Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise in support of S. 1934, introduced by Senator John Barrasso. It directs the Administrator of the General Services Administration to transfer the Clifford P. Hansen Federal Courthouse and the land underneath to Teton County, Wyoming. The GSA has indicated to the committee that the agency has no need for the facility. This directed sale supports the GSA's efforts to downsize and dispose of underutilized properties. However, this bill breaks with precedent. Although the local municipality is required to pay for the fair market value of the building, the bill directs the land underneath the building to be sold for a nominal value. Typically, the building and the land underneath would all be valued at a fair market value when being sold. The committee has consistently upheld the bipartisan principle that taxpayers are entitled to the full value of their assets in any sale. Nevertheless, the committee is supporting this unusual transaction because the underlying land was originally donated to the GSA by the local municipality, which is why I am supporting selling the land back to them for a nominal value. The bill provides taxpayers with further protections, Mr. Speaker. The legislation requires that the future use of this property be restricted to public purposes.…”