On the recordMay 29, 2014
I rise in opposition to the amendment, but I do appreciate what the gentleman said. As we move on and we get to conference, there may be something we can do. I know Mr. Fattah feels the same way with regard to gang violence in the inner city. The underlining bill has already reduced NASA's construction budget by $69 million. Further reductions--which this would do--would negatively impact NASA's ability to meet mission critical construction needs for the human spaceflight program, address urgent safety-related repairs at centers around the country--which certainly need them--and discharge legal requirements to remediate environmental damage. Construction projects are, by definition, long lead items that must be started early in order to be ready. By cutting these funds now, we will create a programmatic ripple effect that will be felt in our high- priority space program for the years to come. So for these reasons--and where the money is taken from--I urge a ``no'' vote. With that, I yield back the balance of my time.
