Elizabeth Furse: “I rise today in strong support of S. 1789. Mr. Rahall, chairman of the Surface Transportation Subcommittee, deserves our…”

“I rise today in strong support of S. 1789. Mr. Rahall, chairman of the Surface Transportation Subcommittee, deserves our credit for helping to move so expeditiously on this legislation. S. 1789 will allow States expanded use of Federal funds to retrofit their bridges. This is important legislation. Retrofitting bridges is an investment which saves literally billions of dollars in the long-term. In Oregon, according to our State transportation agency, we have 2,000 bridges which need to be retrofitted to withstand a seismic disturbance. If an earthquake were to knock out one or two key bridges across the Columbia or Willamette Rivers in my district, economic trade and commerce from Canada to Mexico would be seriously affected--in many cases suspended completely. The economy of the entire West Coast of the North American Continent would suffer. The legislation before us today helps us address the potential for large-scale economic upheaval by utilizing foresight and allowing States to pursue state-wide bridge retrofitting plans. It will save money and lives, and deserves our support.”