mr. chairman , i appreciate the chairman not only yielding me time but , more especially , i appreciate all the work that he has done in this . 
we heard over and over in the hearings that democrats really appreciated the way in which the gentleman reached out and started from scratch and negotiated with them . 
everything was honest , open , above board and that the gentleman 's example was one to be emulated by people that wanted bipartisanship . 
of course , we get to the floor and i am hearing some different things now . 
but nonetheless i also want to thank those democrats who , with an open mind and with a regard for fairness , have assisted the chairman in trying to put together a good bill . 
now , it seems to me what this comes down to is a couple of differing philosophies here . 
on the one hand , you have a philosophy that says private property ownership rights are important and on the other says king george , before we had the revolution , did not have such a bad system . 
if you were a suck-up to the king , if you paid homage , kind of like the kelo decision , you were the better friend of the government , then the government was going to treat you good . 
never mind your private property rights . 
we will tell you how you can use your property . 
we will tell you what you can be compensated for and how and when . 
now , under the substitute amendment , it is pretty clear you do not get an honest answer from the government . 
do my private property rights violate or infringe upon some endangered species ? 
will it amount to an inappropriate use ? 
well , maybe it will and maybe it will not . 
we do not have to give you an answer , but you will have to buy a permit and then under the bill , the chairman has come up with you get a straight answer and you get it quickly . 
and if you do not get it within 180 days , then you have got your answer as a matter of law . 
under this substitute , all property owners can find out is if they need to be having a habitat conservation plan and if they do , well , gee , the government will help you fill out the application in begging to see what you can do with your own property . 
we give you a straight answer yes or no under the original bill , and that is how it should be . 
the substitute amendment is going to stick the private property owners with the fees . 
and , boy , i tell you what , when i hear this word `` entitlement '' as if it is going to somebody that is not entitled to something . 
i tell you , entitlement has a different connotation here . 
but under this bill , under the original bill it is not an entitlement the way most people see it . 
if you own property and it is taken away from you , you can not use it the way you want to because some federal entity says you can not . 
by golly , under our system of law , the way our constitution is written , you ought to be compensated for it . 
that is america . 
