James Oberstar: “this is a reality check amendment. If you voted for welfare reform, then look in the mirror and say, did I really mean…”

“this is a reality check amendment. If you voted for welfare reform, then look in the mirror and say, did I really mean it? Was I serious about that? If you were, then you really ought to be serious about providing the means for people to get from where they are to where the jobs are. We made a start on it in this legislation with a pilot program of $42 million. I think it is well-crafted, I think it is a good initiative, but it is woefully inadequate in dollars to do the job that needs to be done. A study of 43 large metropolitan areas found that communities with the longest job commute times had the highest rates of unemployment. In Cleveland, inner-city residents can reach only about 8 to 15 percent of entry level jobs in a reasonable time with current public transportation. There are many other similar examples. Mr. Chairman, I want to emphasize, this is a general fund authorization. It does not require offsets. It is under the caps for the budget hawks. The Committee on Appropriations will decide among the many priorities that they have to contend with which of the funds will go to this program and which to other programs. It will not come out of contract authority dollars. It is reasonable and fair. It is far less than the Senate is providing in their version of this legislation.”