Josh Gottheimer Remarks on New Jersey Firefighters Mutual Benevolent Association Endorsement

Statement

I want to thank FMBA President Ed Donnelly for this endorsement -- it's an incredible honor -- and all of the 5,000 members of the FMBA including those here at Fire Station Four. I'd also like to thank Teaneck FMBA Local 242 President, Mike Hunter and Teaneck FMBA Local 42 President, Steven Van Mater. And I'd like to thank my friend, the County Executive, Jim Tedesco, a firefighter himself and whose son is a NYC firefighter. And, of course, Congressman Bill Pascrell for being here today, who fights harder than anyone in Congress on behalf of firefighters and first responders.

In Scripture, the Lord asks: "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" Isaiah responds, "Here I am! Send me." (Isaiah 6:8)

Every day, no matter how dangerous, our firefighters say, "send me." They are our heroes. Every time they rush to the scene of a fire, accident, medical emergency, environmental disaster, or terror attack on our homeland, they are putting their safety and lives at risk, and I am humbled to have their support. Just as firefighters and all first responders look out for us, we need to look out for them.

When I'm in Congress, I will work with my colleagues from both sides of the aisle because supporting our firefighters and first responders isn't a partisan issue, particularly in a district like ours that is so close to one of the biggest terrorist targets in the world. We can't have safe communities for our families without strong fire departments.

So we need to make sure our firefighters and first responders have the best equipment, training, support systems, and information to keep us safe -- and to keep them safe. And if they get hurt, or God-forbid worse, protecting our lives, our homes, and our communities, they should never have to worry about their health care, or livelihood, or whether their families will be taken care of.

There are things we can do. We must make sure our communities get SAFER grants that provide money to maintain adequate staffing levels, purchase equipment, and provide training. We must make sure that no one ever puts a hand on the Zadroga Act, ensuring health care from our 9-11 first responders.

And we can make sure our first responders have all of the information they need about hazardous and harmful materials traveling through our towns, just in case, God-forbid, there is an attack or accident in one of our towns. An estimated 15-30 trains carrying as much as 7 million gallons of crude Bakken oil pass through Bergen County, and right here in Teaneck, and other densely populated towns like Bergenfield, each week. The Record reported last year that about 60,000 tank cars containing 30,000 gallons each traveled through Bergen County in 2014, three times as much as in the prior year. The Bakken oil has been involved in multiple, fiery derailments across North America, including one a couple of years ago that killed 47 people. And in towns like Oradell and Haworth, we have bridges and tunnels that aren't equipped to handle the heavy traffic on these rail lines, increasing the risk of derailment.

The type of combustible material being transported determines what fire fighters must use to combat or prevent a fire. Older single hull train cars create a higher risk of an oil leak compared to newer double hull cars. Knowing which cars are double hull and which are single is also not made available to local first responders. If a train derails in a residential area, securing more vulnerable cars first could save lives.

But here's the problem: Currently, information related to oil trains is only provided to state officials; the law does not allow information to get to the county and local first responders who would actually be first on the scene. So, our firefighters often have to go into harms way, without knowing, in an instant, what type of chemical they're fighting, how much of it, what type of fire is ahead of them, what level of risk a community is facing. This is information they could and should have -- they should know what's rolling through our towns, so they can be prepared -- just in case.

As your congressman, I will fight for legislation that provides for secured access to critical information, ahead of time, to the local municipal OEM director -- and that person should, of course, go through the requisite background checks. The time it could take for local officials to get this information from state officials could endanger the lives of residents and our first responders -- time we could be taking action to protect our children and families.

For firefighters and our first responders, every extra minute counts. Every pieces of equipment, extra piece of technology, can make the difference for their lives and the lives of others. I will never understand someone who doesn't do everything possible to stand by them.

Unfortunately, when it comes to supporting our firefighters and first responders, my opponent, Scott Garrett, for 25 years now, has shown a stunning lack of concern and compassion for these brave men and women and the jobs they do.

The list is too long, but here are a few highlights:

In 2015, Scott Garrett was the only member of the New Jersey delegation to vote against funding for the Department of Homeland Security. Had DHS shut down, local firefighter units would not have received critical funding for SAFER grants to help maintain adequate staffing levels, purchase equipment, and provide training -- and our other first responders wouldn't have received funding to help fight lone wolf terrorists, like those who struck in California.
In 2011, Garrett struck again, voting against legislation that would have gutted support for firefighter grants. Fortunately, thanks to the fierce advocacy of Congressman Pascrell, the legislation survived and our district has received $1.1 million in dollars in firefighter grants because of it -- grants for fire trucks, training, and other life-saving equipment.

Then, of course, and the issue that makes me burn red inside, Scott Garrett was the only member of the NJ delegation to vote against the Zadroga Act -- not once, but twice -- which provides 9/11 first responders with healthcare to treat the medical problems resulting from their time at Ground Zero. We have scores of first responders living within miles from here who are sick today because of what they breathed in saving lives. We must stand by them. To add insult to injury, Congressman Garrett told a 9/11 first responder who asked him why he voted against the Zadroga Act that the legislation gave him "heartburn." Heartburn?

In some ways, this isn't a shock. This is exactly the way Garrett treats our veterans when they return from the front lines -- refusing to support prosthetics and job training. He's diluted our ability to fight lone wolf terrorists. He believes terrorists on no-fly lists should be able to buy guns. On every front, Garrett's actions weaken our first responders, law enforcement, and our military's might and ability to attract talent, fight terror, and protect our communities.

Not only does Scott Garrett refuse to vote to support legislation that our firefighters and first responders need to keep us safe, but he also refuses to fight for federal funding once it's already there.

Garrett's office recently told towns, like Oradell and Paramus, seeking a letter of support for Federal firefighter grants, that it was the Congressman's policy not to write such letters. Those applications ultimately may or may be successful, but certainly the likelihood of success increases when the local member of congress puts a pen to paper and fights for it.

If these funds aren't allocated to this District, they will go to other cities like Biloxi, Mississippi or Mobile, Alabama. Scott Garrett's willingness to let taxpayers suffer and put first responders at risk shows just how out of touch he is.

It is simply unacceptable for Scott Garrett to put his extreme Tea Party ideology ahead of our children and families.

We need someone who is focused on the future, not living in the past. We need someone in Washington who will work across the aisle, do their job and get the brave men and women protecting this district the resources they need -- so we can all sleep better at night.

When I'm your congressman, that's exactly what I will do.

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