Special District Grant Accessibility Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. FALLON. Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague, the gentleman from Kansas (Mr. LaTurner), my good friend, for yielding time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 7525, the Special District Grant Accessibility Act, introduced by myself and my colleague, Representative Pettersen, from the Centennial State of Colorado.

Mr. Speaker, special districts are a type of local government authorized by State law, which deliver specialized services to specific communities that would otherwise not be provided. In rural areas, for instance, special districts may provide fire protection, mosquito control, ambulatory services, et cetera. Special districts also occur in urban areas and can provide airport, road, and transit services.

According to the National Special Districts Coalition, as my colleague from Kansas (Mr. LaTurner) said, there are about 35,000 special districts in the country, and they are in every State.

In Texas, we have over 3,300 special districts providing all manner of government goods and services. Yet, as these lesser-known units of government, special districts have struggled to consistently access Federal financial assistance.

H.R. 7525 would remedy that and would emphasize that special districts are units of local government and are, therefore, eligible for Federal financial assistance by establishing a definition in law for special districts and requiring the Office of Management and Budget to issue guidance to Federal agencies, as well as grant-issuing agencies.

This bill also requires an OMB report to Congress on the agency's implementation and conformity to the guidance.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Pettersen and the bipartisan coalition of Members who cosponsored this bill, and I encourage a ``yes'' vote.

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