On the recordFebruary 10, 2016
I thank Mr. Tonko for his comments and his support and leadership on this issue. And I would like him to please extend my thanks to Ranking Member Pallone for his effort and his support. I know he is dealing with a difficult time himself right now, and we extend our best wishes to him. I want to thank all of my Michigan colleagues for joining as original cosponsors of this legislation; and I particularly thank Chairman Upton for his help, his guidance, his assistance and, really, collaboration on getting a piece of legislation put together that we think is very helpful in preventing another situation such as what has occurred in my hometown from ever happening again in the United States. I again thank Mr. Upton for his assistance and leadership on this. Flint is my home. The people I represent are the people I grew up with in Flint, Michigan. It is a great community. It has been through some struggles, for sure, in the last few decades, but we have never dealt with anything quite like this, something so fundamental as safe drinking water that we take for granted. You turn on the faucet, as Mr. Upton said, you expect the water that comes out of that faucet to be safe for yourself, for your children, to make formula, to cook food, to drink. And because of a series of decisions that really are almost incomprehensible in their impact, people in Flint, Michigan, can't drink their water; 100,000 people can't drink the water.…





