[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 133 (Monday, September 21, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9575-S9576]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        INTERIOR APPROPRIATIONS

  Mr. BINGAMAN. Mr. President, I realize we are not on the Interior 
appropriations bill at this point; we are in morning business, but I 
wanted to speak briefly about three amendments I plan to offer, when we 
do go on the Interior appropriations bill, and to alert colleagues 
about those amendments and, hopefully, persuade them that they are 
meritorious.

[[Page S9576]]

  The first amendment incorporates the key provisions of the FLAME Act, 
which establishes a separate appropriations account to fund Federal 
emergency wildfire suppression costs in an effort to initiate a more 
sustainable effort for funding Federal firefighting activities.
  We have seen a dramatic growth in the number, the size, and the 
severity of wildfires in recent years. The trend and the number of 
acres burned by wildfires each year has tripled over the last 25 years, 
exceeding 8 million acres in 4 of the last 5 years.
  While the agencies consistently have put out about 98 percent of the 
fires quickly and inexpensively, we have seen many fires that have been 
so extreme it takes weeks and months of effort and many millions of 
dollars to get those fires under control. The recent Station fire in 
southern California is one example. It is now nearly 4 weeks since that 
fire started. It has burned more than 160,000 acres. It still is not 
100 percent contained. At times, there have been over 5,000 personnel 
assigned to the fire. Fire crews have built more than 130 miles of fire 
line, with the support of more than two dozen helicopters and 
airplanes, hundreds of fire engines, and more than 65 bulldozers. The 
pricetag for these efforts is more than $85 million and still counting.
  The Forest Service's costs for fighting wildfires have increased 
sevenfold over the last 20 years. Yet we still budget for wildfires the 
same way we did 20 years ago. We take the average of the previous 10 
years of fire suppression costs out of the agencies' budgets, and we 
make that their standard appropriation for each year. Back then, 
wildfire management accounted for less than 20 percent of the Forest 
Service's budget. That was 20 years ago. Today, wildfire management 
accounts for 50 percent of the Forest Service's budget.
  Not surprisingly, the Forest Service has exceeded that budget every 
year for more than a decade--as it is mathematically guaranteed to do 
with the wildfire trends we have seen. As a result, the agencies have 
had to borrow and to steal literally billions of dollars from other 
programs--such as recreation and grazing and wildlife and even fuels 
reduction--to pay for emergency wildfire suppression.
  In sum, our wildfire budgeting practices are broken, and they are 
steadily breaking the Forest Service and the communities and businesses 
and natural resources that the Forest Service is committed to serving. 
These troubling trends are only expected to get worse as a result of 
continuing climate change and population growth in and around our 
national forests.
  The amendment I plan to offer seeks to establish a new paradigm for 
funding Federal wildfire suppression activities. Under the amendment, 
the agencies would continue to rely on their regular appropriations 
accounts to fund their routine wildfire suppression costs; that is, the 
approximately 98 percent of fires they can either swiftly put out or 
can manage for a resource benefit. But when they end up battling a 
large and extreme wildfire--such as the fire in southern California--
they could access a new emergency account to cover the exorbitant costs 
of fighting those kinds of fires.

  If funded as intended, the new emergency account would ensure 
Congress would not have to raid the rest of the agencies' budgets to 
make appropriations for wildfire suppression. It also would ensure that 
the agencies would no longer have to steal funds from the other 
programs for which Congress has proposed funding in order to pay for 
unbudgeted costs of fighting the massive fires that require an 
emergency response.
  Thanks to the leadership of the administration, Senator Feinstein, 
and the Appropriations Committee, for the first time in many years, the 
underlying bill would provide an appropriate amount of money for 
wildfire suppression. As a result, the amendment I am offering merely 
shifts money into a new emergency account. It does not result in any 
increase in spending.
  The amendment will be cosponsored by a number of other Members. I 
appreciate their support, as well as support of many dozens of interest 
groups. I would also like to mention that the FLAME Act passed the 
House of Representatives in March by a vote of 412 to 3. So I believe 
this is a proposal that has broad support on both sides of the aisle 
and on both sides of Capitol Hill.
  The second amendment I plan to offer simply provides for the funds 
that are already allocated to the Forest Landscape Restoration Act to 
be deposited in the special fund that was established to carry out that 
act. This amendment also will be cosponsored by a number of other 
Members. I would like to extend my sincere thanks to Chairman 
Feinstein, who coauthored the Forest Landscape Restoration Act with me, 
and Senator Domenici and Ranking Member Alexander for including funding 
for this important program.
  Finally, Senator Murkowski and I plan to offer an amendment that 
would make two technical improvements to the National Forest Foundation 
Act. Again, I hope these amendments will be adopted. I appreciate the 
consideration of the two managers of the bill for these three 
amendments.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor, and I suggest the absence of a 
quorum.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. KYL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

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