House approves bill to help West fight wildfires, drought
Source: AP
By MATTHEW DALY
WASHINGTON (AP) — The House on Friday approved wide-ranging legislation aimed at helping communities in the West cope with increasingly severe wildfires and drought — fueled by climate change — that have caused billions of dollars of damage to homes and businesses in recent years.
The measure combines 49 separate bills and would increase firefighter pay and benefits; boost resiliency and mitigation projects for communities affected by climate change; protect watersheds; and make it easier for wildfire victims to get federal assistance.
“Across America the impacts of climate change continue to worsen, and in this new normal, historic droughts and record-setting wildfires have become all too common,″ said Rep. Joe Neguse, D-Colo., the bill’s chief co-sponsor. Colorado has suffered increasingly devastating wildfires in recent years, including the Marshall fire last year that caused more than $513 million in damage and destroyed nearly 1,100 homes and structures in Boulder County.
“What once were wildfire seasons are now wildfire years. For families across the country who have lost their homes due to these devastating wildfires and for the neighborhoods impacted by drought, we know that we need to apply a whole-of-government approach to support community recovery and bolster environmental resiliency,” Neguse said. “This is a bill that we believe meets the moment for the West.”
FILE - A firefighter extinguishes flames as the Oak Fire crosses Darrah Rd. in Mariposa County, Calif., on July 22, 2022. Crews were able to to stop it from reaching an adjacent home. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File)
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/wildfires-fires-droughts-congress-climate-and-environment-679d294981cd80f6a2817311ee982774
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GOP Rep. Jim Jordan says it's 'wrong' for Senate Republicans to work with Democrats on bills endorsed by Biden
John L. Dorman Jul 31, 2022, 10:49 AM
https://www.businessinsider.com/jim-jordan-kevin-mccarthy-senate-republicans-biden-endorsed-legislation-2022-7
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When President Joe Biden entered the Oval Office last year, he expressed a commitment to working across the aisle with Republicans to craft legislation — something he practiced in his 36-year career in the Senate.
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However, the wave of consensus doesn't sit too well with Rep. Jim Jordan, the conservative Ohio Republican and longtime ally of former President Donald Trump who could play a major role in Congress next year if Republicans win back control of the House.
Jordan recently told Politico that Senate Republicans who join their Democratic counterparts in supporting legislation backed by Biden are "wrong."
"I wish they wouldn't," the lawmaker said of his GOP counterparts in the upper chamber.
Republicans: The Party Over Country Party
This bill is an obvious necessity but the reason it's essential is that the 666kochs666 and their ilk are forcing all of us to pay for the consequences of their private profits. "Socialize the costs, privatize the profits."
"Externalities" on steroids.
