Paul Tonko: “I thank the gentleman from California for yielding. Mr. Speaker, the bill before us today is yet another exercise that…”

“I thank the gentleman from California for yielding. Mr. Speaker, the bill before us today is yet another exercise that explains why the public has such a low opinion of Congress. We have considered this package of bills before. The Senate will not take it up. The President and administration would not approve it. We are wasting valuable time on our last day in session before the lameduck period. This bill delivers more benefits to big fossil fuel and mining interests. It would allow them to extract fossil fuels and minerals from our coastlines and public lands with no serious consideration of public health, the environment, or of the many other business interests that rely on a clean, healthy environment to support their continued success. Our Nation has real challenges. We need faster, broader job growth in all regions of our country and in all sectors of our economy. We need a national energy policy that provides more energy security through efficiency and expanded use of renewable energy resources. We need an energy policy that recognizes and deals with the challenges of climate change. We need a thoughtful path forward that enables a transition to the energy sector of the future that brings workers and communities into this new model productively and profitably. We need to invest in our transportation and water infrastructure-- infrastructure that is in need of repair, in need of rebuilding, and in need of redesign--to meet our needs into the future.…”