Congressman Denny Rehberg

By Passing Bill to Provide Coverage
For Kids Through Grants That Support
Expansion of Visual Health Programs
Rehberg is a Cosponsor of the bill

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Montana’s Congressman, Denny Rehberg, joined U.S. House colleagues from both parties today in supporting a bill to expand access to vision care for underserved children.  The Vision Care for Kids Act (H.R. 577) identifies children who may have vision problems, and provides for subsequent exams and tests.  Rehberg, who has been a vocal advocate for children’s health care in Congress, is a cosponsor of the bill.

“I’ve said it before, no child in Montana should ever have to live without health coverage and that includes visual care,” said Rehberg a member of the House Appropriations Committee and one of 40 Republicans that crossed party lines to support expansion of the Children’s Health Insurance Program.  “The impact of undiagnosed visual problems at a young age can stick with someone for the rest of their lives.  This bill takes a big step toward identifying visual deficiencies and a huge step toward solving them so kids can get on with just being kids.”

The Parent Teacher Association reports that as many as ten million children suffer from vision disorders, making it the fourth most common disability in the United States. Undetected and untreated vision deficiencies can take a large toll in education and development, especially among children. Similar legislation was passed in the House in 2007 but failed to pass in the Senate

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Montana’s Congressman, Denny Rehberg, introduced legislation with Congressman Phil Hare (D-IL) and other members of the House Rural Education Caucus to improve access to early childhood education in rural communities.  The Rural Early Education Access Act (H.R. 1755) helps ensure that children living in rural communities don’t fall behind right out of the gate.  Congressman Hare is the lead sponsor of the bill, and Rehberg is an original co-sponsor.

“When it comes to the challenges facing rural communities, I’ve always reached across the aisle to find solutions,” said Rehberg a member of the House Appropriations Committee and the bi-partisan House Rural Education Caucus.  “The benefits of preschool education are well-established, and every child ought to have the same opportunities in this country regardless of where they live.  Montana’s biggest challenge in Washington, D.C. is making sure that our needs aren’t overlooked in the rush to take care of the problems affecting urban areas like San Francisco or Chicago.”

In Montana 70 percent of students attend rural school districts, and in 2006 only 19 percent of all Montana 3- and 4-year-olds were served by a federally funded Head Start program.  A 2007 National Center of Education Statistics report on rural education found that children living in rural areas have the lowest level of enrollment in preschool programs.  Additionally, rural communities face significant obstacles in providing access to the high-quality pre-kindergarten programs, including limited financial resources, scarcity of qualified teachers, deficient training and professional development opportunities, inadequate facilities and a lack of transportation options.

The Rural Early Education Access Act helps ensure that children living in rural areas have access to preschool programs by providing states with education funding through grants.  States would then fund awards to local schools and community-based providers based on a formula system.

“For too long, access to preschool and other early childhood education programs have been few and far between for America’s rural students,” Congressman Hare said. “Our legislation would give states and local school districts the tools they need to help rural students get a head start.”

WASHINGTON D.C. - Montana’s Congressman, Denny Rehberg, released the following statement in remembrance of Jerome Anderson.  Involved in the Montana political scene since the 1940’s, Anderson was a decorated WWII veteran, former member of the Montana House, and a respected state policy advocate.  He passed away on March 29, 2009.

“Montana lost one of our greatest treasures this week with the passing of Jerome Anderson.  Jerome spent his life in service to his country and his state.  As a younger man, he served his country as a Marine fighter pilot in World War II and his state in the Montana State Legislature.  Perhaps the greatest testament to his character is the respect he earned not only from his political allies, but from his rivals as well.  Today, our thoughts and prayers are with his wife Rita and the rest of his family.”

WASHINGTON D.C. - Montana’s Congressman, Denny Rehberg, was honored by the United States Chamber of Commerce with its Spirit of Enterprise Award for Rehberg’s pro-job, pro-small business voting record.  This is Rehberg’s eighth consecutive Spirit of Enterprise recognition.

“I’m proud to have a consistent pro-jobs voting record,” said Rehberg, a member of the House Appropriations Committee.  “I’m particularly honored to receive this award because of today’s economic climate where real job growth and development opportunities are so important for Montana.  Economic recovery doesn’t come from the government, it comes from enabling small businesses to create jobs.”

The Chamber’s Spirit of Enterprise Award is given annually to members of Congress based on key business votes for which the Chamber has communicated its priorities.  Rehberg holds a cumulative 94% ranking during his tenure in Congress.

“Last year in particular, Congress had to make some tough choices, and Representative Rehberg clearly demonstrated his commitment to the economy and keeping America competitive in an ever-changing global market,” said Thomas J. Donohue, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber. “The Chamber is proud to present Representative Rehberg with the Spirit of Enterprise Award on behalf of businesses large and small.”

The FLAME Act takes the fight to pine beetle infestations

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Montana’s Congressman, Denny Rehberg, supported the Federal Land Assistance, Management and Enhancement (FLAME) Act to create a separate fund for the expenses related to wildfire suppression and prevention.  Rehberg also supported an amendment mitigating the impact of wildfires by clearing pine beetle infested forest lands.

“Montanans can color code our forest: Green is a healthy forest, rust orange is a mountain pine beetle kill and black or gray is a recent wildfire scar,” said Rehberg a member of the House Appropriations Committee.  “A sick forest full of thousands of dead trees means there’s too much fuel for the fires.  It’s vitally important to prevent infestations where possible and manage them when it’s already too late.  The FLAME Act allows the Forest Service to manage forests and fight fires without wrecking its budget.”

Over the last three years, the Forest Service has spent approximately $225 million for wildfire suppression in Montana alone.  That includes $136 million in FY 2007, a particularly bad year.  This amount does not account for costs incurred by private losses.

“The FLAME Act is long overdue, and the infestation language is a crucial step to beginning to turn our forests back to healthy green,” said Rehberg.  “To the folks – and the forests – in Western Montana, help is on the way.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Montana’s Congressman, Denny Rehberg, submitted comments from sixteen members of the Facebook group “Fight to Protect the 2nd Amendment Against H.R. 45” for inclusion in the Congressional Record which records the debate proceedings in the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate. Their comments were posted on the public wall of the Facebook group, and express support for the Second Amendment and strong opposition to H.R. 45, the Blair Holt Firearm Licensing and Record of Sales Act. Rehberg has introduced proactive legislation to oppose this measure.

“Online venues like Facebook and Twitter have made government more accessible to the people than ever before,” said Rehberg a member of the House Appropriations Committee, and a regular user of Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. “On Capitol Hill I’m always trying to bring a little bit of Montana to the discussion, and I can’t think of a better way to do it than to actually let Montanans drive the debate.”

Rehberg is the only member of the Montana delegation to use Twitter to report his activities to Montanans. He is also active with Facebook and YouTube, regularly posting news updates and commentary about what is happening in Washington, D.C. and Montana.

“I think folks really feel connected to their government when they experience it directly through the internet,” said Rehberg.

Montanans can view and join the Facebook group online here: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=56069929010

Rehberg’s Submission to the Congressional Record is below:

Read the rest of this entry »

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Montana’s Congressman, Denny Rehberg, released the following statement after his vote against the so-called “Omnibus Lands Bill.”

“While there are a lot of problems with this massive bill, tucked away in its 1,200 pages is a small but significant attack against the Second Amendment. A federal judge here in Washington, D.C. has taken it upon himself to revoke the Constitutional right to bear arms for individuals while on federal park lands and refuges. This bill is the best place to fix this dangerous policy; we shouldn’t be expanding federal lands in our country if we can’t make sure that our Second Amendment rights are protected when we’re on these lands.”

In reference to Rehberg-authored and/or supported bills like the Wolf Livestock Loss Demonstration Project, the Cooperative Watershed Management Program and the Elkhorn Cemetery designation:

“I support many aspects of this bill, and when given the chance, I am on record as voting for them as stand-alone bills. It’s important to measure the victories against the big picture and in this case, the poison outweighed the medicine for Montana.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Montana’s Congressman, Denny Rehberg, today praised the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) for correcting guidelines regarding commercial air travel with large caliber ammunition used for big game hunting.  Last December, Rehberg contacted then TSA Administrator Kip Hawley requesting changes to this burdensome regulation.

“This is great news for Montana’s destination big game hunters,” said Rehberg a member of the House Appropriation Committee and the Congressional Sportsmen’s Caucus.  “We need to keep our airplanes safe, but this overly restrictive ban on traveling with large caliber ammunition was stopping hunting trips at the gate.  I’m proud I was able to resolve this problem.”

The issue stemmed from a disparity between the TSA and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ammunition-related regulations that resulted in a TSA ban of all ammunition larger than .50 caliber even though FAA deemed such ammunition safe to carry.  The Department of Transportation’s website has corrected the problem to reflect the new ammunition size limit of .75 caliber.  Although the policy has been changed, it’s recommended that hunters who are carrying large caliber ammunition print a copy of the regulation off of the website and carry it with them when traveling: http://safetravel.dot.gov/index_ammunition.html

“Big game hunting can be challenging enough,” said Rehberg.  “But a story about the one that got away should never start with the phrase, ‘So I was checking my luggage at the airport…’.”

The original release and the text of the letter can be found here: http://rightmontana.com/dennyrehberg/2008/12/19/663/

Bill creates new market and jobs for Montana’s timber and energy industries

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Montana’s Congressman, Denny Rehberg, has introduced legislation that would allow wood harvested from overgrown forests to be used as a renewable source of energy.  Congress is expected to vote on the FIRE Act this week – a bill which addresses the skyrocketing costs of wildfires.  Rehberg’s bill would help reduce those costs while simultaneously increasing the production of renewable biomass energy.

“If nature was allowed to run its course, most of this wood would have already burned in a forest fire,” said Rehberg, a member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Energy and Water.  “Instead, we put the fires out leading to unhealthy forests that burn hotter and faster.  My bill creates a market-based incentive to harvest wood that isn’t suitable for commercial use, and uses it to create energy.”

The Wildfire Risk Reduction and Renewable Biomass Utilization Act revises the definition of “renewable biomass” to include biomass removed from certain federal lands in connection with an authorized hazardous fuel reduction project.  The current definition of “renewable biomass” doesn’t include material removed from Federal or State forest lands in order to reduce wildfire risks, except when the removal occurs in the “immediate vicinity of buildings and other areas regularly occupied by people, or of public infrastructure, at risk from wildfire.”  This bill doesn’t grant access to new areas of land for resource harvesting nor does it advocate clear-cutting.  Instead, it creates a new energy market for wood that is currently left in the forest because it has limited commercial value.

“We’re literally harvesting the energy of a forest fire,” said Rehberg.  “This is one of those rare opportunities to kill two birds with one stone for Montanans who are saddled with both the expense of fire management and rising energy costs.  We’ll also be creating new jobs in two of Montana’s core industries.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Montana’s Congressman, Denny Rehberg, issued the following statement in response to the news that Montana State University President Geoff Gamble has announced his retirement.

“Geoff Gamble is a dedicated public servant who has worked to improve opportunities for Montana’s young men and women, and I’ll be sorry to see him go.  A degree from MSU opens more doors today than ever before, which is a testament to Geoff’s dedication to top-notch education.  Geoff has always focused on doing what’s right not only for the university and community but for the state.  I’ve enjoyed our working relationship and would like to thank him for his service and wish him and his family all the best in the future.”