Copyright 2000 eMediaMillWorks, Inc.
(f/k/a Federal
Document Clearing House, Inc.)
Federal Document Clearing House
Congressional Testimony
March 8, 2000, Wednesday
SECTION: CAPITOL HILL HEARING TESTIMONY
LENGTH: 8534 words
HEADLINE:
TESTIMONY March 01, 2000 BRUCE BABBITT SECRETARY US DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR
SENATE ENERGY & NATURAL RESOURCES INTERIOR DEPARTMENT
BUDGET
BODY:
STATEMENT OF BRUCE BABBITT SECRETARY
OF THE INTERIOR BEFORE THE SENATE ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES COMMITTEE MARCH
1, 2000 I am pleased to be here today before the Energy and Natural Resources
Committee to present the fiscal year 2001 budget for the Department of the
Interior. The 2001 budget is a visionary budget that is designed to benefit all
Americans with a focus on three areas: enhancing opportunities for Native
Americans; protecting great places and building stronger communities through
Lands Legacy; and taking care of what we have. Budget Overview The Department's
2001 request for appropriations is $9.2 billion, an increase of $979.9 million
above the amounts provided in 2000. An estimated $2.2 billion will be provided
in permanent appropriations. The request for appropriations includes $8.4
billion, an increase of $946.2 million, for programs funded in the Interior and
Related Agencies Appropriations Bill; and $841.0 million, an increase of $33.8
million, for programs funded in the Energy and Water Development Bill. The
budget also includes a 2000 supplemental request of $110.8 million for emergency
contingency fire costs and the highest priority damages caused by Hurricanes
Floyd, Dennis and Irene. The First Americans: Stewardship, Investment, Hope In
his July 1999 visit to the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota,
President Clinton increased America's awareness of the critical needs in Indian
Country. The President's visit and his imperative to "begin this new century by
honoring our historic responsibility to empower the first Americans" signal a
commitment to support Indian self-determination and the government-to-
government relationship with Indian Nations. The 2001 budget proposes $9.4
billion across the government for Native American programs. Within the
Department of the Interior, the budget proposes $2.2 billion for BIA programs
that will honor our responsibilities and empower the first Americans. The budget
provides the largest increase ever for school construction and addresses
priorities identified by the Tribes themselves, including: safe communities,
improved housing, adequate educational facilities, and sound management of trust
resources. The Federal government has a unique and historical responsibility for
the education of over 50,000 Indian children. BIA operates 185 day and boarding
schools, many of which are located on remote and isolated reservations. BIA's
2001 request includes $300.5 million for education construction, repair, and
maintenance programs, an increase of 126 percent over the amount provided for
these programs in 2000. This increase is needed to replace and repair facilities
that have serious health and safety deficiencies and to provide Indian children
with the basic resources that are critical to student learning. To address
school operations needs, the 2001 budget includes $506.6 million for operation
of schools, an increase of $39.7 million over 2000. This increase in funding
includes $6.8 million for the Family and Child Education Program to improve
children's readiness for school and adult literacy, and $8.2 million for a pilot
therapeutic treatment program that will focus on the needs of high-risk students
at boarding schools. In 1997, we worked with Attorney General Janet Reno and
developed a four-year initiative in collaboration with tribal leaders to combat
rising crime rates in Indian Country. As a result of this initiative we are
seeing real progress. Over the past two years BIA and the Justice Department
have hired additional officers and investigators, are replacing dilapidated
detention centers, strengthening tribal court systems, and improving programs
for at- risk children. The 2001 budget includes increases of $18.8 million for
BIA to continue this initiative and strengthen core law enforcement functions,
upgrade radio systems, and improve detention center services. The Department of
Justice is requesting an increase of $81.8 million to support tribal law
enforcement programs. Over 100,000 Indian families are in desperate need of
better housing but cannot qualify for assistance through the Department of
Housing and Urban Development because they cannot meet minimum income
requirements. The 2001 budget doubles funding for the Housing Improvement
Program, requesting an increase of $16.3 million for housing repairs,
replacement, and renovation. The 2001 budget includes an increase of $4.0
million to implement fundamental changes to BIA's internal management and
administrative systems based on recommendations of the National Academy of
Public Administration. Funding will be used to address highest priority
improvements at central and field office locations that will strengthen
planning, budgeting, finance, human resources, and information resources
management. Early in this Administration I made a commitment to resolve the
decades-old trust fund management issue and promised to fix it on my watch. Our
2000 budget request for the Office of the Special Trustee was fully funded, and
as a result, we are making progress in implementing much-needed reform efforts.
Conversion of individual Indian accounts to the new trust fund accounting system
will be completed by May. We have piloted the Trust Asset and Accounting
Management System in one location and we expect to begin deploying the land
title functions of the system to other locations this April. The 2001 budget
includes a comprehensive proposal to continue ongoing trust management
improvements, institute permanent and lasting changes in trust management
functions in BIA, and resolve land ownership fractionation, which is one of the
root causes of trust management problems. The reforms in this area continue to
be my highest management priority for the Department. A total of $58.4 million
is requested for trust management improvements under the Office of the Special
Trustee in 2001. This is a reduction of $6.9 million from 2000, reflecting
one-time computer acquisition costs. The 2001 budget requests a $35.1 million
increase for BIA trust management functions, including real estate services,
probate, cadastral surveys, and land titles and records programs. These
increases are absolutely crucial to ensure that the trust management
improvements we are implementing are institutionalized and maintained in the
long term. The 2001 budget also includes $12.5 million to expand the Indian Land
Consolidation program. In 1999, BIA implemented a pilot program on three
reservations in Wisconsin and by the end of 2000 will have acquired over 36,000
fractional interests in allotted Indian lands. The 2001 request will allow us to
acquire up to 40,000 additional fractional interests. While the Department is
well underway in reforming our trust fund management systems, we also need to
examine the past to ascertain whether income for IIM accountholders was properly
credited, maintained and distributed to and from their IIM accounts. We will
publish shortly a Federal Register notice to gather information from IIM account
beneficiaries and the public to determine the most reasonable methods for
providing account holders to evaluate their accounts and determining whether
there are discrepancies due to past management practices. Before doing so,
however, we will seek an order from the judge in the Cobell litigation
authorizing the Department to communicate with the plaintiff class. Lands Legacy
One of America's most cherished icons, President Theodore Roosevelt, understood
the compelling need for land protection and embraced a visionary, long-term
approach to conservation that led to creation of the first national wildlife
refuge at Pelican Island in Florida and designation of the Grand Canyon as a
National Monument. President Roosevelt believed that we must work together to
leave this land "an even better land for our descendents than it is for us.
Based on the idea that we need to reinvest in the preservation and renewal of
resources, the Land and Water Conservation Fund provides a secure source of
funding for land acquisition. On an annual basis $900 million is deposited into
the Fund, primarily from Outer Continental Shelf rents and royalties, for
acquisition. In practice we have diverted much of the Fund to deficit reduction.
The Lands Legacy proposal makes good on the promise Congress made in 1964 when
it created the Land and Water Conservation Fund. The President's budget, by
creating a new budget category, would end this practice. Funds could only be
spent on Lands Legacy programs and could no longer be diverted to other
priorities. The first step in creating a legacy for our children is the
identification and protection of pristine peaks, unspoiled beaches, and verdant
prairies. In many of these places we have a one-time opportunity to preserve the
matchless wonders of nature before they fall victim to development. With
ever-widening opportunities to communicate through the internet and via
satellite, the geographic barriers that once limited access to wide open spaces
no longer exist, and it is becoming more and more difficult to find these
pristine, unspoiled landscapes. Not surprisingly, many of our prized parks,
refuges, public lands, and open spaces that provide recreation and other
benefits for local communities are now at the borders of suburbia and are being
impacted by encroaching development. We are fortunate to have within our grasp
the right economic conditions and public support to take action - now. It is our
imperative. If we do not, our children will wonder why we squandered an
opportunity to leave a permanent and lasting legacy. Will Rogers said it best:
"Invest in land - they're not making any more." The President's Lands
Legacy Initiative builds on our 2000 achievements and expands efforts
to preserve America's great places. The 2001 budget includes $1.4 billion for
Lands Legacy government-wide and $735.0 million for Department of the Interior
programs. A new budget category is proposed to provide dedicated, protected
discretionary funding for this initiative. In this request only the Federal
acquisition and State Conservation Grant programs will be funded from the Land
and Water Conservation Fund. The 2001 budget requests $450.0 million for Federal
land acquisition, including $320.0 million for acquisition programs in the
Department. Funding will be used to complete purchases in the California desert
and continue acquisition of Civil War battlefields, the Florida Everglades, the
Lewis and Clark Trail, and the Northern Forest. In addition to these areas, the
2001 budget requests funding for the New York - New Jersey watershed where
acquisition will protect the last vestiges of wetlands and uplands that serve as
stopover sites for migratory birds and buffer refuges from the impacts of
rapidly growing suburbs. Proposed acquisitions in the Lower Mississippi Delta
will protect areas that are rich in cultural, historical and ecological values,
and vital to our continued efforts to restore wildlife and fisheries. In
Southern California acquisition will protect unique ecosystem types and
endangered species, archeological finds and fossil deposits, and expand
community access to recreational opportunities and Outstanding scenery. Land
acquisition is a key component to many of our landscape- scale restoration
initiatives. Restoration of the South Florida ecosystem is one of the most
significant environmental initiatives of our lifetime. Historically, this
ecosystem contained some of the most diverse habitats on earth, but deprived of
sufficient water supplies it can no longer support a diverse array of wildlife.
The 2001 request for land acquisition includes $80.0 million for acquisition in
South Florida and the Everglades. Of this amount $47.0 million is for a matching
grant to the State of Florida to continue acquisition for restoration purposes.
The request also includes $33.0 million that will be used to complete
acquisition of Big Cypress National Park and Preserve and to add 1,870 acres to
national wildlife refuges to preserve habitat that is critical to wildlife and
important to ongoing restoration efforts. As we continue acquisitions to
safeguard our national parks, refuges, and public lands that will preserve the
magnificent views of Yellowstone's Grand Canyon and the Grand Tetons, we must
also be attentive to the needs for open space in our own backyards. The public
is demanding that we tend to the small parcels and pockets of open space that
provide recreational opportunities, reduce suburban sprawl, and revitalize urban
areas. In New Jersey voters have been able to secure a multi-year commitment for
funds to acquire these important green spaces and are looking for a partnership
commitment from the Federal government. The 2001 budget includes $150.0 million,
funded from the Land and Water Conservation Fund, for State Conservation Grants.
Funded for the first time since 1995, the 2000 appropriation included $41
million for this program. Using these grants, communities will leverage
resources and acquire open spaces and develop outdoor recreation areas. In the
past, these grants have been used by states and communities to acquire areas
such as Point Dune State Beach in California. This locally operated park 18
miles west of Santa Monica features cliffs, secluded coves and tidal pools, and
its headlands offer views of migrating California gray whales between November
and May. The Urban Parks and Recreation Recovery program creates and renews
close-to- home recreation opportunities that strengthen economically distressed
urban communities and positively impact at-risk youth and the safety of our
cities. The 2001 budget request includes $20.0 million that will be used to
enhance urban park and recreation areas that have deteriorated to the point
where health and safety are endangered. Grants will be provided to state and
local governments that will leverage grant funding with public and private
sources, building local support and commitment for the protection and management
of neighborhood parks. For the first time since 1995, the Congress provided
funding for this program, appropriating $2.0 million in 2000. Grants will be
allocated to sponsor projects such as Indianapolis's Youth Conservation Corps, a
program in which inner- city youth renovated a neighborhood park and constructed
an ecological pond utilizing funds provided by area businesses. The 2001 budget
requests $65.0 million, an increase of $42.0 million for grants to states and
local governments to conserve species through the Cooperative Endangered Species
Conservation Fund. This program provides communities with flexible approaches
and resources to use in resolving the conflicting demands caused by economic
growth, increasing population, and declining habitat. Through the development of
Habitat Conservation Plans, implementation of candidate conservation agreements,
safe harbor agreements, and other means these communities are able to assure the
protection of imperiled species and assist in their recovery. Since 1991, the
FWS has worked in partnership with Canada, Mexico, State and local governments,
farmers and other private landowners, Tribes, and non-profit conservation groups
to conserve wetlands through the North American Wetlands Conservation Fund.
Nearly 13 million acres of wetlands and associated uplands in Canada and the
U.S. have been protected, and an additional 25 million acres in Mexico have
benefited from similar conservation actions. A total of $727 million has been
provided by partners to match the $288 million provided from the Fund in support
of these projects. The 2001 budget includes $30 - 0 million, an increase of
$15.0 million over 2000, to restore breeding grounds, resting and over-wintering
areas for waterfowl and migratory species and wetland dependent wildlife. In
combination with partnership contributions, this request translates into a
minimum of $60 million in wetlands restoration projects and associated benefits.
The 2001 request for Lands Legacy includes $100.0 million for a State Non-Game
Wildlife Grants program. Through this program funds will be provided to States,
Tribes, and territories for activities that will conserve and restore non- game
species including planning, monitoring and conducting inventories, restoring
habitat, acquiring land, and increasing opportunities for non-game wildlife
recreation. This program will address non- game species protection and
restoration needs that have not been addressed through existing programs and
will respond to public demand for increased access to non-game recreational
opportunities. An estimated 62.9 million nature enthusiasts currently spend over
$29.2 billion a year in pursuit of these activities. Projects will include
restoring habitats favored by songbirds and other non-game species and
protection of key stopover points for migratory songbirds. The Department is
committed to providing relevant science to decision-makers at all levels of
government and strengthening their ability to protect valuable natural
resources, identify optimal lands for acquisition, design effective land use and
development strategies, develop efficient transportation systems, and mitigate
natural hazards. A $50.0 million State Planning Partnerships program in the USGS
2001 budget will provide State and local decision-makers and Federal resource
managers with geospatial data, earth science information, and tools such as GIS.
This request includes $10.0 million for an expanded Urban Dynamics Program to
assist city and regional land use planners in developing plans for community
growth that will resolve potential land use conflicts. The State Planning
Partnerships proposal also includes $10.0 million for predictive modeling and
decision support systems for Federal and State natural resource managers to
improve their effectiveness. Finally, $30.0 million is requested to work
collaboratively with local communities, States, and others to improve data
sharing and access to spatial data and maps. These funds would be made available
to local communities through competitive matching grants and other cooperative
agreements under the Community/Federal Information Partnership program. Efforts
sponsored by the Federal Geographic Data Committee, such as the Cooperative
Agreements Program, and other efforts such as the Ohio View project, have
demonstrated the usefulness of information sharing among Federal, State, and
local organizations and universities for decision-making purposes. Taking Care
of What We Have During my tenure as Secretary, we have worked diligently to
strengthen and rebuild the operational programs of the land management agencies.
Despite budget cutbacks and limitations in discretionary appropriations, a
constant theme in negotiations on the budget has been to take care of what we
have and uphold our responsibility for stewardship of the land, natural
resources, and facilities. Since 1993, we have grown the operating accounts of
the National Park Service, Fish and Wildlife Service, and Bureau of Land
Management by $851.1 million, or 43 percent. This compares to the 19 percent
growth rate for appropriations for the Department of the Interior in this same
time period. These operational funding increases have been focused on building
bench strength in the field and improving the delivery of programs to the public
and not on building a bureaucracy. We have maximized efficiency by working
collaboratively with our partners, encouraging volunteerism, fostering programs
like the Youth Conservation Corps, and holding Federal staffing to the minimum
required. Consider that the 2001 budget increases staffing by only two percent
while the increase in funding is 12 percent. Even with the increases sought in
this budget, the Department's staffing will be more than 10 percent below our
1993 base. The 2001 budget continues this theme of taking care of our
operational programs with increases totaling $214.3 million for the land
management agencies in order to safeguard the integrity of the Nation's parks,
refuges, and public lands. Funding is targeted to address operational needs,
resolution of specific land management issues, and repair and rehabilitation of
facilities. Bureau of Land Management. Over the last decade, BLM has transformed
itself into a model of multiple use management, emphasizing conservation while
protecting the access rights of a diverse group of customers. The budget
proposes a $76.5 million increase in the bureau's primary operating accounts to
continue and expand its quiet successes including: collaboration with 24
independent Resource Advisory Councils to bring about changes to livestock
grazing practices and applying new standards to conserve western lands;
implementing the Northwest Forest Plan in order to allow for timber production
while protecting sensitive species; and fulfilling a vision for preservation of
public lands such as the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in Utah and
the Headwaters Forest Reserve in California. The designation of monument status
recognizes the biological, archeological, and geological significance of areas
that stand out from the landscape because of exceptional beauty, and geographic
and historical value. In 1908 Teddy Roosevelt designated the first monument, the
Grand Canyon. The Grand Canyon- Parashant National Monument protects the
entryway to the Grand Canyon and extends protection for the deep canyons,
mountains, and isolated buttes that extend from the Canyon along the Colorado
River plateau. Clearly, President Roosevelt recognized the need to protect the
Grand Canyon, but even he could not have anticipated the need to extend
protection to the surrounding area and the urgency driven by population
expansion and development that is transforming so much of the western landscape.
Arising from this series of designations is a newly emerging BLM conservation
system, that alongside national parks and national wildlife refuges, will
constitute an enduring part of our public land heritage. Establishing a new
model for conservation, our management of these areas will maintain traditional
relationships with the surrounding communities. At Grand Staircase Escalante we
responded to the challenge by Governor Leavitt and the communities of southern
Utah, agreeing that visitor centers and other visitor service facilities could
be located in surrounding communities to continue the historical link between
the landscape and community life. Improved management of national monuments,
national conservation areas, wild and scenic river corridors, and other places
are a focus of BLM's 2001 budget. An increase of $16.0 million will allow BLM to
focus on stabilizing and restoring existing resources and enhancing recreational
and educational opportunities at officially designated areas. Funding for the
three new monuments, Grand Canyon-Parashant National Monument, Agua Fria
National Monument, and California Coastal National Monument is included in this
request. The 2001 budget also includes an increase of $19.0 million to improve
land use planning and begin a multi-year process to update resource management
plans. This planning effort will allow the bureau to be more responsive to use
authorization requests and ensure sustainable use. Another land management
priority that is addressed in BLM's budget request is $9.0 million to tackle one
of the most difficult management issues - the explosive growth of wild horses.
Today's herds are almost 75 percent above appropriate herd management levels and
populations continue to increase at about 20 percent per year. BLM is proposing
to increase removals, adoptions, and gelding and, where necessary, implement a
long-term strategy to reach appropriate herd management levels by 2005. National
Park Service. Careful stewardship of National parks is essential to protect
scenic vistas and cultural resources, mitigate the effects of air and water
pollution, and support fish and wildlife populations, while accommodating
increasing visitor use. The 2001 budget includes an increase of $90.3 million
for operation of the National Park Service. Included within this request is
$24.0 million for special park increases to address specific program needs at 72
parks, three trails, and for the U.S. Park Police. Funds will be directed to
parks with new responsibilities, priority operations and maintenance needs, and
to improve the visitor experience. Examples of specific park increases include
improving the employee safety program at Yosemite National Park in California;
operating a new information plaza at Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona; and
improving cultural and natural resource management at the Tallgrass Prairie
National Park, Kansas. The operational increase for NPS also includes $18.0
million for the Natural Resource Challenge, a five-year program launched in 2000
to improve the management of natural resources in parks. Funding is requested to
accelerate efforts to acquire basic data on natural resources and monitor the
condition of parks. Funding will be used for control of invasive species in 13
parks to restore healthy, functioning ecosystems and to initiate water quality
monitoring at 12 networks of parks. At the Great Smoky Mountains National Park
efforts to control alien species of plants and fish that are destroying native
vegetation and habitat will be increased. Parks will restore habitat for
endangered and threatened species, including two endangered nesting birds at
Haleakala National Park in Hawaii, and foxes faced with extinction at Channel
Islands National Park in California. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The 521
unit National Wildlife Refuge system is a national network of lands and waters
devoted to the conservation, management, and restoration of fish, wildlife, and
plants. This system of over 93 million acres is important to the long-term
survival and restoration of the nation's wild resources providing important
breeding, feeding, and stopover areas for migratory birds; nursery areas for
important commercial and sport fisheries; and refugia for native plant species.
Approximately 34 million visitors enjoy wildlife watching, photography, hiking,
educational programs, and other activities on refuges. The 2001 budget includes
an increase of $19.9 million for refuge projects that will protect wildlife,
improve habitat, and provide improved educational opportunities for the public.
This request continues our efforts to be stewards of the refuge system. Since
1996, we have increased funding for refuge operations and maintenance by $113
million or 67 percent. One of our greatest successes is the creation of flexible
and innovative programs that make the Endangered Species Act work for people and
wildlife. We have developed a conservation framework that utilizes habitat
conservation planning, safe harbor agreements, candidate conservation
agreements, and other programs in order to permit sound economic development and
protect imperiled species. Examples of our specific accomplishments include:
-Candidate conservation agreements in the southwest have kept species including
the Pecos pupfish and Arizona bugbane off the endangered species list.
-Streamlining the Section 7 consultation process for timber sales in the Pacific
Northwest has reduced timeframes by 50 percent. -Habitat conservation plans have
been put in place that protect salmon and bull trout. -The gray wolf and
California condor have been reintroduced and are flourishing. A recent Tenth
Circuit Court of Appeals ruling eliminates the threat of removal for the
Yellowstone wolves and their offspring. -Bald eagle populations are proposed for
downlisting from endangered to threatened. The 2001 budget includes $115.3
million for the endangered species program, an increase of $7.0 million. Funding
will be used to develop 42 candidate conservation agreements, work on 550
habitat conservation plans, consider an additional 27 species reclassifications
and delisting actions, and develop an additional 10 safe harbor agreements.
These varied programs ' offer a full range of alternatives to states, local
governments, and communities for conservation of species and resolution of
competing demands. The protection of refuge lands, endangered and threatened
species, and migratory birds demands the vigilance and skills of a cadre of law
enforcement officers that are trained in the latest techniques in detection and
interdiction of wildlife violators. The 2001 budget includes an increase of
$12.6 million to better train and equip FWS law enforcement personnel and expand
the agent work force to defend wildlife against criminals that are becoming
increasingly sophisticated and well equipped. Title VIII of the Alaska National
Interests Lands Conservation Act protects the subsistence harvest rights of
rural residents of Alaska. For these Alaskans, subsistence harvests form the
foundation for a way of life and are essential for meeting economic, social, and
cultural needs. To uphold our responsibilities to provide a priority for
subsistence uses, the budget includes $12.9 million for the Department to fully
implement. the court-ordered Federal takeover of the subsistence fisheries
program in Alaska. In addition, the Forest Service is requesting $5.5 million
for its program responsibilities. The Department's request includes $5.4 million
for program management and coordination and $7.5 million for resource and
harvest monitoring. We will utilize the expertise of the State, Native
organizations, and others and contract with them for resource and harvest
monitoring. Safe Visits. The Department manages an extensive infrastructure of
administrative and public use buildings, housing, roads and trails, dams,
bridges, water and wastewater systems, schools, laboratories, and other
facilities. Some of these facilities are over 100 years old and many are located
in remote locations. The Department instituted a comprehensive Safe Visits to
Public Lands initiative to bring consistency and accountability to management of
the Department's infrastructure, and to focus funding on the highest priority
maintenance and construction needs. We will soon issue a comprehensive report on
the status of projects funded in 1999. The 2001 request for Safe Visits is $1.2
billion, an increase of $134.6 million or 13 percent, over 2000. The budget
includes $570.3 million for maintenance and $601.3 million for construction to
accelerate repairs to Indian schools, replace six Indian schools, repair and
replace facilities in parks, refuges and other Interior properties. Included
within the request is $9.2 million to conduct condition assessments on a
five-year cycle. These condition assessments will establish a baseline of
current conditions of facilities and provide a thorough evaluation of repair and
rehabilitation needs. The budget also includes $4.3 million to continue the
development and implementation of maintenance management systems that will
provide reliable, consistent information to facilities managers. Bureau of
Reclamation. The budget request for BOR is $801.0 million, an increase of $33.1
million over the 2000 level. The request provides an increase of $29.7 million
for facility operation, maintenance, and rehabilitation. Within this amount is
an increase of $11.9 million for the Dam Safety Program, to protect the
downstream public by ensuring the safety and reliability of BOR dams. The budget
provides funds for several large projects currently under construction
including: $33.7 million for the Central Arizona Project, $23.6 million for the
Mni Wiconi Project in South Dakota, and $17.4 million for the Garrison Diversion
Unit in North Dakota. The budget also includes $22.0 million for water
reclamation and reuse projects, and $16.0 million for the recently enacted Rocky
Boy's Indian Water Rights Settlement. A Federal-State partnership has been
working with stakeholders since 1995 to develop a comprehensive, long-term
solution for California's Bay-Delta. CALFED, a consortium of ten Federal and
four state agencies, is leading this effort to resolve uncertain water supplies
and competing water needs, aging levees, declining habitat, and threatened water
quality. The 2001 budget includes $60.0 million for the California Bay-Delta
Restoration Program including $36.0 million for ecosystem restoration and $24.0
million for the Federal share of projects to improve water use efficiency and
water supply reliability. Funding is requested in BOR's budget, but will be
transferred to participating Federal agencies based on plans developed by
CALFED. Other Programs. The 2001 request continues Outer Continental Shelf
regulatory and environment research programs that limit negative consequences
that could result from exploration and production in sensitive offshore lands.
The 2001 budget request for MMS programs totals $130.2 million. These MMS
programs also collect revenues that finance one-half of the costs of the
Department's programs. Through the Abandoned Mine Reclamation Fund we provide
grants to states and Tribes to reclaim previously mined lands. On an annual
basis this program restores approximately 9,000 acres to productive use and
reduces threats to public health and safety. An increase of $15.3 million from
the Fund will allow the reclamation of an additional 1,000 acres. Of this
increase, $2.0 million will be available for the Appalachian Clean Streams
initiative. This program brings together Federal and local resources to restore
stream habitat and water quality by reducing acid mine drainage, and thereby
improving water quality for local communities and restoring habitat for species
such as the Appalachian brook trout. With this increase, an estimated 46 new
projects will be initiated. Finally, I ask that you consider operational needs
for other Departmental priorities including the Solicitor's Office, our new
Inspector General, and Departmental Management. For these offices, we are
requesting uncontrollable cost increases and funding for ongoing litigation
support provided by the Solicitor's Office, to expand the capability of the IG's
audit and investigation function, and for Departmental Offices to address
important needs in electronic data security and improved financial
accountability. This concludes my prepared statement. I will be happy to answer
any questions you may have.
LOAD-DATE: March 9, 2000
