Political Quotes

“today I support H.R. 701, the Conservation and Reinvestment Act (CARA) introduced by House Resources Chairman Don Young and Ranking Member George Miller. This legislation has been referred as ``the most comprehensive conservation and recreation legislation the Congress has considered in decades and provides permanent funding for valuable conservation and recreational opportunities that will benefit the lives of all Americans.'' The legislation establishes a permanent, automatic funding mechanism that channels the revenues from off-shore oil drilling royalties to numerous federal and state land and resources conservation programs. Also, the bill establishes a new fund--the Conservation and Reinvestment Act Fund or ``CARA Fund''--within the Department of Treasury to be used for various conservation, resource protection, and recreation programs. The cornerstone of funding for the legislation is derived from the royalties received from outer-continental shelf (OCS) drilling in conjunction with establishing a new fund to help coastal states mitigate the various impacts of offshore drilling and other OCS activities, which will generate revenues of $1 billion annually.”