Bill Nelson

Well, as I said in the opening comments, if a terrorist comes in and with a satchel charge blows up a major electrical grid, sewer plant, water plant, that is obviously a terrorist attack.

With regard to ballast water, some states have standards that are much more stringent than others.

We cannot afford to ignore science when it comes to both the protection of our waters and the protection of our maritime industry.

First, I want to congratulate my fellow Floridian, Senator Marco Rubio, on his Chairmanship of the Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries, and Coast Guard subcommittee.

Madam Chairman, may I take a point of personal privilege to congratulate you and to congratulate Senator McCaskill and to tell you that the participation and the interest of the members is quite significant. Thank you for your leadership.

I was thrilled that you decided to stay on the Committee and continue to share your insights and expertise with us.

One of the lessons of Pearl Harbor was that you do not put all your eggs in one basket. You disperse your assets.

Our current campaign is dependent on the capabilities of the Iraqi Security Forces to deal with ISIL.

The State prison systems ought to get on the ball and sign this memorandum of understanding.

Almost $5 billion a year is going out as a result of criminals using somebody else's Social Security number.

This legislation incentivizes whistleblowers to report violations and provides necessary protections.

We're appreciative to the Committee and, certainly, your sponsorship or co-sponsorship and Senator Thune and Senator Blunt's sponsorship of the extension that you introduced in the last session.

Rail is essential to the movement of goods and people in America.

Senator Nelson is very much aware of, a three-part development strategy that focused on capital improvement projects and infrastructure investments.

The extension will be used for the following. The next handful of years, say 3 years or so, will be the continued deployment in the infrastructure side.

It's all about connectivity. It's all about the ability to reach markets faster and safer.

Rail is already one of the safest ways of moving people and goods, but there are challenges.

And just like your state is so dependent upon railroads, so are so many of our states.

I thank Chairman Thune for calling this hearing and all of the witnesses for being here today.

Positive Train Control will even make this industry even safer.

No port, I believe, can be successful without on-dock rail.

This is a successful project because it was a public-private partnership.

U.S. Department of Transportation estimates that the tonnage of freight moving by rail is going to increase by 88 percent through 2035.

My state of Florida actually developed a railroad. It was Henry Flagler that brought his railroad south.

The Army has already undertaken significant cost cutting efforts and reduced personnel and equipment requirements during the first 2 years of sequestration.