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Back to top or back to home page or back to Whats New With the Senate Appropriations Committee moving this week to formally approve of spending caps that would apply to the thirteen subcommittees that provide funding for the government, many predict there will be major problems in finalizing the FY'00 budget language this fall. The draft figures for non-defense funds - called 302(b) allocations - from the Senate are very different from those adopted by the House Appropriations Committee. Spending caps required by the 1997 balanced budget agreement will create even more difficulty in resolving budget disputes, as appropriators are faced with making nearly $30 billion in cuts to the Clinton Administration's FY'00 budget request for non-defense programs. The Senate Appropriations Committee will begin to wrestle with its FY'00 funding bills this week, and may adopt the 302(b) allocations as early as Tuesday. The committee plans to move the funding bill for energy and water on Thursday. The Appropriations Committee will look at the $21.2 billion energy and water funding bill approved by the Energy and Water Development Subcommittee. The legislation would slash non-defense discretionary spending by $490 million below FY'99 levels and $608 million below the Clinton Administration's request of $9.2 billion. The Senate bill undercuts President Clinton's request for the US Army Corps of Engineers by $182 million and the Bureau of Reclamation by $100 million, providing the agencies with $3.723 billion and $756 million respectively. The House Appropriations Committee, which began work on relatively well-funded programs last week, plans to put off work on the biggest bills, and those facing the biggest funding cuts, to later in the year. The Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on the energy and water development appropriations bill will be at 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, May 27, in 106 Dirksen Senate Office Building. On Wednesday, the House will continue its debate about funding for the Agriculture Department for FY'00. The House Appropriations Committee passed the $60.8 billion bill last Wednesday, the first of thirteen annual appropriations bills that must be cleared for action on the floor. Of the total, only $13.9 billion is discretionary spending, with the rest devoted to mandatory programs. The bill would provide the department's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) $654 million, a figure that undercuts President Clinton's request by $26 million but exceeds current year appropriations by $13 million. The NRCS assists planning for conservation initiatives such as controlling polluted runoff from factory farms, water quality improvements, wetland protection, and habitat enhancement, and provides assistance to Commodity Credit Corporation-funded projects such as wetlands and conservation reserve programs. Although the Clinton Administration called for almost 200,000 additional acres to be enrolled in the wetlands reserve (to bring the total to nearly one million acres), the House bill would limit additional acreage to 120,000. Another program the House refused to fund at the level requested by the Clinton Administration is the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP), for which the White House called for $300 million. Part of this increase was aimed at combating polluted runoff from the nation's factory farms. The House bill would limit EQIP funding to $174 million. The House funding bill would maintain spending levels at $10 million for watershed surveys and planning - the Administration requested a $1 million increase - and $99 million for watershed and flood prevention operations - the Administration requested a $16 million cut. The bill met President Clinton's $35 million request for resource conservation and development and would provide no money for the forest incentives program that encourages management and protection of non-industrial private forest lands or a matching-funds program aimed at reducing conversion of farmlands to non-agricultural uses. House and Senate Approve Emergency Spending Legislation: Last week, both the House and Senate passed the conference report to the emergency supplemental appropriations bill, clearing the bill for signature by President Clinton. The Senate vote was 64-36, and the House voted 269-158. Approximately $12 billion of the nearly $15 billion measure will go to military operations in the Balkans and other defense items, including humanitarian aid. The legislation also carried a number of riders opposed by the environmental community, including provisions to prevent the Park Service from protecting fisheries in Glacier Bay National Park; further delay pending regulations on environmental and reclamation standards at mines on federal lands; delay an Administration initiative to recalculate the valuation of royalties paid on oil and gas production on federal lands; allow states to keep all of the $246 billion promised by tobacco companies in settlement of state lawsuits; weaken the Endangered Species Act; and transfer $100 million from Forest Service wildfire management operations to an Agriculture Department fund for reforestation on national forest lands. Back to top or back to home page or back to Whats New On May 27, the House Resources Subcommittee on Fisheries Conservation, Wildlife, and Ocean will hold a hearing on H. Con. Res. 63, a resolution that argues against dam removal in federal efforts to restore threatened and endangered salmon and steelhead runs on the Columbia and Snake Rivers. In so doing, the resolution, introduced by Representative Doc Hastings (R-WA) in March, weighs in on the ongoing public debate about the merits of removing dams on the Lower Snake River. Although H. Con. Res. 63 is a non-binding resolution, how it is received carries great weight. If Congress brings the resolution to the floor, it will be the first vote on how the nation should deal with the demise of Snake River salmon and steelhead, and it will set the tone for all future decisions regarding fish recovery and the four Lower Snake River dams. Largely because of four federal dams on the Lower Snake River, every single species of Snake River salmon is now listed under the Endangered Species Act. This December, the National Marine Fisheries Service will release its long-term recovery plan for Snake River salmon, and partial removal of these four dams is one of the options being studied. Science has shown that removing the four dams is the only option under consideration by the Clinton Administration that can save these legendary fish from extinction. The hearing is scheduled for after the fisheries subcommittee markup of coastal barrier resource and national marine sanctuary legislation at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, May 27, in 1324 Longworth House Office Building. House Resources contacts are: Bonnie Bruce, 202-226-0200, majority, and Cynthia Suchman, 202-226-2311, minority. The Senate Energy Subcommittee on Water and Power also plans to address the Snake River dam issue, with a hearing scheduled for June 9. For more information on the Snake River and saving wild salmon through dam removal, see http://www.amrivers.org/snake.html or contact Justin Hayes at jhayes@amrivers.org or 202-347-7550. To see the text of H. Con. Res. 63, see http://thomas.loc.gov and type in H. Con. Res. 63. To see a map of the Lower Snake River, see http://www.amrivers.org/99map.html. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chair John Chafee's (R-RI) bill to reform how the federal government designates "critical habitat" will be the focus of a hearing by the committee's Fisheries, Wildlife, and Drinking Water Subcommittee. Critical habitat designation, assigned to areas vital to the survival of federally protected species, restricts how people can use those lands. Senator Chafee's legislation would change the Endangered Species Act to make designation of critical habitat a part of the federal agency planning process for recovering listed species. Currently, federal agencies designate critical habitat when the species is listed. ESA critics claim that designation at the time of listing does not work because agencies do not always know what must be done to recover the species in question. According to Senator Chafee, a mere 9 percent of the approximately 1,200 species listed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service has designated critical habitats. This situation has resulted in litigation by environmental organizations against the FWS and the National Marine Fisheries Service - fifteen currently pending with six already decided in favor of the environmental plaintiffs. Senator Chafee's bill (S. 1100) would shift designation of critical habitat to the recovery planning process and require that recovery plans be completed within three years after a species is listed. Also, any lawsuit challenging the designation of critical habitat would have to challenge the recovery plan upon which the designation was based. The House Resources Committee will also look into the Endangered Species Act, focusing on the use of land and money mitigation requirements in ESA enforcement. The Senate Environment subcommittee hearing will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, May 27 in 406 Dirksen Senate Office Building. Senate Environment contacts are: Jason Patlis, majority, 202-224-6176; David Hoskins, minority, 202-224-8832. The House Resources hearing will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday, May 26 in 1324 Longworth House Office Building. House Resources contacts are: Elizabeth Megginson, majority, 202-225-7800; Jean Flemma, minority, 202-226-2311. For more information on the Endangered Species Act and these bills, please visit the Endangered Species Coalition webpage at www.stopextinction.org. Back to top or back to home page or back to Whats New Education Land Grant Bill Before House Committee: On Wednesday, the House Resources Committee will discuss the Education Land Grant Act (H.R. 150), introduced by Representative J.D. Hayworth (R-AZ) in January. As introduced, the bill would have allowed municipal governments, states, or local education authorities to apply for national forest lands to build elementary or secondary schools under the Recreation and Public Purposes Act (RPPA). Areas designated by Congress as wilderness, national trails, or national recreation areas and wild and scenic rivers would not be included in the lands available for conveyance, which are limited to 640 acres under the RPPA. The Clinton Administration voiced opposition to the bill as introduced. In committee, members adopted a substitute drafted by Representative Jim Hansen (R-UT) that dropped any reference to the RPPA and gave the US Forest Service authority to make land grants for educational purposes. Also, any lands conveyed under the act would revert to the United States if ever used for undesignated purposes. Back to top or back to home page or back to Whats New Senate Hearing Scheduled on Two Plains States Water Project Proposals: This week, the Senate Energy Subcommittee on Water and Power will discuss two water resources bills focused on projects in the Dakotas, Iowa, and Minnesota. One of the proposals, S. 623, reintroduced by Senators Kent Conrad (D-ND) and Byron Dorgan (D-ND), would expand the controversial Garrison Diversion Project in North Dakota to include a $770 million drinking water system for the Red River Valley, eastern North Dakota, and the state's four Indian reservations. The Garrison project has been the source of controversy among farmers and other residents of North Dakota for decades. It was first introduced as part of massive Bureau of Reclamation Pick-Sloan project, built in the 1940s to control flooding in the lower portion of the Missouri River basin. Under that plan, North Dakota citizens ceded 550,000 acres of land for the construction of the Garrison dam, in return for which they were promised a huge water supply and irrigation project authorized in 1965 as the Garrison Diversion Project. The project was strongly opposed from the start by affected landowners, environmental and taxpayer groups, and the Canadian government. After just fifteen percent of the construction was completed, progress was stopped on the project until Congress acted in 1986 to pass a Garrison "reformulation" law that scaled back the original billion-dollar project but authorized some further irrigation work. The 1986 law also required farmers to foot a higher bill for the water they received from the project; attempted to address fish, wildlife, and wetlands concerns; and postponed several parts of the project. Although Congress has funded the Garrison project at $20 to $30 million a year since 1986, with much of the money going toward construction of rural domestic water systems, the North Dakota delegation contends that promises made to the state have not been met and many rural communities in the state do not have clean and reliable water systems. S. 623, and companion legislation introduced in the House by Representative Earl Pomeroy (D-ND) (H.R. 1137), would authorize construction $300 million for municipal and industrial water supply projects across the state and $200 million for similar projects on the four Indian reservations within the state, $25 million for a natural resources trust fund, and $6.5 million for recreation projects. In addition, the bill would provide $200 million for water quality and quantity projects to meet the needs of the Red River Valley, possibly including an interbasin water transfer from the Missouri River. North Dakota would repay $345 million of the project cost, and $500 million worth of already-authorized projects would be deauthorized. In addition to the Garrison bill, the subcommittee will take up a bill (S. 244) to authorize the Lewis and Clark rural water system, aimed at providing safe drinking water for 180,000 people in 22 rural water systems and communities in parts of South Dakota, Iowa, and Minnesota. Under the bill, the federal government would be responsible for 80 percent of the costs for most of the project, estimated at $282 million. The bill also includes provisions addressing environmental enhancement, water conservation, and mitigation of damage to fish and wildlife habitat resulting from construction and operation of the water supply projects. The hearing is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. on Thursday, May 27 in 366 Dirksen Senate Office Building. Senate Energy contacts are: Colleen Deegan, majority, 202-224-4971; David Brooks, minority, 202-224-4103. Back to top or back to home page or back to Whats New S. 766 to require the National Park Service to study how to protect the large expanse of undisturbed mixed prairie and unique geological formations of the Loess Hills along the Missouri River in Iowa. S. 744 to grant up to 500,000 acres of federal lands to the University of Alaska. S. 416 to transfer a small tract of US Forest Service Land to the city of Sisters, Oregon. S. 323 to elevate the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Monument to national park status and create several other conservation areas near Montrose, Colorado. S. 109 to expand the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area. Back to top or back to home page or back to Whats New For more information or to see the text of any of the bills listed below, go to the Thomas website at http://thomas.loc.gov/ and enter the bill number. H.R. 468: Introduced by Representative Dale Kildee (D-MI), the Saint Helena Island National Scenic Area Act seeks to preserve and protect for present and future generations the outstanding resources and values of Saint Helena Island in Lake Michigan, Michigan, and to provide for the conservation, protection, and enhancement of primitive recreation opportunities, fish and wildlife habitat, vegetation, and historical and cultural resources of the island. The designation would apply to the whole of Saint Helena Island, except that portion to be conveyed to the Great Lakes Lighthouse Keepers Association. Referred to the House Committee on Resources. The bill was referred to the House Resources Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources and Subcommittee on Forests and Forest Health. H.R. 1749: Introduced by Representative Cass Ballenger (R-NC), H.R. 1749 would designate Wilson Creek in Avery and Caldwell Counties, North Carolina, as a component of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. The bill would designate 23.3 miles of the river, from the headwaters of Wilson Creek to its confluence with Johns River. The 2.9 mile segment from its headwaters below Calloway Peak downstream to the confluence of Little Wilson Creek would be designated as scenic, the 4.6 segment from Little Wilson Creek downstream to the confluence of Crusher Branch would be designated as wild, and the 15.8 segment from Crusher Branch downstream to the confluence of Johns River would be designated as recreational. H.R. 1749 was referred to the House Resources Committee. H.R. 1759: Representative Doc Hastings' (R-WA) Hanford Reach National Salmon Preserve and Recreational Area Act states as its goal the enhancement of wildlife, recreation, and "other uses" of the Hanford Reach. The bill does not define or place any restrictions on the term "other uses," leaving it open to wide interpretation. The bill directs direct the Secretary of Energy to convey, at no cost, the Hanford Reach river corridor to the State of Washington and calls for the creation of a Hanford Reach Protection and Management Commission. The bill does not provide any funding for the commission - which would be founded jointly by the Department of Energy, the counties, and the State of Washington - or the long-term management of the Reach. The commission's membership would be made by governmental appointment, with no requirement that members be professional natural resource managers, fisheries or wildlife professionals, or citizens other than political appointees. In order be approved, any management proposal must be agreed to by a majority from each of three panels. Until a permanent plan is in place, the Reach would be managed by the counties' Interim Action Plan, which has no legal jurisdiction to manage federal lands, no funding mechanism for management of the Reach, relies on a voluntary Memorandum of Understanding, and does not address impacts to the Hanford Reach from sources outside the ¬ mile river corridor. The bill was referred to the House Resources Committee. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) and Representative Norm Dicks (D-WA) have already introduced S. 715 and H.R. 1314, the Hanford Reach Wild and Scenic River bills that would provide federal resources and protection for the reach. S. 972: Introduced by Senator Judd Gregg (R-NH), S. 972 would amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to improve the administration of the Lamprey River in the State of New Hampshire. The bill would extend the designated segment of the river from 11.5 miles to 23.5 miles, stretching from the Bunker Pond Dam in Epping to the confluence with the Piscassic River in the vicinity of the Durham-Newmarket town line. The bill was referred to the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Subcommittee on Parks, Preservation and Recreation. Back to top or back to home page or back to Whats New The question of who should foot the bill to clean up pollution from the nation's hog farms is the focus of an online discussion of activists, industry representatives, and others interested in the issue of animal waste. The online discussion, sponsored by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's Environmental Resource Center, begins May 24. Program officials invited seven people who are very involved in the issue of hog farming and waste control to participate in the forum as moderators/experts. The seven panelists will participate in the discussion through May 28, but the site will be available for public input on an ongoing basis. Discussions will be archived on the program's webpage. The panelists slated to participate include: Alan Briggs, executive director, Save Our State; Beth Anne Mumford, director of public affairs, North Carolina Pork Council; Michelle Nowlin, attorney, Southern Environmental Law Center; Karen Priest, Alliance for Responsible Swine Industry; Michael Shore, senior policy analyst, N.C. Department of Environment and Natural Resources; Mike Williams, director, Animal and Poultry Waste Management Center, N.C. State University; and Clark Wright, attorney. To access the forum, visit the Carolina Health and Environment Community Center Web site at http://checc.sph.unc.edu and look for the icon marked "forum." Back to top or back to home page or back to Whats New Tuesday, May 25 10:00 a.m.: Senate Energy Committee hearing on electricity industry deregulation efforts by the states. Location: 366 Dirksen Senate Office Building. 10:30 a.m.: Senate Appropriations Energy and Water Development Subcommittee hearing on the FY'00 energy and water funding bill. Location: 116 Dirksen Senate Office Building 2:15 p.m.: Senate Energy Subcommittee on National Parks hearing on several parks and trails bills, including legislation to create a new category of trail and authorize the 6,000-mile American Discovery Trail; direct the National Park Service to consider the feasibility of adding a pre-historic site in Miami to Biscayne National Park; and allow the NPS to buy or exchange land to add to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. Location: 366 Dirksen Senate Office Building. Wednesday, May 26 10:00 a.m.: House Resources Committee hearing on the use of land and money mitigation requirements in Endangered Species Act enforcement. Location: 1324 Longworth House Office Building. Thursday, May 27 9:30 a.m.: Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on the FY'00 energy and water funding bill. Location: 106 Dirksen Senate Office Building. 10:00 a.m.: House Resources Subcommittee on Fisheries Conservation, Wildlife, and Oceans Subcommittee markup of legislation to reauthorize the 1972 National Marine Fisheries Sanctuaries Act and the 1982 Coastal Barriers Resources Act. Location: 1324 Longworth House Office Building. The subcommittee's hearing on Representative Doc Hasting's H. Con. Res. 63 will immediately follow the markup. 10:30 a.m.: Senate Environment and Public Works Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife, and Drinking Water hearing on critical habitat designation. Location: 406 Dirksen Senate Office Building. 2:00 p.m.: Senate Energy Subcommittee on Water and Power hearing on the Garrison project and the Lewis and Clark rural water system. Location: 366 Dirksen Senate Office Building. May 10: http://www.amrivers.org/policy5-10.html May 3: http://www.amrivers.org/policy5-3.html April 26: http://www.amrivers.org/policy4-26.html April 19: http://www.amrivers.org/policy4-19.html April 12: http://www.amrivers.org/policy4-12.html April 5: http://www.amrivers.org/policy4-5.html March 29: http://www.amrivers.org/policy3-29.html March 22: http://www.amrivers.org/policy3-22.html March 15: http://www.amrivers.org/policy3-15.html March 8: http://www.amrivers.org/policy3-8.html March 1: http://www.amrivers.org/policy3-1.html February 22: http://www.amrivers.org/policy2-22.html February 15: http://www.amrivers.org/policy2-15.html February 8: http://www.amrivers.org/policy2-8.html American Rivers, 1025 Vermont Avenue, NW, Suite 720 Washington, DC 20005, (202) 347-7550 CHECK OUT OUR HOMEPAGE!! http://www.amrivers.org QUESTIONS? Contact Suzy McDowell, Conservation Outreach Coordinator, at smcdowell@amrivers.org or 202-347-7550x3040. Legislative information taken from many sources including Thomas, Congressional Greensheets, Greenwire, and Roll Call. Suzy McDowell Outreach Coordinator American Rivers 1025 Vermont Ave, NW, #720 Washington, DC 20005 202-347-7550 x3040 smcdowell@amrivers.org
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APPROPRIATIONS
Many See Stalemate Ahead on FY'00 Budget:
FY'00 Funding for Agriculture Goes To House Floor:
FISH AND WILDLIFE
Anti-Salmon Resolution Hearing Set in House:
Critical Habitat Issue Gets Time in Senate:
PARKS AND PUBLIC LANDS
WATER RESOURCES
RECENTLY PASSED RIVER-RELATED BILLS
In the Senate:
RIVER-RELATED BILLS IN CONGRESS
WEB RESOURCES
Online Forum on Hog Waste Issues Hosted by UNC-Chapel Hill:
HEARINGS
LINKS TO PAST UPDATES:
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