Rodney Frelinghuysen: “Reclaiming my time, I want to also note this is the last Energy and Water bill that Mr. Dicks will be participating in.…”

“Reclaiming my time, I want to also note this is the last Energy and Water bill that Mr. Dicks will be participating in. And I say on behalf of our committee that we've always known that you're fully engaged in every subcommittee where you are so prominent, and we want to thank you for that. Let me say, too, that we're pleased we've built in our bill some common ground for energy policy across our Nation. Most importantly, as I said in my remarks, the national security segment: what we need to do to make sure that our nuclear stockpile is reliable, that we proceed with cleanups, things that we do relative to naval reactors and the next generation of nuclear ballistic submarines, and the comprehensive energy policy that's directed not only towards research into the future but trying to minimize rising gas prices, which have affected every American pocketbook. Lastly, we've done it with a lot less money. We're actually, in some cases, close to the 2008 level, somewhere between 2008 and 2009. And while some people may like to damn us, we've done our best to cut spending and reflect the real economy out there, the fact that people are paying too much in the way of taxes, we have too much debt and such a large deficit. We've done our part. I yield back the balance of my time. Announcement by the Acting Chair The Acting CHAIR.…”