Political Quotes

“I rise to engage my distinguished colleague from Oklahoma in a colloquy regarding steel grid reinforced concrete decking. First, I would like to congratulate my colleague on the successful completion of conference negotiations on this important legislation, and thank him for all he has done to assist me and my constituents through this bill. It is my understanding that steel grid reinforced concrete decking has significant technological benefits and the ability to accomplish the goals of bridge and highway officials across the Nation. Among the many benefits of this technology are long service life, rapid and/or staged installation, and reduced maintenance costs and closures. Unfortunately, this type of bridge deck system is underused because of the larger initial costs incurred. It was my great hope that the benefits of this technology would be noted in the conference report of SAFETEA-LU. While it was my understanding that efforts were made by the distinguished chairman to incorporate language regarding this technology into this important piece of legislation, the issue of steel grid reinforced concrete decking was not directly addressed in the conference report. Accordingly, I would like to ask the, chairman whether he agrees with me on the many benefits of steel grid reinforced concrete decking.”