Political Quotes

“Mr. Chairman, I rise in qualified support of this amendment. The bill before us eliminates the firefighter hiring program, known as SAFER, and it reduces funding for grants to purchase fire equipment by 23 percent. If adopted, these cuts will result in over 2,400 firefighters being laid off in 2011 and prevent fire departments from purchasing equipment, breathing apparatus, and protective gear that our firefighters depend on during a time of emergency. This is simply not acceptable. During my tenure as chairman of the Homeland Security Appropriations Committee, we ensured that not only was funding providing for these critical firefighter programs, but that these dollars could be used flexibly in this time of economic stress to retain firefighters that might lose their jobs, to rehire firefighters that have been laid off due to economic conditions, as well as to hire new firefighters. Repeatedly, I hear from communities that were able to use funds for these purposes. For example, in Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, SAFER funding was used to hire and retain a total of 73 firefighters, ensuring that seven departments had salaried firefighters and that 12 parish fire stations could be manned 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.…”