mr. chairman , i rise in support of this bill .  i would first like to thank the chairman of the subcommittee , mr. hobson , and the ranking member , mr. visclosky , for their work in putting together the energy and water appropriations bill .  i also want to thank both of them for including $ 48 million in the bill to continue funding the port of oakland 's 50-foot dredging project in my district in california .  as the fourth largest container port in the country , the port of oakland serves as one of our premier international trade gateways to asia and the pacific .  the 50-foot dredging project will underpin an $ 800 million expansion project funded by the port that will improve infrastructure , expand capacity and increase efficiencies throughout the distribution chain .  once this project is finished , an additional 8 , 800 jobs will be added , business revenue will increase by $ 1.9 billion , and local tax revenues will go up by $ 55.5 million .  best of all , 100 percent of the dredged materials will be reused for wetlands restoration , habitat enhancement , and upland use within the san francisco bay area .  i appreciate the subcommittee 's support for this project and i look forward to continuing to work with the chairman and ranking member to complete it .  