Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 1768, the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program Reauthorization Act of 2018. The bill before us is the same text of H.R. 6650, the bill I introduced in the House earlier this year to reauthorize a Federal program that improves America's earthquake preparedness, and which the Senate agreed to accept as the final agreement. With a little indulgence, I might then say that this would be the Rohrabacher- Feinstein Earthquake bill. That is the way it goes. For 40 years the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program, NEHRP, has supported efforts to assess and monitor earthquake hazards and risks across our Nation. Four Federal agencies coordinate their earthquake activities under this program: the U.S. Geological Survey, the National Science Foundation, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology. These agencies assess earthquake hazards, deliver notifications of seismic events, develop measures to reduce earthquake hazards, and conduct research to help reduce overall American vulnerability to earthquakes. The Congress last reviewed and reauthorized the program in 2004, and that law expired in 2009. Although Congress continues to appropriate funds for this important work, the legislation before us makes long overdue changes to modernize the program and make it more effective.…”