Political Quotes

“Mr. Chair, tonight, I rise to advocate for the passage of my amendment to the T-HUD bill, amendment No. 3, which would allocate an additional $10 million toward the DOT's Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements account, otherwise known as CRISI. The CRISI program is designed to provide financial support for project development and infrastructure upgrades, including station improvements, improving rail system reliability, and grade crossing projects, to ensure efficient and safe rail service. CRISI also assists with the creation and improvement of grade crossing projects, something of critical importance to my constituents and others across the country. Nowhere is rail safety more important than in New York's 17th Congressional District, where hundreds of thousands of my constituents live within 5 miles of a train track or train station. Earlier this year, we saw the impacts of rail safety concerns when a sweeping brush fire was ignited near the train tracks in Rockland County. Thankfully, due to the efforts of our heroic first responders, no one was injured or killed, but the fire came awfully close to doing serious damage and causing potential loss of life, which is why it is so critical to ensure that CRISI is funded appropriately. Earlier this year, I sent a letter with dozens of my colleagues calling for the full funding of this program, and this amendment helps toward that goal.…”