Washington, DC – Late last night, Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey (D-CA) beat back efforts by House Republicans to strip $1,000,000 for the historic Angel Island Immigration Station from a federal appropriations bill.  While tens of thousands of visitors pass through the historic site each year, many of the original buildings are badly in need of repair.  Woolsey’s spending request, which she shared with Speaker Nancy Pelosi, will be used to restore the station’s original hospital building which once repaired will be incorporated into the site’s museum.

Republicans targeted Woolsey’s proposal as part of a broad strategy to tie up floor proceedings ahead of Friday’s expected vote on landmark energy reform legislation.  Their new found opposition to the rehabilitation of Angel Island was surprising, however, since they’ve supported such efforts in the past.  In 2005, both the House and Senate unanimously passed legislation sponsored by Woolsey to provide $15 million in funding for Angel Island, and the proposal was signed into law by then President George W. Bush.  Below are Woolsey’s remarks in defense of the project:

“Madame Speaker, I thank the Chairman for yielding me time, but frankly I have to say that I am shocked to come to the Floor to defend the Angel Island Immigration Station.

“I can only assume that the gentleman from California (Congressman John Campbell, CA-48) simply does not realize the cultural and historical significance of the Angel Island Immigration Station, and how important it is to millions of Americans.

“Actually, Angel Island is known as the ‘Ellis Island of the West,’ because over a thirty year period between 1910 and 1940, the Angel Island Immigration Station processed more than one million immigrants from around the world, with the majority coming from Asia.

“Today, the Angel Island Immigration Station contributes greatly to our understanding of our Nation's rich and complex immigration history by hosting more than 50,000 people, including 30,000 schoolchildren each year.

“But, because of severe deterioration, many of the historic buildings are in danger of collapsing and in desperate need of repair. That’s why, along with Speaker Pelosi,  I requested $1 million to rehabilitate the old Angel Island Immigration Station hospital so that it can be used, among other things, as a museum to tell the story of immigration from Asia to the United States.

“Now, I very much doubt that anyone would come to this Floor to strike funding for Ellis Island and argue that its preservation was ‘wasteful government spending,’ but at the heart of the matter, Angel Island is just as important to those who crossed through its gates.

‘For those whose ancestors first steps on American soil were taken on Angel Island in the middle of the San Francisco Bay, this amendment works to deny their history and their struggle.

“It’s also important for me to point out that Congress is already on record for supporting funding for the Angel Island.  In the 109th Congress, I sponsored H.R. 606, the Angel Island Immigration Station Restoration and Preservation Act, which authorized $15 million in funding to protect and preserve this historic landmark.

“H.R. 606 was passed out of the House by Voice Vote, the Senate by Unanimous Consent, and signed into law by President George W. Bush on December 1, 2005.  The sponsor of this amendment had no objection then, when his party controlled both Houses of Congress and the White House.

“Madame Speaker, Angel Island is a National Historic Landmark that is in desperate need of repair and rehabilitation.  I urge my colleagues to vote against this amendment.  This project isn’t a bridge to nowhere; it’s a bridge to our past.  Thank you and I yield back.”