Chellie Pingree: “The gentleman's amendment would prohibit funds in the act from being used to lobby on the waters of the U.S. There is an…”

“The gentleman's amendment would prohibit funds in the act from being used to lobby on the waters of the U.S. There is an existing prohibition on lobbying that applies to all Federal employees that has been in place since 1919, so this is an unnecessary and redundant amendment. I would remind my colleagues that Federal employees are not prohibited from providing information to Congress on legislation, policies, or programs. There must be an open dialogue between the legislative and executive branches to ensure that laws are being implemented appropriately and programs achieve their intended goals. We should not and cannot operate in an information vacuum. We don't need to add extraneous, redundant provisions to a bill that is already overburdened with harmful legislative riders. I urge my colleagues to oppose the amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.”