Nancy L. Johnson: “Mr. Chairman, I do not intend to take my full 5 minutes either. But this is a very, very important issue to coastal…”

“Mr. Chairman, I do not intend to take my full 5 minutes either. But this is a very, very important issue to coastal States. I do not believe this amendment does any damage to the underlying bill. I think it is, in fact, perfectly compatible with the underlying bill. My colleague from California says we do not want more bureaucracy, we are trying to stop bureaucracy, we are trying to create local control. That is exactly what this amendment does. Now, California takes up almost the entire coast of the Western United States. They only have a couple of neighbors to worry about. Little States in New England have lots of other States to worry about, and so New England with its number of little States along the coast, needs a regional plan, needs Federal conformity. And this amendment preserves the underlying coastal zone management law, but reverts to the States the kind of flexibility, the kind of relief from Federal bureaucracy and Federal control that we all know makes for a more cost effective and solid response, that combines the environmental interest of the State with the economic interest of a State.”