Raúl Grijalva: “Before I speak to my amendment, I want to acknowledge the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Napolitano) for her input on…”

“Before I speak to my amendment, I want to acknowledge the gentlewoman from California (Mrs. Napolitano) for her input on this amendment and for her long advocacy for water reuse, recycling, and conservation, and for emphasizing that we need a near- term water-creation strategy, along with a long-term sustainable strategy. H.R. 2898 is not that long-term sustainable strategy. Californians and others across the west need drought relief now. The proponents of this legislation know that it will not provide that immediate relief. They also know their bill will never become law. So why are we here today, wasting everybody's time? It is simply because House Republicans are not going to miss an opportunity to attack the Endangered Species Act and the National Environmental Policy Act. The allegation that environmental laws have restricted dam construction is patently false. In fact, it was President Reagan who first sought to help curb the deficit by turning off the tap of easy Federal money that had funded multi-billion-dollar boondoggles and pork barrel dam projects. Building new dams takes forever because it doesn't make economic sense without heavy government subsidies. Instead of flushing taxpayers' dollars, we should be investing in projects that recycle wastewater, create reuse, and provide immediate water supplies.…”