00:00Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I rise today in strong opposition to this bill.
00:04At a time when families in northern Illinois and across the country are already struggling with high costs,
00:10House Republicans are pushing a bill that would raise utility bills, gut environmental protections,
00:17and cripple the agencies that keep our water clean and our air safe to breathe.
00:22This bill will shift the burden of environmental protection to state and local governments,
00:26forcing them to choose between raising taxes or cutting water inspections.
00:31It will make utility bills more expensive by reducing access to affordable, clean power
00:38in order to line the pockets of fossil fuel executives.
00:42It prioritizes the corporations that pollute our communities over the needs of hardworking families.
00:48House Republicans have written a bill that benefits their corporate donors,
00:52but will make our air and water dirtier, our families sicker, and our wallets lighter.
01:00They're defunding critical environmental protection agency programs
01:04and rolling back life-saving regulations that allow scientific experts to monitor and reduce pollution,
01:12control methane emissions, and enforce landmark public health laws like the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act.
01:19These protections are literally a matter of life and death for children, seniors, and millions of Americans.
01:26And by the way, they were originally enacted with strong bipartisan support in Congress.
01:33In the decades since then, we have made tremendous progress cleaning our air and water,
01:38but this bill would undo much of that work with a stroke of the pen.
01:42In my district, the EPA is now only beginning a long-awaited cleanup of radium-contaminated soil
01:49at the Superfund site in Ottawa, Illinois.
01:52This critical project has been delayed by years of underfunding
01:56that have left my constituents exposed to dangerous radioactive materials for decades.
02:03When Congress underfunds programs like this, that is not fiscal responsibility.
02:10It's passing the buck and leaving our constituents to pay the price.
02:15And it's not just my constituents.
02:17Farmers in California's Central Valley are struggling with a historic drought.
02:22While in Iowa, they are battling severe storms and floods.
02:26In Arizona, many tribal nations lack basic water infrastructure due to chronic underinvestment.
02:34This bill tells these communities that their health and their future don't matter.
02:40This bill also slashes funding for our national parks
02:43and accelerates the exploitation of protected areas for short-term corporate gain.
02:49It even removes key protections under the Endangered Species Act,
02:54another popular and effective law that passed with overwhelming bipartisan support.
03:00It appears that Donald Trump and House Republicans are only interested in protecting predators like Jeffrey Epstein
03:09instead of bald eagles or grizzly bears.
03:12In addition to trashing our planet, this bill also slashes support for the arts and cultural institutions,
03:21eliminating vital grants that support education and historic preservation in communities across the country.
03:28These programs are economic drivers and job creators in our communities,
03:32and these cuts will have a real impact.
03:35We are witnessing a coordinated effort to dismantle the foundations of environmental stewardship,
03:41cultural preservation, and economic fairness.
03:45And for what?
03:46To protect corporate profits.
03:48To give polluters a free pass.
03:50To exploit and endanger communities that have fought for decades for clean water and clean air and basic dignity.
03:58This bill does not save taxpayers money.
04:01It sells them out.
04:03And I urge my colleagues to reject this reckless and dangerous bill.
04:07I yield back.
