You know it's interesting in that recent article that Columbia professors disagreed with the Princeton professors as the cost and what the technology would be which makes me get to the final question, Mr. Chairman, is that what do think…

I think what your investment community is looking for and what your capital markets are looking for in the form of certainty is the appreciation that the return on their investment will mature with time and gain value.

So in my view I think it provides adequate coverage.

I know they used $1.1 million of DERA funding and did a $2.3 million project in Pinedale, WY.

This bill does provide steps that an applicant must demonstrate to receive the long term indemnification.

I think the real question is after those ten projects is there sufficient capacity for greater commercial application?

I want to thank them for traveling all the way from Cheyenne, WY.

Isn't that what we are trying to do: save money, help people, do it more efficiently, more effectively? That is why I am proud to cosponsor with my friend, Senator Hatch, the State Flexibility Act.

I ask unanimous consent to engage in a colloquy with my colleague, Senator Hatch of Utah for up to 20 minutes. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. ____________________

I ask my colleague this: We are from neighboring States, Wyoming and Utah. I ask if the Senator could perhaps explain exactly how these Medicaid maintenance of effort mandates--and I believe they are onerous Washington mandates--directly…

I come to the Senate floor as a physician who practiced medicine in Caspar, WY, for about a quarter of a century, and I will talk about the concerns I have about the President's health care law, part of which has taken over $500 billion…

I appreciate the comments of my colleague. I have taken care of Medicaid patients over the years, and I know this is a program that is burdensome. I also served in the State legislature, and I know the mandates coming out of Washington…

I thank Senator Hatch. Madam President, I will tell you, I still believe this is a law that is bad for patients, it is bad for health care providers of this country, the nurses and doctors who take care of them, bad for taxpayers. I will…

I appreciate the kindness and I appreciate the fact that Senator Hatch is allowing me to work with him. He has a long and illustrious career of leadership in the Senate, and he has been a champion over the years of the fact that States are…

I thank Senator Portman for the incredible job he has been doing as a champion of efforts to create more private sector jobs in this country, to make it easier and cheaper to create private sector jobs, for the private sector to create the…

I'd like to see the BIA and the irrigation department and the BIA realty department collaborate to help us with our land and water issues.

Let the record reflect that they do.

Do you believe the Wind River Irrigation Project can meet the Wind River demands with out additional capital?

Thank you. And as you say, we want to get whole different viewpoints so I appreciate you expressing your thoughts and concerns here.

I think it's helpful for you to describe where the salaries go and water on the ground and people and different places.

one of the most ominous findings in the 2006 report was that the BIA had no long-term plan to address the deferred maintenance issue.

I would recommend to you to try to get to that and move that up in the priority list of things that need to be done, because it's troubling when you read an assessment.

Do you think that Crowheart model components apply to other units?

I know there's concerns among the water users in this room about how the BIA spends operation and maintenance fees.

Words like slowly and working down the list, that's not something that the folks here--people in Wyoming kind of like when they see a problem, they fix it, and move onto the next thing.