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Search Terms: "Lands Legacy Initiative", House or Senate or Joint

Document 53 of 118.

MARCH 25, 1999, THURSDAY

SECTION: IN THE NEWS

LENGTH: 2775 words

HEADLINE: PREPARED STATEMENT OF
BRUCE BABBITT
SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
BEFORE THE HOUSE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE
ENERGY AND WATER DEVELOPMENT SUBCOMMITTEE

BODY:

I am pleased to appear before you today with Patricia Beneke, the Assistant Secretary for Water and Science, and Eluid Martinez, the Commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation, in support of the President's fiscal year 2000 budget for Reclamation and for implementation of the Central Utah Project Completion Act.
This, my seventh annual appearance before the Subcommittee as Secretary, was preceded by many other visits as Governor of Arizona, so this is a body whose work I have long respected. I look forward to working with you over the next several months to achieve a balanced budget while providing adequate funding for essential programs such as these.
The 2000 budget is a landmark budget as it will be the first budget of the new century, and it is a bold and forward looking statement by the President of the importance of resource and Indian trust stewardship. Focused around the theme, "Guardians of the Past; Stewards for the Future," the 2000 budget will allow us to make important investments in land and resources, and to meet our responsibilities to Tribes.
As we mark the 150th anniversary of the creation of the Department of the Interior, this budget gives us cause for optimism and sets a new direction for the next 150 years. Since I became Secretary in 1993, this Department has aggressively streamlined operational programs and processes to improve efficiency and the delivery of services to the public. As a result, we are more clear in our purpose and mission, and are well-positioned to undertake the challenges of the next century.
The Department's activities are a part of the day-to-day lives of all Americans and touch on all aspects of the economic and cultural life of this Nation. Every year 379 million people visit our National Parks, National Wildlife Refuges and public lands. The 445 million acres of lands that this Department manages are a source of meaningful outdoor and educational experiences for these visitors. In addition, we provide services and support for self-determination to 1.2 million American Indians and Alaska Natives, and, through the Bureau of Reclamation, supply water to approximately 31 million people throughout the west.
This broad mandate had its genesis with the creation of the Home Department, which was established in March 1849 to house agencies concerned with the management of domestic issues. Since that time, the mission of the Department has been shaped by the changing needs of the American people, evolving through the era of great westward expansion, the age of conservation in the early years of this century, the Great Depression and Civilian Conservation Corps years, and the post World War II baby boom. Today the principal mission of the Department is the conservation and management of natural and cultural resources, the protection and encouragement of Indian self-determination, and the fulfillment of Federal trust responsibilities to American Indians.
Perhaps no bureau in the Department has faced more change in recent years than the Bureau of Reclamation. Facilities developed by Reclamation since it was established in 1902 have contributed to sustained economic growth and an enhanced quality of life in the western States. Greater environmental awareness and increased competition for scarce water resources, however, now require improved management of existing facilities and protection of associated natural resources. As a result, today Reclamation is placing greater emphasis on: promoting the conservation, reclamation and improved management of existing water supplies; managing its projects to protect and restore fish and wildlife resources; developing partnerships with its customers, States, and Tribes in an effort to find ways to bring various interests together to address multiple needs; and establishing results-oriented business practices that will provide the most effective and efficient service to customers, partners and employees.
I would like to briefly discuss the 2000 budget for the Department, the Bureau of Reclamation, and the CUP Completion Act, and then ask Commissioner Martinez and Assistant Secretary Beneke to expand on programs that fall within the jurisdiction of this Subcommittee. HIGHLIGHTS OF THE DEPARTMENT'S 2000 BUDGET
The President's budget for the Department of the Interior totals $8.7 billion in funds subject to annual appropriation. This request is fully funded within the President's balanced budget and includes an increase of $832 million, or 11 percent, over 1999 levels. An estimated $2.2 billion will be provided in permanent appropriations.
Briefly, the 2000 budget for the Department:
- proposes funding for the President's Lands Legacy Initiative, to protect America's land resources and establish a new partnership with States, Tribes and local governments;
- provides resources for broad-based restoration efforts including public lands restoration and science tools to support these efforts, continuation of our successful ecosystem restoration efforts, restoration of species and cultural resources, and facilities repair and rehabilitation; and
- requests funding to continue to improve life in Indian Country through enhanced education programs, school construction, law enforcement, Tribal buffalo programs, and aggressive efforts to resolve trust management problems.
Let me expand on three programs.Lands Legacy. At the start of the century, President Theodore Roosevelt called on Americans to save the best of our natural endowment for all time. His legacy is seen across the country in parks, forests, and wildlife refuges. President Clinton's Lands Legacy Initiative renews America's commitment to its natural environment. This 2000 budget proposal provides significant new resources to protect local green spaces and increases protection for our oceans and coasts. It recognizes that carrying out this commitment must include not only resources for Federal land acquisition, but also resources directed to States, local communities, and Tribes to address their local needs in their own ways. This $1 billion initiative includes $900 million from the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), marking the first time that any Administration has requested the appropriation of the full $900 million authorized to be deposited in the LWCF annually.
The Lands Legacy Initiative includes $579 million for Interior programs, including $295 million for Federal land acquisition, an increase of $84 million over the 1999 level. With this infusion of funding, we have an opportunity to preserve aspects of our natural and cultural legacy for all time. Our efforts will focus particularly on five major areas, including the California Desert, Civil War Battlefields, the Lewis and Clark Trail, refuges in the Northern Forest, and the Everglades. A total of $80 million, an increase of $66 million, will allow States and localities to continue to grow while conserving and recovering imperiled species. Funding will be provided for habitat conservation planning and land acquisition, candidate conservation agreements, Safe Harbor Agreements, and other collaborative strategies.

This is a win-win approach to species protection, as it will provide incentives for landowners to protect plants and wildlife on their property and will accelerate the states' ability to restore declining species in time to keep them off the endangered species list.
The Lands Legacy Initiative includes $150 million for a LWCF competitive grants program that will assist States, local communities, and Tribes to preserve green space. It also includes $50 million for matching grants to States and Indian Tribes to support open space planning, and $4 million for matching grants and technical assistance for restoration of parks in economically distressed urban communities. In America today there is a resurgent sense of the need to preserve open space and the quality of life in our communities, and this program can provide dramatic results by leveraging Federal funds with non-Federal sources. This proposal will allow us to work with the Congress on framing a viable program to increase open spaces, greenways, and other areas for outdoor recreation, urban parks, wildlife habitat, and coastal wetlands.
Ecosystem Restoration. At the turn of the century the concept of preservation was firmly adopted by the American public. Deeply rooted in the ideals of President Theodore Roosevelt, John Muir, and Aldo Leopold, preservation was the clarion call that created a national imperative to preserve wilderness, wild and scenic rivers, national parks, and wildlife refuges. These national treasures are an admirable and important legacy and we are the guardians of that legacy. Moving beyond our responsibilities for stewardship of these treasures, we have come to understand the importance of the entire landscape that extends outside their boundaries.Migratory birds follow historic flyways in their routes from summer to wintering habitat that know no park, refuge, or other boundary. Salmon and trout move in rivers and streams in a rhythm that links to a world that existed before boundaries were established. To protect these wild stocks and heal the land, we have to understand that all the components of an ecosystem are interconnected. Cut too many trees in the headwaters of a stream, and you send a pulse of sediment into the current impacting aquatic life. Our role as guardians of the past and stewards for the future compels us to approach issues and identify solutions on a landscape scale. This budget proposes significant resources to restore public lands and work outside these boundaries in the restoration of fish, wildlife, and natural communities.
The President's Northwest Forest Summit in April 1993 brought a new vision for approaches that serve nature and the Nation's economic future. This vision recognizes that understanding landscapes as complex, living, and integrated systems can result in better ways of living on and prospering from the land, while protecting species and preserving nature's special places. The California Bay-Delta Program, which falls within the jurisdiction of this Subcommittee, is one of several landscapescale restoration efforts funded in the 2000 budget that embrace this vision using new methods, partnerships, and renewed public participation.
Trust Management Improvements. One of the Administration's highest priorities is to successfully resolve the Indian trust fund management problems that have accumulated over the last 70 years. I have committed to clean up this problem on my watch. Significant progress has already been achieved as the Office of the Special Trustee has initiated action to replace key systems for lease management, accounts receivable, land records, and trust resources management, and is installing a new trust fund accounting system. The 2000 budget requests $100 million to continue the implementation of trust management improvements, an increase of $56 million over the 1999 level and the largest percentage increase in the Department's budget. The request will provide 'an increase of $51 million for trust reform activities and an additional $5 million to expand the Indian Land Consolidation Project.
2000 BUREAU OF RECLAMATION BUDGET
The 2000 request for the Bureau of Reclamation totals $857 million, and includes: $762 million for Reclamation's traditional programs, an increase of $30 million from 1999. It also includes $95 million for the California Bay-Delta Program, an increase of $20 million over 1999. Funds for the Bay-Delta Program are requested in Reclamation's budget, but distributed among participating Federal agencies based on plans developed by CALFED, the consortium of Federal and State agencies that is developing the program.
Reclamation Programs. Reclamation's 2000 request reflects its focus on water resources management. Providing adequate funding for operation, maintenance and rehabilitation of its facilities continues to be one of Reclamation's highest priorities, and its staff works closely with water users and other stakeholders to ensure that available funds are used effectively. The 2000 request will allow the timely and effective delivery of project benefits; ensure the reliability and operational readiness of Reclamation's dams, reservoirs, power plants, and distribution systems; and identify, plan, and implement dam safety corrective actions and site security improvements.
The request provides funds for several large projects currently under construction, including the Central Arizona Project, the Mni Wiconi Project in South Dakota, and the Garrison Diversion Unit in North Dakota. It also provides funds for a number of projects and programs that emphasize improved water management and environmental compliance. For example, funds are requested for new and ongoing water reclamation and reuse projects; for cooperative efforts to augment the water supply and improve water quality and operations flexibility in the Upper Klamath River Basin; for environmental restoration in the Central Valley of California, in the Columbia and Snake River basins, and in other river basins; and for recently revamped programs aimed at reducing salinity in the Upper Colorado River Basin and encouraging the efficient use of water.
California Bay-Delta. The 2000 request for California Bay-Delta Restoration includes $75 million to continue implementation of the ecosystem restoration program initiated in 1998, and $20 million to initiate work in other high priority elements of the Bay-Delta Program, such as projects to improve water use efficiency, levees, water quality, and watershed management. These projects would be common to any overall solution to the problems of the Bay-Delta that is ultimately decided upon.
CALFED released a draft programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Bay-Delta Program in March 1998, accompanied by a "Phase II Report" that described three basic options for an overall solution. In December 1998, CALFED released a Revised Phase II Report, which narrows the options and describes a comprehensive framework for restoring ecological health to the Bay-Delta, providing a more reliable water supply for all uses, and improving water quality. A revised draft EIS based on this framework is scheduled to be released in June 1999, and a final EIS is expected in April 2000.
In the last two years, with the support of this Subcommittee, Congress has appropriated $160 million for Bay-Delta ecosystem restoration. These funds, combined with money from the State and the stakeholder community, are beginning to make a significant difference in fish and wildlife habitats throughout Northern and Central California. Many of these ecosystem projects, such as fish screens and improved canals and diversions, are also increasing water supply reliability for agricultural and urban water users. I have personally visited some of the new screens and canal projects and found the results impressive. I'm convinced the key to restoring the ecosystem in the Delta and along rivers flowing into it is to meet the region's water supply needs while protecting fish and wildlife. We are doing that with these funds.
CALFED and the participating agencies have now allocated over 90 percent of the funds appropriated in 1998 and 1999 to specific projects and programs. Many of these projects will take several years to complete, but have had to be fully funded up-front due to the finite life of the authorized program. Accordingly, expenditures to date maybe slower than you and I might have expected. Nevertheless, the Administration believes it is important to continue progress on the ecosystem restoration program in 2000, and to initiate work on other elements of the program that will be part of a balanced solution to problems of the Bay-Delta.
2000 CENTRAL UTAH PROJECT BUDGET
The Central Utah Project Completion Act provided for completion of the Central Utah Project (CUP) by the Central Utah Water Conservancy District, and established the Utah Reclamation Mitigation and Conservation Commission. As the Secretary may not delegate his responsibilities under that Act to the Bureau of Reclamation, this request is presented separately. The 2000 request provides $39 million for use by the District, the Commission and Interior to implement provisions of the Act. While this represents a decrease of $3 million from the 1999 level, it is adequate to keep all ongoing work on reasonable schedules.
This concludes my statement. I will be pleased to respond to any questions you may have.
END

LOAD-DATE: March 31, 1999

Document 53 of 118.


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