George Miller: “Most of the titles of this legislation we are in agreement with, but we along with the administration, as they noted in…”

“Most of the titles of this legislation we are in agreement with, but we along with the administration, as they noted in their testimony, are concerned about the protections provided in the Hanford Reach provisions of this legislation. The concern being that we are accepting a much lesser degree of protection than we believe and the administration believes the Hanford Reach deserves, and are concerned whether or not this will eventually lead to the loss of vital natural and cultural resources. We recognize that there is disagreement on this, but we are concerned that this does not provide the level of protection that is necessary. Mr. Speaker, the amendments adopted by the Resources Committee wraps into H.R. 2292 several river bills pending before the committee. Several of the titles in the amended bill are either opposed by the administration or they otherwise have concerns with the language. This is not a noncontroversial bill. We would have preferred that the House take up these river bills separately. As the administration noted in its testimony, if not followed by subsequent actions, the Hanford Reach provisions of H.R. 2292 would result in a far lesser degree of protection than the Hanford Reach deserves and could result in the potential loss of vital natural and cultural resources.”