We are counting on NOAA leadership to manage RESTORE Act programs and funds properly.

NOAA faces many challenges, including a tough fiscal environment, needed improvements in fisheries management, and the restoration of the Gulf of Mexico following the Deepwater Horizon disaster.

It is important for the Committee to review the nominations for NOAA leadership promptly in order for this Agency to be managed appropriately.

I appreciate your concern and your assurance. And we will certainly look to you and others for assistance in this regard.

I didn't expect to make this a China-specific hearing, but it seems like from my trip to PACOM back in 2011, all of our allies and friends and partners pretty much had China on their minds.

I wish the American people would wake up to that reality, and I think they may have us prioritize, or at least try to keep our leadership in space.

This is a very simple amendment that corrects what I believe was a simple oversight when exemptions were laid out for sequestration. In July of 2012, OMB offered an exemption for all military personnel accounts. I believe that decision was…

Reclaiming my time, I want to thank the Representative from Florida. He brought up a good point: it's not just our dual- purpose technicians, our MILTECHs making sure our equipment that our warfighters need is operating. And many times…

If the United States of America is no longer able to keep the shipping lanes open and free for commerce and passage, what kind of implications would that have on the U.S. economy?

I have an amendment at the desk. The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment. The text of the amendment is as follows: At the end of the bill (before the short title), insert the following: Sec. __. None of the funds made…

I have an amendment at the desk. The Acting CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment. The text of the amendment is as follows: At the end of the bill (before the short title), insert the following: Sec. 10002. None of the funds made…

My amendment is very simple. It prohibits the Air Force from making changes in fiscal year 2014 until 60 days after Congress hears from the Commission we established to report on the global structure of the Air Force. Over the last two…

I appreciate my colleague's remarks, but the Air Force has a very bad track record of doing this every few years. And what they're doing is they're spending millions upon millions of dollars. They're talking about cutting costs, but all…

if we are going to throw 20,000 more Border Patrol agents at the border, billions of dollars in more resources...

I keep hearing that personnel is a serious issue that Customs and Border Protection are, you know, recruiting and retaining and training Border Patrol agents.

As I have no further speakers and I am prepared to close, I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Speaker, I urge passage of H.R. 1542 today. Enactment of this measure will strengthen the partnership between the Department of Homeland…

Several years ago, this committee passed the legislation that became the DHS' Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) program.

I just wanted to make sure that it got in at the same time.