Extensions of Remarks E55 EXTENSIONS of REMARKS
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January 13, 2015 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — Extensions of Remarks E55 EXTENSIONS OF REMARKS ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE 2014 CON- participation in this year’s program should di- catastrophic oil spill. Tar sands oil produces GRESS-BUNDESTAG/BUNDESRAT rect them to submit a resume and cover letter up to 40 percent more carbon pollution than EXCHANGE in which they state their qualifications, the conventional oil on a life-cycle basis and is contributions they can make to a successful much harder to clean up in the event of a spill. HON. JOHN A. BOEHNER program and some assurances of their ability In Michigan, a 2010 tar sands oil spill in the OF OHIO to participate during the time stated. Kalamazoo River took over four years to clean IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Applications should be sent to the Office of up at a cost of over $1.2 billion. Despite claims from its backers, Keystone Tuesday, January 13, 2015 Interparliamentary Affairs, HC–4, the Capitol, by 5 p.m. on Friday, February 27, 2015. XL will not improve U.S. energy security or re- Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Speaker, since 1983, f duce our dependence on oil from the Middle the U.S. Congress and the German Bundes- East. A study commissioned by the Depart- tag and Bundesrat have conducted an annual KEYSTONE XL PIPELINE ACT ment of Energy found that U.S. oil imports exchange program for staff members from from Canada will grow at ‘‘almost identical’’ both countries. The program gives profes- SPEECH OF rates with or without Keystone XL. The State sional staff the opportunity to observe and HON. ANNA G. ESHOO Department’s review of the Keystone XL pro- learn about each other’s political institutions OF CALIFORNIA posal estimated that a majority of the oil that and interact on issues of mutual interest. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES travels through the pipeline will be exported A staff delegation from the U.S. Congress overseas. In fact, contrary to the company’s will be selected to visit Germany for ten days Friday, January 9, 2015 claims in promotional materials, TransCanada from Friday, June 26–Sunday, July 5, 2015. Ms. ESHOO. Mr. Speaker, today the House has refused to guarantee that any of the oil During this ten day exchange, the delegation will vote for the tenth time to bypass a process will remain in the U.S. In 2011, I participated will attend meetings with Bundestag/Bundesrat established by law and instead, move to ap- in an Energy and Commerce Committee hear- Members, Bundestag and Bundesrat party prove an oil pipeline that will harm the climate, ing where TransCanada’s President of Energy staff members, and representatives of numer- do nothing to enhance our energy security, and Oil pipelines, Alex Pourbaix, acknowl- ous political, business, academic, and media and create 35 permanent jobs. In the process, edged under questioning that his company agencies. the legislation before us disregards the Endan- was not willing to guarantee in law or in ship- A comparable delegation of German staff gered Species Act, the National Environmental ping contracts that oil from Keystone XL will members will visit the United States for ten Policy Act, and the more than 2.5 million remain in the U.S. market. Several attempts to days Saturday, May 9–Sunday, May 17, 2015. Americans who submitted comments to the insert language ensuring that a portion of the They will attend similar meetings here in State Department on the Keystone XL pipeline oil remains in the U.S. have been rejected by Washington. The U.S. delegation is expected proposal. the House Republican leadership. to organize and facilitate these meetings. Keystone XL is a proposed 2,000-mile pipe- Supporters of Keystone XL have widely The Congress-Bundestag/Bundesrat Ex- touted the job-creation benefits of this pipeline, change is highly regarded in Germany and the line to carry up to 830,000 barrels per day of tar sands oil from Alberta, Canada to the Gulf but in reality this project will provide less than United States, and is one of several exchange three dozen permanent jobs. The projections programs sponsored by public and private in- Coast. Because the pipeline crosses the U.S.- Canadian border, existing law requires that a in the State Department’s environmental im- stitutions in the United States and Germany to pact statement, made in consultation with foster better understanding of the politics and Presidential Permit be obtained to ensure that the project is in the interest of the United TransCanada, reveal that up to 42,100 direct policies of both countries. This exchange is and indirect temporary jobs will be supported funded by the U.S. Department of State’s Bu- States. TransCanada, the Canadian company planning to build the pipeline, was initially de- during construction of the pipeline. I do not di- reau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. minish this factor. However, when construction The U.S. delegation should consist of expe- nied a Presidential Permit in early 2012. The is completed in less than two years, Keystone rienced and accomplished Hill staff who can company then split the project into two sec- XL is expected to support only 35 permanent contribute to the success of the exchange on tions and reapplied for a Presidential Permit for the 1,200-mile section of pipeline from Al- jobs. both sides of the Atlantic. The Bundestag re- Rather than investing in renewable energy ciprocates by sending senior staff profes- berta to Steele City, Nebraska. This section has undergone an environmental review proc- technologies and infrastructure updates that sionals to the United States. would benefit millions of Americans, the Applicants should have a demonstrable in- ess and the State Department is currently re- House has chosen as its first order of busi- terest in events in Europe. Applicants need viewing the public comments to determine if ness in the 114th Congress to provide a spe- not be working in the field of foreign affairs, al- the project is in the national interest. This bill cial deal to a Canadian company, without any though such a background can be helpful. The ends that review and deems the project imme- guarantee that a single drop of the oil will re- composite U.S. delegation should exhibit a diately approved. main in the United States. For this reason and range of expertise in issues of mutual concern As a member of the Energy and Commerce the others I’ve stated, I urge my colleagues to to the United States and Germany such as, Committee, I have participated in the hearings oppose this legislation and any further at- but not limited to, trade, security, the environ- on this issue since 2011, and it is clear to me tempts to short-circuit the Keystone XL review ment, economic development, health care, that Keystone XL is not in the nation’s interest. process. and other social policy issues. This year’s del- It will provide an export route for one of the egation should be familiar with transatlantic re- dirtiest fuels on earth, putting the U.S. at risk f lations within the context of recent world of a spill and unleashing billions of tons of fu- TRIBUTE TO RAY MONCRIEF events. ture greenhouse gas emissions. Beyond the In addition, U.S. participants are expected to environmental impacts, TransCanada has ac- knowledged that this project will create very HON. HAROLD ROGERS plan and implement the program for the Bun- OF KENTUCKY few permanent U.S. jobs and that most of the destag/Bundesrat staff members when they IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES visit the United States. oil will be exported overseas rather than re- Participants are selected by a committee maining in the U.S. market. In my view, this is Tuesday, January 13, 2015 composed of personnel from the Bureau of a bad deal for the American people and Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky. Mr. Speaker, I Educational and Cultural Affairs of the Depart- should not be given a special legislative ex- rise today to pay tribute to one of the most as- ment of State and past participants of the ex- emption in the form of this bill. tute business leaders and job creators in change. Construction of Keystone XL is also incom- southern and eastern Kentucky, Ray Moncrief, Members of the House and Senate who patible with our long-term climate goals and upon his retirement from the Kentucky High- would like a member of their staff to apply for would put millions of Americans at risk of a lands Investment Corporation. ∑ This ‘‘bullet’’ symbol identifies statements or insertions which are not spoken by a Member of the Senate on the floor. Matter set in this typeface indicates words inserted or appended, rather than spoken, by a Member of the House on the floor. VerDate Sep 11 2014 07:27 Jan 14, 2015 Jkt 049060 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 0626 Sfmt 9920 E:\CR\FM\A13JA8.001 E13JAPT1 smartinez on DSK4TPTVN1PROD with REMARKS E56 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — Extensions of Remarks January 13, 2015 For generations, southern and eastern Ken- public has been misled by the pipeline’s advo- our American fabric, and I am honored to rec- tucky has relied upon the coal mining industry cates, who have played down the pipeline’s ognize their vital role in shaping communities for good paying jobs; however, primarily in the potentially devastating effects on our nation’s throughout our great Nation. last decade, we have witnessed a debilitating environment and on the American people. Since the first Koreans arrived on the decline in our Appalachian coalfields.