September 2008 Archives

WASHINGTON - U.S. Representative Ed Whitfield (KY-01) secured $350,738 today from the U.S. Department of Justice for the Pennyrile Narcotics Task Force in Hopkinsville. The funds will be used to enhance the Task Force's efforts to curb methamphetamine use throughout the First Congressional District.

"While methamphetamine use has slowly been declining throughout the United States, it still remains a very real threat to our children, our families and our communities in Kentucky," Whitfield said. "For 20 years, the Pennyrile Narcotics Task Force has been on the front lines combating this epidemic in our area and I am proud to support them in any way I can."

The grant will help the Task Force improve and continue their Methamphetamine Hot Spots Program to combat the sale and production of methamphetamines throughout the First Congressional District. The Task Force is providing educational programs on the dangers and effects of methamphetamine to law enforcement, schools, civic organizations and churches.

Training is also provided by the Task Force to law enforcement in the First Congressional District to enhance their skills in the investigation of persons manufacturing and selling methamphetamines. The Task Force will continue to assist counties and cities as they form Drug Endangered Children Coalitions to serve and protect young people living in methamphetamine homes.

"With the drastic cuts in drug task force funding around Kentucky this year, Congressman Whitfield's federal meth initiative has kept the doors open for drug task forces' fight against meth in the First Congressional District," said Director of the Pennyrile Narcotics Task Force Cheyenne Albro.

Whitfield has long been an advocate for the Task Force, working to secure the funds announced today as well as $350,000 for the organization in 2005. Over the past eight years, Whitfield has secured more than $5 million to help local law enforcement agencies throughout the First Congressional District combat the methamphetamine epidemic.

WASHINGTON - U.S. Representative Ed Whitfield (KY-01) released the following statement today after voting against the Financial Markets Stabilization package.

"Today, I reluctantly decided to oppose the Financial Markets Stabilization package proposed by President Bush and Secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulson for the following reasons:

1. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) in its most recent quarterly report indicates that there were 8,451 banks in America and 98.4% are well capitalized. In other words, only 1.6% of our nation's banks have a financial problem.

2. The legislation grants unprecedented authority to the Secretary of the Treasury. For example, he may buy securities at prices he deems appropriate. Having financial institutions sell the loans to the government at inflated prices so the government can turn around and sell the loans to well heeled investors at lower prices strikes me as good for everyone but U.S. taxpayers.

3. The executive compensation restrictions are too weak. Although the legislation bars golden parachutes for executives working for companies whose assets the Treasury purchases, there is not a limit on overall executive compensation. The only restriction is that a company may only deduct business taxes up to $500,000 of compensation paid to the executives.

4. The new bureaucracy created to oversee this buyout will be overly complex and still will not provide a mechanism to clarify the real values of the mortgage based securities that have caused the problem.

5. The cost of the program, $700 billion, would be the most expensive bailout in the history of our country. The federal debt in August was $9.6 trillion, 65% of GDP, and the government has committed to spend $54 trillion more than it would take to keep the budget deficit at the 2007 levels over the next 25 years. This bailout would weaken our government's financial status.

"Having listed my reasons for opposing this bill, I do believe, after lengthy discussions with banking leaders around the country, that President Bush and Secretary Paulson can take immediate and less costly steps to solve our current financial crisis.

1. We should approve a "net worth certificate" program similar to what Congress enacted in the 1980's to solve the savings and loan crisis. It was a success. The FDIC resolved a $100 billion insolvency problem for a total cost of less than $2 billion. The certificates from the FDIC were placed as assets on the balance sheet of the institutions so that they met federal guidelines.

2. We should temporarily suspend accounting rules that the Financial Accounting Standards Board and the SEC put into place 15 years ago. Those rules dictate that financial institutions holding financial instruments available for sale (such as mortgage-backed securities) must value those assets at market rates. This sounds unreasonable, but because of the collapse of a market for these securities, they must be listed at a severely depressed price that causes the institutions to be placed at risk of failure.

3. There should also be an additional infusion of funds from the Federal Reserve Board.

"These steps alone would stop the bleeding and give us time to solve this crisis in a more deliberate time frame. We do not need to make decisions of this magnitude with incomplete information and under duress.

"I hope Speaker Pelosi will call Congress back into session this week or next week to solve this problem. "

WASHINGTON - U.S. Representative Ed Whitfield (KY-01) today praised the outcome of a long fought battle to protect the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant (PGDP) from large Russian imports of low enriched uranium.

"The Paducah plant and all of western Kentucky scored a major victory today," Whitfield said. "The measure passed in the House will ensure that the Russians cannot flood the U.S. uranium market, which would make our country more dependent on foreign energy sources and diminish the value of our own uranium. The PGDP is too important to the economy of western Kentucky to let it be threatened by the dumping of Russian uranium and I am pleased to have been part of this successful fight for its survival."

Whitfield supported, and the House passed, H.R. 2638, the Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and Continuing Appropriations Act of 2009. This bill will fund the federal government through March of 2009. Included in the legislation is a measure initiated by Whitfield which limits the amount of Russian uranium that can be imported into the United States.

Whitfield introduced and championed legislation, H.R. 4929, that would protect the U.S. market from being flooded with foreign uranium. The measure would also prevent the U.S. from becoming dependent on foreign sources of uranium. The introduction of this legislation launched bipartisan negotiations in Congress, resulting in the measure passed today.

The legislation passed in the House will limit Russian imports into the U.S. market to 20% of U.S. domestic demand, the amount currently allowed to be imported as established by a 1992 agreement. The agreement is set to expire in 2013 and a recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit Court jeopardized ongoing negotiations to continue a similar compromise. The court ruled that the enriched uranium being imported from Russia was a "service," not a good, and therefore did not have to comply with the agreement. This would mean that Russia would be permitted to sell as much uranium into the U.S. market as they wanted. The provision passed today would ensure that Russia is limited to its current sales limits.

Whitfield praised the leadership of United Steelworkers Local 550, and its president Rob Ervin, who championed the legislation and whose work and persistence led to the passage of the legislation.

"It was a pleasure to work with Rob Ervin and the United Steelworkers to see this important measure enacted," Whitfield said. "Their unwavering support for the legislation and their counsel were invaluable to me and my staff and all of us should be grateful for their efforts."

WASHINGTON - U.S. Representative Ed Whitfield (KY-01) scored a big win for the First Congressional District today, securing critical funds for projects and organizations throughout the area. Whitfield also supported a measure in the same bill which will lift a long-standing ban on new off-shore drilling, increasing domestic fuel supplies and helping drive down costs at the pump.

"Federal funding for local projects is absolutely critical to maintaining and growing our communities in the First Congressional District," Whitfield said. "I am always pleased to do what I can to support these important initiatives."

Whitfield supported, and the House passed, H.R. 2638, the Consolidated Security, Disaster Assistance, and Continuing Appropriations Act of 2009. This bill will fund the federal government through March of 2009 and provide funding for defense, military and homeland security operations as well as various other spending measures. Included in the legislation were a number of important measures for the First Congressional District.

Whitfield successfully requested more than $17,000,000 for projects throughout his District including $10,000,000 for daycare services at Fort Campbell; $750,000 for the Crittenden County Emergency Operations Center; $630,000 for the Installation Chapel Center at Fort Campbell; and additional funding for the production of military equipment in Graham, Franklin and Greenville.

In addition, funds were provided for Kentucky Lock and Dam, Olmsted Lock and Dam, Wolf Creek Dam, the Delta Regional Authority, the Appalachian Regional Commission, and cleanup and medical monitoring at the Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plant, in order to continue these vital projects and programs.

Furthermore, the legislation passed today will lift a ban on new off-shore drilling in the United States and allow oil companies to seek federal approval to drill off our shores. The ban is set to expire on September 30, 2008 and the bill passed today will ensure that the moratorium is not extended. Whitfield, along with many of his colleagues, have been calling on House leaders for months to let the ban expire. The Congressman has long supported initiatives to open up certain coastal areas to environmentally responsible drilling, introducing and co-sponsoring legislation that would do just that.

"Folks in Kentucky have been telling me for months that it is time to open up certain coastal areas in our country for environmentally responsible drilling," Whitfield said. "I have carried their voices to Washington and been proud to support measures time and time again that would allow for this drilling. Today, Kentucky motorists scored a huge win and I am hopeful that the lifting of this moratorium will help increase domestic fuel supplies and drive down prices at the pump."

The bill will now be considered by the Senate and, upon approval, sent to the President to be signed into law.

WASHINGTON - U.S. Representative Ed Whitfield (KY-01) helped push legislation through the House of Representatives yesterday which will improve fire safety on college and university campuses across the country.

"Far too many of our nation's young people have been lost to senseless fire tragedies at places where they are supposed to be encouraged to grow and kept safe - their own college campuses," Whitfield said. "I was pleased to work with the late Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones (D-OH) on this important legislation which will save lives and make student housing in Kentucky, and across the country, safer."

Whitfield supported, and the House passed, H.R. 642, the Honorable Stephanie Tubbs Jones College Fire Prevention Act. Whitfield was the lead Republican sponsor of the legislation, which he helped draft with the late Representative Tubbs Jones. The Congresswoman died unexpectedly last month and the bill she authored with Whitfield was renamed in her honor.

The legislation will establish an incentive program within the Department of Energy to promote the installation of fire sprinkler systems, and other fire suppression or prevention technologies, in student housing and dormitories. Grants will be awarded on a competitive basis to colleges and universities, as well as eligible sororities and fraternities, to provide technologically advanced fire safety equipment in various student housing units.

Since January 2000, 94 people have been killed in sixty-six separate campus related fires. Nearly 80 percent of these fire fatalities have occurred in off-campus occupancies such as rented houses and apartments within three miles of the campus. Common factors in a number of these fires included lack of automatic sprinklers, disabled smoke alarms, careless disposal of smoking materials and alcohol consumption.

Whitfield is encouraging Kentucky students to take an active role in preventing fires in their dormitories and apartments by making sure they have a working smoke alarm, a fire escape ladder for upper floor apartments and a fire extinguisher in the kitchen. The Congressman notes that it is also important for students to have their furnace inspected every year and to ensure that their apartment building has a Carbon Monoxide detector.

As Kentuckians continue to face skyrocketing prices at the pump, they do not want a Democrat energy plan or a Republican energy plan. They want an American energy plan which provides comprehensive, common sense solutions to our nation's energy crunch. They want an energy plan that increases the production of American made energy, invests in alternative fuels for the future, makes our country less dependent on foreign oil and lowers fuel costs.

Unfortunately, that is not the plan the Majority party delivered to the American people. Instead their legislation ties America's natural resources in bureaucratic red tape and raises energy taxes on American consumers, manufacturers and small businesses by $19 billion. The bill contains no environmentally responsible exploration of the Arctic coastal plain in Alaska, no real oil shale exploration and no provisions to cut red-tape and get new refineries in the U.S. up and running.

What's worse is that the Majority Party claims this legislation will, at long last, deliver on the demands of the American people to allow environmentally responsible drilling off certain coastal areas when, in fact, it will not. While the bill does allow for minimal drilling off-shore, it does not allow coastal states to share in the revenue generated from energy exploration off their coasts, taking away a vital incentive for states to allow this off-shore drilling. The Majority Party in Congress is trying to convince the American people that they support new exploration, all the while knowing it will never actually happen.

In addition, this bill falls far short of advancing the use of coal, our nation's most abundant natural resource. Any "comprehensive" energy plan that does not include a large role for coal is no energy plan at all. The plan contains no development of advanced clean coal and coal-to-liquid technologies. Also, the bill does not repeal a provision in existing law which bars the government from purchasing abundant alternative fuels.

Kentuckians deserve better and I intend to continue my efforts to push for common sense energy solutions which will develop new sources of energy, utilize the resources we already have and help drive down costs. I have been proud to sponsor more than a dozen pieces of legislation this Congress that would do just that by opening up certain reserves within the United States for environmentally responsible drilling; encouraging the development of alternative fuels such as ethanol, and coal-to liquids; developing domestic oil shale resources; and encouraging the building of new domestic refineries. When it comes to energy, the people of Kentucky are tired of petty politics. They want solutions and they want them now.

WASHINGTON - The U.S. House of Representatives took further steps yesterday to improve access to quality healthcare and compensation rates for our nation's veterans. U.S. Representative Ed Whitfield (KY-01) supported these important measures and praised the passage of two different bills which will aid Kentucky's more than 350,000 veterans.

"Ensuring that veterans of the First Congressional District have access to world class healthcare and receive every benefit they have earned bravely serving our country has been, and continues to be, one of my top priorities in Congress," Whitfield said. "The bills passed yesterday will increase the compensation benefits paid to disabled veterans, their dependents and their survivors and set into motion a program to make healthcare services covered by the VA more accessible for veterans living in rural areas."

Whitfield supported, and the House passed, H.R. 1527, the Rural Veterans Access to Care Act and S. 2617, the Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living-Adjustment Act.

The Rural Veterans Access to Care Act allows veterans living in very rural areas who are enrolled in the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health system to receive covered health services through providers other than those of the VA. The bill would launch a three-year pilot program in selected regions giving veterans in remote areas the chance to access health benefits from local non-military providers. Upon review of the pilot programs' effectiveness, additional rural areas, such as western Kentucky, could be considered for the program.

"Representing rural Kentucky in Congress, I understand the challenges many of our areas veterans' face in finding convenient access to VA healthcare services," Whitfield said. "I am excited about the new pilot program authorized by Congress and hopeful that the First Congressional District will soon reap the benefits of this important initiative. Our nation's veterans, in big cities or rural America, have earned access to quality medical care close to their homes and I will continue to fight to make this a reality."

To ensure that the compensation received by the nation's veterans is in line with current costs of living, the Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living-Adjustment Act would increase the rates of veterans' disability compensation, the clothing allowance for certain disabled adult children and dependency and life insurance compensation for surviving spouses and children beginning December 1, 2008.

WASHINGTON - Continuing his efforts to keep U.S. borders secure and protect American citizens, U.S. Representative Ed Whitfield (KY-01) voted yesterday to prohibit the Department of Transportation (DOT) from allowing Mexican trucks into the United States.

"In order to keep our roads safe, cargo secure and borders controlled, it is absolutely essential that the U.S. government keep a watchful eye on the people and trucks coming across our borders," Whitfield said. "A program set into action that has been previously rejected by Congress - and the American people - falls far short of this and I am pleased to support this legislation so that we may consider policies which enhance trade without compromising border security or safety on our nations' roads."

Whitfield joined a bipartisan majority of his colleagues to vote in favor of H.R. 6630, a bill to prohibit the Secretary of Transportation from granting authority to motor carriers from Mexico to operate beyond United States municipalities and commercial zones on the United States-Mexico border unless authorized by Congress.

Last September, the DOT launched the Cross-Border Demonstration Program. This pilot program opened the southern border of the United States to several dozen Mexican trucks for deliveries and, in turn, some American trucks were also allowed to deliver directly into Mexico. Unfortunately it is difficult, if not impossible, to ensure that all Mexican trucks adhere to the same safety requirements as U.S. trucks, which raises concerns about the safety of having these vehicles on American roads. In addition, many critics of the program feared American trucking jobs would be lost to Mexican drivers and border security would be threatened.

With this concern in mind, Whitfield supported a provision in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 Omnibus spending bill that sought to halt this program and set up additional standards that must be met by DOT for Mexican trucks to come into the country. However, the DOT continued to operate the Cross-Border Demonstration Program, acting against the will of Congress. Whitfield supported passage of H.R. 6630 yesterday to prohibit DOT from continuing to operate this program and to halt the entry of Mexican trucks beyond previously permitted commercial zones.

Despite opposition in both the House and Senate, the Bush Administration had announced plans to continue this program beyond its scheduled one year term for an additional two years. The legislation Whitfield supported and the House passed would thwart these plans and allow the will of Congress, and the American people, to be upheld.