Frank Pallone

We must act and our 100 by 50 plan is supported by scientific consensus.

Combatting climate change is a top priority of this committee.

Let me first thank the sponsor of this legislation, Mr. Cunningham, the gentleman from California (Mr. Lowenthal), and Mr. Grijalva for all of their work on this legislation. I want to say that I do think a permanent moratorium on oil and…

Significantly, in your written testimony you note that the data that goes into the FCC's broadband maps needs to be publicly available and I agree.

I hope we can build on the progress we have made to give consumers more insight into the quality of the service that broadband providers offer.

I think the committee should be very proud of the bills before us today.

Since Superstorm Sandy ravaged my district, I have been very focused on network resiliency.

Without good maps, we cannot correctly determine how we should target funding for broadband access and adoption in rural and urban areas.

It is not an exaggeration to say this FCC's terrible broadband data is its Achilles heel.

This year our committee is focused on improving telecommunications services for consumers.

In my opinion, this data must be available for researchers who can double check the FCC's analysis.

With limited Federal dollars to go around, we simply cannot afford to misidentify areas as served which are truly unserved.

I'm hopeful that this bill will build on the success our of previous partnership to deploy broadband to rural farm lands through the Precision Agriculture Connectivity Act.

You know, so CFATS, which is focused, I think appropriately, on the security of high-risk chemical facilities, you know, includes provisions to ensure that security systems are appropriately redundant.

At one facility, the Arkema plant in Crosby, the flooding disabled all the control measures in place to contain their dangerous chemicals because they all depended on backup generators below the water line.

Yes. Absolutely. And one thing I neglected to mention in my response is that we have very much prioritized outreach to local emergency planning committees.

And what about community groups and community members around the regulated facilities, does the Department engage them as well?

The CFATS program is different from other regulatory programs overseen by this subcommittee, and it is different because it is implemented by your department rather than the EPA and because it does not have the same public recognition as…

Despite the importance of the program and support on both sides of the aisle, the authorization came within ten days of expiring during Trump's government shutdown.

The communities most at risk are disproportionately low-income communities and communities of color.

High risk chemical facilities hold large stores of industrial chemicals that pose a safety and security risk to the American people.

We will never forget 9/11, and its longstanding impacts on families, first responders, and our nation as a whole.

It is critical that we get this done.

Fortunately, Ranking Member Walden and I were able to work with our colleagues on the Homeland Security Committee to extend the program through April of 2020.

I have been an advocate for increased safety and security at our Nation's chemical facilities for many years.