Bill Posey

WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Bill Posey (R-Rockledge) delivered the following statement today before the House Budget Committee regarding closing the human space flight gap and keeping America first in space:

“Chairman Spratt, Ranking Member Ryan, Members of the Committee:

“Thank you for the opportunity to testify today.  You have likely already heard a great deal about the President’s FY 2011 budget request for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).  Today, I appear before this Committee to ask that the Committee provide NASA with sufficient resources to continue Shuttle operations through at least Fiscal Year 2011, sufficiently fund Constellation and see that the space gap between the two is minimized.  I am here to tell you why this is the wisest policy.

“The plan for human space flight, as outlined by the Administration, is significantly lacking in detail and appears to have been developed with little or no coordination with public and private stakeholders.

“One glaring example is NASA’s announced decision to seek termination of the Constellation program.  This decision will adversely impact our nation’s solid-rocket-motor industrial base, which is critical to our military. In a report from last June to the Congress, the Air Force said that delays in the Constellation program could have significant negative impact on the industrial base.  When questioned about this issue last week, Air Force Secretary Donley testified that “we have a challenge on the solid-rocket-motor industrial base and on the booster industrial base.”

“NASA is making the decision in a vacuum, and does not fully understand, or at least obviously does not take into consideration, the much broader military, industrial, and economic implications. The plan, and I use that term lightly, demands considerably more discussion and public scrutiny.  I am very concerned that they continue to develop this plan “on the fly” and that it is irresponsible for the Congress to embrace it without considerably more input from all the stakeholders.

“Over the course of the last year we lost precious time in charting a course for the future for our nation’s human space flight program. NASA remained without an Administrator for much of the year, and NASA was essentially placed on hold as the Augustine Committee undertook a review of our nation’s human space flight program.  All the while NASA continued to approach the impending retirement of the Shuttle fleet.  Over the years, the Constellation program continued to be underfunded.

“The Augustine Committee report made clear what many of us already knew:  If America is to have a robust space exploration program it must have a budget to match it.  That, my friends, is the essential question before you and this Congress. Are we going to continue to have a robust space program and continue on the path forged by John F. Kennedy? Or, are we going to return to the days of Sputnik, when the United States took a back seat to space exploration. Are we going to cede space to Russia and China? Apollo 7 astronaut Walter Cunningham recently said that the Administration’s proposal “accelerates America’s downward spiral toward mediocrity in space exploration.”

“I think Apollo 17 astronaut and former U.S. Senator Harrison Schmitt summarized it best last week when he wrote that this proposal “would cede the Moon to China, the American Space Station to Russia, and assign liberty to the ages.  Other [nations] would accrue the benefits –psychological, political, economic, and scientific – that the United States harvested as a consequence of Apollo’s success 40 years ago. This lesson has not been lost on our ideological and economic competitors.

“It is my sincere hope that it will not be lost on this Congress either.  This Committee is the one that will take the first step regarding the President’s NASA budget.  I urge you, my colleagues, to think about the future we are building for our children and grandchildren. Will it be a future where we do mediocre things or will it be one where we embark to accomplish bold things?

“Some have suggested that this is a question of jobs. That is true. The lives of tens of thousands of Americans will be disrupted if the Administration’s proposal is adopted.  There will be 10,000 direct jobs and according to a recent economic impact assessment as many as 23,000 jobs will be lost – almost immediately – in my district and that of Rep Suzanne Kosmas to my north.  We are still waiting on a current NASA Workforce Transition Strategy report.  The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2008 requires NASA to produce this strategy every six months; the last one Congress received is from July of 2009.  This is further evidence of a failure to plan for the future and follow Congressional intent.  We need a better landing and a smoother transition for our nation’s premier space launch workforce.  This is a highly skilled workforce that cannot be replaced, and will be lost if we travel down the proposed path.

“Space exploration touches the life of every American.  Our space program has generated thousands of inventions and spinoffs that have translated directly into the creation of tens of thousands of jobs right here in America.  If we accept the Administration’s plan, we will be abandoning a robust space program.  They may protest that it is not abandonment, but that is exactly what it is.  And, as a result we will lose these future benefits, and we will see China, Russia, India and others become the beneficiaries of a robust and superior space program.

“Countless products in our homes, offices, cars and airplanes owe their existence or widespread use to space exploration. Yet we often take for granted cell phones, GPS, carbon monoxide detectors, Velcro, lithium batteries, and advanced weather forecasting, just to name a few.  We will be compromising advanced micro-gravity research.  It is no doubt that our space  program leads to cutting edge, high-skilled jobs and inspires the leaders of tomorrow to study Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields.  Among great human achievements, space exploration is inspiring in a way like no other.

“Under the current plan, NASA is betting our nations’ entire space program on yet unproven commercial vendors.  I am very supportive of commercial, but I am concerned about sole reliance on entrepreneurs for the short-term.  NASA has taken the mistaken step of once again putting Russia in the critical path for our research on the International Space Station.   We saw how this almost jeopardized the ISS from the very outset and raised the cost of the ISS.

“The Committee should also be aware that retiring the Shuttle will generate far less in savings that what has generally been believed.  This is due to several factors.  By abandoning the Shuttle prior to fulfilling our commitments to fly foreign astronauts to the ISS through 2020, NASA will incur hundreds of millions in costs associated with purchasing seats for foreign astronauts on Russian vehicles – a price Russian Space Agency officials just said they would raise once they are the only game in town.  Also, hundreds of millions of dollars in infrastructure costs will not turn into savings as many assume, but rather those costs will continue to recur but from an accounting perspective will be assigned to another account.

“According to the Augustine Committee, and information I have received from NASA, the annual cost of flying the Shuttle may cost up to about $1.3 billion for two flights per year. However, that cost can be cut significantly based on discussions with the contractors who currently operate the Shuttle for NASA.  I would ask the Committee provide sufficient funding to allow up to two shuttle flights in Fiscal Year 2011 for the many reasons I have outlined for you. Thus, for a budget equal to a fraction of one percent of the stimulus, we can extend the Shuttle for one year and provide a smoother transition for our nation’s space program and tens of thousands of dedicated workers.

“Furthermore, although the Shuttle’s current manifest includes four remaining launches, NASA needs to act now to assure that even these missions are completed.  NASA’s current, inflexible policy on flying the Shuttle beyond calendar year 2010 jeopardizes the last scheduled Shuttle mission, which would transport the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (AMS) to ISS.  It is my understanding that this mission may not be ready until spring of 2011, beyond NASA’s arbitrary deadline.  Fully funding Shuttle operations through FY 2011 will not only provide for smoother transition, but it will ensure that our commitments to our international partners regarding the AMS are fully met.  Absent the Shuttle, there is no means of getting AMS to the ISS. Let’s also remember that Endeavor just completed its 24th mission.  It was designed for 100 missions.

“In addition to extending Shuttle operations, the Committee should provide sufficient funding to continue with the Constellation program. It makes little sense to abandon Constellation given the investments already made and the termination costs estimated to be in the range of $2.5 billion.  We had a successful test flight of the Ares 1-X rocket in October and are building on that success.

“Congress must act today to save our space program. The plan presented by the Administration has gaping holes and is not ready for prime time.  They need to go back to the drawing board and the Congress needs to join with the voices of our nation’s space pioneers like Gene Cernan, the last human to walk on the moon, who said last week, “Now is the time for wiser heads in Congress to prevail. Now is the time to overrule…mediocrity.  Now is the time to be bold, innovative and wise in deciding how we invest in the future of America.”

“We have a come a long way since Alan Shepard became the first American in space in 1961.  I urge you, my colleagues, to work together to ensure that our 50 years of leadership in space is not abandoned. America is looking to us for leadership.”

Bill Posey

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman Bill Posey (R-Rockledge) introduced the Deficit Reduction Check-Off Act, legislation designed to give the American people a stronger voice in reigning-in out of control government spending. Posey’s bill, H.R. 4308, which already has the support of 17 of his colleagues, would create a means by which the American taxpayer could put a small portion of their tax refunds toward deficit reduction and the government would then be obligated to match it $9 to $1 and lower spending accordingly.

“In recent years, Washington has taken us down a dangerous, irresponsible and unsustainable path of overspending,” said Congressman Posey. “This month our national debt exceeded $12 trillion for the first time in our nation’s history and as early as tomorrow the Speaker may bring a bill forward to raise the debt limit to $14 trillion.  Last year alone put a record $1.4 trillion on the next generation’s credit card – more than three times the previous record.  Unfortunately, Washington seems dead to the common sense idea of lowering spending.  Many constituents have indicated they feel powerless and my bill gives them a direct way to cut Washington spending.”

Specifically, the Deficit Reduction Check-Off Act would add a new “Deficit Reduction Check-Off” line to IRS tax forms. Individuals would be given the opportunity to direct up to $10 of their tax rebate/refund for deficit reduction ($20 for joint filers). While the individual’s tax return would only be reduced by a maximum of $10, Posey’s bill directs the Office of Management & Budget (OMB) to cut federal spending by $100 ($200 for a joint return). A $10 check-off translates into $100 in direct deficit reduction.

“For every $10 dollars you give, Washington would be required to cut $100 in spending – $200 for joint filers,” said Posey. “For example, if 40 million Americans ‘check-off’ a total of $300 million on their tax returns, the Federal government would be directed  to cut spending by $3 billion. It adds one more deficit reduction tool and it will also give Congress an idea of just how serious the American people are about cutting spending.”

Bill Posey

U.S. Rep. Bill Posey, R-Rockledge, acknowledged what he termed a “friendly crowd” as it broke into applause when he spoke of efforts to cut off federal funding for the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) because of voter fraud.

Posey was applauded often during a visit Friday to the Indian River County Administration Complex. People filled the seats and lined the walls of the County Commission Chambers, and latecomers had to watch the proceedings on televisions outside the chambers.

Prior to addressing the public and talking their questions, Posey met with various public officials in a conference room at the complex. In both cases, he decried what he viewed as excessive spending and regulation under the current administration.

He contended there is an animosity in the halls of Washington toward business that extends beyond Wall Street and impacts the nation’s small businesses.

While unemployment rises, Posey said the proposed national health care legislation and cap and trade legislation, designed to control carbon emissions, will cost millions of jobs.

He also complained that the crafting of some of the federal legislation is not being done in the open. Posey received loud applause when he talked of calling for a requirement that would give lawmakers three days to review proposed legislation before acting on it.

Speaking of an issue that is a hot topic for those living in the vicinity of Cape Canaveral, Posey called for a smoother transition between the space shuttle program and the upcoming Orion program, which could transport astronauts to the moon, Mars and elsewhere in the solar system.

A three-year gap between the ending of the shuttle program and the launch of the Orion program has now grown to five to seven years. He wants to close that gap.

“It’s a matter of national security and economic survival for this nation and particularly this region,” said Posey.

A group of Central and South Florida business, political and civic leaders are banding together to lobby the federal government for $2.5 billion to build a high-speed train linking Orlando with Tampa.

The message of the organization, which conducted news conferences Tuesday in Orlando, Lakeland and Tampa, is that a fast train would create jobs, encourage quality development around the stations and help the environment by moving people out of cars and onto a train.

“This is the future, and this is what we need to fight for,” U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson, D-Orlando, said during the event at Orlando International Airport.

Grayson spoke before a gathering of high-speed supporters who’ve created a group called ConnectUs. It is run by Ed Turanchik, a developer and former Hillsborough County commissioner who led Central Florida’s unsuccessful attempt to host the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Turanchik said ConnectUs is a nonprofit formed about two months ago with $50,000 donated by a variety of businesses and individuals.

The group is seeking additional contributions of up to $5,000 apiece to launch an advertising campaign, according to Turanchik, who is working for free but could be compensated in the future.

The main form of communication the group has now is a Web site called FastRail ConnectUs.com. It asks people to sign up and pledge their support for a train that could go as fast as 150 mph on the 90-mile route largely along Interstate 4, starting at Orlando International Airport and ending in downtown Tampa.

Eventually, a Miami leg could be added as well.

“Trains are very cool things,” Turanchik said. “What’s cool about them is they connect us.”

Turanchik said businesses and government agencies in Miami, Orlando and Tampa all support the state’s bid for the train.

That cooperation is significant, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer said.

“We have to get away from competing with ourselves. … We’re Florida against the world,” Dyer said.

The federal Department of Transportation is planning to announce its first round of high-speed rail winners by mid-October.

Ten corridors are being considered, including Orlando to Tampa; Boston to Washington; Portland to Seattle; and San Diego to San Francisco.

If Florida is picked, construction could begin almost immediately, with service starting in 2014, the state’s pre-application says. Supporters say the train could create 25,000 jobs.

Only three of the 27 largest metropolitan areas in the country are without a fixed rail system. Orlando and Tampa are two of those, and Cincinnati-Louisville is the third.

Dyer is hoping support for a high-speed train will help SunRail, a planned, slower-running commuter train that would connect DeLand in Volusia County with downtown Orlando and Poinciana in Osceola. It could link with the fast train at a stop near OIA.

SunRail would cost $1.2billion, with $500 million or more possibly coming from the federal government. The first 31 miles, from south Volusia County to Sand Lake Road in Orange, could be up and running in 2012, with the remainder in 2014.

Bill Posey

INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — Green fuels, solar power and electro-magnetic technology topped the list of energy issues discussed during U.S. Rep. Bill Posey’s tour of Indian River and Brevard counties Tuesday morning.

In Fellsmere, the Rocklegde Republican visited with representatives from PetroAlgae Inc. to learn about the company’s large-scale production of biofuels.

“We’re taking this opportunity to look at the positive things that are happening in the district in regard to energy,” Posey told Fred Tennant, chief marketing officer for PetroAlgae. “Today we will see firsthand the progress that is being made by local developers of clean energy technology.”

PetroAlgae is licensing a micro-crop technology that they hope will someday replace fossil fuels. At the small-scale outdoor production site west of Fellsmere, about 150 different micro-organisms are grown in modular trays and harvested several times a day. The crop is processed into two products: a carbohydrate-rich solid that’s used as substitute for petroleum in an oil refinery; and a second product that can be used as a protein source in animal feed.

“Everyone wants renewable energy because the sources for non-renewable energy are growing low,” said John Scott, chairman of PetroAlgae. He added that the PetroAlgae product could be used by an existing refinery as a replacement for petroleum and produce clean, viable fuel.

Tennant said company officials have been meeting with key legislators in Washington to muster support for clean fuels. It was Posey’s second visit to the farm since he was elected to Congress last year.

“I sat with the congressman in Washington, and he’s extremely receptive to what we’re doing here in Fellsmere,” he said. “When he was out here before, we weren’t as far along in development, and it’s important to us that he knows how well we’re doing.”

Posey, whose tour also took him to AML Energy in Palm Bay and the Florida Solar Energy Center in Cocoa, said America needs a comprehensive energy policy with incentives for developing clean, renewable energy.

“What PetroAlgae, Advance Magnet Lab and the Florida Energy Center offer us is a glimpse into the future of powering our country and a demonstration of what’s possible,” Posey said.

After touring the facility, Posey stopped to meet some of the plant’s 100 employees.

“We want to make sure that you get a fair shake in Washington,” Posey told PetroAlgae executives. “We want to make this site the center of the PetroAlgae world.”

TAMPA — With the deadline looming to apply for federal stimulus money to build a high speed rail line, lawmakers, business leaders and community organizers will launch a campaign Tuesday to win funding for the project.

The group ConnectUs, a nonprofit founded by longtime rail supporter and former Hillsborough County Commissioner Ed Turanchik, is spearheading the effort.

“This is a grass-roots campaign that’s going to be working on this and elevating this in the public eye,” said Robert Armstead, a spokesperson for ConnectUs.

Florida is seeking $2.53 billion in federal stimulus money to start building a high speed rail line connecting Tampa to Orlando. Plans call for the tracks to eventually extend to Miami.

Three events in support of the effort are scheduled for Tuesday.

At 9:30 a.m., the Central Florida Partnership will host a rally at Orlando International Airport, with U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson-D, Orlando and Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer as the featured speakers.

At 11:45 a.m., Republican Florida Sen. Paula Dockery will host an event at Lakeland City Hall.

And at 2 p.m., Democratic U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor and the Tampa Bay Partnership will host a rally at Stetson University College of Law.

The line is considered a top contender in the competition for $8 billion in stimulus money attached to President Barack Obama’s vision for “world-class passenger rail” in 10 major corridors, including Florida. Obama has pledged another $1 billion for high-speed rail for each of the next five years.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood has singled out Florida and California — where the line would connect San Diego to San Francisco and Sacramento — as being “way ahead of the curve” with their high speed rail plans, meaning they could quickly meet Obama’s goal of creating jobs.

In Florida, environmental and ridership studies have been completed. The right-of-way for the tracks is largely in place, with plans to run trains in the median of Interstate 4.

Land for bullet train stations already has been committed in downtown Tampa on the site of the former Morgan Street jail and in Lakeland, Disney World and the Orlando International Airport.

“The only thing Florida has been lacking so far is a visible show of support from the citizens, the elected officials, communities, environmental groups and the business community,” Dockery said. “That’s really the purpose of ConnectUs, to gather all that support. Because it’s there. We just need to showcase it. If we can do that, Florida’s application is going to be heads above others.”

On July 31, U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson sent a letter to state Senate President Jeff Atwater, House Speaker Larry Cretul and state Democratic leaders, saying they need to get behind the effort if Florida wants to win the stimulus money. He suggested they write a letter to LaHood expressing support.

Last week, Republican state Sen. Mike Fasano did just that, making more than a dozen points about why the state should get the award. Among the arguments Fasano made: Work on the Tampa-Orlando line could begin in less than two years; the train would provide a safe transportation alternative for seniors; and it would help with hurricane evacuation.

Ten members of Florida’s federal legislative delegation also sent a letter in June to LaHood showing support for the project.

Signers included Democrats Castor, Grayson, Corrine Brown, Kendrick Meek, Robert Wexler, Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Alcee Hastings, and Republicans Lincoln Diaz-Balart, Mario Diaz-Balart and Adam Putnam.

LaHood will be in Florida around the first of September to meet with state and local officials about the project, said Brown, who chairs the U.S. House transportation committee’s subcommittee on railroads, pipelines and hazardous materials.

“He’s very interested in Florida,” said Corrine Brown, but noted that state lawmakers need to make financial commitments to the line. “I know the federal government wants to be partners. I know the locals want to be partners. But we’ve got to have the state at the table.”

Bill Posey

Florida Congressmen Mario Diaz-Balart, Bill Posey and Tom Rooney have been put on the National Republican Congressional Committee’s list of vulnerable incumbents.

Officially they were added to the NRCC’s Patriot Program, which is an attempt to hold the lawmakers accountable for meeting their own fundraising goals in return for party help. How things shake out is unknown, of course. Diaz-Balart was widely said to be in danger of losing last cycle but outlasted the Obama momentum.

On the Democratic side, the GOP views Reps. Suzanne Kosmas and Alan Grayson as the most vulnerable, with Grayson considered the easier target.

Bill Posey

Tim Geithner took center stage on Capitol Hill today and once again he disappointed.

Geithner went before Congress to sing the praises of the Obama administration’s plan for regulating derivatives–something that’s much needed. But once again, Geithner failed to explain the criteria that will be used to distinguish standard derivatives from so-called customized derivatives.

And that’s pretty important since the crux of the Obama plan is for regulating standard derivatives.

Rep. Bill Posey asked Geithner the questions most Americans wanted answers to.  Below is the video

Live Video Coverage of Paula Dockery Event in Orlando Florida. CENTRAL FLORIDA POLITICS EXCLUSIVE!!!! Event runs from 11 AM – 1 PM

A meeting in Washington designed to resurrect the $1.2 billion SunRail project was held on Wednesday.

In attendance were Orlando mayor Buddy Dyer, US Rep Corrine Brown D-Jacksonville, John Mica R-Daytona, representatives from the Federal Transit Administration, Federal Railroad Administration, Amtrak and CSX.

CSX reminded the attendees just how much money can be made from SunRail. CSX went on to say that they were willing to extend the June 30^th deadline for negotiating one of the sweetest corporate welfare programs in the history of Florida.

According to a report at http://www.wesh.com Florida DOT has already overpaid for several million dollars worth of property for SunRail stations.

FDOT officials are telling the sellers that SunRail is a “done deal”.

SunRail was defeated last legislative session, mostly by the efforts of Paula Dockery R-Lakeland and Rhonda Storms R-Brandon.

Calling themselves Paula-ticians, supporters of a Draft Dockery for Governor, an ad hoc committee, are holding a meet and greet with Senator Dockery, at the Rosen Centre Hotel, 9840 International Dr, in Orlando tomorrow from 11:00 to 13:00.

The draft Dockery web site is here.

SunRail proponents have never been able to answer exactly how they are going to convince Central Floridians to give up their great American freedom machines, (their cars) ride Sun Rail and then hitch hike to their destination from the Sun Rail station.

We are still waiting on that answer.