the Cold War, he was stationed in Berlin when the Berlin Wall was erected. After retiring from the military he worked for the United States Department of State, USAID and the Department of Labor. From 1966-70 with USAID, he served in Vietnam as Deputy Provincial Advisor. During the Sandinista conflict, he served as Regional Security Officer with the Voice of America for Nicaragua, Belize and Costa Rica. He retired from the State Department in 1988 and then returned as a contract employee. Maj. Baltazar continues to serve at the Department of State, where at 95, he is their eldest worker. Maj. Baltazar received his BS from Georgetown University in Linguistics and MA from the University of Virginia in Education. He speaks seven languages, including Russian, Chinese, German, French, Spanish, English and Tagalog. His military awards and decorations include: Bronze Star, Purple Heart, WWII Victory Medal, POW Medal, American Defense Service Medal, WWII Theater Campaign (Pacific), The Korean Service Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, UN Service Medal, Philippine Presidential Unit Citation, Korean Presidential Unit Citation. Maj. Baltazar is a devoted husband and father. He has been happily married to his wife Margrit for 55 years. They have five children, Katherine, Susanne, Thomas, Phillip and Melchior, and are blessed with nine grandchildren and one great-grandchild. Few choose to lead a life of service like Jesse M. Baltazar. He is a living inspiration to all of us of the character, honor, and commitment required to keep our nation free. It is a great honor today to recognize him on his 95th birthday, for his dedication and sacrifice to our great country.

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor October as Special Operations Appreciation Month. The significance of October dates back to the roots of the first Special Forces service, aka the Devil's Brigade. This unit, like others--Scouts and Raiders, Rangers, and Naval Demolition Units--is where modern Special Operations Forces draw their roots. We should also recognize the sacrifices of the families of these warriors. From my own experience, having served 23 years as a Navy SEAL and commander at SEAL Team 6, my wife, Lola, was oftentimes both mom and father. At one time during the war in Iraq, my wife, Lola, was at home with our two young boys while her husband, daughter, and son-in- law were all forward deployed. Special Operations Appreciation Month is just as much about the heroes at home as it is the heroes abroad. I ask you today to please join me in supporting and recognizing October as Special Operations Appreciation Month. May God bless America and the troops that defend her.

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. Madam Speaker, today I rise to pay tribute to a Billings resident, a World War II veteran, and a fabled member of the Army 10th Mountain Division K Company, Chuck Hauptman. Seventy years ago, the young lieutenant was crawling on his belly up Mount Belvedere under the cover of darkness. The K Company was charged with leading the allied assault on the Germans through the minefields-- set up along the steepest peak--and driving the Germans out of Italy. On one February night, they battled snow, darkness, vertical climbs, freezing temperatures, and booby traps, all while under the heavy machine gun fire of the Nazis. The K Company was in combat for 110 days against Nazi forces in the Italian Alps. During this time, Lieutenant Hauptman was shot and wounded in battle while assaulting a machine gun nest. Like many young men, he went back to battle. It is easy to forget the young men who were sent to the battle in World War II. We look at our veterans and the aging today of our World War II veterans. Remember, as our young men go to battle, that our Nation asks our youngest men and women to go to battle and fight for this country, and we should never forget the sacrifice. When we go to war, we send our Nation's best. I am proud to recognize Chuck Hauptman as one of our Nation's best. He represents the best of Montana, the best of our country, and the best of our youth.

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. I thank the gentleman. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support to remind my colleagues in the Senate that the Western United States is on fire. We don't have time for inaction and more political pandering. The House has passed the Resilient Federal Forests Act, which includes vital reforms that can be implemented tomorrow if our colleagues in the Senate take the bill up. So why don't we do what is right for America? Why don't we come together and move the bill? This wildfire season has been one of the worst in the last 10 years, and it has had enormous cost. Despite the cooler conditions in Montana, we have 35 fires that are continuing to burn, a total of 334,000 acres gone. That is equivalent to 522 miles, square miles. Two-thirds of this acreage belongs to the public, our national forests. And it is not just the physical damage. We lost four firefighters in Washington, four that paid the sacrifice fighting forest fires, and we have to remember that. I was at a fire in Glacier National Park. It was a reburn from a fire that occurred in 2003. The reburn happened to occur because of a threat of a lawsuit which prevented the Forest Service from doing the right thing. What they wanted to do was salvage timber. But because there was standing timber, ground crews couldn't get at it. And when ground crews couldn't get it, that means they had to fly aircraft at $3,000 an hour to put out the fire. That is wrong. It is wrong for Montana, and it is wrong for America. I know the firsthand value of our natural resources. I am a conservationist. But I also know the value of tourism in Montana. I also know the value of clean air. And when the smoke in Montana--which people travel all the way from across this country and the world to go to--is worse than Beijing, it has an impact. It also has an impact on the elderly, the asthmatic. It is unhealthy. Worst of all, it is preventable. The problem is real. Not only does the Forest Service lack the resources to adequately fight fires, it has a land management problem at the source. Former Chief of the Forest Service, Dale Bosworth, his quote before the hearing was: ``We do not have a fire problem . . . we have a land management problem.'' This isn't from a political member. This is from a scientist. And yes, we need more scientists in the woods and less lawyers. That is why I am proud of what we did in the House on H.R. 2647. We passed it back in July because we saw this problem coming, and so we crafted a solution. That is what we are all sent here to do. We were sent here for solutions, to look at the challenges ahead and make a difference. So this bill addresses both the fire borrowing problem and the practices that have created the crisis that we now, unfortunately, have to bear. It does address lawsuits that are frivolous. The number one expense in the Forest Service is fighting forest fires, Number two is litigation, and if they have any money left, then that is what they use for management. Why are we spending, this fire season, over $600 million in August alone? Don't we all agree that $600 million can be better utilized by preventing forest fires, by restoring habitat, by providing better public access, better recreational activities and opportunities on our public lands? Unfortunately, we have lost this fire season, and still it burns. Unfortunately, the Senate won't take up the bill. My fellow Montanan Senator Steve Daines has been a loud and vocal advocate of this bill. He understands, and I am asking his colleagues to stand and do the right thing: Take the bill up. If you don't like a provision in the bill, then show leadership and put an amendment on it and we will work together to fix it. That is what leadership does. But to sit there and not take up the bill and have no action is unacceptable.

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Speaker, this is not a Democrat or a Republican issue. This is an American issue. We are talking about Iran and injecting billions of dollars into Iran. The Marine barracks were Iran. At least 500 troops, whom I served with in Iraq, died as a result of Iran. Iran is not our friend. They are our enemy, at least this regime. You cannot say that Hezbollah or Hamas, as surrogates of Iran, would not do the same on 9/11 as what occurred today in 2001. Let's look at this deal. General Dempsey, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said under no circumstances should we give missile technology to Iran; yet, in 5 years, we relax the sanctions for conventional weapons to include missile systems, to include the same missile systems that Iran has given to Hamas directly--at least 1,000 of them--and as many as 10,000 into Israel from Gaza. In 8 years, we will relax the sanctions on ICBMs. There is only one purpose for an ICBM, and that is to strike America. In 10 years-- remember?--part of the deal is dismantle for dismantle. Dismantle the sanctions, and Iran was going to dismantle their nuclear facilities, their capabilities, and their ambitions. In 10 years, the centrifuges that are not dismantled come out. They are upgraded. Then, in 13 years, by experts, Iran will have the capability of having at least 100 nuclear-tipped ICBMs. How is that in the best interests of America? How is that in the best interests of our allies in the Middle East? How is that in the best interests of America and the world? It is not. The policy of the United States has been to reduce our stockpiles, to reduce the countries that hold these incredibly destructive weapons-- Ukraine and South Africa are examples--SALT I, SALT II, SALT III.

Mr. ZINKE. Lastly, how could anyone vote for a deal in which the full disclosure of documents is not delivered? No Member of this body has been privy to the secret deal between the International Atomic Energy Agency and Iran. No Member has read this. The verification is so incredibly critical; yet we are willing to cede our sovereignty--no American is on it--for a verification process that is 24 days, and even General Hayden said you can only monitor what you can see. This is a bad deal. The argument is to take this deal or go to war. I say that this deal promotes war, that it promotes nuclear proliferation. It is not in the best interests of the United States, and it puts us--Americans--and the world at risk.

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Speaker, the Iranian deal--I stand in the absolute, strongest possible opposition. What would make America think that Iran's having a nuclear capability in 13 years would be a good idea? What would make any American believe that, in 5 years, relaxing the sanctions on conventional arms--the same 10,000 missiles that struck Israel--and, in 8 years, relaxing the sanctions on ICBMs would be a good idea? There is only one purpose for an ICBM, and that is to attack every city in the United States. Lastly, because this deal does not dismantle anything, in 13 years, Iran could legally have a path for at least 100 ICBMs. Those are the facts in voting for this bill when there are secret deals that no Congressman has seen. No Congressman has looked at the deal. My job is truth. My job is to deliver truth to the American people, to deliver truth to Montana, and this deal is not truthful. We are rewarding Iran with $50 billion to $100 billion. Terrorism--the idea that we take this deal or go to war is patently false. Sanctions work. We need a dismantle for this mantle. I ask my colleagues to be Americans first and vote against this bill.

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of Montana jobs and to rally against this administration's war on American coal. In Montana, coal means good-paying jobs. Those are blue collar, union jobs. Coal means economic opportunity. Coal means affordable utilities for families and manufacturers, and coal means Montana. In the words of Crow Chairman Old Coyote: For the Crow people, there are no jobs that compare to the coal job. The wages and benefits exceed anything else that is available. A war on coal is a war on the Crow people. Montana could lead the Nation in coal production; but, unfortunately, President Obama and his EPA are waging a more aggressive war on coal than they are against ISIS. Montana alone, and our coal, produces $1.7 billion in royalty payments; and that pays for schools, bridges, and our infrastructure. The EPA's Clean Power Plan will kill Montana jobs. Those are real jobs, like in the Rosebud mine in Colstrip, and across our State. Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to support Montana and support our Nation's energy independence through coal.

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Speaker, today I rise to pay tribute to Marine Sergeant Carson Homquist, Marine Gunnery Sergeant and Purple Heart recipient Thomas Sullivan, Marine Lance Corporal Skip Wells, Marine Sergeant David Wyatt, and Navy Petty Officer Second Class Randall Smith. I also rise to assure their loved ones and the American people that Congress will act to prevent this tragic loss from occurring again. This week I am joining Congressman and former Marine Corps Major Duncan Hunter in introducing legislation to enhance security at our Armed Forces centers by allowing our military members to defend themselves from attacks. Congress and I send a clear message that this cowardly attack will not be ignored and our heroes shall not die in vain. I urge all Members to join me in flying the Marine Corps flag and the Navy Anchor flag outside their D.C. office this week. God bless America and the men and women who defend her. Semper fi and anchors aweigh.

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Chairman, as a fifth generation Montanan, I grew up in timber country. Our mills and train yards were in full swing, and visitors from around the world flocked to see Glacier Park. Revenues from the timber industry were reinvested in the community, and conservation efforts of the Forest Service helped our timber harvest. Building a strong tourist economy and a strong timber economy are not mutually exclusive. That is why I support--strongly support--the Resilient Federal Forests Act of 2015. It does what it should do. It encourages local organizations to work together on collaborative projects that revitalize the economy. But not only that, it revitalizes our forests. Think about it. As we debate this bill today, there are two wildfires in my home State of Montana, just a few miles from where I grew up. And as of today, more than 3.9 million acres across our Nation have burned in wildfires this year alone. That is larger than the entire State of Connecticut. We are on track for more than double, if conditions don't improve. Just last week, the Forest Service, whom I visited, said we are in the perfect storm. In the words of the former Chief of the Forest Service, Chief Bosworth, we don't have a fire problem as much as we have a land management problem. That is why this bill is so important. Last week, when traveling across my district, I toured the site of the Glacier Rim fire. This fire is burning the same ground that burned in 2003. I was told by people on the ground that the reason why this fire is burning is the Forest Service was not able to conduct a salvage operation for fear of lawsuits, among other reasons, and those lawsuits left standing timber which cannot be addressed by crews, which only can be addressed by helicopters, and that is a $1 million project. And habitat, it is a member, a part of the core grizzly habitat. It has not burned once; it has burned twice in 15 years. So we need more scientists in the woods and less lawyers, and I urge my colleagues to join me in a bipartisan effort to support this bill.

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Chairman, I stand in opposition to the amendment. We have to reward collaboration and working together. What this bill does not do is discourage NEPA. What it does do, though, is it brings people together to work together. That is what I was sent to Washington, D.C., to do; and that is what all of us were sent to do, is work together and move the ball up the field. It does not prevent anyone from filing a lawsuit. What it does do, however, on frivolous lawsuits--and the numbers are clear. Between 1989 and 2008, over 1,125 lawsuits were submitted. Almost in every case, those lawsuits ended up costing the Forest Service that we are so concerned about the money they are spending-- number one is forest fires; number two is litigation. We want the same thing. We want more scientists, less lawyers in the woods, and healthy forests once again to be part of our country; yet what happens is the collaborative effort--and we made the definition of collaborative very vague so everyone can participate, everybody--it does not prevent anyone from suing. What it does do is, if you are not going to be involved in the collaborative effort, if you are not going to spend the time and the resources, then you have to post a bond, and that bond only covers what the Forest Service would have to defend. We could have made it a lot aggressive, and we didn't. Mr. Chairman, I stand in opposition.

Mr. ZINKE

Mr. ZINKE. Mr. Chairman, as the sole Representative of the great State of Montana, I do represent, and am proud to represent, the Crows, the Northern Cheyenne, the Assiniboine Sioux, and our American Indian tribes and great nations and understand the value of having a prosperous economy. With that, Mr. Chairman, I would like the support of all Members.