House Proceeding 10-26-09 on Oct 26th, 2009 :: 0:08:50 to 0:18:45
Total video length: 39 minutes Stream Tools: Stream Overview | Edit Time

Note: MetaVid video transcripts may contain inaccuracies, help us build a more perfect archive

Views:13 Duration: 0:09:55 Discussion

Previous speech:

Next speech:

0:08:46 to 0:09:06( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: representatives. and we'll do the best we can on the 72 hours. but we have to keep the government running. we have a responsibility to do that. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from id recognized. mr. simpson: mr. speaker, i

0:08:50 to 0:18:45( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: Tom Latham

0:09:07 to 0:09:27( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: yield sufficient time as he may consume to the gentleman from iowa, mr. latham. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. latham: i thank the gentleman from idaho and i thank the speaker for the recognition. mr. speake the senate included a one-sentence provision in the 2008 omnibus spending bill requiring the e.p.a. to develop

0:09:28 to 0:09:50( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: and publish a rule that mandates the reporting of greenhouse gas emissions for all sectors of the u.s. economy. now, one sentence reads, and i quote, of the funds provided in these environmental programs and management accounts, not less than $3.5 million shall be provided for activities it to

0:09:51 to 0:10:11( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: develop and publish a draft rule not later than nine months after the date of enactment of this act and a final ruleot later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this act, to require mandatory reporting of greenhouse gas emissions above sectors of the economy of the

0:10:12 to 0:10:33( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: united states. mr. speaker, this one sentence, and i'll say again later, never had a hearing. it was snuck in in this bill. that one sentence resulted in

0:10:34 to 0:10:56( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: 1,302 patients, -- pages, 42 volumes of regulations and i hold here the 1,300 pages. the preambitionble of this regulation is 500 pages long. this is what this is. another 500 pages.

0:10:57 to 0:11:18( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: so we've got 1,800 pages and the regulatory impact analysis of more than 200 pages. mr. speaker, here's another 200 pages. so in total, this one sentence that was snuckn this bill has resulted in over 2,000 pages of new regulations for our country. at a time that we're in a

0:11:19 to 0:11:39( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: recession and people are hurting out there and this is the cost of more government. the proposed rule generated about 17,000 comments and according to the e.p.a. this rule will cost employers $115 milln for the first year and

0:11:40 to 0:12:00( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: estimates about $70 million each year after that, just to comply with the new 2,000 pages here. mr. speaker, as a former small business owner and farmer, i would suggest these numbers are exceedingly low. and there's no estimate as to how much has already been spent

0:12:01 to 0:12:23( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: by businesses trying to figure out whether or not they've fallen to the regulation and if going to follow these new rules. congress tucked a sentence into the appropri without holding a single hearing. let me re-emphasize. not a single hearing goes into

0:12:24 to 0:12:45( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: these 2, that are now being put on top of our economy. consequently the language provided no limitation for the personality. a. and gave the agency unlimited -- e.p.a. and ga the agency unlimited authority to draft the new rule. the e.p.a., 1,300 pages in regulations are a testament to

0:12:46 to 0:13:06( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: the congress using the appropriations committee to shortcut the authorizing committee's process. the language we're debating today impacts the livestock industry. within these 1,300 pages, the regulation requires a reporting of greenhouse gases from animal, agriculture, which, you know, on the surface, seems harmless

0:13:07 to 0:13:27( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: enough. however, i want to stress that this regulation has a cost and more importantly, it will do nothing to improve the environmental health of rural america. it doesn't make manure smell any better, it doesn't protect water wells or native species. it doesn't do one thing to improve the standard of living

0:13:28 to 0:13:48( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: in rural iowa or any part of this country. it has, however, improved the standard of living of people of metropolitan washington, d.c., because this one sentence has kept a bunch of folks, a bunch of good bureaucrats at e.p.a., busy for the last year and a half. farmers work

0:13:49 to 0:14:10( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: day to try to preserve their environment. from learning how to keep their topsoil from wash away to improving the quality of our water to eliminating odor and turning waste products into energy, if the health of the environment is critically important to the success of a farming operation. american farmers have done a great job finding ways to

0:14:11 to 0:14:34( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: protect the environment without sacrificing their families' income. but the at a time when our nation's farmers are facing the most difficult economic times in the last decade, we're introducing new and costly federal mandates. this regulation will generate additional input costs for an industry that can ill afford it.

0:14:35 to 0:14:58( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: dairy has lost about $12 billion in milk receipts from 2008 and 2009, about a 33% loss. or of a loss of 10% in receipts for hog and the industry's excepted to lose another $800 million this year. .

0:14:59 to 0:15:20( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: . if you are in livestock today, they estimate the cost of reporting will be $900 per facility. one measurement can co about $15,000 and requires personnel to maintain.

0:15:21 to 0:15:41( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: so these farmers will have to hire someone to sit there and monitor the machines. and that adds up to $900 per facility. to add further costs to production is simply foolish and irresponsible on the part of this congress. this language has never been added to a spending bill. that's w authorizing committee and why

0:15:42 to 0:16:03( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: members representing agriculture are concerned about this climate change legislation. you think about it, o sentence, tucked into the appropriation bill generated 1,300 pages of regulations, 500 pages of prealble, 200 pages of

0:16:04 to 0:16:24( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: regulatory impact analysis and regulates all sectors of the economy and agriculture is the smallest slice. we have cap and trade bills that have thousands of pages of legislative language, alone that members of congress law. this gives e.p.a. a huge increase in spending this year

0:16:25 to 0:16:45( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: and i guess they're going to need it. why? because the e.p.a. is going to have to hire a heck of a lot of new people real costs to our economy.

0:16:46 to 0:17:07( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: i show you what this regulation looks like. and this is why farmers love washington. when you have a paragraph that puts one of the formulas in this regulation that farmers have to comply with. and let me just read, it says for all manure management

0:17:08 to 0:17:30( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: component systems listed in 98.630 subsection b estimate the annual ch 24 emissions and the sum of all the components to obtain total emissions from the manure management system from all animal types aquation jj-1. you figure it out.

0:17:31 to 0:17:54( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: we are going to ha lot of people along with the e.p.a. the regulation has written -- the cost and scope question. agriculture cannot afford another federal mandate on this economy. manure management is a serious issue. i know, i grew up in iowa, but this rule does nothing, and i

0:17:55 to 0:18:15( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: emphasize nothing to improve the way farmers manage their manure. ladies and gentlemen, we stand up here every day and talk about the the economic problems outside the beltway and how mh we want to work to provide assistance. here in washington, we are part of that problem.

0:18:16 to 0:18:37( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: washington mandates costs on a daily basis whether who feed us or our constituents in low-income areas who have to pay more each month to cover the cost of ou handiwork. we need to think about the impacts.

0:18:38 to 0:18:45( Edit History Discussion )

Tom Latham: a cole hundred million over there and employers are trying to keep up with the government cost of living increases.