Political Quotes

“I first want to echo Chairman Hunter in stating my strong support for H.R. 1987, the Coast Guard Authorization Act of 2015, legislation that will tend to the needs of our Nation's fifth military service, the United States Coast Guard. I also want to express my sincere appreciation to Chairman Hunter for his genuine bipartisan collaboration throughout the development of this important legislation. Not only will this bill improve our oversight of the Coast Guard, it also will enhance the capabilities and performance of this indispensable, multi-mission maritime agency. I also want to thank the Chairman of the Transportation Committee, Bill Shuster, and the Ranking Democrat Member, Peter DeFazio, and acknowledge them for their thoughtful contributions. I am particularly pleased that this legislation will provide stability in budget authority for the Coast Guard. Erratic budgets and perpetual continuing resolutions have had a deleterious impact on the Coast Guard. Perhaps most notable, unpredictable and insufficient funding has hampered the Coast Guard's ability to keep pace with its long-term program to recapitalize its offshore fleets of surface and air assets. Some of the Coast Guard's legacy cutters are fifty years old. These vessels are well beyond their estimated service life and have become increasingly unreliable and much more expensive to maintain and repair. We can, and we should, do better by our Coast Guard.…”