During a House Appropriations Committee markup prior to the congressional recess, Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-NY) spoke about cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency.
00:00The gentleman from New York, Mr. Espyat, is recognized for general comments on the bill.
00:06Thank you, Chairman and Ranking. Member, I rise in strong opposition to the proposed Interior,
00:14Environmental, and Related Agencies Bill. This bill severely defends the EPA,
00:21undermining decades of progress in making our environment safer and more equitable for oil.
00:27The EPA is a vital tool for addressing pollution in low-income and minority communities,
00:35ensuring clean air, water, and safe living conditions for all Americans.
00:41Without these programs, historically vulnerable communities will face increased exposure to environmental risks,
00:49leading to severe health and economic consequences.
00:52In the past administration, Mr. Chairman, we saw how the EPA gave out community grants across the country.
01:01In fact, they went to local communities and they went to institutions in my district like Fordham University and WEAC
01:08so that they could give grants to community-based organizations that know what environmental injustice is about.
01:16And they try to address these environmental injustices.
01:21Across the country and cities, we have seen increasing extreme weather problems and patterns.
01:30Just this past weekend, the D.C. metro area experienced flash floods that damaged buildings and washed away cars.
01:39We saw the same thing happen in New York in the subway system weeks ago.
01:45And, of course, we all know what happened in North Carolina.
01:47We've seen the wildfires.
01:49Again, Mother Nature is talking to us.
01:51And it is at the community level that we can remediate these injustices, these environmental injustices.
01:58The EPA played a vital role in addressing that.
02:01In fact, the Inflation Reduction Act, which saw the biggest investment in environmental remediation, was an international hit.
02:13At the COP 27 in Egypt, all the other countries spoke about the investment that we made through the Inflation Reduction Act to remediate environmental injustices.
02:25That was the big hit of the conference.
02:28That's what every continent spoke about.
02:31They were so proud of the money that was invested here in the U.S. by the previous administration.
02:37And they wanted to emulate what we were doing here across the world.
02:43We were the pride of the world for environmental practices to remediate injustices for communities that contribute less.
02:53Because poor and working class communities don't have an abundance of vehicles.
02:57They contribute less, but they are hurt disproportionately.
03:01So eliminating the EPA will result in taking away the tools that are necessary to remediate environmental injustice.
03:12That often lead to conditions like asthma rates in communities that we serve.
03:21Environmental injustice also leads to respiratory diseases for seniors.
03:28It contributes to a host of illnesses.
03:31And these investments made by the EPA will now be compromised because of these severe cuts in this particular bill.
03:41So for that reason, Mr. Chairman, I am compelled to oppose this bill.
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