[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 8]
[House]
[Pages 11378-11380]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



 PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF H.R. 2217, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR 
             AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2002

  Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the 
Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 174 and ask for its 
immediate consideration.
  The Clerk read the resolution, as follows:

                              H. Res. 174

       Resolved, That at any time after the adoption of this 
     resolution the Speaker may, pursuant to clause 2(b) of rule 
     XVIII, declare the House resolved into the Committee of the 
     Whole House on the state of the Union for consideration of 
     the bill (H.R. 2217) making appropriations for the Department 
     of the Interior and related agencies for the fiscal year 
     ending September 30, 2002, and for other purposes. The first 
     reading of the bill shall be dispensed with. All points of 
     order against consideration of the bill are waived. General 
     debate shall be confined to the bill and shall not exceed one 
     hour equally divided and controlled by the chairman and 
     ranking minority member of the Committee on Appropriations. 
     After general debate the bill shall be considered for 
     amendment under the five-minute rule. Points of order against 
     provisions in the bill for failure to comply with clause 2 of 
     rule XXI are waived except as follows: beginning with 
     ``Provided further,'' on page 89, line 13, through 
     ``participant:'' on line 18. Where points of order are waived 
     against part of a paragraph, points of order against a 
     provision in another part of such paragraph may be made only 
     against such provision and not against the entire paragraph. 
     During consideration of the bill for amendment, the Chairman 
     of the Committee of the Whole may accord priority in 
     recognition on the basis of whether the Member offering an 
     amendment has caused it to be printed in the portion of the 
     Congressional Record designated for that purpose in clause 8 
     of rule XVIII. Amendments so printed shall be considered as 
     read. During consideration of the bill, points of order 
     against amendments for failure to comply with clause 2(e) of 
     rule XXI are waived. At the conclusion of consideration of 
     the bill for amendment the Committee shall rise and report 
     the bill to the House with such amendments as may have been 
     adopted. The previous question shall be considered as ordered 
     on the bill and amendments thereto to final passage without 
     intervening motion except one motion to recommit with or 
     without instructions.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Washington (Mr. Hastings) 
is recognized for 1 hour.
  Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, for the purposes of debate 
only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentlewoman from New York 
(Ms. Slaughter), pending which I yield myself such time as I may 
consume. During consideration of this resolution, all time is yielded 
for the purpose of debate only.
  Mr. Speaker, House Resolution 174 is an open rule providing for the 
consideration of H.R. 2217, the Department of Interior and Related 
Agencies Appropriations Act. The rule provides for 1 hour of general 
debate, equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking 
member of the Committee on Appropriations. The rule waives all points 
of order against the bill and waives points of order against provisions 
in the bill for failure to comply with clause 2 of rule XXI, 
prohibiting unauthorized or legislative provisions in an appropriations 
bill, except as specified in the rule.

[[Page 11379]]

  The rule provides that the bill shall be considered for amendment by 
paragraph; it waives points of order during consideration of the bill 
against amendments for failure to comply with clause 2(e) of rule XXI, 
prohibiting nonemergency designated amendments to be offered on an 
appropriations bill containing an emergency designation.
  Finally, the rule authorizes the Chair to accord priority and 
recognition to Members who have preprinted their amendments in the 
Congressional Record and provides one motion to recommit with or 
without instructions.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2217 provides regular annual appropriations for the 
Department of the Interior, except for the Bureau of Reclamation, and 
for other related agencies, including the Forest Service, the 
Department of Energy, the Indian Health Service, the Smithsonian 
Institution, and the National Foundation for the Arts and the 
Humanities.
  President Bush requested $18.1 billion for the fiscal year, $700 
million less than last year's enacted level. The Subcommittee on 
Interior has allocated $18.9 billion.
  I am particularly pleased that the bill includes $200 million for the 
payment in lieu of taxes, the same level as last year, and $50 million 
above the President's request. I am also pleased that the committee has 
increased the level of funding for maintenance and operation of 
existing Federal facilities, an effort that should receive at least as 
high a priority as the acquisition of land; at least that is from this 
Member's perspective.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2217 was reported by a voice vote on June 13, 2001, 
and the Committee on Rules is pleased to report an open rule requested 
by the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Young), chairman of the Committee on 
Appropriations. I urge my colleagues to support both the rule and the 
underlying bill, H.R. 2217.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. SLAUGHTER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Washington 
(Mr. Hastings) for yielding me the customary half-hour, and I yield 
myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, this is an open rule that I will not oppose. The 
underlying bill has the support of many from both sides of the aisle 
and, moreover, the minority was consulted throughout the process of 
developing this legislation, something all too rare in much of the 
legislation moving through this body.
  I strongly commend the gentleman from New Mexico (Mr. Skeen), the 
chairman of the subcommittee, and the gentleman from Washington (Mr. 
Dicks), the ranking member, for their success in funding of the new 
Conservation Trust Fund created last year. By including the $1.3 
billion authorized for conservation, Congress has kept a promise to 
expand funding for land acquisition, wildlife protection, and other 
preservation and conservation programs. My constituents in upstate New 
York will also be pleased by the committee's inclusion of a $120 
million increase for weatherization and State energy programs to 
insulate homes, schools, and hospitals, money that is sorely needed.
  But yesterday, the Committee on Rules, in what is becoming an annual 
act of hubris, failed to allow for restoration of some of the unwise 
cuts made 6 years ago in funding for the agencies responsible for the 
country's small but critically important arts and humanities education 
and preservation efforts.
  The bill funds the National Endowment for the Arts at $105 million, a 
level still 40 percent below the 1995 funding level. The National 
Endowment for the Humanities, NEH, is funded at $120 million, 30 
percent below the level of 1995, and these levels fundamentally ignore 
the successful efforts by both NEA and NEH to broaden the reach of 
their programs and eliminate controversial programs, the two 
``reforms'' that were requested by the majority when they reduced 
funding in 1995. It is time to recognize the success of these reforms 
and give these agencies the resources they need to meet this critical 
need.
  This is penny-wise and pound-foolish. The National Endowment for the 
Arts is essential as part of the important link between education and 
the arts. The economic benefits we receive are enormous compared to our 
small investment in the NEA.

                              {time}  1015

  Moreover, the public supports continued funding for the NEA because 
NEA grants affect every congressional district. The NEA's budget 
represents less than one-hundredth of one percent of the Federal 
budget, and returns $3.4 billion annually to the Federal treasury.
  The arts support at least 1.3 million jobs, and the nonprofit arts 
industry alone generates $36.8 billion annually in economic activity, a 
large return for our small investment, not what we usually get. In 
addition, the arts produce $790 million in local government revenue, 
and $1.2 billion in State revenue.
  Members may recall our efforts last year on the floor to increase 
funding for the arts and humanities. Members voted to increase the 
funding for the arts, but a few minutes later the vote was essentially 
overturned when the savings were diverted to another account which came 
up earlier in the reading of the bill.
  Yesterday, the Committee on Rules could easily have prevented similar 
gamesmanship by allowing me to move forward with these amendments under 
an en bloc procedure. This would have provided Members with an up-or-
down vote on arts funding. Instead, I will be compelled to offer 
offsets and amendments that run the risk of procedural attacks by 
opponents of the arts and humanities.
  The minority members of the Committee on Rules, as well as my 
colleagues and the majority of the American people who support funding 
for the arts and humanities, deserve far better.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as 
I may consume.
  I would like to enter into a colloquy with the distinguished chairman 
of the subcommittee.
  First, let me thank the chairman for his attention and detail to 
salmon recovery efforts and hatchery reform efforts included in the 
fiscal year 2002 appropriations bill.
  While these items are terribly important for the entire Pacific 
Northwest, there are a couple of additional items important to central 
Washington in my district, and I hope to see them addressed in the 
conference. One issue involves noxious weed funding in the Forest 
Service budget, and the other is related to ground water research in 
the USGS agency in regards to the Methow Valley.
  Mr. SKEEN. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
  Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. I yield to the gentleman from New Mexico.
  Mr. SKEEN. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the gentleman's kind words, and 
recognize his support for the projects in the legislation.
  I assure the gentleman that the subcommittee will work to address his 
concerns regarding these projects in conference.
  Mr. HASTINGS. Again, Mr. Chairman, I want to thank the chairman for 
his efforts on this in his very first Interior appropriations bill. I 
will certainly provide any assistance I can give and additional 
information necessary to help him in conference on these two projects.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. SLAUGHTER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
Washington (Mr. Dicks).

  Mr. DICKS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this bill and 
rule.
  I want to say to my colleague, the gentleman from Washington, I will 
help him in the conference on the measures that he just mentioned.
  I also want to say that I want to applaud the chairman of this 
committee and the majority and the minority for working to keep the 
commitment last year in our substitute for CARA. This bill carries with 
it $1,320 million in conservation spending. I think it is a dramatic 
step in the right direction.

[[Page 11380]]

  If Members will remember, last year over 300 House Members voted for 
CARA, which would have been a 15-year $3 billion program. I offered an 
amendment with the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Obey) that was 
accepted by the majority that would keep this within the purview of the 
Committee on Appropriations, and to create a trust fund to make sure 
that these important programs were funded. The majority is working with 
the minority. We have funded it in the Interior bill, and we hope it 
will be also funded in the State, Justice, and Commerce bill.
  I agree with the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Slaughter) that we 
would have hoped that the Committee on Rules might have helped us on a 
couple of these amendments, but I want to say to my colleagues, we are 
going to offer an amendment to increase funding for the cultural 
institutions, $10 million for the National Endowment for the Arts, $3 
million for the National Endowment for the Humanities, and $2 million 
for museum services.
  We are taking the money out of administrative expenses. I am 
confident that if the amendment is approved, we will be able to protect 
that in conference. So I am enthusiastically supporting this bill. I 
think we should move ahead and pass the rule on a voice vote and get to 
the bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the rule providing for 
consideration of the Fiscal Year 2002 Appropriations bill for the 
Department of Interior and Related Agencies, despite a denied request 
to make two amendments in order that were proposed yesterday to the 
Committee on Rules.
  The Minority has been consulted throughout the process of developing 
this legislation and we believe our views are reflected in many aspects 
of the bill. While we do not agree with every recommendation and 
continue to work for improvements in several areas, in balance we 
believe that this Interior bill is one which Members from both parties 
can support.
  The Minority is particularly pleased with the recommendation for 
funding of the new Conservation Trust Fund created last year. By 
including the full $1,320 million authorized for conservation, Congress 
has kept faith with last year's commitment to significantly expand 
funding for land acquisition, wildlife protection and other 
preservation and conservation programs. We are also pleased by the 
Committee's inclusion of a $120 million increase for weatherization and 
State energy programs to insulate homes, schools and hospitals. These 
funds are critical to low income families.
  We applaud the Committee's decision to restore many of the unwise 
cuts proposed by the President in a number of critical areas. This 
includes approximately $300 million to the Energy Conservation and 
Fossil Energy research accounts. These funds can significantly 
ameliorate the energy crisis identified in the President's National 
Energy Policy. It made no sense to cut these programs when current 
gasoline prices and electricity problems remind us daily of the need 
for energy conservation and alternative energy programs.
  Although the Committee did not make in order the amendment proposed 
yesterday, Congresswoman Slaughter and I plan to offer a new amendment 
today to increase funding for our cultural agencies. The amendment 
would provide $10 million for the National Endowment for the Arts, $3 
million for the National Endowment for the Humanities, and $2 million 
for the Institute for Museum and Library Services offset by small 
reductions in administrative costs at the Department of the Interior 
and the Department of Agriculture. We had originally planned to offset 
these amounts through a deferral of excess clean coal funds as we did 
last year. Unfortunately the Rules Committee did not waive the rule to 
allow this. Instead this amendment makes a very small reduction of less 
than .3 percent in administrative costs.
  Mr. Speaker, I support the rule protecting the bill as reported. It 
is a clean bill which I intend to support.
  Ms. SLAUGHTER. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and 
I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of 
my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution.
  The previous question was ordered.
  The resolution was agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________