Hal Rogers: “I thank the gentleman for yielding. I rise in support of this bill. This is the sixth bill that we've considered on the…”

“I thank the gentleman for yielding. I rise in support of this bill. This is the sixth bill that we've considered on the House floor, which means the House is nearly halfway done with its appropriations bills for fiscal year 2013. The Appropriations Committee has considered 11 of the 12 annual bills so far this year, in record time. I'm proud of our quick and thorough progress, and also that we have been able to work in regular order, which has been the goal of this committee from the git-go last January. The other commitment this committee made at the beginning of the Congress was to reduce discretionary spending wherever we can. In the past two fiscal years, we've cut spending by more than $95 billion and are on our way to continue reductions for a third year in a row. I've said it before, Mr. Chairman, but this is a historic accomplishment--a record for spending reductions that this Nation has not seen since at least World War II. The fiscal year 2013 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations bill continues this downward trajectory, cutting $4 billion from last year's level, bringing us to the lowest level of spending for this bill since 2009. The $15.6 billion included in this bill funds Department of Transportation agencies like the FAA, the Federal Railroad Administration, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, as well as critical Housing and Urban Development programs.…”