Copyright 1999 Federal News Service, Inc.
Federal News Service
FEBRUARY 24, 1999, WEDNESDAY
SECTION: IN THE NEWS
LENGTH:
4979 words
HEADLINE: PREPARED TESTIMONY OF
BRUCE
BABBITT
SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR
BEFORE THE HOUSE
APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE
SUBCOMMITTEE ON INTERIOR AND RELATED AGENCIES
BODY:
I am pleased to appear before the
Subcommittee on Interior and Related Agencies to present the fiscal year 2000
budget for the Department of the Interior.
The 2000 budget is a landmark
budget because it will be the first budget of the new century, and because 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 approach 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 unified, 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,
more than the population of the United States, 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 supply water to approximately 31
million people throughout the west and provide services and support for
self-determination to 1.2 million American Indians and Alaska Natives.
This
broad mandate for the Department of the Interior 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 from the Home Department of the 19th century, through the
bygone eras of great westward expansion, the conservation age at the beginning
of the 20th 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.
Driven by
the strong, continuous growth of the economy and the public's appetite for
outdoor recreation and outdoor experiences, the Department has evolved new
approaches that consider the twin goals of growing the economy and protecting
and restoring the Nation's natural and cultural resources. We have made great
strides in recent years by embarking on the restoration of precious ecosystems
in a way that enriches neighboring communities, resulting in the following
success stories:
- in South Florida we are working in partnership with the
State and others to restore the Everglades, recreating the 17,000 square mile
sea of grass;
- we continue our work with States, Tribes, communities, and
private landowners to implement new, innovative approaches to the Endangered
Species Act. For the first time in 60 years we have healthy, reproductive
populations of gray wolves in Yellowstone National Park;
- we are embarking
on the fifth year of Forest Plan implementation, demonstrating how cooperative
partnerships between Federal agencies and local interests can effectively
promote wise land stewardship; and
- in partnership with the State of
California, we are completing the purchase of the 7,400-acre Headwaters ancient
redwood forest, the largest stand of privately-owned ancient redwoods in the
country.
In addition, the Department has developed five-year plans for
maintenance and construction to improve management and accountability for the
Department's infrastructure and to focus funding on the highest priority health
and safety and resource protection needs. We are proud of these accomplishments
and deeply grateful to this Subcommittee for its support of these efforts.
Budget Overview. The 2000 budget requests $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 funding levels. An estimated $2.2 billion will be provided in permanent
appropriations.
For Department programs under the jurisdiction of the
Subcommittee, the request for annual appropriations is $7.8 billion for 2000.
This is an increase of $717 million in current budget authority from total
appropriations provided in the 1999 Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations
Act.Within this increase, $139 million or 18 percent of the increase is
requested for uncontrollable cost increases in order to continue Departmental
programs at current operational levels in 2000. The budget:
- 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.
The level of staffing proposed for 2000 is comparable with employment levels
in the Department in 1987. The 2000 budget proposes to increase staffing by only
two percent, as compared to the increased funding request of 11 percent. The
Department will continue to operate efficiently, having taken an aggressive
approach to streamlining, reducing headquarters staffs and management layers,
reengineering processes, and improving the efficiency and effectiveness of our
program delivery at the field level. Between the period 1993-1997, staffing was
reduced by 15 percent. The new staff we are requesting for 2000 will focus on
direct service to the public and on-the ground restoration.
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. The interagency Lands Legacy Initiative provides roughly
equal amounts of funding for Federal land acquisition and funds to States, local
communities, and Tribes for acquisition and other conservation purposes. The
initiative includes $900 million from the Land and Water Conservation Fund
(LWCF), marking the first time any Administration has requested the full $900
million authorized to be deposited in LWCF in its annual budget. The initiative
includes $579 million for Department of the Interior programs, which is an
increase of $84.5 million from the 1999 level.The Lands Legacy
Initiative includes $295 million for Federal land acquisition by
Interior, an increase of $84.5 million over current year levels. 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. Funding for
these five areas totals $163.7 million. An additional $130.3 million is
requested for land acquisition in other areas to protect priority natural and
cultural resources, like the addition of 31 acres at Florida's Pelican Island
National Wildlife Refuge, established as the first refuge by President Theodore
Roosevelt in 1903.
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 to States and local communities for
habitat conservation planning and land acquisition, candidate conservation
agreements, Safe Harbor Agreements, and other collaborative strategies. This
proposal 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.
This is an opportunity for us to establish new partnerships with States, Tribes,
and local governments to enrich our cities, towns, and suburbs. 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 nonFederal sources. This proposal will allow us to
work with the Congress on framing a viable program that will result in increased
open spaces, greenways, and other areas for outdoor recreation, urban parks,
wildlife habitat, and coastal wetlands.
Open space protection is gaining
momentum at State, regional, and local levels as a means to protect farmland,
maintain natural surroundings, and combat sprawl. Across the country in ballot
measures, the American people are supporting the need for local planning and
protection that guides development and the establishment and protection of open
space. The 2000 budget includes $50 million for matching grants to States and
Indian Tribes to support open space planning. An additional $4 million is
proposed for matching grants and technical assistance for the restoration of
parks in economically distressed urban communities.
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 national treasures we have come to understand the
importance of the entire landscape that extends outside the boundaries of our
public lands.
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 natural 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.
Restoring
Ecosystems. The President's Northwest Forest Summit in April, 1993 brought us 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. Over
the last six years the Administration has implemented three large scale
restoration efforts that embrace this vision using new methods, partnerships,
and renewed public participation. The 2000 budget includes $68.1 million for the
Department to press ahead with implementation of the Northwest Forest Plan. The
Department will also continue to lead the Administration's efforts to restore
two priority watersheds, the Florida Everglades and California's Bay-Delta.
Since 1993, when the South Florida Ecosystem Restoration Task Force was
established, over $955 million in Federal funds and $1.5 billion in State funds
have been directed to this project, which is the largest watershed restoration
effort ever undertaken. We recently completed negotiations to acquire the 50,000
acre Talisman properties and have issued a draft multi-species recovery plan
addressing the habitat and individual needs of 68 listed species. In 2000, the
Department's request for Everglades restoration totals $151.5 million, an
increase of $7.4 million over 1999, which will support park and refuge
operations, hydrologic modeling, multi-species recovery, research, land
acquisition, and construction of the Modified Water Delivery Project for
Everglades National Park.The 2000 request for the Energy and Water Development
bill also contains $95 million to continue implementation of the California
Bay-Delta ecosystem restoration program and $20 million to initiate high
priority activities to address water use efficiency, water quality, and
watershed management issues.
Restoring Parks, Refuges and Public Lands. In
NPS, FWS, BLM, and OSM increased funding is requested for operational programs
in order to conduct restoration activities.
- NPS is requesting an increase
of $25 million for management of natural resources which will accelerate efforts
to acquire data on natural resources, completing all natural resource
inventories in seven years. NPS will control 11,000 additional acres of exotic
species annually (a 43 percent increase) and restore an additional 150 acres
disturbed by mines, roads, and other facilities that are no longer in use.
-
For FWS, an increase of $18.1 million will fund habitat restoration projects on
200 refuges and eradication of invasive, nuisance species on 48 refuges. Planned
projects will restore historic wetland habitat, endangered species habitat, and
unique ecosystems.
- BLM will dedicate an increase of $10.9 million to
rangeland improvements and an aggressive weed control effort to sustain
productive landscapes.
- OSM is requesting $25.3 million to increase by 15
percent the reclamation of land damaged by past mining practices to productive
use and to restore water resources contaminated by acid mine drainage.
The
wildland fire program will promote ecosystem health, while lowering the risk of
severe fires and long-term suppression costs. In 2000, the request of $350.9
million will allow us to treat more than one million acres of land and reduce
hazardous fuel loads, a tripling of effort since this program began.
Science. In 1996, the Subcommittee worked with me to consolidate the science
and technology functions of Interior. As a result, the USGS is able to provide a
full spectrum of scientific expertise to the Department, other agencies, and the
public. This multi-disciplinary expertise is critical to the effectiveness of
our land management and restoration programs supporting the development of
advanced tools including modeling, decision support systems, and monitoring
protocols. The 2000 budget includes $18.5 million in new funding to aggressively
respond to the science needs of land management bureaus and provide the tools
that are needed for wise stewardship of the landscape.
Restoring Species.
The near extinction of the buffalo and the extinction of the passenger
pigeon at the end of the 19th century brought an end to the American myth of
endless abundance. As President of the United States,Theodore Roosevelt created
five national parks, four big game refuges, and 51 national bird reservations in
order to preserve natural resources which were, in his view, an essential part
of the American landscape and culture. As we approach the end of the 20th
century, the importance of protecting and restoring ecosystems and individual
species components of ecosystems is widely accepted. The Congress enacted
landmark legislation including the Bald Eagle Protection Act, the Endangered
Species Act, the Marine Mammal Protection Act, and the African Elephant
Conservation Act in recognition of the importance of protecting and recovering
individual species as components of healthy, viable ecosystems.
Through
partnerships with States, local communities, and non-profit groups, and expanded
involvement with private landowners, the Department has been able to more
effectively protect threatened and endangered species, while allowing economic
development to proceed. The efforts of the FWS, Forest Service, and State of
Nevada in the Spring Mountains exemplify our new approach to endangered species
conservation. In these snow capped mountain ranges, these three agencies have
come together to craft a conservation agreement that will safeguard 57 rare and
sensitive species while accommodating the growing numbers of recreational
visitors.
The 2000 budget includes $115 million for FWS endangered species
operations, an increase of $24.1 million to expand the use of innovative tools
that protect species and permit sound economic development. In partnership with
States, local communities, non-profit groups and private landowners, FWS will
utilize candidate conservation agreements to keep species off the list of
threatened and endangered species, expand habitat conservation planning to allow
economic development to proceed while protecting species on private lands,
continue the no-surprises policy to assure private landowners that agreements
jointly negotiated will be honored, conduct streamlined consultations, and
increase Safe Harbor Agreements to ensure that community and species goals can
be met. This operational funding level is supported by the request of $80
million for the Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund that I
described earlier.
More than 160 parks provide important, protected habitat
to restore endangered species. At least 168 Federally-listed species occur on
NPS lands and are the subject of over 2,000 recovery tasks assigned to the
National Park Service. Recovery tasks include wolf re-introduction in
Yellowstone National Park, control of exotic species in Hawaiian parks, and
public education and law enforcement patrols for endangered species collectors.
The 2000 budget includes $4 million for native and exotic species management
which will, in part, address recovery of species including the Kemp's ridley
turtle and the black-footed ferret which depend on the National Park System for
their survival.In 1986 Congress enacted revisions to the Federal Power Act of
1920 that changed the relicensing process for the nation's 2,600 privately-owned
hydroelectric dams. These changes required the consideration of fish and
wildlife, energy conservation, and recreational opportunities, and have led to
modifications in dam operations to increase stream flows, installation of fish
passage facilities, and protection of local riparian lands. We successfully
demonstrated the success of modifying dam operations to restore habitat and
recreational uses without negatively impacting power and water use with the
flooding of Glen Canyon Dam in 1996. The 2000 budget requests $7.6 million to
restore native fisheries including acceleration of hydropower relicensing review
activities. Through a collaborative process with dam operators and other
stakeholders, FWS will use a balanced approach to address fisheries needs while
meeting needs for power, agriculture, and recreation. A companion request of
$3.9 million will fund on-the- ground restoration projects to be matched by
organizations such as Trout Unlimited and $1 million for the National Fish and
Wildlife Foundation's efforts in fisheries restoration.
Focus on Emerging
Biological Problems. In 1915, the Sierra Nevada in California was filled with
the sound of croaking frogs and toads. Biologists who surveyed the amphibians
recorded one species, the western toad, as "exceedingly abundant." When
researchers revisited the study sites in 1995, they recorded only one adult
western toad and a small group of tadpoles. Amphibians are the "canary in the
coal mine" for ecosystems, letting us know with their disappearance that
something is wrong. The 2000 Interior budget proposes to increase funding by
$8.1 million in order to investigate the causes for amphibian population
declines.
Called the "rain forests of the sea," coral reefs are one of the
most biologically complex and diverse ecosystems on earth, providing habitat for
one-third of all marine fish species. In addition, coral reefs provide a
protective barrier for shorelines and are crucial to the tourism industries of
many States and territories. President Clinton recently signed an Executive
Order establishing the U.S. Coral Reef Task Force to coordinate interagency
efforts to protect and restore our coral reefs. The 2000 budget for Interior
includes $7.2 million for coral reef protection, management, and restoration.
The geographic and ecological areas that encompass Alaska and Hawaii are
unique and rich in natural resources..These areas share other common qualities
in that they are remote and are home to species and habitats that are found
nowhere else. In a focused program to address the unique problems and
restoration challenges in Alaska and Hawaii, the Department is requesting $4.4
million to conduct natural resource protection and restoration activities, and
expand public use and educational opportunities.Safe Visits to Public Lands. The
Department manages an extensive infrastructure to meet the needs of 379 million
visitors to national parks, national wildlife refuges, and other public lands.
Well-maintained facilities are critical to the safe enjoyment of these visitors
and to the safety of 45,000 employees and 53,000 students attending BIA schools.
Responding to your call to action, Mr. Chairman, in 1999 the Department proposed
an aggressive Safe Visits to Public Lands Initiative to improve management and
accountability for the Department's infrastructure and focus funding on highest
priority health and safety and resource protection needs.
The Department has
developed a five-year plan that provides a framework for improved planning and
management of maintenance and construction programs. The plan provides an
improved understanding of the scope of deferred maintenance and a baseline to
monitor progress toward correcting health and safety and resource deficiencies
at Departmental facilities. In order to implement the plan, the Department's
2000 budget includes $910.1 million, including $555.8 million in maintenance and
$354.3 million in construction, an increase of $51.2 million, or six percent,
over 1999.
One final component of the restoration theme is the Save
America's Treasures program. The Subcommittee worked with us last year to
initiate a program that provides matching grants to public-private partnerships
to preserve America's cultural treasures and increase opportunities for
learning. The 2000 budget includes $30 million to continue this program. In
addition, the 2000 budget includes $15 million for badly needed repairs to
preserve structures of great historic significance at historically black
colleges and universities and $5 million to develop a national digital library
of records of American achievements in history and arts and sciences.
Seven
Generations Into the Future and Past. When deliberating an issue, American
Indians take into consideration lessons learned by past generations and the
potential impact on future generations. This simple, yet sage approach provides
an important flamework for current policy decisions. The 2000 budget request for
the Bureau of Indian Affairs is $1.9 billion, an increase of $155.6 million
above the 1999 enacted level, providing increases for educational programs,
school facility construction, law enforcement, natural resources management, and
other priority funding needs.
Throughout Indian Country, children are
learning in schools that present serious health and safety threats. Many schools
have leaky roofs, peeling paint, overcrowded classrooms, and inadequate heating
and cooling systems that impede students' ability to learn. In spite of improved
efficiencies, BIA's education repair needs are growing and now exceed $740
million. In 2000, the Administration is proposing a School Bonding Initiative
that will provide $400 million in bonding issuance authority over two years.
Tribal governments will be able to use this authority to issue bonds to
investors who will receive tax credits for the life of the bond in lieu of
interest. To help Tribes participate in this Initiative, $30 million is included
in the BIA's 2000 budget request. The 2000 request also includes $75.9 million
to replace Seba Dalkai School in Arizona and Fond Du Lac Ojibway School in
Minnesota and to complete repair work at existing facilities.
An
Executive Order on American Indian and Alaska Native Education sets forth six
goals to improve academic performance and reduce the dropout rate for Indian
students, including improved reading and mathematics, increased school
completion, improved science education, and expanded use of education
technology. The 2000 budget for School Operations includes an investment of
$503.6 million in support of these goals, to cover increased costs for teachers,
transportation of children to schools, and expanded operations to respond to a
growing student population. The budget also provides a $7.1 million increase for
operating grants to 28 tribally controlled community colleges. These colleges
are a critical component of efforts to help Native Americans secure professional
employment and promote entrepreneurship on reservations.
American Indians
are victims of violent crimes at more than twice the rate of all U.S. residents,
while tribal law enforcement receives only one-fourth the resources of
comparable rural law enforcement agencies. In order to combat rising crime rates
in Indian Country, a multi-year program was initiated in 1999, implementing a
plan developed by Interior and the Department of Justice, in collaboration with
tribal governments. The 1999 appropriation provided $20 million for BIA and $89
million in Justice grant funding to begin to improve tribal law enforcement
programs. The 2000 budget includes $20 million increase for the second year of
this initiative, which will allow BIA to increase the number of criminal
investigators and uniformed police, upgrade radio systems, and strengthen
detention center services. The Department of Justice is requesting $124.2
million in 2000 to strengthen law enforcement programs and direct funding to
drug testing and treatment, juvenile justice, assistance to tribal courts, and
detention center construction.
A close spiritual and cultural connection
exists among the buffalo, American Indians, and the ecosystem of the plains. For
thousands of years the buffalo took care of Indian people, providing warmth,
food, and a way of life. Tribes are reestablishing herds of buffalo, and over
the last ten years have created hundreds of jobs by raising buffalo. To
strengthen tribal efforts to bring back the buffalo, a $1 million increase is
requested in the 2000 budget to be used to support tribal buffalo programs,
rangeland management, and related economic and development efforts. Tribal Trust
Management Improvement. One of the highest priorities of the Administration 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 an accounting system.
The 2000 budget requests $100
million to continue the implementation of trust management improvements, which
will provide an increase of $50.5 million for trust reform activities. The
budget includes $10 million for continued implementation of the Indian Land
Consolidation Project, which will commence on three reservations in 1999. The
2000 budget increase of $5 million will allow the pilot program to be expanded
to one more reservation in 2000. Beginning in 2000 we will make a significant
change in the budgetary classification of tribal trust funds, approximately $2.1
billion of tribal trust funds will be reclassified as non-budgetary, similar to
the classification of individual Indian money accounts.
Conclusion. I
believe that the 2000 budget for the Department of the Interior sets a bold, new
direction for the new millennium and the next 150 years of operation of this
Department. I look forward to working with you on this budget and resolving the
challenges that come our way throughout the year.
This concludes my
statement. I will be happy to answer any questions you may have.
END
LOAD-DATE: March 2, 1999