U.S. Senator Ken Salazar

Member of the Agriculture, Energy and Veterans Affairs Committees

 

2300 15th Street, Suite 450 Denver, CO 80202 | 702 Hart Senate Building, Washington, D.C. 20510

 

 

For Immediate Release

February 8, 2006

CONTACT:    Cody Wertz – Comm. Director

                        303-455-7600

Andrew Nannis  – Press Secretary

                        202-224-5852


 Sen. Salazar Votes to Proceed on the Asbestos Bill But Believes it may be Fiscally Irresponsible and Should Not be the Senate’s First Priority

WASHINGTON - United States Senator Ken Salazar voted to proceed on legislation to address pay-outs of Asbestos claims, but maintained his reservations that the bill may be fiscally irresponsible and his belief that more pressing matters face the nation.

“I am concerned that this legislation has the potential to bust the federal treasury. In this time of record-breaking deficits, Congress must exercise fiscal responsibility and restraint. Recent reports have revealed that previous federal programs have largely underestimated the number of claims that would be filed and have resulted in an explosion in costs. For example, initial estimates for the Black Lung Program were $3 billion, actual benefits paid through FY 2004 have totaled over $41 billion.

“Another alarming example comes from Colorado, the Manville Trust, which Senator Specter first came to understand through a conversation with former Colorado Senator Gary Hart. The Johns-Manville Company bankruptcy resulted in the formation of a trust to pay asbestos claims. Given the huge volume of unforeseen cases, the trust was forced to reorganize and reduce benefits to ten cents on the dollar in 1995 and five cents on the dollar in 2001.

“Our commitment to fiscal discipline should not simply be rhetorical. While I believe we need a federal solution to this issue, I will not support a program that has the high potential of bankrupting our government any further.”

“Moreover, the only place where asbestos should precede the issues of corruption in Washington, energy independence and the needs of rural America is in the dictionary.

“This country is currently faced with an energy crisis, a health care crisis, a national security crisis, a war on Iraq, a war on terror, an effort to rebuild the Gulf Coast states, and a lack of effort to revitalize rural America – not to mention a crisis of confidence in its public officials. I would hope that these national issues would be a higher priority for Washington.”

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