IRS Investigation

Floor Speech

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Mr. REED. Mr. President, I rise to speak about the appropriations minibus that many of us were prepared to move forward on today. I am deeply disappointed that the Republican minority is effectively blocking another bill on this floor from moving forward for consideration and ultimately approval by the Congress.

It is disappointing because I know that the bipartisan work that was done in the committee was absolutely critical and extremely productive. The Appropriations Committee, which I have the privilege of serving on, presented us, this Senate, with three very excellent pieces of legislation. I am disappointed that we are not moving forward to pass them. It is also disappointing because this process gives us the opportunity to shape the spending priorities of the government, to focus on the needs of the American people, and to do so in a way that will be responsive to their needs and we hope improves their opportunities to grow this economy and participate in the economy.

Without appropriations bills, we run the risk of being stuck with a continuing resolution--funding just what we did the last year--perhaps a little less, perhaps a little more in some areas. But it deprives us of focusing on issues that are more sensitive and more critical at this moment to the American public.

Chairman Mikulski has done an excellent job leading the Appropriations Committee. As I said from the beginning, she was determined to make it a substantive, respectful, and bipartisan process. The results are reflected in the unanimous or near unanimous committee votes on the bills that are coming to this floor in this minibus, as we call it. So I thank her, obviously, for her leadership.

I also want to thank my colleagues on the relevant subcommittees, Senator Murray, in the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Subcommittee; Senator Pryor, the chair of the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Subcommittee. Together they have prepared balanced bills that invest in our people, our infrastructure, and in science.

The transportation-HUD bill includes $550 million for the important TIGER Discretionary Grant Program, which is shared by the entire country but has been particularly critical to Rhode Island in helping us improve our commercial ports and in jump-starting major road projects, including the replacement of a major bridge, the Providence Viaduct on route 95.

Indeed, it is one of the potential choke points on route 95 that will not only affect Rhode Island, but it will affect Massachusetts, the home of the Presiding Officer. It will affect Connecticut. It will bottle up traffic if we don't continue to fix it, improve it, and make it traffic ready for another several decades.

The bill also maintains robust support for the Airport Improvement Program. One of the things we are very pleased about is the T.F. Green Airport. We are investing about $100 million in safety improvements, a runway extension, and an expansion. I thank Chairman Murray for including this funding in the bill, this general category funding which has been very helpful to the Rhode Island Airport Corporation as it has applied for these grants.

I was particularly delighted last month because Chairwoman Mikulski joined me at T.F. Green Airport to look at the improvements, to talk about the issues, and to get a firsthand sense of how her efforts and Senator Murray's efforts are translating into real projects throughout the United States.

The bill also includes more than $3 billion for the Community Development Block Grant Program, again an important program critical to all communities in Rhode Island. It provides more than $2 billion for homeless assistance grants. There is no portion of the country today that is not facing a very real problem with homeless Americans who need help, assistance, and support.

There is $75 million for the Family Self-Sufficiency Program, which again helps people who are struggling not only to find a place to live but also to deal with all of the issues of getting by in a very difficult economy.

All of these programs are extremely worthwhile. They serve the Nation--not in one particular area or in one particular State--and they contribute to our productivity--not just for the moment but looking ahead.

We can take, for example, the Commerce-Justice-Science bill with the strong support for NOAA, including funding for fisheries, aquaculture, Sea Grant, ocean exploration, and ocean education--again, initiatives that affect my home State of Rhode Island, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the State of Florida, the State of North Carolina, every coastal area, the gulf coast, et cetera, all critical to our country, to our productivity, to our commerce, and to the livelihood of so many Americans

We are looking also at investments in the National Science Foundation, fully funding, for example, the request for the EPSCoR Program at nearly $160 million. This is absolutely critical for many reasons, particularly to make that connection between academic institutions and business enterprises and also to economic development.

The bill also supports, with respect to our criminal justice system, $376 million for Byrne justice assistance grants and $181 million for COPS hiring grants--actually putting police officers on the street, increasing our ability to deal with crime and making our communities more livable. This is absolutely critical.

We look at the Agriculture appropriations bill--and I thank Senator Pryor--because, today, agriculture includes aquaculture, the commercial growing, if you will, of shellfish and other seafood products.

Again, in my State--but not just in my State, in other parts of the country--it is a growing and commercially thriving enterprise which deserves support. In fact, because of federal investments, we have been able to initiate in Rhode Island aquaculture projects that have taken on their own lives and own momentum and are extremely productive.

I am disappointed we are here today only talking about these appropriations bills instead of actually moving forward and passing them.

Another topic that is very frustrating is the fact that this body passed on a bipartisan basis an extension of unemployment insurance, fully paid for, fiscally responsible--a bipartisan bill that went through all of the rigorous steps that required 60 votes to get cloture, and a majority of votes to get final passage. We didn't cut any corners. That is what we had to do, and we did it.

Unfortunately, it has languished in the House of Representatives so now the extension, which as we passed the bill would have been looking backward and forward several months--now it has been totally eclipsed. So we are back working.

I have reached out, and fortunately Senator Dean Heller of Nevada has been an extraordinarily thoughtful and crucial leader, along with other colleagues on the other side of the aisle and colleagues on this side of the aisle. So we are beginning again, but I have to express my frustration.

Over 3 million Americans now are without benefits that they would have received had we been able to extend unemployment compensation benefits which were terminated December 28 of last year. These are modest benefits, about $300 a week, but for people who are looking desperately for work, it could mean the difference between staying in their homes or being forced out, repairing their car, having a telephone if they need it--which we all need to communicate to look for jobs.

So we have to start again. Not only is this the right issue for individual Americans--millions of them--but it is the right issue for our economy.

Economists who look at the unemployment problem will tell us--and in fact they did--if we would have extended the program last December for a full year, this economy would gain 200,000 jobs. We are in no position to turn down 200,000 jobs. In Rhode Island, that is particularly the case. It would have added to our GDP growth, some estimates as high as 0.2 percent, again helping to grow the economy.

I hope we can rejoin this effort and move forward.

I yield the floor.

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