Sheila Jackson Lee: “This bill would boost pay and benefits for firefighters, help the U.S. Forest Service fill gaps in fire management…”

“This bill would boost pay and benefits for firefighters, help the U.S. Forest Service fill gaps in fire management staff, expand forest management projects, and reduce hazardous fuels. I ask my colleagues to support the underlying bill. Madam Chair, I rise in support of H.R. 5118, also known as the Wildfire Response and Drought Resiliency Act. Climate change is the most important existential challenge of our lifetime. It is not simply an issue, but a threat with credible and uncompromising dangers to our world. Climate change degrades living conditions, human security, and our government's ability to meet the basic needs of their populations. For too many years, we have heard warnings from scientists regarding the danger to people if nothing is done to reverse the amounts of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere. One of the most devastating consequences of climate change is the frequency and intensity of extreme weather disasters. Houston is no stranger to these intense weather incidents. On August 25, 2017, Hurricane Harvey, a Category 4 storm hit Texas, causing $125 billion in damages and affecting over 13 million people from Texas through Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Kentucky. Climatologists agree that global warming contributed to Hurricane Harvey's impact. Studies found the amount of rainfall was between 15 to 38 percent higher because of global warming.…”