Chris Smith: “The two-tiered amendment disaster relief bill that we had hoped to bring to the floor to get us to the $60 billion that…”

“The two-tiered amendment disaster relief bill that we had hoped to bring to the floor to get us to the $60 billion that is desperately needed to assist families, businesses, and municipalities devastated by Superstorm Sandy. Our appeal--and it's a bipartisan appeal--is that there is still time to bring this vital legislation to the floor for a vote back to the Senate and then down to the President for signature. Numerous towns in my district, Mr. Speaker, as well as well as our friends in New York and further north, are still coping with and recovering from the most destructive storm ever in our region--and perhaps the second or third most costly in all of American history. Today, families lack housing. Businesses are in shambles, and municipalities have been decimated. In New Jersey, some 346,000 housing units were damaged or destroyed, with 22,000 units rendered absolutely uninhabitable. {time} 1130 An estimated 11,000 housing choice vouchers will be needed to ensure that residents at least have a roof over their heads this winter. Approximately 100,000 new storm-related unemployment claims have been filed in New Jersey, 100,000, attributable to the storm. Over 235,000 people in New Jersey have already registered with FEMA for individual assistance.…”