Political Quotes

“I thank the gentlewoman for yielding. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong opposition to the proposed rescission package, the so-called Spending Cuts to Expired and Unnecessary Programs Act. I do not think these are unnecessary programs. They are vital programs, and our rural communities all across America rely upon them. For example, the administration is proposing a rescission of $37 million to the Rural Development Water and Waste Disposal Loan and Grant Program at USDA. This program provides funding for clean and reliable drinking water systems, sanitary sewage disposal, sanitary solid waste disposal, and stormwater drainage to households and businesses in rural areas. With all due respect, that does not seem unnecessary to me. In fact, we in Congress provided a special appropriation of $500 million for this program in fiscal year 2017, in addition to regular program funds, to begin to address the backlog in this program. Even after the 2017 bill was enacted, the National Rural Water Association estimated there was a remaining backlog of more than $2 billion. This rescission will only push us back down the hill in our efforts to address the needs for clean water and wastewater disposal in rural areas.…”