Issue Position: A Proven Conservative
Issue Position
During his relatively short tenure in Congress, Dr. Gosar has been extremely effective at delivering on the priorities of the people of Arizona without compromising his conservative principles. To date, Paul has passed nine bills and 20 other legislative initiatives into public law. His 73 amendments that have passed through the House have cut or prevented more than $1.6 billion in wasteful government spending.
Dr. Gosar was the most effective member of the 113th Congress, passing more bills, amendments and legislative initiatives than any other federal legislator in either body of the Legislative Branch. Specifically, Paul passed six bills and 12 other legislative initiatives into law and passed 25 amendments through the House.
Dr. Gosar's Intermountain West Corridor Development Act of 2015, H.R. 1612, was signed into law in December 2015 after being included in H.R. 22, the major transportation bill passed by Congress in the 114th Congress. Paul's bill will allow I-11 to become the main transportation corridor, creating jobs and providing a major boost to Arizona's economy in the process. The November 2014 Corridor Concept Report stated that I-11 and the Intermountain West Corridor will generate $22 billion for our economy and create at least 240,000 permanent jobs.
Dr. Gosar's Southeast Arizona Land Exchange and Conservation Act was signed into law and facilitates a land exchange that will allow for the development of the largest copper mine in North America. The bill will create approximately 4,000 new jobs, generate $60 billion for Arizona's economy and provide 25% of the United States' copper supply. This important jobs legislation is also a conservation bill as it allows for the exchange of recreational and conservation areas that are greatly desired.
Dr. Gosar's Grand Canyon Tourism Jobs Protection Act was included in H.R.4348 and signed into public law. Tourism at the Grand Canyon helps sustain more than 300,000 jobs and the air tour industry alone supports more than 1,200 good-paying jobs in Arizona and Nevada. Paul's bill has helped create jobs and increase tourism as the FAA announced in 2014 that 1,721 additional Grand Canyon flights utilizing quiet technology will occur per year as a result of this legislation.
In November 2013, the the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) over-inflated the costs of repairing a broken water supply line by millions of dollars so it could arbitrarily terminate the rainbow trout stocking program at the Willow Beach National Fish Hatchery. This misguided bureaucratic decision threatened 1,700 jobs and nearly $75 million in associated economic output in Mohave County alone. In response, Dr. Gosar introduced the Fish Hatchery Protection Act, H.R. 5026, which he successfully passed through the House Natural Resources Committee. This bill and his berating of the Service's Deputy Director resulted in a pledge to restart the rainbow trout program and the Service has committed to completing repairs by July 14, 2016.
Dr. Gosar's Catastrophic Wildfire Prevention Act was included in H.R. 2642 and signed into law. Failure to utilize a forward-thinking, active management strategy that combats dangerous wildfires before they get started has resulted in the five largest fires in Arizona's history occurring between 2002 and 2011. This important bill authorized stewardship contracting, good neighbor authority and other proactive management programs in order to allow for more wildfire prevention projects to move forward in a more timely manner.
In November 2011, Dr. Gosar's bill, H.R. 489, was signed into law. This commonsense legislation cut red tape and allowed the Salt River Project (SRP) to maintain the C.C. Cragin Dam and Reservoir Project and provide essential water to Gila County and the City of Phoenix.
Dr. Gosar has also had significant victories in the fight against government overreach. He spearheaded a successful effort to prevent arbitrary new boating restrictions on Lake Havasu that threatened $200 million in tourism spending and nearly 4,000 full-time equivalent jobs. Paul led a successful effort that stopped the Bureau of Land Management from closing its Arizona field office and moving all those employees to New Mexico. Dr. Gosar has introduced legislation and passed two amendments through the House to block Obama's regulation that aims to takeover the local zoning process and allow Washington bureaucrats to dictate where we live.
When the IRS targeted conservative groups, Dr. Gosar passed an amendment that cut the agency's budget by $350 million. When the ICE Detention facility in Florence was considering releasing an illegal immigrant with drug resistant tuberculosis into the Pinal County Community, Dr. Gosar led the effort to prevent this occurrence. When the Secret Service broke the law and leaked private information about OGR Chairman Jason Chaffetz, Paul led a bipartisan effort that resulted in 42 employees being fired or suspended.
After an Inspector General report revealed that more than 5,000 transactions and more $1 million had been squandered, Dr. Gosar passed an amendment into public law that prohibited Government Travel Charge Cards from being used at strip clubs and for gambling. After it was revealed that veterans were being forwarded to voicemail and not receiving an adequate response when contacting a suicide hotline, Dr. Gosar passed a bipartisan provision through the House that will ensure veterans receive an immediate response from a trained professional when calling the Veterans Crisis Line.
Dr. Gosar has secured countless victories for the State of Arizona and the American people. Paul passed an amendment that successfully prevented President Obama's proposed $500 million raid of the Highway Trust Fund, preserving important federal funding for roads and bridges. Dr. Gosar has successfully passed amendments and inserted appropriations riders to defund Sanctuary Cities and block Obama's executive amnesty policies. Paul successfully passed an amendment that prevented $440 million from going to terrorist organizations, including ISIS. Dr. Gosar has introduced legislation and inserted funding riders to block the EPA's new Waters of the United States (WOTUS), Clean Power Plan, and Ozone rules.
Dr. Gosar passed the Grand Canyon Bison Management Act through the House as part of H.R. 2406, allowing for the responsible management of more than 800 invasive "beefalo" that have invaded the Grand Canyon and are trampling the park. Paul spearheaded a successful increase for the SCAAP program into public law, reimbursing states and local governments for the costs of incarcerating illegal immigrants in the process.
In order to facilitate trade and benefit communities like Yuma, Dr. Gosar has continued to press the Department of Homeland Security to provide adequate staffing at Arizona ports and for our state to receive its fair share of 2,000 new Customs and Border Protection officers. To address increasing burro populations that are threatening public safety in Bullhead City, Lake Havasu City, Yuma, Oatman and other parts of Arizona, Dr. Gosar worked with the Appropriations Committee to direct the BLM "to work cooperatively with States and other partners to control wild horse and burro herds."
Dr. Gosar will continue to delver on the priorities of his constituents and on the important issues that matter to the people of Arizona.
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