Statement of Senator Lincoln D. Chafee
Hearing on
the Community Character Act of 2001 (S. 975)
March 6,
2002
Good morning. Thank
you, Mr. Chairman, for conducting today’s hearing on the Community Character
Act of 2001. I introduced this
legislation on May 25, 2001 and was joined by Senators Bennett, Specter,
Jeffords, Cleland, Levin, Bingaman, and Lieberman. The bill provides federal assistance to States and Indian tribes
to create or update statewide or tribal land use planning legislation. Up-to-date
planning legislation empowers States and local governments to spur economic
development, protect the environment, coordinate transportation and
infrastructure needs, and preserve our communities.
America has grown from East to West, as well as from an urban
setting to suburban one. The nation's
sweeping growth can be attributed to many things, including a strong economy
and transportation and technology advancements that allow people to live
greater distances from work. Due in
part to inadequate planning, strip malls and retail development catering to the
automobile have become the trademark of the American landscape.
In the wake of the post-World War II building boom, my
hometown of Warwick, Rhode Island had experienced the type of development that
too often offends the eye and saps our economic strength. Due to a lack of planning, incremental and
haphazard development occurred through a mixture of incompatible zoning
decisions. Industrial and commercial
facilities and residential homes were frequently and inappropriately sited next
to each other. The local newspaper
described the city as a "suburban nightmare". However, we learned that proper approaches
to planning would help every state meet its challenges, whether it is preserving
limited open space in the East or protecting precious drinking water supplies
in the West.
The Community Character Act will benefit each community and
neighborhood by authorizing the Economic Development Administration to provide
$25 million per year to States and tribes for the purpose of planning. The bill recognizes that land use planning
is appropriately vested at the state and local levels, and accords States and
tribes flexibility in using their grants.
The bill does not prescribe any particular approach to land use
planning, because each community must decide for itself what is
appropriate.
Mistakes made through haphazard development are very costly
and not easily erased. Once started
down that path, communities may feel like they can never get their head above
water. I view this legislation as an
opportunity for the federal government to play a limited, but helpful
role. In the past, the federal
government has been more of a culprit than a partner. Through enactment of numerous and often-times incompatible laws
regarding transportation, housing, environment, energy, and economic
development, the federal government has created a demand for state and local
planning. The Community Character Act
should be viewed as providing the federal payment for an unfunded mandate whose
account is overdue.
The Senators who have sponsored this bill represent
geographically diverse states, from Rhode Island to New Mexico and from Georgia
to Utah. This bipartisan bill
represents a small investment in our communities, but one that will yield large
dividends to communities in each corner of the nation.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.