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Press Releases |
For Immediate Release
01/15/09
Contact: |
Rob Blumenthal w/Inouye 202-224-8374
Jenilee Keefe w/Inouye 202-224-7824
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Oceans Policy Scores Victory with Passage of S. 22, the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009
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WASHINGTON, D.C. – Ocean conservation and research scored a major victory today with the passage of S. 22, the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009. The act includes five bills, originally introduced in the 110th Congress under the leadership of Commerce Committee Chairman Daniel K. Inouye (D-Hawaii), that increase our knowledge of oceans and coastal areas, provide policymakers with important data, and protect our oceans from the effects of climate change.
“The oceans cover over two-thirds of our planet, yet we know little about what lies beneath or how the changing climate is affecting marine resources. And of course, there is no state that is more dependent on the long term health of the world’s oceans than my own state of Hawaii,” said outgoing Chairman Inouye. “Tens of thousands of citizens of Hawaii depend directly or indirectly on a healthy and bountiful Pacific Ocean. The five bills we passed today will help to provide the resources to increase understanding about ocean and coastal areas, which in turn will enable us to make the best possible decisions about how to manage, preserve, and protect them.”
The following bills were included in S. 22 which passed the Senate today:
The Ocean Exploration and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Undersea Research Act: This act would authorize the National Ocean Exploration Program and the National Undersea Research Program within the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to increase scientific knowledge for the management, use, and preservation of oceanic, coastal, and Great Lake resources. Although advances in technologies have allowed us to explore at greater depths, only about five percent of the ocean floor has been explored to date. The potential for indentifying new and beneficial scientific information and resources in the oceans is significant but remains largely untapped. This bill would expand our nation’s understanding of the marine environment through the advancement of coastal and ocean sciences, which is a critical step in filling scientific knowledge gaps, developing potential economic resources, and inspiring greater ocean literacy in the general public.
The Ocean and Coastal Mapping Integration Act: This act, also introduced as S. 174 by Senator Inouye, would integrate Federal and coastal mapping activities throughout the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone. Approximately 90 percent of our nation’s maritime territory remains unmapped by modern technology. Improved mapping of our nation’s coastal and ocean waters will increase our understanding of the marine environment, thereby increasing the safety of navigation in our maritime domain, supporting national security missions of the United States Navy and Coast Guard, and allowing for better management of marine ecosystems and resources.
The Integrated Coastal and Ocean Observation System Act: This act would authorize the establishment of an integrated system of coastal and ocean observations for the nation’s coasts, oceans, and Great Lakes. Advances in our knowledge and management of coastal and marine resources are limited by a lack of real-time, standardized, and accessible data on key environmental variables such as temperature, currents, sea level, salinity, and nutrients. An integrated observation system will improve the warning of tsunamis, hurricane, El Nino events, and other natural hazards; enhance homeland security; support maritime operations; and improve the management of coastal and ocean resources.
The Federal Ocean Acidification Research and Monitoring Act: This act would authorize a coordinated federal research program on ocean acidification. Over the past 200 years, human activities have resulted in dramatic increases in greenhouse gases that are altering the Earth’s climate. The oceans mitigate the effects of global warming by absorbing atmospheric carbon dioxide, which is changing ocean carbon chemistry and causing the oceans to become more acidic. Ocean acidification could adversely impact marine ecosystems, food webs for many fish and marine mammals, and the economies of many coastal states that rely upon the seafood industry and coastal and ocean tourism. This bill would establish an interagency committee chaired by NOAA. The committee would develop and provide Congress with a strategic research plan on ocean acidification and coordinate activities across federal agencies, establish an ocean acidification program within NOAA to conduct research and long-term monitoring, promote education and outreach, and develop adaptation strategies and techniques for conserving marine ecosystems.
The Coastal and Estuarine Land Conservation Program Act: As the U.S. population grows and more people move to the coasts, our coastal lands and ecosystems are threatened by unsustainable development. This legislation authorizes NOAA to award competitive grants to coastal states, including the Great Lakes, to protect coastal and estuarine areas which have significant conservation, recreation, ecological, historic, aesthetic, or watershed protection value and are threatened by conversion to other uses.
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24th - |
Commerce Republicans Press DOT on “Cash for Clunkers” Payments to Car Dealers
- WASHINGTON, D.C. – Republican members of the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, led by Ranking Member Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas), today voiced strong concerns to Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood on delays in payment to car dealers as part of the Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS) program. Joining Senator Hutchison were Senators Olympia Snowe (R-Maine), John Thune...
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21st - |
Rockefeller Continues Pressing Health Insurance Industry for Answers
- WASHINGTON, D.C.—Senator John D. (Jay) Rockefeller IV, Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, sent a letter today to the top 15 health insurance companies requesting information on what insurance companies do with the money they get from consumers as premium payments and whether this data is shared with policy holders and potential customers.
The...
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18th - |
Chairman Rockefeller Statement on NTSB Investigation of NY Midair Collision
- WASHINGTON, D.C.— Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation John D. (Jay) Rockefeller IV (D-WV) released the following statement today on the National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB) investigation of the midair collision of an air tour helicopter and a small plane over the Hudson River on Saturday, August 8, 2009:
“The midair collision...
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14th - |
Chairman Rockefeller Requests Information Regarding Airman Certificate Vetting Process
- WASHINGTON, D.C.— Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation John D. (Jay) Rockefeller IV (D-WV), Ranking Member Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX), Chairman of the Aviation Operations, Safety and Security Subcommittee Byron Dorgan (D-ND), and Ranking Member of the Aviation Operations, Safety and Security Subcommittee Jim DeMint (R-SC) joined together and sent a l...
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14th - |
Hutchison Presses FAA and TSA to Improve Vetting of Airman Certificates
- WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas), Ranking Member on the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, today joined Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-W.V) in pressing the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to improve the vetting operations associated with the FAA’s Airman Certificatio...
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7th - |
Chairman Rockefeller Applauds the Senate's Confirmation of Nominees
- WASHINGTON, D.C.—Senator John D (Jay) Rockefeller IV (D-WV), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, issued the following statement today regarding the confirmation of:
Mr. Christopher P. Bertram, to be Assistant Secretary for Budget and Programs and Chief Financial Officer at the U.S. Department of Transportation
Ms. Patricia D. Cahill, to be a...
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7th - |
Chairman Rockefeller on "Cash for Clunkers"
- WASHINGTON, D.C.—Senator John D. (Jay) Rockefeller IV (D-WV), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, issued the following statement today regarding the Senate’s passage (60-37) of H.R. 3435, a bill making supplemental appropriations for FY2010 for the Consumer Assistance to Recycle and Save Program (“Cash for Clunkers”).
“I a...
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6th - |
Hearing Summary: Waste, Fraud and Abuse in the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program
- WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation held a full committee hearing today on Waste, Fraud and Abuse in the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program.
Witness List:
Mr. Alfred J. Longhi, Jr., former Vice President for Sales and Marketing, Lithium Power Technologies
Mr. Thomas J. Howard, Acting Inspector General, National Aeronautic...
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6th - |
Hearing Summary - Aviation Safety: The Relationship Between Network and Regional Airlines
- WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation held a subcommittee hearing today on Aviation Safety: The Relationship Between Network Airlines and Regional Airlines.
Witness List:
Mr. Philip H. Trenary, President and Chief Executive Officer, Pinnacle Airlines Corp.
Mr. Peter Bowler, President and Chief Executive Officer, American Eagle Airlines...
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6th - |
Hutchison: FAA Must Stay Vigilant
- WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas), Ranking Member on the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, today during a hearing on the relationship between network and regional airlines said that the Federal Aviation Administration must stay vigilant when it comes to air safety.
“Despite the remarkable safety record of the U.S. aviation industry, rece...
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5th - |
Executive Session: Committee Legislation Summary
- WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation held an Executive Session and favorably reported out the following legislation and nominees:
S. 1078, the AmericaView Geospatial Imagery Mapping Program Act
S. 30, the Truth in Caller ID Act of 2009
S. 251, the Safe Prisons Communications Act of 2009
S. 952, Harmful Algal Blooms and Hyp...
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5th - |
Chairman Rockefeller's Remarks on Today's Executive Session
- WASHINGTON, D.C.--We have four very important bills and a number of key Administration nominations on today’s agenda.
First, the committee will consider, S. 1078, the AmericaView Geospatial Imagery Mapping Program. This bill authorizes the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to expand the AmericaView program, which is designed to use satellite and remote sensing data to support applied resea...
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5th - |
Hearing Summary: Nominations Hearing
- WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation held a full committee hearing today on nominations.
Witness List:
Mr. Dennis F. Hightower, to be Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Commerce
Mr. Robert S. Adler, to be a Commissioner of the Consumer Product Safety Commission
Ms. Anne M. Northup, to be a Commissioner of the Consumer Product...
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5th - |
Chairman Rockefeller's Remarks on Today's Nominations Hearing
- I am pleased to welcome Mr. Dennis F. Hightower to the Committee today. If confirmed as the next Deputy Secretary of the Department of Commerce, you will serve as the Department’s chief operations officer and take responsibility for the day-to-day management of the Department’s $17 billion budget and more than 38,000 employees.
I am confident that your work in the private and pu...
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5th - |
Committee Approves Hutchison Bill to Jam Illegal Prison Cell Phones
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WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee today approved bipartisan legislation sponsored by Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas), Ranking Member on the Committee, to allow prisons to block calls from contraband cellular phones. The Safe Prisons Communications Act of 2009 (S. 251), is cosponsored by Senators Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.), Diane Feinstein (...
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