Gary Hart: “I especially thank the chairman for his indulgence in allowing me some time on this legislation, and I am honored to be…”

“I especially thank the chairman for his indulgence in allowing me some time on this legislation, and I am honored to be part of the Financial Services Committee argument today for this House bill 280, the Brownfields Redevelopment Enhancement Act, because it will make a real difference for communities throughout this country. I was a Pennsylvania senator for 10 years; and while I was there, we passed a very forward-thinking brownfields bill that helped to provide more opportunity for development of brownfields without fear of liability. That is one step, and it was important for my State; however, on the Federal level, we have had a program in place, the BEDI program, which is a great program; but there are some impediments to many of our communities being able to utilize that program. I am a cosponsor of this legislation because it will provide access to funding that is vital to restoring brownfields sites. It is going to improve the BEDI program and make it more practical for America's small cities and communities so that they can thrive. My district is home to many of these communities that have small brownfields sites right in the middle of town. Revitalizing these sites is key to helping rebuild the economy of these small towns. The significance of this development was highlighted recently at the U.S. Conference of Mayors in June 2003 when they did their survey.…”