Alcee Hastings: “For the past year, the entire South Florida community has fallen victim to an ongoing drought. While larger, wealthier…”

“For the past year, the entire South Florida community has fallen victim to an ongoing drought. While larger, wealthier communities have been able to survive, smaller, poorer cities and towns have merely scraped by on savings that no longer exist. Without the immediate assistance of the Federal Government, these communities will find themselves facing extinction. Small towns located on the shores of Lake Okeechobee, that my good friend the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Foley) and I represent, such as the city of Pahokee, depend on a tourist industry that attracts thousands of recreational boaters, who travel inland from the coasts to enjoy the lake as well as the local restaurants and shops. In addition, the city's growing commercial fishing industry has come to a standstill. In fact, fishermen's boats are unable to even make it to the water which has evaporated so much that its nearest point of entry is 1 1/2 miles inland.”