Donna Shalala: “The Rules Committee met last night and reported House Resolution 656, providing for consideration of H.R. 823, the…”

“The Rules Committee met last night and reported House Resolution 656, providing for consideration of H.R. 823, the Colorado Outdoor Recreation and Economy Act; H.R. 1373, the Grand Canyon Centennial Protection Act; and H.R. 2181, the Chaco Cultural Heritage Protection Act, each under a structured rule. The rule provides each bill with 1 hour of general debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and the ranking member of the Committee on Natural Resources. The rule makes in order 13 amendments total: 10 Republican amendments and 3 Democratic amendments. The rule also provides each bill with a motion to recommit. Finally, the rule provides recess instructions from November 1 through November 11. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the bills in this rule: H.R. 823, H.R. 1373, and H.R. 2181. These important bills recognize the need to protect unique and irreplaceable American landscapes--public lands that belong to all of us, not to the highest bidder and not to any individual Representative or party. President Theodore Roosevelt once said: ``Of all the questions which can come before this Nation . . . there is none which compares in importance with the great central task of leaving this land even a better land for our descendants than it is for us.'' And that is what these three bills attempt to do. They represent the culmination of years of locally driven efforts. These bills protect some of our most iconic lands and resources. H.R.…”