I am pleased to have worked with Senator Reid to find a balance between development and conservation that will create jobs in Lyon County and beyond.

There's been a lot of hard work from the bill sponsors and others to get these bills where they are today.

S. 312 is an important bill for my community.

I authored this legislation initially to answer the desperate need in Lyon County for economic development and activity.

The validity of the underlying purpose of the bill has been confirmed through many iterations of the legislative process.

S. 256 corrects that anomaly, providing the same interest in submerged lands around the Northern Mariana Islands.

Thank you, Senator. Absolutely.

I do think that climate change is a world phenomenon, not just in the United States.

I understand that many of these bills have considerable support and are non-controversial while others are more complicated.

However the last 2 years the Forest Service has worked diligently with USDA, the Department of the Interior, Sealaska, the Alaska Delegation, members of staff of the committee and others, in particular, Senator Murkowski and her staff, to…

That will be duly noted.

We know droughts can affect the reliability of the energy sector.

I am very grateful that your Senate Energy and Natural Resources subcommittee is holding a hearing on this important piece of legislation for New Mexico on April 25, 2013.

It is one of those things that I think all of us can take for granted until it's taken away from us.

the power sector is responsible for only 3 percent of national water consumption

Thank you, Chairman.

So when we go about our rebalancing, then are we very specifically trying to counter those buildups?

What area, just in general, of buildup is of greatest concern to the United States? Is it their naval buildup?