1:46:44 to 1:47:03( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: of the chair, 2/3's being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed, and without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose

1:46:55 to 1:47:14( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: of the chair, 2/3's being in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed, and without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose

1:47:14 to 1:47:28( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: does the gentlewoman from the district of columbia rise? for what purpose does the gentlewoman from tgehe district of columbia rise? ms. norton: thank you, madam speaker, i'm pleased to welcome

1:47:28 to 1:47:44( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: you to the chair. i move to the suspend the rules and pass bill h.r. 6109, the predisaster mitt gation act of 2008. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the

1:47:44 to 1:47:56( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: clerk: h.r. 6109, a bill to amend the robert t. stafford disaster mitigation act and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from the district of columbia,

1:47:56 to 1:48:11( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: ms. norton, and the gentlewoman from virginia, mrs. drake, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentlewoman from the district of columbia. ms. norton: thank you, madam speaker

1:48:11 to 1:48:28( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: sms -- madam speaker. i ask unanimous nsent that all member mace have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on h.r. 6109. the speaker pro

1:48:28 to 1:48:45( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: teore: without objection. ms. norton: thank you, madam speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. ms. norton: i rise and ask the

1:48:45 to 1:49:01( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: house to support h.r. 61099 as amended, the precaster mitigation act of 2008. i want to thank chairman oberstar and ranking member mica and my own subcommittee ranking member, congressman graves,

1:49:01 to 1:49:20( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: for their own bipartisan support of the essential bill. h.r. 6109, the predisaster mitigation act of 2008, re-authorizes the predisaster mitigation program for three years. the bill authorizes

1:49:20 to 1:49:36( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: grants to states awarded on a competitive c basis, except that each state, and this is important, each state receives a statutory minimum of $575,000 or 1% of the funds appropriated, whichever

1:49:36 to 1:49:56( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: is less. in this way, the bill increases the minimum amount that each state can receive under the program from half a billion dollars to $575,000. and codifies the competitive selection process

1:49:56 to 1:50:13( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: of the program as currently administered by fema. the bill authorizes $250 million for each of misfist call years 2009 through 2011 for the predisaster mitigation progra m. the p.d.m. program

1:50:13 to 1:50:32( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: was first authorized in the disaster mitigation act of 2000. the program administered by fema through its mitigation division is authorized under section 203 of the robert t. stafford disaster

1:50:32 to 1:50:53( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: relief and emergency assistance act, we call it the stafford act. pursuant to section 203m of the stafford act, the p.d.m. program terminates on september 30 of this year unless congress

1:50:53 to 1:51:12( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: re-authorizes the program. this program provides ap cost effective -- provides cost effective technical and financial assistance to state and local governments that we now know on the basis of

1:51:12 to 1:51:29( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: a study of the effects of this quite new program. we now know reduces injuries, loss of life and damage to property caused by natural disasters. it provides grants to the states, territories,

1:51:29 to 1:51:49( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: and tribal governments and local communities on a competitive basis. according to the c.b.o., on average, future losses are are reduced by about $3 measured in discounted present value

1:51:49 to 1:52:17( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: for each $1 spent on these projects, including both federal and nonfederal spending. madam chair, this is not a program which we have lightly authorized. we learned some lessons from

1:52:17 to 1:52:35( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: katrina, we have learned lessons, i believe, madam chair this week when entire sections of our country are being ravaged by flooding. this amount of money, we do not pretend, will allow predisaster

1:52:35 to 1:52:49( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: programs for every event that can be expected what it does do is draw to the attention of local and state governments what they and what we should be doing to reduce our own liability from these

1:52:49 to 1:53:09( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: particularly natural disasters. whenever a disaster of this kind occurs, madam speaker, this congress will do what it must do. it will step up and do what we're doing in louisiana. we do

1:53:09 to 1:53:28( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: not pretend that the worst disaster in recorded united states history could have somehow been even perhaps mitigated by these funds, but we do believe that katrina tells a story, that every

1:53:28 to 1:53:46( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: bit of mitigation you do, $3 for every $1 invested in c.b.o. saves, first of all, lives, then of course saves the invest thament we ourselves will be required to make as americans, we can say

1:53:46 to 1:53:58( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: will make, in the event of a disaster. we all owe it to the country and to our local jurisdictions to use this money strategically and wisely so that it has the greatest effect given the amount

1:53:58 to 1:54:21( Edit History Discussion )

Eleanor Holmes Norton: available. i reserve the balance of my time, madam speaker. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman reserves the balance of her time. the gentlewoman from california the gentlewoman from

1:54:21 to 1:54:33( Edit History Discussion )

Thelma D. Drake: virginia is recognized. >> i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. mrs. drake: the predisaster mitigation program was originally