[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 10]
[Senate]
[Pages 14038-14072]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                 SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2008

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Chair lays before the Senate a message 
from the House.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       Resolved, That the House agree to the amendments of the 
     Senate to the amendments of the House to the amendment of the 
     Senate to the bill (H.R. 2642) entitled ``An Act making 
     appropriations for military construction, the Department of 
     Veterans Affairs, and related agencies for the fiscal year 
     ending September 30, 2008, and for other purposes,'' with 
     amendments.

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the motion to concur 
in the House amendments to the Senate amendment to the House amendment 
to the Senate amendment to the bill is considered made.
  The Senator from Virginia is recognized.
  Mr. WEBB. Are we in order to proceed on the supplemental?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator is recognized for up to 5 minutes.
  Mr. WEBB. Mr. President, I don't expect very many people to vote 
against this supplemental. It comes to us from the House with a vote, I 
recall, of 416 to 12. The President asked for most of the provisions in 
this bill. The one provision I would like to speak very briefly about 
tonight is the GI bill provision that is in this supplemental. This is 
not an expansion of veterans' benefits. This is a new program. This is 
the first wartime GI bill benefit since Vietnam.
  I wish to thank very much people on both sides of the aisle for all 
the work we have been able to do. There were 11 Republicans who 
cosponsored this provision, in addition to others who voted for it the 
first time around. There were more than 300 sponsors in the House. 
Those sponsors in the House included 90 Republicans.
  I especially express my appreciation to Senator Hagel and Senator 
Warner, as well as Senator Lautenberg, for being the principal 
cosponsors along with me on this measure, also Chairman Akaka of the 
Veterans' Affairs Committee and the majority leader, who was with us 
early on.
  There are people on my staff who were working on this every day for 
18 months, it is a very complex bill: Paul Reagan, my chief of staff; 
Michael Sozan, my legislative director; William Edwards, my legislative 
assistant for veterans' affairs; Jacki Ball; Jessica Smith and Kimberly 
Hunter, who are on our communications staff; Phillip Thompson and Mac 
McGarvey, both former Marines, who worked hard early on. And those from 
the staff of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Bill Brew, staff 
director, and Babette Polzer.
  This is a landmark piece of legislation that will be in this 
provision. There are going to be a lot of veterans in the United States 
who are going to be very happy with the Senate tonight.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Who yields time? The Senator from Texas is 
recognized.
  Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, I know the time is late. This is a 
very important bill. It is one that has many good features, and the 
good features certainly outweigh the bad features. I know we never get 
everything we want in Congress. We certainly heard a lot about that a 
few minutes ago. I wish to talk about a couple of very important parts 
of this bill.
  Also in the GI bill is something I worked very hard to put in that 
bill, which is the transferability of the education benefits that a 
person in the military now is able to transfer to a spouse or children.
  There are many people who don't want to leave the military to take 
that education opportunity, but they would love to give their spouse or 
their child that opportunity. It is now in this bill. Very important.
  It also incorporates a bill that I introduced early this year, again, 
for veterans. Who would have thought, Mr. President, that someone who 
dies serving our country in Iraq and leaves behind a $300 bill due the 
Veterans' Administration for education benefits--that they were not 
able to finish because they gave their life in the war--would then get 
a bill from the Veterans' Administration for that $385? In fact, Mr. 
President, that is what has been happening since we went into the war 
on terror.
  The Secretary of Veterans Affairs asked me to introduce a bill so he 
would not have to do that because he knew it was wrong and that we 
wouldn't want it being done. This bill we are voting on tonight will go 
retroactive to 9/11, 2001, and it will assure that every family who has 
been sent a bill and paid that bill, after their loved one has died in 
service to their country, will be reimbursed, and no bill will ever go 
out again. That is in this bill, and I am very proud we finally passed 
it.
  Also in this bill is the Merida Initiative, as part of the 
supplemental. In my home State, and all the border States with Mexico, 
we are seeing violence with drug cartels that are now targeting our law 
enforcement officers on our side of the border as well as those in 
Mexico. They are dying trying

[[Page 14039]]

to stop the drug cartels that are importing drugs into our country. The 
Merida Initiative that President Bush and President Calderon have put 
together is a part of this supplemental. I had hoped that we could also 
help our local law enforcement officials who do not have the equipment 
they need to deal with these more violent, more sophisticated drug 
cartels, but I am telling you right now I am going to pursue that in 
the next bill we pass that is an appropriations bill because our local 
law enforcement officials are certainly in need of our help.
  We didn't get that in this bill, and I am disappointed, but there 
will be another day. We have to do this together. We have to stop the 
drug infusion into our country and stop these heinous crimes that are 
being committed by the drug cartels in Mexico.
  So I support this bill. I hope we will all support it. It is a 
supplemental. Most of it is what the President asked for. We didn't all 
get what we wanted, but it is a worthy bill to support.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oklahoma is recognized.
  Mr. COBURN. Mr. President, I plan to raise a point of order in a 
moment, but first I wish to make a statement.
  The emergency spending bill being considered by the Senate would 
provide $210 million for the 2010 Census. No strings are attached to 
the funding, giving the Census Bureau freedom to spend the money in any 
way it chooses. While the mission of the Census Bureau is vitally 
important because of its role in apportioning the House of 
Representatives and the distribution of billions of dollars in federal 
grants, the agency has proved to be notoriously bad at spending 
taxpayer money--and the last thing Congress should do is provide more.
  Emergency spending bills should be reserved only for true 
emergencies, and the 2010 Census is not one of them. The Census Bureau 
has spent hundreds of millions of dollars over the past 8 years 
preparing for the 2010 Census. Yet, even that much time and that much 
money has not been enough to prevent the Bureau from being woefully 
underprepared.
  One of the top priorities for the 2010 Census was modernizing the 
method for collecting census data so that technology would replace the 
traditional pen and paper method. One former Director of the Census 
Bureau called the modernization effort a ``significant improvement'' 
over the way data had been collected in the past.
  Modernization of the census would take two forms:
  First, allowing citizens to fill out census forms over the Internet, 
rather than on paper only.
  Second, equipping census workers who go door-to-door to collect 
information with handheld computers instead of paper forms.
  Two contracts were awarded to build the technology: one to Lockheed 
Martin for, among other things, the development of an online system and 
a second to the Harris Corporation for the development of the handheld 
computers. Unfortunately, mismanagement and incompetence forced the 
Census Bureau to abandon both the Internet in March 2006 and the 
handheld computers in April 2008 as a means of collecting data. In 
place of technology, the Bureau has decided to revert back to an 
entirely paper-based system--exactly the same way census data was 
collected 200 years ago.
  According to the Census Bureau, the reason for abandoning technology 
and reverting to paper was its own failure to communicate what it 
wanted to the contractors. The result was a great deal of confusion, 
schedule delays and irreversible cost overruns. According to the 
Government Accountability Office, the Census Bureau was warned 
repeatedly that problems would mount if it failed to define what it 
wanted the contractor to do. Instead of taking action, the Bureau kept 
changing its mind about what it wanted. As recently as January 16, 
2008--nearly 2 years after the contract was awarded--the Census Bureau 
made 400 changes to the contract for handheld computers. To this day, 
the Census Bureau has still not finalized the handheld computer 
contract with the Harris Corporation and may not do so until September.
  The Census Bureau's mismanagement of the handheld computer contract 
has become the poster-child for how not to run a large information 
technology contract. Poor management by the Bureau has diminished the 
role that technology will play in the 2010 census to the point of 
embarrassment. Americans will take their Census by paper at the same 
time that more than 80 million people are filing their Federal taxes 
online according to the Pew Internet and American Life Project, 75 
percent of all adults are actively online. That percentage increases to 
between 85-90 percent for adults under the age of 50.
  According to the Census Bureau, the impact of abandoning technology 
in the 2010 Census will be a $3 billion overrun. This would bring the 
total price tag of the 2010 Census to roughly $14.5 billion--or more 
than double the cost in 2000. Congress should not reward mismanagement 
at the Census Bureau with an additional $210 million in emergency 
funding for FY 2008. It is unfair that Congress would ask taxpayers to 
bail out the Census Bureau for its incompetence in light of the 
repeated warnings that cost overruns would result from its poor 
management.
  Because the problems of the Census Bureau are of its own making, any 
additional funding needs for fiscal year 2008 should come out of the 
budget of the Census Bureau or the Department of Commerce. The real 
``emergency'' with the 2010 Census is the failure, mismanagement and 
incompetence of the Census Bureau.
  According to Congress' own rules, emergency spending is only allowed 
for needs that truly cannot wait until the next spending cycle. These 
rules are not difficult to understand and lay out clearly what is and 
what is not an emergency.
  There are many activities funded in the bill that are not actual 
emergencies according to the rules, but at the top of the list of non-
emergencies is the $210 million for the 2010 Census. The 2010 Census 
may go down in history as one of the worst managed and most expensive 
of all time, primarily because it saw enormous problems on the horizon 
and chose to ignore them--leading to the emergency today.
  Problems at the Census Bureau have been obvious to auditors and to 
Congress for years, and the funding in this bill is nothing more than a 
taxpayer-subsidized bailout for a mismanaged and incompetent agency. 
The Senate should uphold a point of order against the $210 million 
included in this bill for the 2010 Census because it violates every 
definition of emergency spending and provides no accountability for how 
the money will be spent by an agency that has proven that it 
desperately needs accountability.
  According to the rules, spending can only qualify as an emergency if 
it meets all of the following criteria:
  It is a necessary expenditure--an essential or vital expenditure, not 
one that is merely useful or beneficial;
  It is sudden--coming into being quickly, not building up over time;
  It is urgent--a pressing and compelling need requiring immediate 
action;
  It is unforeseen--not predictable or seen beforehand as a coming 
need, although an emergency that is part of an overall level of 
anticipated emergencies, particularly when estimated in advance, would 
not be ``unforeseen''; and
  It is not permanent--the need is temporary in nature.
  Not only does funding for the Census fall short of meeting all of the 
criteria for emergency spending, it actually fails to meet any of the 
criteria.
  According to Senate Concurrent Resolution 21, any emergency funding 
for the Census would have to be ``necessary, essential, or vital--not 
merely useful or beneficial.'' The purpose of this rule is to separate 
true emergencies from needs that can wait for the regular 
appropriations process. An accurate count of the population is 
important for apportioning the House of Representatives, but that alone 
does not qualify it for emergency funding.
  One of the best ways to determine whether funding is ``necessary'' or 
``vital'' is to ask the following basic

[[Page 14040]]

question: ``How does the Census Bureau plan to spend $210 million?'' If 
funding is truly necessary then there should be a clear answer to that 
question in the form of a specific plan stating the emergency and how 
the money would be spent. So, what is the money for? The answer is: no 
one knows.
  The Census Bureau has not requested any emergency funding from the 
emergency supplemental appropriations bill, nor has it provided a plan 
for how the money would be spent if received. At a March 6, 2008, 
hearing of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, 
and Science, Chairman Barbara Mikulski directly asked both the Commerce 
Secretary, Carlos Gutierrez, and the Census Director, Steven Murdock, 
whether they needed emergency funding. Sen. Mikulski gave them a 
deadline of April 10 to make their request, but both the Secretary of 
Commerce and the Director of the Census Bureau declined to request any 
funding. In response, the Commerce Department stated that it did not 
need emergency money because plenty of funding was available within the 
department's existing budget. On April 3, 2008--a week ahead of Sen. 
Mikulski's deadline--Secretary of Commerce Gutierrez instead sent 
Congress a request to allow the Department to reprogram the 
department's existing funds to cover the cost overruns at the Census 
Bureau. Reprogramming existing funds would force the Department of 
Commerce to offset an increase in Census funding and to bear the burden 
of its own mistakes rather than placing the burden on taxpayers. On 
June 9, the President sent a letter to Congress asking for an increase 
to its fiscal year 2009 budget request for the Census, but also 
provides offsetting decreases to other programs. The Administration has 
stated that it would like for all Census money to come from non-
emergency spending, which would ensure that the Census Bureau's needs 
are not paid for out of deficit spending.
  Unfortunately, Congress has chosen deficit spending over fiscal 
responsibility by including $210 million in this bill for the Census. 
Congress would rather spend additional taxpayer money than cut existing 
program budgets within the Department of Commerce. Including money in 
this bill for the census shows little regard for taxpayers, viewing 
them as a source of easy money rather than as people who work hard for 
their income. Congress is simply playing games with the budget rules 
and driving up the deficit.
  Senate rules require that emergency spending bills be reserved only 
for needs that are ``sudden, urgent and unforeseen'' in nature. The 
United States has been conducting a census every 10 years since 1790 as 
required by the Constitution and therefore is never unforeseen.
  The Census Bureau is, however, currently facing a likely $3 billion 
cost overrun for the 2010 Census because of its decision to abandon the 
use of handheld computers and rely exclusively on paper. Only by 
stretching the meaning of ``sudden, urgent and unforeseen'' beyond 
recognition can it be said that the Census Bureau did not see this 
problem coming. More than 18 months ago, the Census Bureau itself 
recognized that abandoning the handheld computers for paper would 
result in a cost increase for the 2010 Census of at least $1 billion.
  On August 31, 2006, Former Census Director Louis Kincannon wrote a 
letter to the Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management with the 
following warning about reverting to a paper-based census:
  ``In addition to significant cost increases to the 2010 Census, 
reverting to a paper-based operation will compromise efforts to 
improving coverage . . . and will significantly increase the risk of 
operational failure during the 2010 Census.''
  Even as that letter was written, the Census Bureau was being warned 
that its poor management of the handheld computer project could force 
the Bureau to revert to an all-paper census. The problems and cost 
overruns that are materializing today were predicted publicly for a 
long time, but the Census Bureau ignored the warnings and took no 
action to prevent the problems.
  Chairman Henry Waxman, of the House Oversight and Government Reform 
Committee, has extensively documented the warnings that were given to 
the Census Bureau over several years. In addition, the Census Bureau 
was warned repeatedly by the Government Accountability Office, the 
Commerce Inspector General, the MITRE Corporation and Congress about 
its poor planning of the 2010 Census. Each step along the way, the 
Bureau systematically ignored every warning, leading to the schedule 
delays and cost overruns being experienced today. The following 
chronology shows clearly that the current problems being experienced by 
the Census Bureau are not ``sudden, urgent or unforeseen.''
  January 2004--GAG recommended that the Secretary of Commerce develop 
a ``single integrated project plan'' for executing the 2010 Census, 
including how to incorporate technology. The Census Bureau ignored the 
recommendation and moved forward without a plan.
  September 2004--The Commerce Inspector General warned that the Bureau 
should follow a number of key ``software engineering practices'' to 
avoid pitfalls with the handheld computers. These included doing a 
better job with ``system requirements'' and overseeing its contractor. 
The contract for the handhelds was awarded to the Harris Corporation 
with very few details about what should be produced--more than two 
years later the plans are still not finalized.
  June 2005--GAG warned the Census Bureau that the agency was ``at 
increased risk of not adequately managing major IT investments and is 
more likely to experience cost and schedule overruns and performance 
shortfalls.'' GAO made several recommendations aimed at improving 
weaknesses in the Bureau's management of information technology. The 
Census Bureau failed to adequately respond to these recommendations.
  March 2006--As the Bureau was getting ready to award the contract to 
the Harris Corporation, GAO warned that the agency did not have a 
``full set of capabilities they need to effectively manage the 
acquisitions.'' Unless the problem was to be addressed, GAO warned that 
technology problems could lead to ``cost overruns, schedule delays, and 
performance shortfalls.'' The Census Bureau ignored the warnings and 
still has not addressed them more than two years later.
  June 2006--The Senate Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management 
held a hearing on the Census and then-Director Louis Kincannon was 
asked about whether there was a backup plan if the handheld computers 
did not work. Even as the GAO was raising concerns that technology for 
the 2010 Census was in jeopardy, the Director said that no backup plan 
was needed since the computers were guaranteed to work, and said the 
following:
  ``You might as well ask me what happens if the Postal Service refuses 
to deliver the census forms.''
  July 2006--GAO issued a report stating that if the Census Bureau did 
not do more to ensure the success of the handheld computers, it would 
be faced with the ``possibility of having to revert to the costly 
paper-based census used in 2000.''
  April 2007--GAO testified before Congress that ``uncertainty 
surrounded'' the handheld computers because the devices were not being 
properly tested and The Census Bureau ignored the warnings.
  June 2007--The Census Bureau's private, independent consultant--the 
MITRE Corporation--sounded a loud alarm and warned that the Bureau's 
continued refusal to make final specifications could put the entire 
census at risk of severe cost overruns. Census Bureau management 
dismissed the warning.
  July 2007--GAO testified again before a Senate subcommittee that 
there were ``technical problems with the handheld computing devices'' 
and that ``risk management activities'' were ``imperative.'' Failure to 
address these concerns could threaten to overtake the handheld computer 
project.
  October 2007--Once again GAO, with a rising sense of urgency, warned 
that the handheld contract faced ``an increased probability that 
decennial systems will not be delivered on schedule

[[Page 14041]]

and within budget.'' The Census Bureau did not disagree with this 
assessment.
  November 2007--MITRE Corporation executives called an emergency 
meeting with the Deputy Director of the Census to recommend that he 
develop a backup plan for paper because the problems with the handheld 
computers were so severe.
  December 2007--In the last days of the year on December 11, the 
outgoing Director of the Census Bureau testified at a House hearing 
about the handheld computers and brushed off any concerns raised by 
Members. He denied that any serious problems existed or that there were 
any significant delays or cost overruns.
  For years, there were warnings raised to the Census Bureau on nearly 
a monthly basis at times, but those warnings were patently ignored and 
disdained by Census management. Not until February 2008--when the media 
caught wind of the true situation--did the Census Bureau acknowledge 
publicly that there was a serious problem with the handheld computers 
and that large cost overruns were likely.
  In testimony before the Senate Homeland Security Committee on March 
5, 2008, the Secretary of Commerce, Carlos Gutierrez, took it one step 
further and accepted responsibility for failing to act earlier. He 
said:
  ``Clearly the problem was more significant than had been conveyed in 
the December 11 hearing.
  In testimony before the Committee on April 15, Secretary Gutierrez 
admitted that the Bureau was aware of problems by early 2007, when he 
said:
  ``Concerns about the [handheld computer) program grew over time and 
Census and Commerce officials became increasingly aware of the 
significance of the problems through GAO and Office of Inspector 
General reviews, the 2007 dress rehearsal and internal assessments.''
  None of these concerns were relayed to Congress until it was too late 
and emergency funding was the only recourse. With this chronology of 
events, it is simply not possible to claim that any problems with the 
2010 Census being seen today are ``sudden, urgent and unforeseen.'' 
They have been just the opposite: unsurprising, longstanding and 
predictable.
  Without diminishing the importance of the 2010 Census, the funding in 
this bill does not meet the definition of an emergency by a long shot. 
The problems surfacing today were not only predicted many times in the 
past few years, but were documented publicly in numerous congressional 
hearings. A vote to waive the rules on emergency spending in this 
situation is a vote to render the emergency spending rules meaningless. 
A vote to waive the rules is also a vote to reward incompetent 
management at the Census Bureau despite its ignoring years of repeated 
warnings that problems were on the horizon.
  In order to qualify for emergency funding, it must be proved that 
funding for the 2010 Census is ``temporary in nature.'' The rule is 
intended to ensure that needs that are long-standing or ongoing do not 
get funding under emergency rules. Rather, only those needs that are 
short-lived can qualify as an emergency.
  No activity of the U.S. Government has existed for a longer period of 
time nor has an activity of the government been as predictable as the 
decennial census. Article 1, Section 2 of the Constitution states that 
``The actual Enumeration shall be made within three Years after the 
first Meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every 
subsequent Term of ten Years, in such Manner as they shall by Law 
direct.'' With these words, the Founding Fathers established that a 
census of the entire population would be taken every ten years in 
perpetuity. Since the birth of the Nation more than 230 years ago, a 
census has been taken every 10 years--few things in government are as 
permanent as the census.
  It should come as a surprise to no one that there will be a census in 
2010, least of all to Congress and to the Census Bureau. $210 million 
in emergency spending should not be included in a bill that is intended 
only for measures that are ``not permanent'' or ``temporary.''
  The Census Bureau finds itself today as the recipient of a bailout 
from Congress because it has been taught by past experience to expect a 
bailout whenever times get tough. The example of the 2000 Census 
provides an illustration of how the expectation of a congressional 
bailout drives up costs because it decreases concerns about getting the 
best price.
  By the late 1990s, census planners were operating under the 
assumption that the 2000 Census would cost $4 billion--then the most 
expensive of all time. At the time, the Census Bureau was planning to 
use a method of data collection known as ``sampling'' during the 2000 
Census. On January 25, 1999, only 15 months before Census Day 2000, the 
Supreme Court ruled that sampling was not allowable, and that the 
Census Bureau would have to redesign the 2000 Census.
  Although the issue was highly controversial, and subject to a ruling 
by the Supreme Court, the Census Bureau failed to make any plans 
whatsoever in the event that sampling would not be allowed. In 
September 1999, GAO reported that: ``The bureau did not begin detailed 
budgeting for a nonsampling-based census until after the Supreme Court 
ruled that the Census Act prohibited the use of statistical sampling.'' 
Thus, poor planning and mismanagement forced the Census Bureau to 
request an additional $2.6 billion from Congress during the final year 
of preparations.
  Congress was faced with the decision to either cut $2.6 billion from 
existing programs or designate the new funding as an emergency. Not 
surprisingly, Congress chose to designate the $2.6 billion as an 
emergency since it allowed the funding to get around the budget rules 
that would have otherwise required spending cuts. It is the worst kept 
secret in Washington that emergency spending is nothing more than a 
ploy by politicians to bust through the budget caps and spend more 
money. Although Members of Congress were spared from having to make any 
difficult choices, taxpayers were not so lucky.
  Today, for the 2010 Census, Congress is once again facing a decision 
about how to come up with $3 billion. And, once again it wants to pay 
for it on the backs of the American people. Management at the Census 
Bureau is smart enough to know that Congress will never hold the agency 
accountable for its mismanagement of taxpayer dollars, as evidenced by 
the $210 million in this bill. Congress should begin holding the Census 
Bureau accountable today and sustain the point of order against 
emergency funding for the census in this bill.


 members of congress have repeatedly noted that census problems were a 
         failure of management, not the result of an emergency

  By providing $210 million to the Census Bureau, Congress is 
disregarding the findings of its own committees. There have been no 
fewer than five committee hearings in the past 3 months detailing the 
long-standing failures of the Census Bureau to properly manage the 2010 
Census.
  Several members of Congress from both parties and both houses have 
commented over the past several months about the poor management of the 
Census Bureau and the shocking indifference it showed towards those 
that tried to raise a warning. The following statements have been made 
in recent months by various Members of Congress.
  On March 6, the Chairman of the Senate Commerce, Justice and State 
Appropriations Subcommittee, Senator Barbara Mikulski, said that it was 
``shocking'' that the 2010 Census will be done the same way ``we've 
been doing censuses for 200 years.'' Senator Mikulski also stated that 
``a paper census in America borders on a scandal.''
  On June 18th, the ranking member of the CJS Subcommittee, Senator 
Richard Shelby, said that the $3 billion cost overrun is the result of 
``gross mismanagement of the Census Bureau in acquiring hand held 
computers.''
  In March 2008, Representative Carolyn Maloney called the management

[[Page 14042]]

of the 2010 Census a ``mess'' and said that ``what we're facing is a 
statistical Katrina.'' In April 2008, upon hearing that the Census 
Bureau decided to abandon the handheld computers, she said: ``It brings 
little satisfaction to have been right about this, but we've said since 
last year the Census was in real peril.''
  Representative Henry Waxman, Chairman of the House Oversight and 
Government Reform Committee, blamed the cost overruns on ``serious 
mismanagement'' and said that ``the costly decision to return to a 
paper census was avoidable.''
  At a hearing in March, Senator Tom Carper, Chairman of the 
subcommittee with jurisdiction over the Census Bureau, said that ``the 
Census Bureau did not heed the warnings coming from GAO and others that 
their handheld project was troubled.''
  Representative Lacy Clay, who chairs the House Census Subcommittee 
said, ``This appalling failure of management oversight by both the 
Census Bureau and Harris Interactive, combined with ridiculous cost 
overruns is totally unacceptable.'' Representative Clay also said: 
``[Harris] is delivering half of the hand-held computers that the 
Census Bureau originally ordered. The machines can't do what we wanted 
them to do. And yet, Harris expects the taxpayers to provide more than 
$700 million more to pay for their failures. That is outrageous.''
  Senator Joe Lieberman said that ``it is inexcusable that the Census 
Bureau must still rely on paper and pencils to perform its most 
important function.''
  Senator Susan Collins, in discussing the management of the census, 
said that ``there is little to applaud and much to be concerned 
about.'' Senator Collins went to blame agency management for a 
``combination of wishful thinking, lax management, and tunnel vision.''
  Even the Secretary of Commerce, Carlos Gutierrez, who is ultimately 
responsible for the 2010 Census, said that the problems with the 
handheld computers are not the result of an unexpected emergency, but 
is ``a management problem.''


   The Census Bureau has a poor track record of using taxpayer money

  The Census Bureau has one of the worst track records of any federal 
agency when it comes to spending taxpayer money. Numerous accounts can 
be given to highlight the way in which the Census Bureau wastes money 
through negligence, mismanagement and incompetence. The $210 million in 
emergency funding in the bill is nothing more than rewarding bad 
behavior with more money and no accountability.
  Consider the following ways in which the Census Bureau has done a 
poor job of controlling the cost of the census:
  The cost of the census has doubled every time it has been taken since 
1970. In 1970, it cost only $248 million to count 200,000 American 
citizens, but in 2010, it will cost nearly $15 billion to count 300,000 
citizens--that means it will cost 60 times more to count 1\1/2\ times 
as many people. In the 1990 Census it cost $10 per person to count the 
population--in the 2010 Census, it will cost at least $47 per person.
  More recently, the Census Bureau awarded a $600 million cost-plus 
contract to the Harris Corporation for the development of handheld 
computers, which has skyrocketed above the original plan. The handheld 
computers were supposed to perform a number of functions, including two 
functions called Address Canvassing and Non-Response Follow Up:
  Address Canvassing is the process of plotting every American 
household with a GPS coordinate.
  Non-Response Follow Up is the process of collecting information door-
to-door from households that don't respond to the census by mail.
  Due to mismanagement by the Census Bureau, the project has not only 
been severely scaled back but the cost of the contract will likely 
double. In April, the Secretary of Commerce decided to eliminate Non-
Response Follow Up from the list of functions that the handheld 
computer would perform, leaving only Address Canvassing. The Harris 
Corporation estimated that the impact of that decision so close to the 
2010 Census would increase the cost of the contract from approximately 
$600 million to $1.3 billion--an overrun of $700 million to be funded 
by taxpayers.
  According to estimates based on the new contract, the unit cost for 
each handheld computer would be $600 for a device that can do nothing 
more than plot homes on a map using GPS coordinates. This means that 
the Census Bureau will pay $600 for a custom-made handheld device that 
can do less than an off-the-shelf BlackBerry that costs $200 or an 
iPhone that costs $275.
  One of the most glaring examples of wasted money at the Census Bureau 
is seen in the recent cost overrun for a technology help-desk planned 
for census takers going door-to-door in 2010. The original for the help 
desk--before the decision was made to abandon technology for a paper 
census--was $36 million. After the decision to use paper only, the 
estimated cost of the technology help desk increased to $217 million.
  Some will argue that without immediate emergency funding, the Census 
Bureau will not be able to pull off the 2010 Census, putting 
apportionment and important programs in jeopardy.
  This is not true. The next fiscal year is only 3 months away and any 
funding that the Census Bureau needs can be provided then. There is no 
compelling argument that emergency deficit spending on the 2010 Census 
is needed immediately. Perhaps the reason why $210 million is being 
included is because the Congress--like the Census Bureau--is once again 
mismanaging its constitutional duties to pass appropriations bills on 
time.
  Also, as I already stated earlier, it is not clear what this money 
would actually be used for and so it is impossible to say it is 
essential. It is incomprehensible why the Census Bureau needs an extra 
$210 million at this point when it is planning to spend an overall 
amount of $14.5 billion on the 2010 Census. That is more than twice as 
much as the cost of the 2000 Census that was done the exact same way--
by pencil and paper.
  There are plenty of deficit-neutral options available to provide 
funding for the 2010 Census, including transferring money already 
available within the Department of Commerce. Or, Congress could cut or 
eliminate less important programs to free up money for the 2010 Census.
  Furthermore, some may argue that the concerns about poor management 
at the Census Bureau can be dealt with another time--the most important 
thing is getting the 2010 Census done right and without delay.
  I would respond by noting that this country is always in the middle 
of preparations for the next decennial census--if management concerns 
are always pushed back then they will never be addressed. Providing a 
bailout for the Census Bureau now is tantamount to excusing the poor 
management that has prevailed at the agency for the better part of a 
decade.
  Report after report by the GAO and the Inspector General have called 
upon the Census Bureau to improve its poor management of the 2010 
Census. Each of those reports and warnings were ignored because, 
ultimately, the agency knew that Congress didn't care about 
accountability. Congress should deal with the management concerns 
immediately and start by withholding the bailout money in this bill.
  Mr. President, this is a simple point of order, but it has tremendous 
ramifications on whether we are going to effectively oversight the rest 
of the executive agencies.
  Three and a half years ago, Tom Carper and I started oversight 
hearings on the census. At that time, GAO said: They are not going to 
make it. They are not doing what they need to do. It was totally 
ignored, both by the Census Bureau as well as the Department of 
Commerce. Now we find that even though they have had two contracts--one 
with Lockheed and one with another company--to put the census online--
we are going to be the only modern country that doesn't have the census 
online--they have totally withheld, totally canceled that contract, and 
totally didn't perform. The other, to do with electronic data 
collection, is now a flop, and they admit the reason it is

[[Page 14043]]

a flop is because the Census Bureau did not communicate with the 
contractor.
  In this bill is $210 million to say: Oh, we are sorry. We are going 
to give you more money because you didn't do it well.
  Secretary Gutierrez says there is plenty of money in the Commerce 
Department to cover this cost, and I am going to raise a point of order 
that it is not an emergency. There is plenty of money there, and we are 
sending exactly the wrong message to every other agency in this 
Government by allowing an agency that is going to do the census the 
same way it did 200 years ago because of incompetency. We are going to 
give them $200 million on an emergency basis, and we are going to 
charge the next generation because we are not going to pay for it. We 
are going to borrow the money, and we are going to embrace and endorse 
incompetence.
  So, Mr. President, I raise a point of order, pursuant to section 
204(a)(5) of the fiscal year 2008 budget resolution, S. Con. Res. 21, 
against the emergency designation of $200 million for the Census Bureau 
in the message in the pending amendment, and I ask for the yeas and 
nays.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Washington is recognized.
  Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, the Senator from Oklahoma has raised a 
point of order, and I want all our colleagues to know that his point of 
order lies against the emergency designations for the census funding, 
as he has just talked about, but in reality his point of order lies 
against all the emergency spending in this amendment, including the 
veterans education funding and the extension of unemployment benefits, 
and against the disaster relief.
  So I urge our colleagues to vote with us on the point of order. It 
has already been part of the agreement. I ask for the yeas and nays on 
the motion.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the motion to waive 
the Budget Act is considered made.
  Is there a sufficient second? There is a sufficient second.
  The question is on agreeing to the motion.
  The clerk will call the roll.
  Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. 
Kennedy) is necessarily absent.
  Mr. KYL. The following Senator is necessarily absent: the Senator 
from Arizona (Mr. McCain).
  The result was announced--yeas 77, nays 21, as follows:

                      [Rollcall Vote No. 161 Leg.]

                                YEAS--77

     Akaka
     Alexander
     Baucus
     Bayh
     Bennett
     Biden
     Bingaman
     Bond
     Boxer
     Brown
     Brownback
     Bunning
     Byrd
     Cantwell
     Cardin
     Carper
     Casey
     Clinton
     Cochran
     Coleman
     Collins
     Cornyn
     Dodd
     Dole
     Domenici
     Dorgan
     Durbin
     Feingold
     Feinstein
     Hagel
     Harkin
     Hutchison
     Inouye
     Johnson
     Kerry
     Klobuchar
     Kohl
     Landrieu
     Lautenberg
     Leahy
     Levin
     Lieberman
     Lincoln
     Lugar
     Martinez
     McCaskill
     McConnell
     Menendez
     Mikulski
     Murkowski
     Murray
     Nelson (FL)
     Nelson (NE)
     Obama
     Pryor
     Reed (RI)
     Reid (NV)
     Roberts
     Rockefeller
     Salazar
     Sanders
     Schumer
     Shelby
     Smith
     Snowe
     Specter
     Stabenow
     Stevens
     Sununu
     Tester
     Thune
     Vitter
     Warner
     Webb
     Whitehouse
     Wicker
     Wyden

                                NAYS--21

     Allard
     Barrasso
     Burr
     Chambliss
     Coburn
     Conrad
     Corker
     Craig
     Crapo
     DeMint
     Ensign
     Enzi
     Graham
     Grassley
     Gregg
     Hatch
     Inhofe
     Isakson
     Kyl
     Sessions
     Voinovich

                             NOT VOTING--2

     Kennedy
     McCain
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. On this vote, the yeas are 77, the nays are 
21. Three-fifths of the Senators duly chosen and sworn having voted in 
the affirmative, the motion is agreed to.
  Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.
  Mr. LAUTENBERG. I move to lay that motion on the table.
  The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
  Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, 1 year ago, Congress sent the President a 
war funding supplemental that included clear direction to bring our 
troops home by December of 2007. The President chose to veto that bill. 
If he had signed that bill, most of our troops would be home today.
  Instead of bringing our troops home, the President decided to 
increase our commitment of U.S. troops and treasure to a war that has 
now entered its sixth year. Over 4,100 U.S. servicemembers have died. 
Over 30,000 U.S. servicemembers have been wounded. This year, the 
President asked Congress to approve another $178 billion for this 
endless war. With enactment of this supplemental, Congress will have 
approved over $656 billion for the war in Iraq.
  Once again, the President threw down the gauntlet and said he would 
veto the supplemental bill if Congress added funding for anything other 
than the war. He made this demand at a time when the U.S. economy is in 
trouble.
  Under the President's failed fiscal leadership, deficits and debt are 
on the rise. Unemployment is on the rise, with the largest 1 month 
increase in 20 years. Economic growth came to a virtual halt at the end 
of last year. Food and fuel costs are dramatically climbing. Mr. 
President, 8.8 million home owners have mortgages that exceed the value 
of their homes, and foreclosures have increased 57 percent.
  While saying no to funds for America, the President wanted this 
Congress to approve more funding to reconstruct Iraq. We have already 
approved $45 billion for reconstruction projects in Iraq. Despite the 
fact that the Iraqi government is running a huge surplus due to excess 
oil revenues, the President asked this Congress to spend another $3 
billion of American taxpayer dollars on reconstructing Iraq.
  The President wants money to build schools in Sadr City but not in 
Seattle. He wants money for roads in Ramadi but not Richmond. The 
President wants money for Mosul but not Minneapolis. He wants to 
reconstruct Baghdad but not Baltimore or Birmingham.
  Congress listened to the President. We had hearings on his request, 
and we concluded that, notwithstanding his ill-considered veto threat, 
we would include funding to help our citizens here at home.
  The amendment that is before the Senate extends unemployment benefits 
for 13 weeks. Over the past year, the number of unemployed workers in 
this country has grown by 1.6 million to a level of 8.5 million people.
  I am pleased that the amendment includes critical funding for our 
veterans. I commend Senator Webb and Senator Warner for their 
leadership in drafting legislation that provides our veterans with an 
education benefit that they have earned.
  We also have a moratorium on six burdensome Medicaid regulations. The 
President wanted to pass billions of dollars of expenses on to the 
States for rehabilitation services and school-based services for 
children with special needs. Congress said no.
  We have included $2.65 billion for disaster assistance to help the 
victims of the Midwest floods, as well as other disasters that have 
happened over the last year for which the President sought no 
additional funding. We have added funding for the Food and Drug 
Administration to help protect our food and drug supplies. We also 
modified the President's request for the war by adding $160 million to 
his request for funding DOD efforts in Afghanistan. We must never 
forget that those who attacked us on 9/11 trained in Afghanistan, not 
Iraq. We also include language mandating that Iraq match, dollar for 
dollar, further U.S. contributions to reconstructing Iraq.
  This year, the Appropriations Committee has held, and will continue 
to hold, oversight hearings looking at waste, fraud and corruption in 
Iraq. Unchecked corruption in Iraq is providing much of the funding for 
the very enemy our servicemen and women are fighting--and President 
Bush has demonstrated either unwillingness or an inability to check the 
flow of funds and weapons from these sources to the enemy. This 
amendment requires the

[[Page 14044]]

Secretary of State to develop a comprehensive anticorruption strategy 
and submit to Congress the identities of Iraqi officials believed to 
have committed corrupt acts. I am also pleased that this legislation 
continues to provide funding, funding not requested by President Bush, 
for the Special Inspector General for Iraqi Reconstruction. As a result 
of our recent hearings on fraud and corruption in Iraq, we learned that 
there are only five FBI agents assigned to investigate fraud in Iraq 
and Afghanistan. For this administration, look no evil, see no evil. 
Well, it is time to take our blinders off. This amendment includes $5 
million to increase FBI investigations, and the committee will continue 
to hold hearings on fraud and waste in Iraq.
  Despite the positive measures for struggling Americans, our veterans, 
and their families included in this amendment, I deeply regret that 
this legislation will go to President Bush without the necessary checks 
to ensure that the war in Iraq is not open-ended. The majority of the 
American people have come to see this war as a costly mistake that 
needs to be brought to a close. This legislation brings us no closer to 
that goal.
  However, with this legislation, we will once again take care of our 
troops. We also invest in America here at home.
  There is more to do. I am disappointed that the White House blocked 
our efforts to add funding to help the Gulf States recover from 
Hurricane Katrina, to provide additional low-income home energy 
assistance, and to invest in our infrastructure. I have consulted with 
the leadership, and next month, the committee will consider a second 
supplemental to deal with the Midwest floods, Hurricane Katrina, and to 
make critical investments in America.
  I urge adoption of the amendment.
  I ask unanimous consent that an explanatory statement be printed in 
the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

Explanatory Statement Submitted by Senator Robert C. Byrd, Chairman of 
 the Senate Committee on Appropriations, Regarding the House Amendment 
   to the Senate Amendment to House Amendment Number 2 to the Senate 
                         Amendment to H.R. 2642

       Following is an explanation of the fiscal year 2008 
     supplemental appropriations and fiscal year 2009 
     appropriations in the further amendment of the House to 
     Senate amendment numbered 2 to House amendment numbered 2 to 
     the amendment of the Senate to H.R. 2642, the Military 
     Construction and Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies 
     Appropriations Act, 2008, including disclosure of 
     congressionally directed spending items as defined in rule 
     XLIV of the Standing Rules of the Senate.
       The further House amendment provides that, in lieu of the 
     matter proposed to be inserted by the Senate, language be 
     inserted providing supplemental appropriations for military 
     construction, international affairs, disaster assistance, and 
     other security-related and domestic needs, as well as 
     language providing for accountability in contracting, 
     improved veterans education benefits, temporary extended 
     unemployment compensation, and a moratorium on certain 
     Medicaid regulations. The amendment also strikes lines 1 
     through 3 on page 60 of the Senate engrossed amendment of 
     September 6, 2007.
       Unless otherwise noted, all appropriations in the amendment 
     are designated as emergency requirements and necessary to 
     meet emergency needs pursuant to section 204(a) of S. Con. 
     Res. 21 and section 301(b)(2) of S. Con. Res. 70, the 
     congressional budget resolutions for fiscal years 2008 and 
     2009.


                 NOTIFICATION OF EMERGENCY LEGISLATION

       The congressional budget resolution (S. Con. Res. 21) 
     agreed to by Congress for fiscal year 2008 includes a 
     provision relating to the notification of emergency spending. 
     This provision requires a statement of how the emergency 
     provisions contained in the bill meet the criteria for 
     emergency spending as identified in the budget resolution. 
     The amendment contains emergency funding for fiscal year 2008 
     for overseas deployments and other activities, for hurricane 
     recovery in the gulf coast region, for the 2008 Midwest 
     floods, and other natural disasters, and for other needs. The 
     funding is related to unanticipated needs and is for 
     situations that are sudden, urgent, and unforeseen, 
     specifically the global war on terror, the hurricanes of 
     2005, the ongoing floods in the Midwest and other natural 
     disasters, and rising unemployment. The amendment also funds 
     the costs of ongoing military deployments and other 
     requirements through the beginning months of the next fiscal 
     year. These needs meet the criteria for emergency funding.

    TITLE I--MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, VETERANS AFFAIRS, INTERNATIONAL 
              AFFAIRS, AND OTHER SECURITY-RELATED MATTERS

                         CHAPTER 1--AGRICULTURE

                       DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

                      Foreign Agricultural Service


                     PUBLIC LAW 480 TITLE II GRANTS

       The amended bill provides a total of $850,000,000 to remain 
     available until expended for Public Law 480 Title II Grants 
     for fiscal year 2008. The amended bill provides $350,000,000, 
     as requested, for the urgent humanitarian needs identified by 
     the administration. Further, the amended bill provides an 
     additional $500,000,000 for unanticipated cost increases for 
     food and transportation to be made available immediately.
       In addition, because the need for urgent humanitarian food 
     assistance and continuing volatility of food and 
     transportation costs are expected to continue into fiscal 
     year 2009, the amended bill provides a total of $395,000,000, 
     as requested, to be made available beginning October 1, 2008.

                           CHAPTER 2--JUSTICE

                         DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

                      Office Of Inspector General

       The amended bill includes $4,000,000 for the Office of 
     Inspector General. The Inspector General is directed to 
     continue its audit and oversight activities of the Federal 
     Bureau of Investigation's use of National Security Letters 
     (NSLs) and orders for business records, pursuant to Section 
     215 of the USA PATRIOT Act.

                            Legal Activities


            SALARIES AND EXPENSES, GENERAL LEGAL ACTIVITIES

       The amended bill includes $1,648,000 for General Legal 
     Activities for the Criminal Division to provide litigation 
     support services to the Special Inspector General for Iraq 
     Reconstruction for its ongoing investigations and cases 
     involving corruption in the reconstruction of Iraq. The 
     amended bill does not include funding requested to create 
     Iraq and Afghanistan support units within General Legal 
     Activities, Criminal Division. These worthy activities should 
     be supported through funds made available to the Departments 
     of State or Defense.


             SALARIES AND EXPENSES, UNITED STATES ATTORNEYS

       The amended bill includes $5,000,000 for the U.S. Attorneys 
     for extraordinary litigation expenses associated with 
     terrorism prosecutions in the United States.

                     United States Marshals Service


                         SALARIES AND EXPENSES

       The amended bill includes $28,621,000 for the U.S. Marshals 
     Service. Within this funding level is $7,951,000 to provide 
     security at high-threat terrorist trials in the United States 
     and $3,700,000 to improve court and witness security in 
     Afghanistan.

                    Federal Bureau of Investigation


                         SALARIES AND EXPENSES

       The amended bill provides $106,122,000 for the Federal 
     Bureau of Investigation (FBI). This funding level includes 
     $101,122,000 for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and for 
     enhanced counterterrorism activities and $5,000,000 to 
     increase the FBI's capacity to investigate fraudulent 
     contracts in Iraq and Afghanistan. The FBI is directed to 
     provide the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations 
     with a detailed plan for the obligation of these funds no 
     later than 30 days after the enactment of this Act and to 
     update this plan on a quarterly basis with actual 
     obligations.
       The amended bill also provides $82,600,000 in bridge 
     funding for the FBI to maintain the operations described 
     above into fiscal year 2009.

                    Drug Enforcement Administration


                         SALARIES AND EXPENSES

       The amended bill includes $29,861,000 for the Drug 
     Enforcement Administration to further its narco-terrorism 
     initiative and Operation Breakthrough; to conduct financial 
     investigations and to support intelligence activities, such 
     as signals intelligence, to assist the Government of 
     Afghanistan's counter-narcotics and narco-terrorism programs; 
     and to purchase a helicopter for Foreign-deployed Advisory 
     Support Team transportation.

          Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives


                         SALARIES AND EXPENSES

       The amended bill includes $4,000,000 for the Bureau of 
     Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives for necessary costs 
     of operations in Iraq.

                         Federal Prison System


                         SALARIES AND EXPENSES

       The amended bill provides $9,100,000 for the Bureau of 
     Prisons to monitor communications of incarcerated terrorists, 
     collect intelligence, and disseminate relevant information to 
     other Federal law enforcement agencies.

                    GENERAL PROVISION, THIS CHAPTER

       The amended bill includes a provision authorizing the use 
     of funds appropriated in

[[Page 14045]]

     this chapter, or available by the transfer of funds in this 
     chapter, for activities pursuant to section 504 of the 
     National Security Act of 1947.

         CHAPTER 3--MILITARY CONSTRUCTION AND VETERANS AFFAIRS

                         DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

       Iraq.--The Administration's request has been reviewed for 
     military construction in Iraq to ensure that the recommended 
     projects are consistent with contingency construction 
     standards. The establishment of permanent bases in Iraq is 
     not supported, and the amended bill does not include any 
     funds to establish any such base, or convert any base in Iraq 
     from a temporary to permanent status. The amended bill 
     includes language prohibiting the obligation or expenditure 
     of funds for Iraq construction projects provided under 
     Military Construction, Army, and Military Construction, Air 
     Force, until the Secretary of Defense certifies that none of 
     the funds are to be used for the purpose of providing 
     facilities for permanent basing of U.S. military personnel in 
     Iraq. The Secretary of Defense is further directed to provide 
     to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses of 
     Congress, no later than 30 days after enactment of this act, 
     an updated Master Plan for U.S. basing in Iraq, including an 
     inventory of installations that have been closed; those that 
     are scheduled to close, and the timeline for their closure; 
     and a finite list of potential enduring locations describing 
     the mission, military construction requirements, and 
     projected population of these locations.
       Child Development Centers.--The amended bill recommends a 
     total of $210,258,000 to design and build twenty new child 
     development centers for the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air 
     Force. The Department should be commended for following the 
     lead of Congress by requesting funds for additional child 
     development centers.
       Army Barracks Improvements.--The deplorable conditions that 
     have recently been uncovered in some permanent party Army 
     barracks, including those which house soldiers returning from 
     the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, have raised numerous 
     concerns about the adequacy of living conditions for military 
     personnel. The Army created a permanent party barracks 
     modernization program in 1994 to eliminate inadequate 
     barracks. However, this program is not projected to be 
     completely funded until 2013. Given this timeline, it is 
     unacceptable that the Army has allowed some of its existing 
     permanent party barracks to fall into disrepair. While many 
     of the repairs and upgrades to existing barracks can be 
     accomplished with Sustainment, Restoration, and Modernization 
     (SRM) funds, there is a need for additional military 
     construction funds to expedite barracks replacements. The 
     amended bill includes a total of $200,000,000 for the Army to 
     accelerate the construction of new barracks, or to provide 
     major renovations to existing barracks. The funding is 
     provided subject to the development of an expenditure plan to 
     be submitted to the Committees on Appropriations of both 
     Houses of Congress.

                      MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, ARMY

       The amended bill recommends $1,108,200,000 for Military 
     Construction, Army. The funds are provided as follows:

                                            [In thousands of dollars]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                  Location                        Protect description            Request         Recommendation
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AK: Fort Wainwright........................  Child Development Center \1\.             17,000             17,000
CA: Fort Irwin.............................  Child Development Center \1\.             11,800             11,800
CO: Fort Carson............................  Child Development Center \1\.              8,400              8,400
CO: Fort Carson............................  Soldier Family Assistance                  8,100              8,100
                                              Center.
GA: Fort Gordon............................  Child Development Center \1\.              7,800              7,800
GA: Fort Stewart...........................  Soldier Family Assistance                  6,000              6,000
                                              Center.
HI: Schofield Barracks.....................  Child Development Center.....             12,500             12,500
KS: Fort Riley.............................  Transitioning Warrior Support             50,000             50,000
                                              Complex.
KY: Fort Campbell..........................  Child Development Center \1\.              9,900              9,900
KY: Fort Campbell..........................  Soldier Family Assistance                  7,400              7,400
                                              Center.
KY: Fort...................................  Knox Child Development Center              7,400              7,400
LA: Fort Polk..............................  Soldier Family Assistance                  4,900              4,900
                                              Center.
MO: Fort Leonard Wood......................  Starbase Complex 6, Phase 1..  .................             50,000
NC: Fort Bragg.............................  Child Development Center \1\.              8,500              8,500
NY: Fort Drum..............................  Warrior in Transition                     38,000             38,000
                                              Facilities.
OK: Fort Sill..............................  Child Development Center \1\.              9,000              9,000
TX: Fort Bliss.............................  Child Development Center \1\.              5,700              5,700
TX: Fort Bliss.............................  Child Development Center \1\.              5,900              5,900
TX: Fort Bliss.............................  Child Development Center \1\.              5,700              5,700
TX: Fort Hood..............................  Child Development Center \1\.              7,200              7,200
TX: Fort Hood..............................  Warrior In Transition Unit                 9,100              9,100
                                              Ops Facilities.
TX: Fort Sam Houston.......................  Child Development Center \1\.              7,000              7,000
VA: Fort Lee...............................  Child Development Center \1\.              7,400              7,400
Afghanistan: Bagram AB.....................  Administrative Building \1\..             13,800             13,800
Afghanistan: Bagram AB.....................  Aircraft Maintenance Hangar..              5,100              5,100
Afghanistan: Bagram AB.....................  Ammunition Supply Point......             62,000             62,000
Afghanistan: Bagram AB.....................  Bulk Fuel Storage and Supply,             23,000             23,000
                                              Phase 3.
Afghanistan: Bagram AB.....................  Bulk Fuel Storage and Supply,             21,000             21,000
                                              Phase 4.
Afghanistan: Bagram AB.....................  New Roads....................             27,000             27,000
Afghanistan: Bagram AB.....................  Power Plant..................             41,000             41,000
Afghanistan: Ghazni........................  Rotary Wing Parking..........              5,000              5,000
Afghanistan: Kabul.........................  Consolidated Compound........             36,000             36,000
Afghanistan: Various Locations.............  Counter IED Road--Route                   16,500             16,500
                                              Alaska.
Afghanistan: Various Locations.............  Counter IED Road--Route                   54,000             54,000
                                              Connecticut.
Iraq: AI Asad AB...........................  Hot Cargo Ramp...............             18,500             18,500
Iraq: AI Asad AB...........................  Landfill.....................              3,100              3,100
Iraq: AI Asad AB...........................  Power Plant..................             40,000  .................
Iraq: AI Asad AB...........................  South Airfield Apron (India               28,000             28,000
                                              Ramp).
Iraq: AI Asad AB...........................  Urban Bypass Road............             43,000  .................
Iraq: Baghdad IAP..........................  Water Supply, Treatment &                 13,000             13,000
                                              Storage Ph III.
Iraq: Camp Adder...........................  Convoy Support Center                     39,000             39,000
                                              Relocation, Phase II.
Iraq: Camp Adder...........................  Multi-Class Storage Warehouse             17,000  .................
Iraq: Camp Adder...........................  POL Storage Area.............             10,000             10,000
Iraq: Camp Adder...........................  Power Plant..................             39,000  .................
Iraq: Camp Adder...........................  Wastewater Treatment &                     9,800              9,800
                                              Collection System.
Iraq: Camp Anaconda........................  Hazardous Waste Incinerator..              4,300              4,300
Iraq: Camp Anaconda........................  Landfill.....................              6,200              6,200
Iraq: Camp Anaconda........................  Power Plant..................             39,000  .................
Iraq: Camp Constitution....................  Juenile TIFRIC...............             11,700             11,700
Iraq: Camp Cropper.........................  Brick Factory................              9,500  .................
Iraq: Camp Marez...........................  Landfill.....................                880                880
Iraq: Camp Ramadi..........................  Landfill.....................                880                880
Iraq: Camp Speicher........................  Aviation Navigation                       13,400             13,400
                                              Facilities.
Iraq: Camp Speicher........................  Landfill.....................              5,900              5,900
Iraq: Camp Speicher........................  Military Control Point.......              5,800              5,800
Iraq: Camp Speicher........................  Power Plant..................             39,000  .................
Iraq: Camp Speicher........................  Rotary Wing Parking Apron....             49,000  .................
Iraq: Camp Taqqadum........................  Landfill.....................                880                880
Iraq: Camp Warrior.........................  Landfill.....................                880                880
Iraq: Fallujah.............................  Landfill.....................                880                880
Iraq: Mosul................................  Urban Bypass Road............             43,000  .................
Iraq: Qayyarah West........................  North Entry Control Point....             11,400             11,400
Iraq: Qayyarah West........................  Perimeter Security Upgrade...             14,600             14,600
Iraq: Qayyarah West........................  Power Plant..................             26,000  .................
Iraq: Scania...............................  Entry Control Point..........              5,000              5,000
Iraq: Scania...............................  Water Storage Tanks..........              9,200              9,200
Iraq: Victory Base.........................  Landfill.....................              6,200              6,000
Iraq: Victory Base.........................  Level 3 Hospital.............             13,400             13,400
Iraq: Victory Base.........................  Wastewater Treatment &                     9,800              9,800
                                              Collection System.
Iraq: Victory Base.........................  Water Treatment &. Storage                18,000             18,000
                                              Phase II.
Iraq: Various Locations....................  Facilities Replacement.......             72,000  .................
Iraq: Various Locations....................  Overhead Cover--eGlass.......            135,000            135,000

[[Page 14046]]

 
Kuwait: Camp Arifjan.......................  Communication Center.........             30,000             30,000
Worldwide: Unspecified.....................  Planning and Design (GWOT)...             64,200             52,800
Worldwide: Unspecified.....................  Planning and Design (WIT)....             14,600             14,600
Worldwide: Unspecified.....................  Planning and Design (COG) \1\              6,000              6,000
                                                                           -------------------------------------
      Total................................  .............................          1,486,100         1,108,200
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Requested by the Department of Defense in fiscal year 2008 and/or the March 2008 Adjustments package.

              MILITARY CONSTRUCTION, NAVY AND MARINE CORPS

       The amended bill recommends $355,907,000 for Military 
     Construction, Navy and Marine Corps. The funds are provided 
     as follows:

                                            [In thousands of dollars]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                  Location                        Project description            Request         Recommendation
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CA: Camp Pendleton.........................  11th Marine Regiment HQ,                  34,970             34,970
                                              Armory, BEQ.
CA: Camp Pendleton.........................  5th Marine Regiment Addition,             10,890             10,890
                                              San Mateo.
CA: Camp Pendleton.........................  Armory Intelligence                        4,180              4,180
                                              Battalion, 16 Area.
CA: Camp Pendleton.........................  Armory, Regiment & Battalion               5,160              5,160
                                              HQ, 53 Area.
CA: Camp Pendleton.........................  BEQ & Mess Hall HQ (13) Area.             24,390             24,390
CA: Camp Pendleton.........................  EOD Operations Facility......             13,090             13,090
CA: Camp Pendleton.........................  ISR Camp--Intelligence                     1,114              1,114
                                              Battalion.
CA: Camp Pendleton.........................  JIEDDO Battle Courses \1\....              9,270              9,270
CA: Camp Pendleton.........................  Military Police Company                    8,240              8,240
                                              Facilities.
CA: Twentynine Palms.......................  Regimental Combat Team HQ                  4,440              4,440
                                              Facility.
CA: China Lake NAWS........................  JIEDDO Battle Courses \1\....              7,210              7,210
CA: Point Mugu.............................  JIEDDO Battle Courses \1\....              7,250              7,250
CA: San Diego..............................  Child Development Center \1\.             17,930             17,930
CA: Twentynine Palms.......................  JIEDDO Battle Courses \1\....             11,250             11,250
FL: Whiting Field NAS......................  JIEDDO Battle Courses \1\....                780                780
MS: Gulfport NCBC..........................  JIEDDO Battle Courses \1\....              6,570              6,570
NC: Camp Lejeune...........................  Child Development Center \1\.             16,000             16,000
NC: Camp Lejeune...........................  JIEDDO Battle Courses \1\....             11,980             11,980
NC: Camp Lejeune...........................  Maintenance/Operations                    43,340             43,340
                                              Complex 2/9..
SC: Parris Island MCRD.....................  Recruit Barracks.............  .................             25,360
VA: Yorktown NWS...........................  JIEDDO Battle Courses \1\....              8,070              8,070
Djibouti: Camp Lemonier....................  CJTF-HOA HQ Facility.........             29,710  .................
Djibouti: Camp Lemonier....................  Dining Facility..............             20,780             20,780
Djibouti: Camp Lemonier....................  Fuel Farm \1\................              4,000              4,000
Djibouti: Camp Lemonier....................  Full Length Taxiway \1\......             15,490             15,490
Djibouti: Camp Lemonier....................  Network Infrastructure                     6,270              6,270
                                              Expansion.
Djibouti: Camp Lemonier....................  Water Production.............             19,140             19,140
Djibouti: Camp Lemonier....................  Western Taxiway \1\..........              2,900              2,900
Worldwide: Unspecified.....................  Planning and Design (GTF)....              7,491              7,491
Worldwide: Unspecified.....................  Planning and Design (GWOT)...              4,300              4,300
Worldwide: Unspecified.....................  Planning and Design (CDC) \1\              1,101              1,101
Worldwide: Unspecified.....................  Planning and Design (JIEDDO)               2,951              2,951
                                              \1\.
                                                                           -------------------------------------
      Total................................  .............................            360,257            355,907
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Requested by the Department of Defense in fiscal year 2008 and/or the March 2008 Adjustments package.

       Joint IED Defeat Organization (JIEDDO) Battle Courses.--The 
     amended bill recommends $65,331,000 to construct facilities 
     for enhanced counter-improvised explosive device training in 
     furtherance of the goals of the Joint IED Defeat 
     Organization. These funds address a technical correction in 
     the Administration's fiscal year 2008 Global War on Terror 
     budget request and are offset by a rescission in title IX.

                    Military Construction, Air Force

       The amended bill recommends $399,627,000 for Military 
     Construction, Air Force. The funds are provided as follows:

                                            [In thousands of dollars]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                  Location                        Project description            Request         Recommendation
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CA: Beale AFB..............................  Child Development Center \1\.             17,600             17,600
FL: Eglin AFB..............................  Child Development Center \1\.             11,000             11,000
NJ: McGuire AFB............................  JIEDDO Battle Courses \1\....              6,200              6,200
NM: Cannon AFB.............................  Child Development Center \1\.              8,000              8,000
Afghanistan: Bagram AB.....................  East Side Helo Ramp..........             44,400             44,400
Afghanistan: Bagram AB.....................  ISR Ramp.....................             26,300             26,300
Afghanistan: Bagram AB.....................  Parallel Taxiway Phase 2.....             21,400             21,400
Afghanistan: Bagram AB.....................  Strategic Ramp...............             43,000             43,000
Iraq: Balad AB.............................  Fighter Ramp.................             11,000             11,000
Iraq: Balad AB.............................  Foxtrot Taxiway..............             12,700             12,700
Iraq: Balad AB.............................  Helicopter Maintenance                    34,600             34,600
                                              Facilities..
Kyrgyzstan: Manas AB.......................  Strategic Ramp...............             30,300             30,300
Oman: Masirah AB...........................  Expeditionary Beddown Site...              6,300              6,300
Qatar: AI Udeid AB.........................  Facility Replacements........             40,000             30,000
Qatar: AI Udeid AB.........................  Northwest (CAS) Ramp \1\.....             60,400             60,400
Worldwide: Unspecified.....................  Planning and Design (GWOT)...             35,000             35,000
Worldwide: Unspecified.....................  Planning and Design (CDC) \1\              1,427              1,427
                                                                           -------------------------------------
      Total................................  .............................            409,627            399,627
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Requested by the Department of Defense in fiscal year 2008 and/or the March 2008 Adjustments package.

       Joint IED Defeat Organization (JIEDDO) Battle Courses.--The 
     amended bill recommends $6,200,000 to construct facilities 
     for enhanced counter-improvised explosive device training in 
     furtherance of the goals of the Joint IED Defeat 
     Organization. These funds address a technical correction in 
     the Administration's fiscal year 2008 Global War on Terror 
     budget request and are offset by a rescission in title IX.

                  Military Construction, Defense-Wide

       The amended bill recommends $890,921,000 for Military 
     Construction, Defense-Wide. The funds are provided as 
     follows:

                                            [In thousands of dollars]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                  Location                        Project description            Request         Recommendation
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
GA: Fort Benning...........................  Hospital Replacement.........  .................            350,000
KS: Fort Riley.............................  Hospital Replacement.........  .................            404,000
NC: Camp Lejeune...........................  Hospital Addition............  .................             64,300
TX: Fort Sam Houston.......................  Burn Rehabilitation Center...             21,000             21,000
Qatar: AI Udeid AB.........................  Logistics Storage Warehouse..              6,600              6,600
Worldwide: Unspecified.....................  Planning and Design (MTF)....  .................             45,021
                                                                           -------------------------------------
      Total................................  .............................             27,600            890,921
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


[[Page 14047]]

       Medical Treatment Facilities Construction.--There is a 
     great concern with the large backlog of needed 
     recapitalization for medical treatment facilities for 
     military service members and their families. The current 
     Future Years Defense Plan (FYDP) for Tricare Management 
     Activity military construction averages $412,000,000 per year 
     for fiscal years 2009 through 2013, and much of this amount 
     is accounted for by medical research facilities. With the 
     services identifying recapitalization requirements ranging in 
     the several billions of dollars, the current FYDP for medical 
     construction is obviously and severely insufficient. The 
     Department's inventory of medical treatment facilities is 
     riddled with aging hospitals, clinics, and other facilities 
     that do not meet current standards for medical care. Adding 
     to this problem is the fact that several installations are 
     adding thousands of personnel and dependents due to Base 
     Realignment and Closure, the relocation of units from Europe 
     and Korea to the United States, and the Growing the Force 
     initiative that will add 92,000 active duty personnel to the 
     Army and Marine Corps. The amended bill therefore recommends 
     $863,321,000 for additional medical treatment facility 
     construction. These funds will provide for the Army's top two 
     priority hospital replacement projects in the United States 
     as well as a top priority hospital addition for the Marine 
     Corps.
       The Department of Defense is also directed to develop a 
     comprehensive master plan for medical treatment facilities 
     construction, to include both recapitalization and new 
     requirements. This plan shall include a comprehensive 
     priority list of projects for all services, provide a cost 
     estimate for each project, supply data on the current state 
     of facilities and the projected change in demand for services 
     due to growth for each location on the list, indicate the 
     extent to which identified construction requirements are 
     programmed in the FYDP, and indicate the resources required 
     for associated planning and design work. This report shall be 
     submitted to the Committees on Appropriations of both Houses 
     of Congress no later than December 31, 2008.

           Family Housing Construction, Navy and Marine Corps

       The amended bill recommends $11,766,000 for Family Housing 
     Construction, Navy and Marine Corps. The funds are provided 
     as follows:

                                            [In thousands of dollars]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                  Location                        Project description            Request         Recommendation
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CA: Camp Pendleton.........................  Public-Private Venture, Phase             10,692             10,692
                                              6B.
CA: Twentynine Palms.......................  Public-Private Venture, Phase              1,074              1,074
                                              2A.
                                                                           -------------------------------------
      Total................................  .............................             11,766             11,766
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

            Department of Defense Base Closure Account 2005

       The amended bill recommends $1,278,886,000 for Department 
     of Defense Base Closure Account 2005 instead of 
     $1,202,886,000 as requested by the Administration. The amount 
     provided fully funds the Administration's request to expedite 
     medical facility construction at Bethesda and Fort Belvoir, 
     and provides an additional $862,976,000 for BRAC 2005 
     implementation.

                     DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

                      Departmental Administration


                       general operating expenses

       The amended bill recommends $100,000,000 for General 
     Operating Expenses to implement the provisions of title V of 
     this Act.


                     information technology systems

       The amended bill recommends $20,000,000 for Information 
     Technology Systems to implement the provisions of title V of 
     this Act, including support for any personnel increases 
     within the Veterans Benefits Administration.


                      construction, major projects

       The amended bill recommends $396,377,000 for Construction, 
     Major Projects to accelerate and complete planned major 
     construction of Level I polytrauma rehabilitation centers as 
     identified in the Department of Veterans Affairs' Five Year 
     Capital Plan.
       Polytrauma Center Initiative.--The nature of combat in Iraq 
     and Afghanistan has resulted in new patterns of polytraumatic 
     injuries and disabilities requiring specialized intensive 
     rehabilitation and high coordination of care. Operating under 
     a national Memorandum of Agreement with the Department of 
     Defense (DOD), the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) 
     polytrauma rehabilitation centers continue to provide 
     treatment and care to severely injured combat personnel 
     requiring polytrauma inpatient rehabilitation. The medical 
     care the VA is providing to military personnel is 
     exceptional. However, space in the existing polytrauma 
     facilities is dated, with cramped quarters and treatment 
     facilities scattered throughout hospital campuses. These 
     inefficiencies prove to be difficult for patients with 
     mobility issues, compromised immune systems, and those 
     suffering from psychological wounds. In an effort to 
     accelerate the VA's planned expansion and consolidation of 
     polytrauma rehabilitation centers on existing hospital 
     campuses as outlined in the Department's February 2008 Five 
     Year Capital Plan, the amended bill recommends providing 
     $396,377,000 to fully fund the design and construction of 
     these crucial projects.

                    GENERAL PROVISIONS, THIS CHAPTER

       The amended bill includes the following general provisions 
     for this chapter:
       Section 1301 provides an additional appropriation for 
     Military Construction, Army for the acceleration of barracks 
     improvements at Army installations.
       Section 1302 relates to the Armed Forces Institute of 
     Pathology.
       Section 1303 relates to the collection of certain debts 
     owed to the Department of Veterans Affairs by service members 
     killed in a combat zone.

         CHAPTER 4--DEPARTMENT OF STATE AND FOREIGN OPERATIONS

     SUBCHAPTER A--SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2008

                              Introduction

       The budget request totals $5,073,608,000 in emergency 
     supplemental funds for fiscal year 2008, and the Department 
     of State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs 
     Appropriations Act, 2008 (Public Law 110-161) provided 
     $1,473,800,000 for immediate requirements. The amended bill 
     provides for Department of State, Foreign Operations and 
     Related Programs a total of $5,164,108,000, which is 
     $90,500,000 above the pending budget request.

                          DEPARTMENT OF STATE

                   Administration of Foreign Affairs


                    diplomatic and consular programs

       The budget request included $2,283,008,000 for Diplomatic 
     and Consular Programs, of which $575,000,000 was appropriated 
     in the Department of State, Foreign Operations and Related 
     Programs Appropriations Act, 2008 (Public Law 110-161) for 
     operations and security at the United States Embassy in Iraq.
       The amended bill includes an additional $1,465,700,000 for 
     Diplomatic and Consular Programs, which is $242,308,000 below 
     the pending request. Within the amount provided, $210,400,000 
     is for worldwide security protection. Funds for diplomatic 
     and consular programs are to be allocated as follows:

                                        DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR PROGRAMS
                                            [In thousands of dollars]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                                  Change from
                        Activity                          Pending  request    Amended  bill         request
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Iraq Diplomatic Operations.............................          1,545,608          1,150,000           -395,608
Afghanistan--Operations and Worldwide Security                     162,400            200,200            +37,800
 Protection............................................
Pakistan--Operations...................................  .................              7,500             +7,500
Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative...................  .................              1,000             +1,000
Worldwide Security Protection..........................  .................             48,000            +48,000
Civilian Workforce Initiative..........................  .................             55,000            +55,000
Public Diplomacy.......................................  .................              4,000             +4,000
                                                        --------------------------------------------------------
      Total, Diplomatic and Consular Programs..........          1,708,008          1,465,700           -242,308
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

       Afghanistan.--Within the total, the amended bill includes 
     $200,200,000, which is $37,800,000 above the request, for 
     necessary expenses for diplomatic and security operations in 
     Afghanistan. Of this amount, $162,400,000 is for enhanced 
     security operations, including additional high threat 
     protection teams, increased overhead cover and physical 
     security measures, replacement of

[[Page 14048]]

     armored vehicles, and local guard service. In addition, 
     $19,000,000 is for the establishment of a Department of 
     State-managed air transport capability in Afghanistan for 
     Department of State and United States Agency for 
     International Development (USAID) personnel to manage country 
     programs, provide support for medical evacuation, and other 
     security-related operations. Finally, $18,800,000 is for 
     support of operations and personnel for Provincial 
     Reconstruction Teams (PRTs) in Afghanistan.
       Iraq.--Within the total, $1,150,000,000 is for the 
     diplomatic and security operations of the United States 
     Mission in Iraq, which is $395,608,000 below the pending 
     request. The cost of operations of the United States Mission 
     in Iraq totals $2,141,000,000 for fiscal year 2008, including 
     $1,150,000,000 provided in this Act, $575,000,000 provided as 
     bridge funding in Public Law 110-161 and $416,000,000 in 
     funds carried over from prior year appropriations. Nearly 
     $900,000,000 is requested for supporting security 
     requirements for diplomatic and development personnel in 
     Iraq.
       The amended bill includes funding for mission operations, 
     security, logistics support, information technology, and 
     operations of PRTs. Congress has provided an additional 
     $196,543,000 since fiscal year 2006 for follow-on facilities 
     requirements identified by the Department of State, as 
     follows: extend the perimeter wall; construct a dining 
     facility; construct additional housing; construct a tactical 
     operations center for Diplomatic Security; construct a static 
     guard camp; and construct overhead cover. The actual cost of 
     building the New Embassy Compound (NEC) has reached a total 
     of $788,543,000 to date.
       The number of permanent and temporary personnel assigned to 
     Iraq, with the exception of USAID, should be decreased to 
     accommodate all personnel within the NEC and any improvements 
     can be made with previously appropriated funds. USAID will 
     play a critical role in assisting the Government of Iraq in 
     effectively allocating its budgetary resources.
       The additional $43,804,000 requested for follow-on projects 
     for the NEC in Baghdad is not included. At least $77,027,000 
     in prior year funding programmed for follow-on projects is 
     available for obligation and these funds should be used to 
     provide additional secure housing for a smaller number of 
     personnel.
       None of the funds provided under this heading in this Act 
     shall be made available for follow-on projects, other than 
     the proposed funding for overhead cover. The Department of 
     State should include a detailed plan for the use of funds for 
     follow-on projects as part of the spending plan required by 
     this Act.
       Due to an extended accreditation and verification process 
     and the addition of follow-on projects, occupancy of the NEC 
     offices and housing has been delayed. This rigorous process 
     to address and validate whether the NEC was constructed to 
     code and contract specifications was supported. Now that the 
     process is complete, occupancy of the offices and housing 
     should proceed without delay in order to provide the maximum 
     protection to United States personnel.
       The rationale for co-location of the Departments of State 
     and Defense in the NEC is recognized. However, the proposed 
     New Office Building and the Interim Office Building 
     reconfigurations are projected to delay occupancy of NEC 
     offices by up to one year. Given the difficult security 
     environment in Baghdad, this lengthy delay is not acceptable. 
     The Departments of State and Defense are expected to consult 
     with the Committees on Appropriations on options for moving 
     forward with limited co-location plans in the most 
     accelerated, secure, and cost-effective manner. Any future 
     construction in Iraq shall be subject to the Capital Security 
     Cost Sharing Program, in the same manner as all other embassy 
     construction projects worldwide.
       There is a concern that private security contractors have 
     been utilized without the necessary authority, oversight, or 
     accountability. The Department of State is directed to 
     provide a report to the Committees on Appropriations not 
     later than 45 days after enactment of this Act on the 
     implementation status of each of the recommendations of the 
     October 2007 report of the Secretary of State's Panel on 
     Personal Protective Services. The Department of State is 
     encouraged to aggressively review security procedures and 
     seek the necessary authority to ensure that increased 
     security is achieved with effective oversight and 
     accountability.
       The Secretary of State should take appropriate steps to 
     ensure that assistance for Iraq is not provided to or through 
     any individual, private entity or educational institution 
     that the Secretary knows or has reason to believe advocates, 
     plans, sponsors, or engages in, terrorist activities.
       Pakistan.--The amended bill includes $7,500,000 for 
     operations, security, and personnel engaged in diplomatic 
     activities to promote economic and political development in 
     the Federally Administered Tribal Areas along the Pakistan 
     and Afghanistan border.
       Sudan.--The amended bill includes resources to support the 
     diplomatic mission in Sudan including the United States 
     Special Envoy for Sudan.
       Buying Power Maintenance Account.--The amended bill 
     provides authority to transfer funds available in this Act, 
     and in a prior Act, to the Buying Power Maintenance Account 
     in accordance with section 24 of the State Department Basic 
     Authorities Act, to manage exchange rate losses in fiscal 
     year 2008.
       Civilian Workforce Initiative.--The amended bill provides 
     $55,000,000 to increase the civilian diplomatic capacity of 
     the Department of State to meet the increasing and complex 
     demands of diplomacy in the 21st century. Within the total, 
     $30,000,000 is for the initial development and deployment of 
     a civilian capacity to respond to post-conflict stabilization 
     and reconstruction challenges and $25,000,000 is to 
     strengthen capabilities of the United States diplomatic corps 
     and promote broader engagement with the rest of the world, 
     including expanding training and enhanced interagency 
     collaboration.
       The amended bill includes funds to replace Foreign Service 
     positions worldwide, which were previously moved to Iraq and 
     to increase the number of positions participating in critical 
     needs foreign language training. The Department of State has 
     transferred approximately 300 Foreign Service positions from 
     embassies around the world to Iraq and to associated language 
     training, leaving key posts understaffed. These funds are to 
     be used to support United States foreign policy in priority, 
     understaffed regions, particularly South and East Asia, the 
     Western Hemisphere, and Africa.
       Funds made available for the civilian stabilization 
     initiative are for the Active and Standby Response Corps 
     portion of the initiative and to enhance operations of the 
     Office of the Coordinator for Reconstruction and 
     Stabilization. In addition to the funds provided to the 
     Department of State, $25,000,000 is appropriated in this Act 
     under the heading ``Operating Expenses of the United States 
     Agency for International Development'' to implement the USAID 
     portion of the civilian stabilization initiative. The funding 
     request for the Civilian Response Corps will be considered as 
     part of the fiscal year 2009 appropriations process and none 
     of the funds provided in this Act are to be used to implement 
     the Civilian Response Corps portion of the initiative.
       Diplomatic Security-Worldwide Security Protection.--The 
     amended bill also includes $48,000,000 above the request for 
     worldwide security protection. The amount provided is 
     available to restore 100 positions in the diplomatic security 
     personnel that were redirected to Iraq to address urgent 
     security requirements for United States personnel elsewhere 
     in the world.
       Directorate of Defense Trade Controls.--Increased demands 
     on the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls' Office of 
     Defense Trade Controls Licensing have led to delays in 
     license processing. The Secretary of State is directed to 
     review the workload demands and staffing needs of the office 
     and report any recommendations to the Committees on 
     Appropriations not later than 45 days after enactment of this 
     Act.
       Middle East Peace Process.--The security and support 
     requirements for the personnel and operations that accompany 
     the Middle East peace process have been, and should continue 
     to be, supported through the operations funds available in 
     fiscal year 2008. Any additional requirements associated with 
     these activities will be considered during the fiscal year 
     2009 appropriations process.
       Public Diplomacy.--The amended bill includes $4,000,000 for 
     the Office of Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs to expand 
     new media for targeted Arabic language television programs 
     for the purpose of fostering cultural, educational, and 
     professional dialogues through indigenous Arabic language 
     satellite media.
       Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative.--The amended bill 
     recommends not less than $1,000,000 to expand public outreach 
     efforts related to implementation of the Western Hemisphere 
     Travel Initiative (WHTI). With WHTI implementation occurring 
     as early as June 2009, there is concern about the lack of a 
     comprehensive, coordinated plan between the Department of 
     State, the Department of Homeland Security, and the United 
     States Postal Service to broadly disseminate information to 
     the traveling public concerning the final WHTI implementation 
     requirements at the Nation's land and sea ports. The 
     Department of State is encouraged to provide significantly 
     increased outreach to border communities, including through 
     radio, print media, and additional passport fairs.


                      office of inspector general

                     (including transfer of funds)

       The amended bill includes an additional $9,500,000 for 
     Office of Inspector General (OIG) at the Department of State, 
     which is $9,500,000 above the pending request. Of the total, 
     $5,000,000 is to enhance the Department of State Inspector 
     General's oversight of programs in Iraq and Afghanistan, 
     $2,500,000 is for operations of the Special Inspector General 
     for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR), and $2,000,000 is for 
     operations of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan 
     Reconstruction (SIGAR).
       The Department of State OIG, USAID OIG, SIGIR, and SIGAR 
     each have independent oversight responsibilities in Iraq and 
     Afghanistan. The inspectors general should, to the maximum 
     extent practicable, coordinate, and de-conflict all 
     activities related to

[[Page 14049]]

     oversight of assistance programs for the reconstruction of 
     Iraq and Afghanistan to ensure that oversight resources are 
     used effectively and are not unnecessarily duplicative.
       To ensure continuity of oversight of permanent United 
     States Missions, the USAID OIG and the Department of State 
     OIG are expected to actively participate in oversight of all 
     programs funded by this Act and prior Acts making 
     appropriations for the Department of State and foreign 
     operations, in particular oversight of diplomatic and 
     development operations and facilities. Joint oversight with 
     SIGIR or SIGAR is strongly encouraged; however once fully 
     staffed, the Department of State OIG or the USAID OIG should, 
     to the maximum extent practicable, be designated as the lead 
     for any joint oversight conducted with SIGIR or SIGAR of 
     funds involving diplomatic operations and facilities in Iraq 
     and Afghanistan.


            embassy security, construction, and maintenance

       The amended bill includes an additional $76,700,000 for 
     urgent embassy security, construction, and maintenance costs, 
     which is $83,300,000 below the request. The funds are to 
     construct 300 secure apartments and a secure office building, 
     including the necessary perimeter security, utility, and 
     dining facilities, for United States Mission staff in 
     Afghanistan. Currently, there are a small number of permanent 
     construction apartments and the majority of diplomatic and 
     Mission personnel live in structures with limited protection. 
     Additional funds for this purpose are provided in subchapter 
     B.

                      International Organizations


              contributions to international organizations

       The amended bill includes $66,000,000 for Contributions to 
     International Organizations, which is for United States 
     contributions to the U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan 
     and the U.N. Assistance Mission in Iraq. Funding is also 
     provided to meet fiscal year 2008 assessed dues to 
     organizations whose missions are critical to protecting 
     United States national security interests, including the 
     North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the International Atomic 
     Energy Agency, and the Organization for the Prohibition of 
     Chemical Weapons.
       The Department of State is directed not later than 45 days 
     after enactment of this Act, to provide a report to the 
     Committees on Appropriations detailing total United States-
     assessed contributions, any arrears from prior years and 
     potential arrears for fiscal years 2008 and 2009 for each of 
     the organizations funded under this heading.


        contributions for international peacekeeping activities

       The budget request included $723,600,000 for Contributions 
     for International Peacekeeping Activities, of which 
     $390,000,000 of funds designated as an emergency was provided 
     in the Department of State, Foreign Operations and Related 
     Programs Appropriations Act, 2008 (Public Law 110-161) for 
     the United States contribution to the United Nations/African 
     Union (UN/AU) hybrid peacekeeping mission to Darfur (UNAMID).
       The amended bill includes an additional $373,708,000 for 
     assessed costs to U.N. peacekeeping operations. Within the 
     total under this heading, not less than $333,600,000 is 
     provided for UNAMID, which is the same as the request. 
     Additionally, the amended bill includes $40,108,000 to meet 
     unmet fiscal year 2008 assessed dues for the international 
     peacekeeping missions to countries such as the Democratic 
     Republic of the Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Haiti, Liberia, and 
     Sudan.

                             RELATED AGENCY

                    Broadcasting Board of Governors


                 international broadcasting operations

       The amended bill includes an additional $2,000,000 for 
     International Broadcasting Operations to continue increased 
     broadcasting to Tibet.

                     BILATERAL ECONOMIC ASSISTANCE

                  Funds Appropriated to the President


                   international disaster assistance

       The budget request included $80,000,000 for International 
     Disaster Assistance. The Department of State, Foreign 
     Operations and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 2008 
     (Public Law 110-161) provided $110,000,000 for emergency 
     humanitarian requirements.
       The amended bill includes $220,000,000 for International 
     Disaster Assistance, which is $220,000,000 above the pending 
     request. These funds should be used to respond to urgent 
     humanitarian requirements worldwide, including in Burma, 
     Bangladesh, the People's Republic of China, and countries 
     severely affected by the international food crisis.
       USAID is directed to substantially increase food assistance 
     for Haiti to address critical food shortages and 
     malnutrition. Preventing hunger and combating poverty in 
     Haiti should be a USAID priority.
       As the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) has 
     compounded the humanitarian crisis in Burma by failing to 
     respond to the needs of the Burmese people in the wake of 
     Cyclone Nargis and by refusing offers of assistance from the 
     international community, the Department of State and USAID 
     should seek to avoid providing assistance to or through the 
     SPDC.
       The amended bill also includes funds under this heading and 
     the heading ``Development Assistance'' in subchapter B to 
     help address the international food crisis. Programs should 
     address both rural and urban food requirements.


   operating expenses of the united states agency for international 
                              development

       The budget request included $61,800,000 for Operating 
     Expenses of the United States Agency for International 
     Development, of which $20,800,000 was provided in the 
     Department of State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs 
     Appropriations Act, 2008 (Public Law 110-161) for operations 
     in Iraq.
       The amended bill includes $150,500,000 for Operating 
     Expenses of the United States Agency for International 
     Development.
       Of the funds provided under this heading, the amended bill 
     includes $41,000,000 to continue support for security needs 
     in Iraq and Afghanistan, which is the same as the request. In 
     addition, $30,000,000 is included to increase support for 
     staffing, security, and operating needs in Afghanistan and 
     Sudan, and $19,500,000 in Pakistan.
       The amended bill also includes $25,000,000 to support the 
     development and deployment of a civilian capacity to respond 
     to post-conflict stabilization and reconstruction needs. 
     Funds made available for the civilian stabilization 
     initiative are for the Active and Standby Response Corps 
     portion of the initiative and none of the funds provided in 
     this Act may be used to develop the Civilian Response Corps. 
     Additional funding for this initiative is provided in the 
     ``Diplomatic and Consular Programs'' account for the 
     Department of State portion of the initiative.
       In addition, the amended bill includes $35,000,000 to 
     enable USAID to hire above attrition in fiscal year 2008. The 
     Administration's request for fiscal year 2009 includes 
     $92,000,000 for hiring 300 USAID foreign service officers as 
     part of a three-year initiative. Funding provided in this Act 
     is intended to support the hiring of additional Foreign 
     Service officers in fiscal year 2008 in order to begin 
     rebuilding the capacity of the Agency to carry out its 
     mission. USAID is directed to consult with the Committees on 
     Appropriations on the use of these funds and to recruit mid-
     career personnel. As USAID seeks to strengthen its workforce, 
     USAID is encouraged to consult with the Department of Defense 
     on ways to benefit from the experience of retiring officers, 
     including establishment of a transition program.


   operating expenses of the united states agency for international 
                development office of inspector general

       The amended bill includes an additional $4,000,000 for the 
     United States Agency for International Development Office of 
     Inspector General to support increased oversight of programs 
     in Iraq and Afghanistan.

                  OTHER BILATERAL ECONOMIC ASSISTANCE


                         ECONOMIC SUPPORT FUND

       The budget request included $2,217,000,000 for Economic 
     Support Fund (ESF), of which $208,000,000 was provided in the 
     Department of State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs 
     Appropriations Act, 2008 (Public Law 110-161) for emergency 
     requirements in the West Bank and in North Korea, as 
     requested.
       The amended bill includes $1,882,500,000 for ESF, which is 
     $126,500,000 below the request. An additional $75,000,000 is 
     provided under the heading Democracy Fund for political 
     development programs for Iraq. Funds are to be allocated as 
     follows:

                          ECONOMIC SUPPORT FUND
                        [In thousands of dollars]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               Amended
                     Country and region                          bill
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Afghanistan................................................      859,000
Bangladesh.................................................       25,000
Central America............................................       25,000
Central African Republic...................................        1,000


                    ECONOMIC SUPPORT FUND--Continued
                        [In thousands of dollars]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               Amended
                     Country and region                          bill
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Chad.......................................................        2,000
Democratic Republic of the Congo...........................       12,500
Iraq.......................................................      424,000
Jordan.....................................................      175,000
Kenya......................................................       12,000
Mexico.....................................................       20,000
Nepal......................................................        7,000
North Korea................................................       53,000
Philippines................................................       15,000
Sri Lanka..................................................        6,000
Sudan......................................................       45,000
Thailand...................................................        2,500
Uganda.....................................................       17,500
West Bank and Gaza.........................................      171,000
Zimbabwe...................................................        5,000
Exchanges Africa...........................................        5,000
                                                            ------------
      Total................................................    1,882,500
------------------------------------------------------------------------

       Iraq.--The amended bill includes $424,000,000 for Iraq, 
     which is $373,000,000 below the request. The sums provided 
     enable the Department of State and USAID to continue programs 
     in Iraq through the end of fiscal year 2008 and into the 
     first two quarters of fiscal year 2009. After providing more 
     than $45,000,000,000 to help rebuild Iraq, the United States 
     should reduce bilateral assistance levels and reduce the 
     number of Department of State personnel involved in the 
     reconstruction effort who are located in Iraq. Funds provided 
     for Iraq are to be allocated as follows:

[[Page 14050]]



                                                  IRAQ PROGRAMS
                                            [In thousands of dollars]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                                  Change  from
                        Activity                          Pending  request    Amended  bill         request
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs).................            165,000            139,000            -26,000
    Provincial Reconstruction Development Councils.....            100,000             85,000            -15,000
    Local Governance Program...........................             65,000             54,000            -11,000
Community Stabilization Program (CSP)..................            155,000            100,000            -55,000
Community Action Program (CAP).........................  .................             75,000            +75,000
Infrastructure Security Protection for Oil, Water and               70,000  .................            -70,000
 Electricity...........................................
Operations and Maintenance of Key USG-Funded                       134,000             10,000           -124,000
 Infrastructure........................................
Iraqi-American Enterprise Fund.........................             25,000  .................            -25,000
Provincial Economic Growth (including Agriculture and    .................             25,000            +25,000
 Microfinance).........................................
National Capacity Development..........................            248,000             70,000           -178,000
Marla Fund.............................................  .................              5,000             +5,000
                                                        --------------------------------------------------------
      Total............................................            797,000            424,000           -373,000
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

       Community Action Program (CAP).--The amended bill includes 
     $75,000,000 for continued support for the Community Action 
     Program.
       Community Stabilization Program (CSP).--The amended bill 
     includes $100,000,000 for the CSP, which is $55,000,000 below 
     the request. Recent findings of a March 18, 2008 USAID 
     Inspector General audit (E-267-08-001-P) of possible fraud 
     and misuse of some CSP funds are of concern. Therefore the 
     amended bill withholds 50 percent of funding until the 
     Secretary of State certifies and reports that USAID is 
     implementing recommendations contained in the audit to ensure 
     proper use of funds.
       Enterprise Fund.--The amended bill does not include any 
     funding for the creation, capitalization, operation, or 
     support of any enterprise fund in Iraq. The Department of 
     State is directed not to reprogram any funds made available 
     by this or prior Acts for an enterprise or enterprise-related 
     fund in Iraq.
       Infrastructure Security Protection for Oil, Water, and 
     Electricity.--The amended bill does not include funding for 
     these functions, which should be supported by the Government 
     of Iraq.
       Marla Ruzicka Iraqi War Victims Fund.--The amended bill 
     includes $5,000,000 for the Marla Ruzicka Iraqi War Victims 
     Fund for continued assistance for Iraqi civilians who suffer 
     losses as a result of the military operations.
       National Capacity Development (NCD).--Within the amount 
     provided in ESF for Iraq, $70,000,000 is provided for NCD, 
     which is $178,000,000 below the request. The Government of 
     Iraq should assume increasing responsibility for the cost of 
     these activities.
       Operations and Maintenance of Key U.S. Government-Funded 
     Infrastructure.--The amended bill includes $10,000,000 for 
     operations and maintenance of key United States government-
     funded infrastructure, which is $124,000,000 below the 
     request. These functions should be funded by the Government 
     of Iraq and this Act includes sufficient funding to allow the 
     United States to provide technical assistance and training. 
     In addition, the amended bill conditions the funds on the 
     signing and implementation of an asset transfer agreement 
     between the United States and Iraq.
       Provincial Economic Growth.--The amended bill includes 
     $25,000,000 for provincial economic growth activities.
       Vulnerable Groups.--Up to $10,000,000 of funds made 
     available for Iraq in this chapter, including from the 
     Migration and Refugee Assistance and International Disaster 
     Assistance accounts, should be made available for programs to 
     assist vulnerable Iraqi religious and ethnic minority groups, 
     including Christians. The Secretary of State should designate 
     staff at United States Embassy Baghdad to oversee and 
     coordinate such assistance.
       Afghanistan.--The amended bill includes $859,000,000 in ESF 
     for Afghanistan, which is $25,000,000 above the request. 
     USAID is directed to review its reconstruction efforts in 
     Afghanistan; focus its assistance, including capacity 
     building, through local Afghan entities; give greater 
     attention to accountability and monitoring to minimize 
     corruption; and emphasize programs which directly improve the 
     economic, social, and political status of Afghan women and 
     girls. Funds provided for Afghanistan are to be allocated as 
     follows:

                                              AFGHANISTAN PROGRAMS
                                            [In thousands of dollars]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                                                  Change  from
                        Activity                          Pending  request    Amended  bill         request
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Civilian Assistance Program............................  .................             10,000            +10,000
Governance and Capacity Building.......................            135,000            165,000            +30,000
2009 Elections.........................................            100,000             70,000            -30,000
National Solidarity Program............................             40,000             65,000            +25,000
Health and Education...................................             50,000             75,000            +25,000
North Atlantic Treaty Organization POHRF...............  .................              2,000             +2,000
Power..................................................            175,000            150,000            -25,000
Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs)/Provincial        .................             50,000            +50,000
 Governance............................................
Roads..................................................            329,000            200,000           -129,000
Rural Development/Alternative Livelihoods..............  .................             65,000            +65,000
Trade and Investment...................................              5,000              7,000             +2,000
                                                        --------------------------------------------------------
      Total............................................            834,000            859,000            +25,000
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

       Civilian Assistance.--The amended bill includes $10,000,000 
     for USAID's Afghan Civilian Assistance Program to continue 
     assistance for civilians who have suffered losses as a result 
     of the military operations, and $2,000,000 for the NATO/ISAF 
     Post-Operations Humanitarian Relief Fund.
       Governance and Capacity Building.--The amended bill 
     provides $165,000,000 for governance and capacity building 
     programs, which is $30,000,000 above the request, to fund 
     rule of law, human rights, and local and national capacity 
     building.
       National Solidarity Program.--The amended bill includes 
     $65,000,000 for the National Solidarity Program to support 
     small-scale development initiatives. The funding shall be 
     programmed in a manner consistent with the Afghan National 
     Development Strategy.
       Power.--The amended bill includes $150,000,000 for power, 
     which is $25,000,000 below the request. The request includes 
     funding for gas and diesel power projects and there is a 
     concern that diesel generators are costly to maintain and 
     will exacerbate Kabul's already heavily polluted air. The 
     completion of the north-south transmission line to enable 
     Afghanistan to purchase electricity from its northern 
     neighbors for distribution to other areas of the country is 
     supported. Funding for the Northern Electrical Power System 
     or the Shebergan Gas-Fired Plant is not included. The World 
     Bank should play a larger role in financing such 
     infrastructure projects.
       It is noted that Afghanistan has considerable potential for 
     small hydro and solar power development to service 
     Afghanistan's many remote communities that have no other 
     access to electricity, and not less than $15,000,000 of the 
     funds shall be used for renewable energy projects in rural 
     areas.
       Provincial Reconstruction Teams.--The amended bill provides 
     $50,000,000 for PRTs in Afghanistan.
       Roads.--The amended bill includes $200,000,000 for roads, 
     which is $129,000,000 below the request.
       Rural Development and Alternative Livelihoods.--The amended 
     bill includes $65,000,000 for rural development and 
     alternative livelihood programs and an additional $35,000,000 
     for counternarcotics under the ``International Narcotics 
     Control and Law Enforcement'' account to expand 
     counternarcotics programs in Afghanistan. The Secretary of 
     State is directed to consult with the Committees on 
     Appropriations on the use of these funds.
       2009 Elections.--The amended bill includes $70,000,000 for 
     preparations for the 2009 elections.

[[Page 14051]]

       Bangladesh.--The amended bill includes $25,000,000 for 
     assistance for Bangladesh for cyclone recovery and 
     reconstruction assistance.
       Central America.--The amended bill includes $25,000,000 for 
     the countries of Central America in fiscal year 2008, in 
     addition to funds otherwise made available for assistance for 
     these countries, for a program to be called the ``Economic 
     and Social Development Fund for Central America'', of which 
     $20,000,000 is to be administered by USAID, in consultation 
     with the Department of State. The purpose of the program is 
     to promote economic and social development and good 
     governance in targeted, low-income areas, including rural 
     communities that are particularly vulnerable to drug 
     trafficking and related violence and organized crime. These 
     funds should support programs that emphasize community 
     initiatives and public-private partnerships. United States 
     funds should be matched with contributions from public and 
     private sources to the maximum extent practicable. USAID is 
     directed to consult with the Committees on Appropriations 
     prior to the obligation of these funds. Of the funds 
     available, $5,000,000 shall be administered by the Bureau of 
     Educational and Cultural Affairs for educational exchanges 
     with the countries of Central America.
       Democratic Republic of the Congo.--The amended bill 
     includes $12,500,000 for assistance for eastern Democratic 
     Republic of the Congo for urgent conflict mitigation and 
     recovery programs and for programs relating to sexual 
     violence against women and girls. Of this amount, not less 
     than $1,000,000 is to establish and support a training center 
     for health workers who provide care and treatment for victims 
     of sexual violence, and not less than $2,000,000 is for 
     training military and civilian investigators, prosecutors, 
     and judges to bring the perpetrators of such crimes to 
     justice.
       Exchanges with Africa.--The amended bill includes 
     $5,000,000 for educational exchanges with countries in 
     Africa, specifically to counter extremism. These funds should 
     be administered by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural 
     Affairs.
       Jordan.--The amended bill includes a total of $200,000,000 
     for economic assistance for Jordan, of which $175,000,000 is 
     appropriated under this heading, and $25,000,000 is 
     appropriated through a general provision. The Government of 
     Jordan remains a key ally and has played a leading role in 
     supporting peace initiatives in the Middle East. Programming 
     of these resources should be done in consultation with the 
     Government of Jordan and refugee relief organizations and 
     funds should be used to meet the needs of Iraqi refugees. The 
     Secretary of State, after consultation with the Government of 
     Jordan, the United Nations, and international organizations 
     and non-governmental organizations with a presence in Iraq, 
     is directed to submit a report to the Committees on 
     Appropriations not later than 45 days after enactment of this 
     Act detailing (1) short- and medium-term options the United 
     States and other countries and organizations could pursue to 
     assist Iraqis in Jordan to maintain their educational and 
     vocational skills and earn income; and (2) longer term 
     options that the United States and the Government of Jordan 
     can take to address the economic, social and health needs of 
     refugees from Iraq, including the feasibility of extending 
     temporary residence status for Iraqis registered with the 
     United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
       Kenya.--The amended bill includes $12,000,000 for 
     assistance for Kenya for political, ethnic and tribal 
     reconciliation activities.
       Mexico.--The amended bill includes $20,000,000 for 
     assistance for Mexico for institution building and support of 
     civil society. Funding for these purposes was requested 
     through the International Narcotics and Law Enforcement 
     (INCLE) account. The amended bill includes $5,000,000 for 
     human rights training for police, prosecutors, and prison 
     officials; $3,000,000 for victim and witness protection; and 
     $3,000,000 to support NGOs and civil society. The amended 
     bill also includes $5,000,000 for a literacy program for 
     local police. USAID is encouraged to work with non-
     governmental organizations, civil society, and local police 
     to replicate the literacy program being implemented in 
     Nezahualcoyotl, Mexico. The amended bill also includes 
     funding for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human 
     Rights in Mexico (OHCHR). The Department of State is directed 
     to work with the Mexican Government, the OHCHR, and civil 
     society organizations in Mexico to promote respect for human 
     rights by Mexican police and military forces.
       Nepal.--The amended bill includes $7,000,000 for assistance 
     for Nepal to strengthen democracy and support the peace 
     process, including the demobilization and reintegration of 
     ex-combatants, and for economic development programs in rural 
     communities affected by conflict.
       North Korea.--The amended bill includes up to $53,000,000 
     for energy-related assistance for North Korea in support of 
     the goals of the Six-Party Talks Agreement, in addition to 
     the $53,000,000 appropriated in division J of Public Law 110-
     161, which is the same as the total amount requested. Prior 
     to the obligation of assistance for North Korea, the 
     Secretary of State is directed to report to the Committees on 
     Appropriations that North Korea is continuing to fulfill its 
     commitments under the Six-Party Talks Agreement.
       Pakistan.--The amended bill does not include funding for 
     assistance for Pakistan in this subchapter. These needs are 
     addressed in funding appropriated in the fiscal year 2009 
     bridge.
       Philippines.--The amended bill includes $15,000,000 for 
     assistance for the Philippines for programs to further peace 
     and reconciliation in the southern Philippines, and 
     recognizes the shared interest between the United States and 
     the Philippines in combating terrorism in this region.
       Sri Lanka.--The amended bill includes $6,000,000 for 
     assistance for Sri Lanka to be provided through USAID to 
     support economic development programs in the eastern region 
     of Sri Lanka to solidify recent gains against the Liberation 
     Tigers of Tamil Eelam. These funds should be used to assist 
     Tamil and Muslim minorities in Sri Lanka.
       Sudan.--The amended bill includes $45,000,000 for 
     assistance for Sudan to support election-related activities.
       Thailand.--The amended bill includes $2,500,000 for 
     assistance for Thailand to address economic and social 
     development needs in southern Thailand. The Department of 
     State is directed to consult with the Committees on 
     Appropriations prior to the obligation of these funds.
       Uganda.--The amended bill includes $17,500,000 for 
     assistance for northern Uganda. These funds should be used to 
     support economic development, governance, assistance for war 
     victims, and reintegration of ex-combatants.
       West Bank and Gaza.--The amended bill includes not more 
     than $171,000,000 for economic assistance for the West Bank 
     and Gaza, which is $24,000,000 below the request. The 
     Department of State is directed to provide a report to the 
     Committees on Appropriations not later than 90 days after the 
     enactment of this Act on how United States economic 
     assistance for the West Bank supports the larger Palestinian 
     Reform and Development Plan as well as a description of other 
     donor support of this plan. The report should describe how 
     assistance from the United States and other donors will 
     improve conditions in the West Bank, including through job 
     creation and housing programs.
       Zimbabwe.--The amended bill includes $5,000,000 for 
     assistance for Zimbabwe to support political reconciliation 
     activities.

                          Department of State


                             DEMOCRACY FUND

       The amended bill includes $76,000,000 for Democracy Fund 
     programs, requested under the heading ``Economic Support 
     Fund'', to be made available as follows:
       Chad.--The amended bill includes $1,000,000 for democracy 
     activities in Chad.
       Iraq.--The amended bill includes $75,000,000 for democracy 
     activities in Iraq. These funds are intended to be available 
     through nongovernmental organizations, including the National 
     Endowment for Democracy, and not less than $8,000,000 for the 
     United States Institute of Peace. These funds should be 
     awarded expeditiously to prevent interruption of current 
     operations.


          INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS CONTROL AND LAW ENFORCEMENT

       The amended bill includes $390,300,000 for International 
     Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement (INCLE) activities in 
     Afghanistan, Iraq, Mexico, Central America, Haiti, the 
     Dominican Republic, and the West Bank, which is $343,700,000 
     below the request. The Secretary of State is directed to 
     consult with the Committees on Appropriations on the use of 
     these funds.
       Iraq.--The amended bill includes $85,000,000 for Iraq for 
     justice and rule of law programs, which is $74,000,000 below 
     the request. Funding for prison construction is not included.
       Afghanistan.--The amended bill includes $35,000,000, which 
     is $35,000,000 above the request, to support programs to 
     strengthen counternarcotics efforts, to improve the training 
     of the Afghan police, including border police, to advance the 
     development of institutional capacity professionalism of the 
     justice sector, and to help facilitate cooperation between 
     the police and the judiciary at both the national and 
     regional levels. The Department of State is directed to 
     report to the Committees on Appropriations not later than 180 
     days after enactment of this Act on the level of 
     counternarcotics cooperation by the Government of Afghanistan 
     at the national and regional level and should detail, 
     nationally and by province, the steps that the Government of 
     Afghanistan is taking to arrest and prosecute leaders of 
     Afghan drug cartels; disarm and disband private militias; and 
     end corruption among national and provincial police forces.
       Central America.--The amended bill includes $24,800,000 for 
     assistance for Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, 
     Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama, and an additional $5,000,000 
     for Haiti and the Dominican Republic under the Merida 
     Initiative. Although funding was requested only through the 
     INCLE account, funding for the Merida Initiative is provided 
     in the accounts from which such activities are traditionally 
     funded. The amended bill provides funding for specialized 
     police training and non-lethal

[[Page 14052]]

     equipment to strengthen the law enforcement and criminal 
     justice institutions for the purpose of combating drug 
     trafficking and related violent crime and increasing the 
     capacity and professionalism of Central American police 
     forces.
       Impunity within the military and police forces of several 
     of these countries and corruption within their justice 
     systems is of concern. The Secretary of State is directed to 
     submit a report in writing on mechanisms in place to ensure 
     eligibility of recipients of United States assistance.
       The omission of Haiti and the Dominican Republic from the 
     request for the Merida Initiative makes it more likely that 
     these vulnerable countries would become increasingly favored 
     transit routes for drug traffickers. The amended bill 
     includes $2,500,000 for Haiti and $2,500,000 for the 
     Dominican Republic as part of the Merida Initiative to 
     support counternarcotics and border security programs, anti-
     corruption, judicial reform, institution-building, and rule 
     of law programs.
       Mexico.--There is a shared responsibility between the 
     United States and Mexico to combat drug trafficking and 
     related violence and organized crime. The amended bill 
     includes $215,500,000 to support programs to enable the 
     Government of Mexico to respond to these threats in 
     accordance with the rule of law. The amended bill includes 
     $10,000,000 for demand reduction and drug rehabilitation 
     activities; $3,000,000 to provide technical and other 
     assistance to enable the Government of Mexico to put into 
     service a unified national police registry; and not more than 
     $24,000,000 for program development and support. To the 
     extent possible, any equipment and technology purchases 
     should be interoperable based on open standards with the 
     equipment and technology being used by their United States 
     Government counterparts.
       Corruption and impunity within Mexico's military and police 
     forces are of concern. Recommendations of the National Human 
     Rights Commission have been ignored and investigations of 
     violations of human rights by Mexican military and police 
     forces rarely result in convictions. The Secretary of State, 
     in consultation with relevant Mexican Government authorities, 
     is directed to report to the Committees on Appropriations 
     that mechanisms are in place to ensure eligibility of 
     recipients of United States assistance.
       There is concern with the failure to investigate and 
     prosecute the police officers responsible for human rights 
     violations, including rape and sexual violence against women, 
     at San Salvador Atenco on May 3-4, 2006, and in Oaxaca 
     between June and December 2006. These and other such 
     violations by members of the Mexican military and police 
     forces have been documented and require thorough, credible 
     and transparent investigation and prosecution by the Mexican 
     Attorney General.
       The state and Federal investigations into the October 27, 
     2006, killing in Oaxaca of American citizen Bradley Will have 
     been flawed and the Secretary of State is directed, not later 
     than 45 days after enactment of this Act and 120 days 
     thereafter, to submit a report to the Committees on 
     Appropriations detailing progress in conducting a thorough, 
     credible, and transparent investigation to identify the 
     perpetrators of this crime and bring them to justice. The 
     Department of State should work with Mexican Government 
     authorities and relevant Federal government agencies of the 
     United States to assist in the investigation of this case.
       West Bank.--The amended bill includes $25,000,000 for 
     ongoing training of vetted units of the Palestinian National 
     Security Forces, which is the same as the request.


                    MIGRATION AND REFUGEE ASSISTANCE

       The budget request included $230,000,000 for Migration and 
     Refugee Assistance, of which $200,000,000 was provided in the 
     Department of State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs 
     Appropriations Act, 2008 (Public Law 110-161) for emergency 
     refugee requirements in Iraq and the West Bank and Gaza.
       The amended bill includes $315,000,000 for Migration and 
     Refugee Assistance, which is $285,000,000 above the pending 
     request. Funds should be made available to meet unmet global 
     refugee needs, including to assist Iraqi refugees in Jordan, 
     Syria, Lebanon, Turkey, Egypt, and the surrounding region, as 
     well as internally displaced persons in Iraq. Funds may also 
     be used, if necessary, for the admissions costs of Iraqis 
     granted special immigrant status under the Special Immigrant 
     Visa program authorized by the National Defense Authorization 
     Act of 2008. In addition, funds may be used to offset 
     administrative costs associated with the expanded 
     requirements of the Iraqi refugee program, in consultation 
     with the Committees on Appropriations.
       The humanitarian crisis involving Iraqi refugees and 
     internally displaced persons is of concern and the Government 
     of Iraq has dedicated insufficient resources to assist this 
     most vulnerable segment of the Iraqi population. The 
     Department of State shall urge the Government of Iraq to 
     provide a substantial increase in funding for humanitarian 
     assistance to the Iraqi refugee population residing in the 
     region and within the country. In addition, the Secretary of 
     State should ensure that the Senior Coordinator for Iraqi 
     Refugee Issues gives particular attention to the needs of 
     vulnerable minority groups, including ethnic and religious 
     minorities.
       The welfare and security of the 7,900 Lao Hmong in the Thai 
     military camp in Petchaboon, northern Thailand is of concern 
     and the Department of State is directed to urge the 
     Government of Thailand to support a transparent screening 
     process to identify those who have a legitimate fear of 
     return to Laos. Any attempt to force the return of Hmong 
     refugees to Laos is strongly opposed.


     UNITED STATES EMERGENCY REFUGEE AND MIGRATION ASSISTANCE FUND

       The amended bill includes $31,000,000 for the United States 
     Emergency Refugee and Migration Assistance Fund to prevent 
     depletion of this emergency fund.


    NONPROLIFERATION, ANTI-TERRORISM, DEMINING AND RELATED PROGRAMS

       The amended bill includes $13,700,000 for Nonproliferation, 
     Anti-terrorism, Demining and Related Programs (NADR), which 
     is $8,700,000 above the request.
       Of these funds, $5,000,000 is for presidential protective 
     service support in Afghanistan, which is the same as the 
     request, and $2,500,000 is for a United States contribution 
     to the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty International Monitoring 
     System.
       Central America.--The amended bill also includes $6,200,000 
     for the Merida Initiative for the countries of Central 
     America, which is $6,200,000 above the request. Although 
     funding for these purposes was requested only through the 
     INCLE account, funding has been provided in the NADR account, 
     from which such activities are traditionally funded.

                          MILITARY ASSISTANCE

                  Funds Appropriated to the President


                   FOREIGN MILITARY FINANCING PROGRAM

       The amended bill includes $137,500,000 for Foreign Military 
     Financing Program, which is $137,500,000 above the request.
       Central America.--The amended bill includes $4,000,000 to 
     augment the ongoing naval cooperation program and maritime 
     security assistance to strengthen the ability of the 
     countries of Central America to improve maritime security and 
     interdiction capabilities, including to complement existing 
     regional systems and programs.
       Jordan.--The amended bill includes a total of $50,000,000 
     for military assistance for Jordan, of which $17,000,000 is 
     appropriated under this heading and $33,000,000 is 
     appropriated through a general provision.
       Mexico.--The amended bill includes $116,500,000 in support 
     of military-to-military cooperation between the United States 
     and Mexico.

 SUBCHAPTER B--BRIDGE FUND SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS FOR FISCAL YEAR 
                                  2009

       The budget request totals $3,605,000,000 in emergency 
     supplemental funds for fiscal year 2009. The amended bill 
     provides a total of $3,679,500,000 for the Department of 
     State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs for fiscal 
     year 2009 emergency supplemental requirements, which is 
     $74,500,000 above the request.

                          DEPARTMENT OF STATE

                   Administration of Foreign Affairs


                    DIPLOMATIC AND CONSULAR PROGRAMS

       The amended bill includes $704,900,000 for Diplomatic and 
     Consular Programs. Within this amount, $78,400,000 is 
     available for worldwide security protection and not more than 
     $550,500,000 is available as a bridge fund for Iraq 
     operations.
       To meet increased security and personnel requirements, the 
     amended bill includes $89,400,000 for Afghanistan, $7,000,000 
     for Pakistan, $3,000,000 for Somalia, and $15,000,000 for 
     Sudan. In addition, the amended bill includes $40,000,000 to 
     continue the support of new positions to develop language and 
     other critical skills of the diplomatic corps and for 
     civilian post-conflict stabilization initiatives.


                      OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL

                     (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

       The amended bill includes $57,000,000 for Office of 
     Inspector General at the Department of State, of which 
     $15,500,000 is to continue oversight of programs in Iraq and 
     Afghanistan, and the Middle East.
       Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction 
     (SIGIR).--The amended bill includes $36,500,000 for SIGIR for 
     continued oversight of United States reconstruction programs 
     in Iraq, as authorized by section 3001 of Public Law 108-106.
       Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction 
     (SIGAR).--The amended bill includes $5,000,000 for SIGAR, 
     which is $5,000,000 above the request, and which is 
     authorized by section 1229 of Public Law 110-181. Such funds 
     shall be used for oversight of United States reconstruction 
     programs in Afghanistan. None of the funds shall be used to 
     duplicate investigations that have been conducted or to 
     support offices or systems of inspectors general at the 
     Department of State or USAID. SIGAR should co-locate staff 
     and ``back office'' support systems with other inspectors 
     general to the extent feasible.

[[Page 14053]]




            embassy security, construction, and maintenance

       The amended bill includes $41,300,000 for urgent embassy 
     security, construction, and maintenance costs. Funds should 
     be used to construct safe and secure office space for the 
     increasing number of diplomatic and development personnel 
     living and working in Kabul, Afghanistan.

                      International Organizations


              contributions to international organizations

       The amended bill includes $75,000,000 for Contributions to 
     International Organizations.


        contributions for international peacekeeping activities

       The amended bill includes $150,500,000 for Contributions 
     for International Peacekeeping Activities to fund the 
     Administration's revised estimate of the United States-
     assessed contribution to international peacekeeping.

                             RELATED AGENCY

                    Broadcasting Board of Governors


                 international broadcasting operations

       The amended bill includes $6,000,000 for International 
     Broadcasting Operations.

                     BILATERAL ECONOMIC ASSISTANCE

                  Funds Appropriated to the President


                    global health and child survival

       The amended bill includes $75,000,000 for Global Health and 
     Child Survival to continue programs to combat avian 
     influenza.


                         development assistance

       The amended bill includes $200,000,000 for Development 
     Assistance, which is for a new Food Security Initiative to 
     promote food security in countries affected by significant 
     food shortages, such as programs to assist farmers to 
     increase crop yields, including in Darfur. Of this amount, up 
     to $50,000,000 should be used for local and regional 
     purchase. The Secretary of State is directed to submit a 
     report to the Committees on Appropriations not later than 45 
     days after enactment of this Act, and prior to the initial 
     obligation of funds, on the proposed uses of funds to 
     alleviate starvation, hunger, and malnutrition overseas, 
     including a list of those countries facing significant food 
     shortages.


                   international disaster assistance

       The amended bill includes $200,000,000 for International 
     Disaster Assistance to meet urgent humanitarian requirements 
     worldwide, including support for critical needs in 
     Bangladesh, Burma, and the People's Republic of China. A 
     portion of these funds should be used for assistance for 
     internally displaced persons in Iraq and Afghanistan. In 
     addition, funds are available under this heading to assist in 
     the response to the international food crisis.


   operating expenses of the united states agency for international 
                              development

       The amended bill includes $93,000,000 for Operating 
     Expenses of the United States Agency for International 
     Development to address staffing, security, and operating 
     needs.


   operating expenses of the united states agency for international 
                development office of inspector general

       The amended bill includes $1,000,000 for Operating Expenses 
     of the United States Agency for International Development 
     Office of Inspector General.

                  Other Bilateral Economic Assistance


                         economic support fund

       The amended bill includes $1,124,800,000 for Economic 
     Support Fund to address critical health, economic, and 
     security needs. These funds are to be allocated as follows:

                          ECONOMIC SUPPORT FUND
                        [In thousands of dollars]
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               Amended
                     Country and region                          bill
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Afghanistan................................................      455,000
Bangladesh.................................................       50,000
Burma......................................................        5,300
Central African Republic...................................        2,000
Chad.......................................................        5,000
Democratic Republic of the Congo...........................       10,000
Iraq.......................................................      102,500
Jordan.....................................................      100,000
Kenya......................................................       25,000
North Korea................................................       15,000
Pakistan...................................................      150,000
Sudan......................................................       25,000
Uganda.....................................................       15,000
West Bank and Gaza.........................................      150,000
Zimbabwe...................................................       15,000
                                                            ------------
      Total................................................    1,124,800
------------------------------------------------------------------------

       Afghanistan.--The amended bill includes $455,000,000 for 
     assistance for Afghanistan.
       Governance and Capacity Building.--The amended bill 
     includes $20,000,000 for the National Solidarity Program to 
     support small-scale development initiatives; and not less 
     than $35,000,000 for preparations for the 2009 elections. The 
     funding shall be programmed in a manner consistent with the 
     Afghan National Development Strategy.
       Rural Development and Alternative Livelihoods.--The amended 
     bill includes not less than $35,000,000 for rural development 
     and alternative livelihoods.
       Bangladesh.--The amended bill includes $50,000,000 for 
     cyclone recovery and reconstruction assistance.
       Burma.--The amended bill includes $5,300,000 for assistance 
     for Burma for humanitarian programs along the Thai-Burma 
     border.
       Iraq.--The amended bill includes $102,500,000 for 
     assistance for Iraq.
       Community Action Program (CAP).--The amended bill includes 
     $32,500,000 for continued support for the Community Action 
     Program.
       Community Stabilization Program (CSP).--The amended bill 
     includes $32,500,000 for continued support for the Community 
     Stabilization Program.
       Marla Ruzicka Iraqi War Victims Fund.--The amended bill 
     includes $2,500,000 for the Marla Ruzicka Iraqi War Victims 
     Fund for continued assistance for Iraqi civilians who suffer 
     losses as a result of the military operations.
       Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs).--The amended bill 
     includes $35,000,000 for continued support for the Provincial 
     Reconstruction Teams.

                          Department of State


          international narcotics control and law enforcement

       The amended bill includes $199,000,000 for International 
     Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement activities in Iraq, 
     Afghanistan, the West Bank, Mexico, and Africa. The Secretary 
     of State is directed to consult with the Committees on 
     Appropriations on the use of these funds.


                    migration and refugee assistance

       The amended bill includes $350,000,000 for Migration and 
     Refugee Assistance to respond to urgent humanitarian and 
     refugee admissions requirements, including those involving 
     refugees from Iraq, Afghanistan, and central Africa.


    nonproliferation, anti-terrorism, demining, and related programs

       The amended bill includes $4,500,000 for Nonproliferation, 
     Anti-terrorism, Demining and Related Programs, for 
     humanitarian demining in Iraq.

                          MILITARY ASSISTANCE

                  Funds Appropriated to the President


                   foreign military financing program

       The amended bill includes $302,500,000 for Foreign Military 
     Financing Program, of which $100,000,000 is for assistance 
     for Jordan, $170,000,000 is for assistance for Israel, and 
     $32,500,000 is for assistance for Lebanon.


                        peacekeeping operations

       The amended bill includes $95,000,000 for Peacekeeping 
     Operations for programs in Africa to address needs beyond 
     those projected in the fiscal year 2009 budget request, 
     including for Darfur and $10,000,000 for Peacekeeping 
     Operations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). 
     These funds are made available to support infantry battalions 
     of the DRC armed forces, to protect vulnerable civilians in 
     the eastern region of the country, and should be made 
     available in accordance with thorough vetting procedures. The 
     Department of State should ensure that trained units are 
     being provided professional leadership, appropriate training 
     in human rights, and adequate pay.

             SUBCHAPTER C--GENERAL PROVISIONS, THIS CHAPTER

       The amended bill includes the following general provisions 
     for this chapter:


                        extension of authorities

       Section 1401 extends certain authorities necessary to 
     expend Department of State and foreign assistance funds.


                                  IRAQ

       Section 1402 imposes certain conditions and limitations on 
     assistance for Iraq and requires reports.


                              AFGHANISTAN

       Section 1403 imposes certain conditions and limitations on 
     assistance for Afghanistan and requires a report.


                               WEST BANK

       Section 1404 directs the Department of State to provide a 
     report to the Committees on Appropriations not later than 90 
     days after enactment of this Act, and 180 days thereafter, on 
     the Palestinian security assistance program.


            WAIVER OF CERTAIN SANCTIONS AGAINST NORTH KOREA

       Section 1405 grants waiver authority to the President with 
     respect to certain assistance to North Korea and the ``Glenn 
     Amendment,'' which established automatic sanctions in the 
     Arms Export Control Act on non-nuclear weapon states that 
     detonate a nuclear device.


                                 MEXICO

       Section 1406 sets a ceiling on funding for Mexico at 
     $400,000,000. The provision also provides a restriction on 
     the use of funding for budget support or cash payments and 
     restricts obligation of 15 percent of the funding provided 
     under the headings ``Foreign Military Financing Program'' and 
     ``International Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement'' until 
     the Secretary of State submits a report in writing.


                            CENTRAL AMERICA

       Section 1407 states that $65,000,000 may be made available 
     for the countries of Central America, Haiti and the Dominican 
     Republic and prohibits the use of funding for budget support 
     or cash payments. The provision restricts obligation of 15 
     percent of the funding provided under the headings ``Foreign 
     Military Financing Program'' and ``International

[[Page 14054]]

     Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement'' for the military and 
     police forces until the Secretary of State submits a report 
     in writing.


                    BUYING POWER MAINTENANCE ACCOUNT

                     (INCLUDING TRANSFERS OF FUNDS)

       Section 1408 provides authority to utilize $26,000,000 from 
     appropriations for Diplomatic and Consular Programs from a 
     prior Act and authority to transfer up to an additional 
     $74,000,000 of the funds made available by this Act to the 
     Buying Power Maintenance Account to manage exchange rate 
     losses in fiscal year 2008. The Department of State shall 
     consult on any proposed transfers resulting from this 
     authority. The Department of State estimates the impact of 
     currency fluctuations to be at least $260,000,000 on United 
     States diplomatic operations worldwide.
       In addition, the provision includes authority to transfer 
     unobligated and expired balances after fiscal year 2008 into 
     the Buying Power Maintenance Account to address future 
     exchange rate losses. The Secretary of State shall submit a 
     report to the Committees on Appropriations not later than 
     October 15, 2008, on the amount transferred by this authority 
     in this or any fiscal year, the total amount of exchange rate 
     losses in fiscal year 2008, and the accumulated impact of 
     losses from prior years.
       Finally, authority is granted to the Broadcasting Board of 
     Governors to transfer unobligated and expired balances after 
     fiscal year 2008 into its Buying Power Maintenance Account.


                                 SERBIA

       Section 1409 authorizes the Secretary of State to withhold 
     funds related to reimbursement of costs associated with 
     damage to the United States Embassy in Belgrade resulting 
     from the February 21, 2008, attack.


                              RESCISSIONS

       Section 1410 rescinds prior year funds and makes them 
     available for a contribution to the World Food Program and 
     for programs in the INCLE account. The provision also 
     rescinds prior year funds from the Iraq Relief and 
     Reconstruction Fund.


                          DARFUR PEACEKEEPING

       Section 1411 authorizes the President to utilize prior year 
     Foreign Military Financing Program and Peacekeeping 
     Operations funds for transfer or lease of helicopters or 
     related equipment necessary for operations of the AU/UN 
     hybrid peacekeeping mission in Darfur.


                                 TIBET

       Section 1412 provides up to $5,000,000 for the 
     establishment of a United States Consulate in Lhasa, Tibet, 
     under the headings ``Diplomatic and Consular Programs'' and 
     ``Embassy Security, Construction and Maintenance'' in this 
     and prior Acts, and recommends certain actions regarding the 
     opening of such a consulate.
       The Secretary of State is directed to submit a report to 
     the Committees on Appropriations not later than 90 days after 
     enactment of this Act detailing efforts taken by the 
     Department of State to establish a United States Consulate in 
     Lhasa, Tibet, and a description of any policies or programs 
     by the Government of the People's Republic of China aimed at 
     undermining public support for Tibet including in the media, 
     academia, and political arenas.


                                 JORDAN

                    (INCLUDING RESCISSION OF FUNDS)

       Section 1413 provides $58,000,000 for assistance for 
     Jordan, which is offset by a rescission of an equal amount 
     from the Millennium Challenge Corporation.


                              ALLOCATIONS

       Section 1414 requires that funds in the specified accounts 
     shall be allocated as indicated in the respective tables in 
     this explanatory statement. Any change to these allocations 
     shall be subject to the regular notification procedures of 
     the Committees on Appropriations.


                        REPROGRAMMING AUTHORITY

       Section 1415 allows for reprogramming of funds made 
     available in prior years to address critical food shortages, 
     subject to prior consultation with, and the regular 
     notification procedures of, the Committees on Appropriations.


               SPENDING PLANS AND NOTIFICATION PROCEDURES

       Section 1416 requires the Secretary of State to provide 
     detailed spending plans to the Committees on Appropriations 
     on the uses of funds appropriated in subchapters A and B. 
     These funds are also subject to the regular notification 
     procedures of the Committees on Appropriations.


                          TERMS AND CONDITIONS

       Section 1417 establishes that unless designated otherwise 
     in this chapter, the terms and conditions contained within 
     the Department of State, Foreign Operations and Related 
     Programs Appropriations Act, 2008 (Public Law 110-161) shall 
     apply to funds appropriated by this chapter, with the 
     exception of section 699K.

                       TITLE II--DOMESTIC MATTERS

                CHAPTER 1--FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION

                DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

                      Food and Drug Administration


                         SALARIES AND EXPENSES

       The amended bill provides an additional $150,000,000 for 
     Food and Drug Administration, Salaries and Expenses, 
     available until September 30, 2009. FDA is directed to 
     provide the Committees on Appropriations monthly expenditures 
     reports on the use of these funds.

               CHAPTER 2--COMMERCE, JUSTICE, AND SCIENCE

                         DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

                          Bureau of the Census


                     PERIODIC CENSUSES AND PROGRAMS

                     (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

       The amended bill includes $210,000,000 for increased costs 
     associated with the poor management of the 2010 Decennial 
     Census. Within the funds provided, not less than $50,300,000 
     shall be used to restore funding associated with the approved 
     March 26, 2008 reprogramming within the Bureau of the Census. 
     Funds transferred pursuant to the reprogramming to address 
     immediate shortfalls within the Field Data Collection 
     Automation contract from the American Community Survey, 
     Census Coverage Measurement activities, and other Census 
     activities may result in increased risk and other unintended 
     consequences to other parts of the Census. The $50,300,000 
     shall be available solely to complete previously planned 
     activities and address vacancies in the aforementioned areas 
     in order to reduce risk and ensure a successful 2010 
     Decennial Census.
       The Census Bureau shall submit to the Committees on 
     Appropriations of the Senate and the House of 
     Representatives, within 30 days of enactment of this Act, a 
     detailed plan showing a timeline of milestones and 
     expenditures for the 2010 Decennial Census, and shall include 
     a quantitative assessment of the associated risk to the 
     program as it is currently constituted. In addition, the 
     Inspector General shall submit quarterly reports to the 
     Committees on Appropriations, until the conclusion of the 
     2010 Decennial Census, detailing the progress of the revised 
     plan for the execution of the 2010 Decennial Census and any 
     unanticipated slippages from the revised 2010 milestones, as 
     well as reassessing the associated risk to the program. The 
     Census Bureau is directed to provide the Inspector General 
     with any required information so that the quarterly reports 
     can begin 60 days after submission of the plan.
       Because rising costs associated with the 2010 Decennial 
     Census and the Department's and the Bureau's lack of contract 
     oversight are cause for particular concern, the bill includes 
     not less than $3,000,000 for the Department's Office of the 
     Inspector General for Census contract oversight activities 
     and not less than $1,000,000 solely for a reimbursable 
     agreement with the Defense Contract Management Agency to 
     review and improve Census contract management.

                         DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

                         Federal Prison System


                         SALARIES AND EXPENSES

       The amended bill includes $178,000,000 for additional costs 
     of the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) related to the custody and 
     care of inmates and the maintenance and operation of 
     correctional and penal institutions. The BOP has been 
     chronically underfunded in recent budget requests, due to 
     consistently underestimated growth in inmate populations and 
     inadequate funding requests for medical expenses. As a 
     result, BOP facilities face rising staff-to-inmate ratios, 
     placing corrections officers and inmates at unacceptable risk 
     of violence. The amended bill includes funding for FCI 
     Pollock activation costs and for inmate drug abuse treatment 
     required by law. The Administration is urged to re-estimate 
     BOP fixed costs and prisoner population for fiscal year 2009 
     and to provide the House and Senate Committees on 
     Appropriations with those estimates no later than August 1, 
     2008. Further, the BOP is directed to notify the Committees 
     of current staff-to-inmate ratios at all Federal prisons on a 
     monthly basis.

                             OTHER AGENCIES

             National Aeronautics and Space Administration


                  SCIENCE, AERONAUTICS AND EXPLORATION

       The amended bill includes $62,500,000 for Science, 
     Aeronautics and Exploration.

                      National Science Foundation


                    RESEARCH AND RELATED ACTIVITIES

       The amended bill includes $22,500,000 for Research and 
     Related Activities, of which $5,000,000 shall be available 
     solely for activities authorized by section 7002(b)(2)(A)(iv) 
     of Public Law 110-69.


                     EDUCATION AND HUMAN RESOURCES

       The amended bill includes $40,000,000 for Education and 
     Related Activities of which $20,000,000 is for section 10 of 
     the National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 2002 (42 
     U.S.C. 1862n-1) and $20,000,000, is for activities authorized 
     by section 10A of the National Science Foundation 
     Authorization Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 1862n-1a).

                           CHAPTER 3--ENERGY

                          DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

                            ENERGY PROGRAMS

                                Science

       The amended bill includes an additional $62,500,000 for 
     Science. The Department of

[[Page 14055]]

     Energy is instructed to utilize this funding to eliminate all 
     furloughs and reductions in force which are a direct result 
     of budgetary constraints. Workforce reductions which are a 
     result of completed work or realignment of mission should 
     proceed as planned. This funding is intended to maintain 
     technical expertise and capability at the Office of Science, 
     and may be used for National Laboratory Research and 
     Development including research related to new neutrino 
     initiatives. Funding for research efforts shall not be 
     allocated until the Office of Science has fully funded all 
     personnel requirements.

               ENVIRONMENTAL AND OTHER DEFENSE ACTIVITIES

                     Defense Environmental Cleanup

       The amended bill includes an additional $62,500,000 for 
     Defense Environmental Cleanup.

             CHAPTER 4--LABOR AND HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

                          DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

                 Employment and Training Administration


     STATE UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE AND EMPLOYMENT SERVICE OPERATIONS

       The amended bill provides $110,000,000 for Unemployment 
     Compensation State Operations to compensate the States for 
     the administrative costs of processing the Unemployment 
     Insurance (UI) claims workload for the balance of fiscal year 
     2008. New UI claims are increasing, reaching a level in April 
     2008 nearly 18 percent greater than the previous year. States 
     are beginning to experience service degradation in the form 
     of call center delays for claimants, waiting times for 
     adjudication of disputed claims, and reductions in program 
     integrity activities, tax collection, and tax audits. While 
     funding in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008 is 
     sufficient to cover the costs of processing 2.4 million 
     Average Weekly Insured Unemployment (AWIU), claims have 
     already climbed above 2.9 million AWIU. The amount provided 
     will compensate States for the claims workload estimated by 
     the Department of Labor up to the point where additional 
     funds are released under a legislated trigger.

                DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

                     National Institutes of Health


                         OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR

                     (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

       The amended bill provides $150,000,000 in additional 
     funding for the National Institutes of Health to support 
     additional scientific research. This funding is to be 
     distributed on a pro-rata basis across the NIH institutes and 
     centers.

                     CHAPTER 5--LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

      Payment to Widows and Heirs of Deceased Members of Congress

       The amended bill provides the customary death gratuity to 
     Annette Lantos, widow of Tom Lantos, late a Representative 
     from the State of California.

            TITLE III--NATURAL DISASTER RELIEF AND RECOVERY

                         CHAPTER 1--AGRICULTURE

                       DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

                          Farm Service Agency


                     EMERGENCY CONSERVATION PROGRAM

       The amended bill provides $89,413,000 for the Emergency 
     Conservation Program for disaster relief. The recent Midwest 
     floods and tornadoes have added to disaster relief funding 
     needs. Therefore, these funds are provided to meet these and 
     other disaster relief funding needs.

                 Natural Resources Conservation Service


                 EMERGENCY WATERSHED PROTECTION PROGRAM

       The amended bill provides $390,464,000 for the Emergency 
     Watershed Protection Program for disaster relief. The recent 
     Midwest floods and tornadoes have added to disaster relief 
     funding needs. Therefore, these funds are provided to meet 
     these and other disaster relief funding needs.

                          CHAPTER 2--COMMERCE

                         DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

                  Economic Development Administration


                ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS

       The amended bill provides $100,000,000 for economic 
     development assistance in Presidentially-declared disaster 
     areas to provide disaster relief, long-term recovery and 
     restoration of infrastructure.

                     CHAPTER 3--CORPS OF ENGINEERS

                      DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE--CIVIL

                         DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY

                       Corps of Engineers--Civil

       Public Law 109-148, the 3rd emergency supplemental 
     appropriations act of 2006, Public Law 109-234, the 4th 
     emergency supplemental appropriations act of 2006, and Public 
     Law 110-28, the emergency supplemental appropriations act of 
     2007, provided funds to repair and restore hurricane damaged 
     projects, accelerate completion of New Orleans area flood and 
     storm damage reduction projects, and provide 100-year storm 
     protection for the greater New Orleans area. The scope and 
     magnitude of the work required has increased with time. The 
     current cost estimate requires $5,761,000,000 in additional 
     Federal funds and a non-Federal cost-share of $1,527,000,000.
       The Administration requested this funding under the 
     Construction account in the fiscal year 2009 budget. The 
     amended bill provides the full amount of the request as a 
     supplemental appropriation to ensure the existing schedule 
     for completion of 100-year protection for the greater New 
     Orleans area by 2011 is met. However, $2,926,000,000 is 
     provided under Flood Control and Coastal Emergencies in order 
     to provide continuity in appropriations for projects to 
     repair, restore, and accelerate completion of the levels of 
     protection authorized prior to Hurricane Katrina. None of the 
     funds recommended for this purpose shall be available until 
     October 1, 2008.
       In addition, the amended bill provides $605,988,800 to 
     respond to recent natural disasters. The funding included 
     under the Construction; Mississippi River and Tributaries; 
     Operation and Maintenance; and Flood Control and Coastal 
     Emergency accounts that reference natural disasters are 
     provided to address nationwide disaster recovery and 
     emergency situations and should not be construed to pertain 
     exclusively to any single disaster event. The Corps shall 
     prioritize all projects to ensure that the most critical 
     health and safety risks are addressed.


                              CONSTRUCTION

       The amended bill includes $2,896,700,000 for Construction. 
     Within the recommended funds, $1,077,000,000 is provided to 
     complete the 100-year storm protection for the Lake 
     Pontchartrain and Vicinity project; $920,000,000 is provided 
     to complete the 100-year storm protection for the West Bank 
     and Vicinity project; and $838,000,000 is provided for 
     elements of the Southeast Louisiana Urban Drainage project 
     that are within the geographic perimeter of the West Bank and 
     Vicinity projects and the Lake Pontchartrain and Vicinity 
     project.
       The amended bill includes a provision which requires the 
     Lake Pontchartrain and Vicinity, West Bank and Vicinity and 
     Southeast Louisiana projects be cost shared 65 percent 
     Federal and 35 percent non-Federal as proposed by the 
     Administration with a resulting Federal cost of 
     $2,835,000,000 and a non-Federal cost of $1,527,000,000. 
     While the amended bill includes specific statutory dollar 
     amounts for the three projects, statutory language has been 
     included that would allow the Administration to request a 
     reprogramming of funds, if required. However, the Corps 
     should use this reprogramming ability sparingly.
       Due to recent natural disasters, the Corps of Engineers has 
     identified a number of projects that are currently under 
     construction that have been damaged by storm and flood 
     events. The amended bill includes $61,700,000 for the Corps 
     to repair and rehabilitate these construction projects that 
     were affected by natural disasters.


                   MISSISSIPPI RIVER AND TRIBUTARIES

       Due to recent natural disasters, the Corps of Engineers has 
     identified a number of Federally-maintained construction and 
     maintenance projects that have been damaged or otherwise 
     impacted by storm and flood events. The amended bill includes 
     $17,590,000 for the Corps to repair and rehabilitate these 
     projects that were affected by natural disasters.


                       OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE

       Due to recent natural disasters, the Corps of Engineers has 
     identified a number of navigation and flood damage reduction 
     projects that have been impacted by storm and flood events. 
     The amended bill provides $298,344,000 for the Corps to 
     restore navigation channels and harbors to pre-storm 
     conditions; and to repair eligible flood damage reduction and 
     other projects in States affected by natural disasters.


                 FLOOD CONTROL AND COASTAL EMERGENCIES

       The amended bill provides $3,152,854,800 for Flood Control 
     and Coastal Emergencies. The funding includes, at full 
     Federal expense, the following amounts: $704,000,000 to 
     modify the 17th Street, Orleans Avenue, and London Avenue 
     drainage canals and install pumps and closure structures at 
     or near the lakefront; $90,000,000 for storm-proofing 
     interior pump stations to ensure the operability of the 
     stations during hurricanes, storms, and high water events; 
     $459,000,000 for armoring critical elements of the New 
     Orleans hurricane and storm damage reduction system; 
     $53,000,000 to improve protection at the Inner Harbor 
     Navigation Canal; $456,000,000 to replace or modify certain 
     non-Federal levees in Plaquemines Parish to incorporate the 
     levees into the existing New Orleans to Venice hurricane 
     protection project; $412,000,000 for reinforcing or replacing 
     flood walls, as necessary, in the existing Lake Pontchartrain 
     and Vicinity project and the existing West Bank and Vicinity 
     project to improve the performance of the systems; 
     $393,000,000 for repair and restoration of authorized 
     protections and floodwalls; and $359,000,000 to complete the 
     authorized protection for the Lake Pontchartrain and Vicinity 
     Project, for the West Bank and Vicinity Project and the New 
     Orleans to Venice Project. While the Committee has 
     recommended specific statutory dollar amounts for the 
     projects identified under this heading, statutory language 
     has been included that would allow the Administration to 
     request a reprogramming of funds,

[[Page 14056]]

     if required. However, the Corps should use this reprogramming 
     ability sparingly.
       Due to recent natural disasters, the Corps of Engineers has 
     identified a number of projects that have been damaged by 
     storm and flood events. The amended bill includes 
     $226,854,800 for the Corps to prepare for flood, hurricane 
     and other natural disasters and support emergency operations, 
     repairs, and other activities in response to flood and 
     hurricane emergencies, as authorized by law; to repair and 
     rehabilitate eligible projects that were affected by natural 
     disasters; and to fund claims processing and discovery costs 
     associated with Hurricane Katrina lawsuits.
       The amended bill includes a provision directing the Corps 
     to continue the NEPA alternative evaluation of all options 
     for permanent pumping of storm water in the New Orleans 
     metropolitan area with particular attention to Options 1, 2 
     and 2a and within 90 days of enactment of this Act provide 
     the House and Senate Appropriation Committees cost estimates 
     to implement Options 1, 2 and 2a of the above cited report. 
     Current plans do not fully account for the operational 
     challenges that arise during major storm events and are not, 
     therefore, fully protective of public safety.


                                EXPENSES

       The amended bill includes $1,500,000 for additional 
     oversight and management costs associated with Hurricane 
     Katrina recovery efforts.

                       CHAPTER 4--SMALL BUSINESS

                     Small Business Administration


                     DISASTER LOANS PROGRAM ACCOUNT

                     (INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)

       Based on early estimates of damages due to severe storms 
     and flooding in a number of states, the amended bill includes 
     $164,939,000 in loan subsidy for the costs of providing 
     direct loans for homeowners and business-owners so that they 
     can recover from the effects of these disasters. The amended 
     bill also includes a total of $101,814,000 for the 
     administrative costs for carrying out the loan program. These 
     funds will provide for the on site presence of Small Business 
     Administration (SBA) employees to assist disaster victims in 
     obtaining low interest loans from the SBA. Funding will 
     support additional to staff in call centers, disaster 
     resource sites, and loan processing centers and for field 
     inspections to verify damages and losses of homes and 
     businesses. Funding is also necessary to hire additional 
     attorneys to carry out the loan closing process, as well as 
     staff to service the loans. Of this amount, $6,000,000 may be 
     transferred to the Salaries and Expenses account for indirect 
     administrative expenses and $1,000,000 is for the Office of 
     Inspector General for audits and reviews of disaster loans.

                    CHAPTER 5--FEMA DISASTER RELIEF

                    DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

                  Federal Emergency Management Agency


                            DISASTER RELIEF

       The amended bill provides an additional $897,000,000 for 
     Disaster Relief. The recent Midwest floods and tornadoes have 
     added to disaster relief funding needs. The 1993 Midwest 
     floods cost FEMA over $1.1 billion fifteen years ago and the 
     current damage is likely to cost at least this amount, but in 
     inflated dollars. This funding is provided to partially meet 
     these and other disaster relief funding needs.

                CHAPTER 6--HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

              DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT

                      Permanent Supportive Housing

       The amended bill includes funding for Louisiana Permanent 
     Supportive Housing, in the amount of $73,000,000. This is a 
     new program, and the money is split between two accounts in 
     the bill--the Homeless Assistance Grants and the Project-
     Based Rental Assistance programs. This program will provide 
     funding for the 3,000 units of permanent supportive housing 
     that are envisioned in the HUD-approved Louisiana Road Home 
     Program. This will enable the promise of the Road Home 
     Program to address the housing needs of our most vulnerable 
     citizens, in particular extremely low-income homeless, 
     disabled and frail elderly persons, to be fulfilled. Of the 
     $73,000,000 provided, $20,000,000 will fund 2,000 project-
     based vouchers (funded for 1-year terms) with $3,000,000 in 
     administrative fees, and $50,000,000 will fund 1,000 Shelter 
     Plus Care units (funded for five-year terms). These are the 
     ideal and proven housing programs for creating permanent 
     supportive housing for the populations in question. The 
     program funds are provided to the State of Louisiana or its 
     designee or designees, and language is included stating that 
     the administering entity or entities can act as a public 
     housing agency for purposes of administering the funding.

                   Community Planning and Development

                       Community Development Fund

       The amended bill provides $300,000,000 for the Community 
     Development Fund for necessary expenses related to disaster 
     relief, long-term recovery, and restoration of infrastructure 
     in areas for which the President declared a major disaster.

             TITLE IV--EMERGENCY UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION

       The amended bill includes language providing a temporary 
     extension of unemployment benefits to workers who have lost 
     their jobs. Specifically, the amended bill provides up to 13 
     weeks of extended unemployment benefits in every State to 
     workers exhausting regular unemployment compensation. The 
     extended benefits program will terminate on March 31, 2009. 
     The percentage of workers exhausting unemployment benefits is 
     currently 37 percent, which is higher than at the beginning 
     of any of the past five recessions. Not only will workers and 
     their families benefit from extended benefits, providing this 
     financial assistance also can reduce the severity and 
     duration of an economic downturn. Experts agree that 
     extending unemployment benefits is one of the most cost-
     effective and fast acting forms of economic stimulus because 
     workers who have lost their paychecks have little choice but 
     to spend these benefits quickly.

                TITLE V--VETERANS EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE

       Title V of the amended bill includes provisions designed to 
     expand the educational benefits for men and women who have 
     served in the armed forces since the terrorist attacks of 
     September 11, 2001. The provisions will closely resemble the 
     educational benefits provided to veterans returning from 
     World War II.
       The benefits included in title V would apply to all members 
     of the military who have served on active duty, including 
     activated reservists and National Guard. To qualify, veterans 
     must have served at least three months of qualified active 
     duty, beginning on or after September 11, 2001. The amended 
     bill provides for benefits to be paid in amounts linked to 
     the amount of active duty service.
       In addition to tuition and other established charges, the 
     benefit includes a monthly stipend for housing costs as well 
     as tutorial assistance and licensure and certification tests.
       The amended bill would create a new program in which the 
     government will agree to match, dollar for dollar, any 
     voluntary additional contributions to veterans from 
     institutions whose tuition is more expensive than the maximum 
     educational assistance provided in the amended bill.
       In addition, title V allows for members of the armed 
     services to transfer their benefits to their spouse or 
     children.
       Finally, the amended bill provides for the veterans to have 
     up to fifteen years after they leave active duty to use their 
     educational assistance entitlement. Veterans would be barred 
     from receiving concurrent assistance from this program and 
     another similar program.

  TITLE VI--ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY IN GOVERNMENT CONTRACTING

             CHAPTER 1--CLOSE THE CONTRACTOR FRAUD LOOPHOLE

       Chapter 1 of title VI is identical to the language of H.R. 
     5712, ``Close the Contractor Fraud Loophole Act,'' passed by 
     the House on April 23, 2008 and was in the Senate amendment 
     adopted on May 22, 2008. It closes a loophole in a proposed 
     rule so that mandatory fraud reporting requirements would 
     apply to U.S. contractors working overseas as well as to 
     contractors working here at home.

               CHAPTER 2--GOVERNMENT FUNDING TRANSPARENCY

       Chapter 2 of title VI is identical to the language of H.R. 
     3928, ``Government Funding Transparency Act of 2007,'' passed 
     by the House on April 23, 2008 and was in the Senate 
     amendment adopted on May 22, 2008. It requires any company or 
     organization receiving at least $25 million and 80 percent or 
     more of their revenue from federal payments to disclose the 
     compensation of their most highly-compensated officers.

                     TITLE VII--MEDICAID PROVISIONS

       Title VII of the amended bill includes language extending 
     the current moratorium to April 2009 on four Medicaid 
     regulations pertaining to: graduate medical education 
     payments; limits on payments to government safety net 
     providers; rehabilitation services; and school-based 
     administrative and specialized medical transportation 
     services for children. The amended bill also establishes a 
     moratorium for the same period for two Medicaid regulations 
     pertaining to: health care provider taxes and targeted case 
     management. The cost of the moratoria is fully offset over 
     five and ten years in the amended bill by provisions that 
     extend an asset verification demonstration to all fifty 
     States and reduce balances in the Physician Assistance and 
     Quality Initiative Fund. These six moratoria are identical to 
     those included in H.R. 5613, which was approved by the House 
     by a 349-62 vote and were in the Senate amendment adopted on 
     May 22, 2008.
       The moratorium on these six regulations is included in the 
     amended bill due to concerns about their potential negative 
     impact on essential medical services for millions of people, 
     particularly for seniors, people with disabilities, and 
     children, and on the providers of these safety net services. 
     These regulations also would have a far-reaching impact

[[Page 14057]]

     on graduate medical education, outreach and supportive 
     services designed to help individuals get the medical care 
     they need, and foster care services.
       According to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), these 
     regulatory changes would reduce Federal Medicaid spending by 
     more than $17,500,000,000 over the next five years, shifting 
     these costs to States and localities. These cuts would occur 
     during an economic downturn when States and localities are 
     least able to restore services. Further, the authorizing 
     committees indicate that many of these regulations alter 
     longstanding Medicaid policy without specific Congressional 
     authorization.
       Additional time is required to examine the potential impact 
     of these regulations. Accordingly, the amended bill includes 
     $5,000,000 for a study to be completed no later than 
     September 2009 by an independent entity to assess the 
     prevalence of the problems in the Medicaid program the 
     regulations were intended to address and their impact on each 
     State. The amended bill also includes $25,000,000 for the 
     purpose of reducing fraud and abuse in the Medicaid program.

                TITLE VIII--GENERAL PROVISIONS, THIS ACT

       The amended bill includes the following general provisions:
       Section 8001 establishes the period of availability for 
     obligation for appropriations provided in this Act.
       Section 8002 provides that, unless otherwise noted, all 
     appropriations in this Act are designated as emergency 
     requirements and necessary to meet emergency needs pursuant 
     to section 204(a) of S. Con. Res. 21 and section 301(b)(2) of 
     S. Con. Res. 70, the congressional budget resolutions for 
     fiscal years 2008 and 2009.
       Section 8003 provides for a reduction of $3,577,845,000 
     from the Procurement; Research, Development, Test and 
     Evaluation; and Defense Working Capital headings within 
     chapter 1 of title IX of this Act. The section also provides 
     that the reduction shall be applied proportionally to each 
     appropriation account under such headings, and to each 
     program, project, and activity within each such appropriation 
     account.
       Section 8004 amends section 9310 of this Act, which 
     prohibits the obligation or expenditure of funds available to 
     the Department of Defense to implement any final action on 
     joint basing initiatives. The amendment excepts funds 
     deposited in the Department of Defense Base Closure Account 
     2005 from this restriction.
       Section 8005 makes funds provided in Public Law 110-28, 
     which remain available for obligation, within the operation 
     and maintenance portion of the Defense Health Program for 
     Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injury 
     (TBI) available for psychological health and traumatic brain 
     injury.
       Section 8006 provides that this Act may be referred to as 
     the ``Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2008''.

[[Page 14058]]

     [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TS26JN08.001
     


[[Page 14059]]

     [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TS26JN08.002
     


[[Page 14060]]

     [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TS26JN08.003
     


[[Page 14061]]

     [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TS26JN08.004
     


[[Page 14062]]

     [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TS26JN08.005
     


[[Page 14063]]

     [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TS26JN08.006
     


[[Page 14064]]

     [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TS26JN08.007
     


[[Page 14065]]

     [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TS26JN08.008
     
      

[[Page 14066]]

         Disclosure of Congressionally Directed Spending Items

       Following is a list of congressionally directed spending 
     items (as defined in rule XLIV of the Standing Rules of the 
     Senate) included in the House amendment discussed in this 
     explanatory statement, along with the name of the Senator who 
     submitted a request to the Committee of jurisdiction for the 
     items so identified. The items were contained in the Senate-
     passed amendment. Neither the amendment nor the explanatory 
     statement contains any limited tax benefits or limited tariff 
     benefits as defined in rule XLIV.

                                                                                      MILITARY CONSTRUCTION
                                                                                    [In thousands of dollars]
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
              Account                        State                          Location                                Project Title                        Amount              Requested By
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Army.............................  Alaska...................  Fort Wainwright....................  Child Development Center.......................           17,000  The Administration \1\
Army.............................  California...............  Fort Irwin.........................  Child Development Center.......................           11,800  The Administration \1\
Navy.............................  California...............  Camp Pendleton.....................  Armory--5th Marine Regiment....................           10,890  The President
Navy.............................  California...............  Camp Pendleton.....................  Bachelor Quarters & Armory.....................           34,970  The President
Navy.............................  California...............  Camp Pendleton.....................  Bachelor Quarters & Dining Facility............           24,390  The President
Navy.............................  California...............  Camp Pendleton.....................  Company Headquarters--Military Police..........            8,240  The President
Navy.............................  California...............  Camp Pendleton.....................  Explosive Ordinance Detachment--Ops............           13,090  The President
Navy.............................  California...............  Camp Pendleton.....................  Intelligence Surveillance Reconnaissance.......            1,114  The President
Navy.............................  California...............  Camp Pendleton.....................  Armory--Regimental & Battalion HQ..............            5,160  The President
Navy.............................  California...............  Camp Pendleton.....................  Armory--Intelligence Battalion.................            4,180  The President
Navy.............................  California...............  Camp Pendleton.....................  JIEDDO Battle Courses..........................            9,270  The Administration \1\
Navy.............................  California...............  China Lake.........................  JIEDDO Battle Courses..........................            7,210  The Administration \1\
Navy.............................  California...............  Point Mugu.........................  JIEDDO Battle Courses..........................            7,250  The Administration \1\
Navy.............................  California...............  San Diego..........................  Child Development Center.......................           17,930  The Administration \1\
Navy.............................  California...............  Twentynine Palms...................  Regimental Headquarters Addition...............            4,440  The President
Navy.............................  California...............  Twentynine Palms...................  JIEDDO Battle Courses..........................           11,250  The Administration \1\
Air Force........................  California...............  Beale AFB..........................  Child Development Center.......................           17,600  The Administration \1\
Army.............................  Colorado.................  Fort Carson........................  Child Development Center.......................            8,400  The Administration \1\
Army.............................  Colorado.................  Fort Carson........................  Soldier Family Assistance Center...............            8,100  The President
Navy.............................  Florida..................  Eglin AFB..........................  JIEDDO Battle Course Additions.................              780  The Administration \1\
Air Force........................  Florida..................  Eglin AFB..........................  Child Development Center.......................           11,000  The Administration \1\
Army.............................  Georgia..................  Fort Gordon........................  Child Development Center.......................            7,800  The Administration \1\
Army.............................  Georgia..................  Fort Stewart.......................  Soldier Family Assistance Center...............            6,000  The President
Defense-Wide.....................  Georgia..................  Fort Benning.......................  Hospital Replacement...........................          350,000  ( \2\ )
Army.............................  Hawaii...................  Schofield Barracks.................  Child Development Center.......................           12,500  The Administration \1\
Army.............................  Kansas...................  Fort Riley.........................  Transitioning Warrior Support Complex..........           50,000  The President
Defense-Wide.....................  Kansas...................  Fort Riley.........................  Hospital Replacement...........................          404,000  ( \2\ )
Army.............................  Kentucky.................  Fort Campbell......................  Child Development Center.......................            9,900  The Administration \1\
Army.............................  Kentucky.................  Fort Campbell......................  Soldier Family Assistance Center...............            7,400  The President
Army.............................  Kentucky.................  Fort Knox..........................  Child Development Center.......................            7,400  The Administration \1\
Army.............................  Louisiana................  Fort Polk..........................  Soldier Family Assistance Center...............            4,900  The President
Navy.............................  Mississippi..............  Gulfport...........................  JIEDDO Battle Courses..........................            6,570  The Administration \1\
Army.............................  Missouri.................  Fort Leonard Wood..................  Starbase Complex 6, Phase 1....................           50,000  ( \2\ )
Air Force........................  New Jersey...............  McGuire AFB........................  JIEDDO Training Facility.......................            6,200  The Administration \1\
Air Force........................  New Mexico...............  Cannon AFB.........................  Child Development Center.......................            8,000  The Administration \1\
Army.............................  New York.................  Fort Drum..........................  Warrior in Transition Facilities...............           38,000  The President
Army.............................  North Carolina...........  Fort Bragg.........................  Child Development Center.......................            8,500  The Administration \1\
Navy.............................  North Carolina...........  Camp Lejeune.......................  Child Development Center.......................           16,000  The Administration \1\
Navy.............................  North Carolina...........  Camp Lejeune.......................  JIEDDO Battle Courses..........................           11,980  The Administration \1\
Navy.............................  North Carolina...........  Camp Lejeune.......................  Maintenance/Operations Complex.................           43,340  The President
Defense-Wide.....................  North Carolina...........  Camp Lejeune.......................  Hospital Addition/Alteration...................           64,300  ( \2\ )
Army.............................  Oklahoma.................  Fort Sill..........................  Child Development Center.......................            9,000  The Administration \1\
Navy.............................  South Carolina...........  Parris Island......................  Recruit Barracks...............................           25,360  ( \2\ )
Army.............................  Texas....................  Fort Bliss.........................  Child Development Center.......................            5,700  The Administration \1\
Army.............................  Texas....................  Fort Bliss.........................  Child Development Center.......................            5,900  The Administration \1\
Army.............................  Texas....................  Fort Bliss.........................  Child Development Center.......................            5,700  The Administration \1\
Army.............................  Texas....................  Fort Hood..........................  Child Development Center.......................            7,200  The Administration \1\
Army.............................  Texas....................  Fort Hood..........................  Warrior in Transition Facilities...............            9,100  The President
Army.............................  Texas....................  Fort Sam Houston...................  Child Development Center.......................            7,000  The Administration \1\
Defense-Wide.....................  Texas....................  Fort Sam Houston...................  Burn Rehab Unit................................           21,000  The President
Army.............................  Virginia.................  Fort Lee...........................  Child Development Center.......................            7,400  The Administration \1\
Navy.............................  Virginia.................  Yorktown...........................  JIEDDO Battle Courses..........................            8,070  The Administration \1\
Army.............................  Afghanistan..............  Bagram.............................  Administrative Building........................           13,800  The Administration \1\
Army.............................  Afghanistan..............  Bagram.............................  New Roads......................................           27,000  The President
Army.............................  Afghanistan..............  Bagram.............................  Ammunition Supply Point........................           62,000  The President
Army.............................  Afghanistan..............  Bagram.............................  Power Plant....................................           41,000  The President
Army.............................  Afghanistan..............  Bagram.............................  Bulk Fuel Storage & Supply, Phase 3............           23,000  The President
Army.............................  Afghanistan..............  Bagram.............................  Bulk Fuel Storage & Supply, Phase 4............           21,000  The President
Army.............................  Afghanistan..............  Various Locations..................  CIED Road--Rte Alaska..........................           16,500  The President
Army.............................  Afghanistan..............  Bagram.............................  Aircraft Maintenance Hangar....................            5,100  The President
Army.............................  Afghanistan..............  Ghazni.............................  Rotary Wing Parking............................            5,000  The President
Army.............................  Afghanistan..............  Kabul..............................  Consolidated Compound..........................           36,000  The President
Army.............................  Afghanistan..............  Various Locations..................  CIED Road--Rte Connecticut.....................           54,000  The President
Air Force........................  Afghanistan..............  Bagram.............................  Strategic Ramp.................................           43,000  The President
Air Force........................  Afghanistan..............  Bagram.............................  Parallel Taxiway, Phase 2......................           21,400  The President
Air Force........................  Afghanistan..............  Bagram.............................  East Side Helo Ramp............................           44,400  The President
Air Force........................  Afghanistan..............  Kandahar...........................  ISR Ramp.......................................           26,300  The President
Navy.............................  Djibouti.................  Camp Lemonier......................  Network Infrastructure Expansion...............            6,270  The President
Navy.............................  Djibouti.................  Camp Lemonier......................  Dining Facility................................           20,780  The Administration \1\
Navy.............................  Djibouti.................  Camp Lemonier......................  Water Production...............................           19,140  The President
Navy.............................  Djibouti.................  Camp Lemonier......................  Full Length Taxiway............................           15,490  The Administration \1\
Navy.............................  Djibouti.................  Camp Lemonier......................  Fuel Farm......................................            4,000  The Administration \1\
Navy.............................  Djibouti.................  Camp Lemonier......................  Western Taxiway................................            2,900  The Administration \1\
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Camp Adder.........................  Petro Oil & Lubricant Storage..................           10,000  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Camp Adder.........................  Waste Water Treatment & Collection.............            9,800  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Camp Adder.........................  Convoy Support Center Relocation, Phase 2......           39,000  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Al Asad............................  Landfill Construction..........................            3,100  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Al Asad............................  Hot Cargo Ramp.................................           18,500  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Al Asad............................  South Airfield Apron (India Ramp)..............           28,000  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Camp Anaconda......................  Landfill Construction..........................            6,200  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Camp Anaconda......................  Hazardous Waste Incinerator....................            4,300  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Camp Constitution..................  Juvenile TIFRIC................................           11,700  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Fallujah...........................  Landfill Construction..........................              880  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Camp Marez.........................  Landfill Construction..........................              880  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Q-West.............................  North Entry Control Point......................           11,400  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Q-West.............................  Perimeter Security Upgrade.....................           14,600  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Camp Ramadi........................  Landfill Construction..........................              880  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Scania.............................  Entry Control Point............................            5,000  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Scania.............................  Water Storage Tanks............................            9,200  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Camp Speicher......................  Military Control Point.........................            5,800  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Camp Speicher......................  Landfill Construction..........................            5,900  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Camp Speicher......................  Aviation Navigation Facilities.................           13,400  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Camp Taqqadum......................  Landfill Construction..........................              880  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Camp Victory.......................  Landfill Construction..........................            6,200  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Camp Victory.......................  Level 3 Hospital...............................           13,400  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Camp Victory.......................  Waste Water Treatment & Collection.............            9,800  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Camp Victory.......................  Water Supply, Treatment & Storage, Phase 3.....           13,000  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Camp Victory.......................  Water Treatment & Storage, Phase 2.............           18,000  The President

[[Page 14067]]

 
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Camp Warrior.......................  Landfill Construction..........................              880  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Various Locations..................  Overhead Cover--eGlass.........................           30,000  The President
Army.............................  Iraq.....................  Various Locations..................  Overhead Cover--eGlass, Phase 4................          105,000  The President
Air Force........................  Iraq.....................  Balad AB...........................  Helicopter Maintenance Facilities..............           34,600  The President
Air Force........................  Iraq.....................  Balad AB...........................  Foxtrot Taxiway................................           12,700  The President
Air Force........................  Iraq.....................  Balad AB...........................  Fighter Ramp...................................           11,000  The President
Army.............................  Kuwait...................  Camp Arifjan.......................  Communications Center..........................           30,000  The President
Air Force........................  Kyrgyzstan...............  Manas AB...........................  Strategic Ramp.................................           30,300  The President
Air Force........................  Oman.....................  Masirah AB.........................  Expeditionary Beddown Site.....................            6,300  The Administration \1\
Air Force........................  Qatar....................  Al Udeid...........................  Facilities Replacement.........................           30,000  The Administration \1\
Air Force........................  Qatar....................  Al Udeid...........................  Close Air Support Parking Apron................           60,400  The Administration \1\
Defense-Wide.....................  Qatar....................  Al Udeid...........................  Special Operations Forces Warehouse............            6,600  The President
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ These projects were requested by the Department of Defense subsequent to the submission of the President's budget request and were not included in the official budget request.
\2\ These projects were added by the House Committee on Appropriations as a result of hearings, site visits, and departmental briefings on trainee and recruit facilities and medical treatment
  facilities.


                                                                             CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING ITEMS
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                Account                                                            Project                                                  Funding                       Member
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
                                                                          SUBCOMMITTEE ON ENERGY AND WATER DEVELOPMENT
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Corps of Engineers--Construction......  In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Lake Ponchartrain and Vicinity, LA....................    $1,077,000,000  The President, Senators Landrieu,
                                                                                                                                                          Vitter
Corps of Engineers--Construction......  In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, West Bank and Vicinity, LA............................       920,000,000  The President, Senators Landrieu,
                                                                                                                                                          Vitter
Corps of Engineers--Construction......  In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Southeast Louisiana, LA...............................       838,000,000  The President, Senators Landrieu,
                                                                                                                                                          Vitter
Corps of Engineers--Flood Control and   In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, 17th Street, Orleans, and London Avenue Canal pumps          704,000,000  The President, Senators Landrieu,
 Coastal Emergencies.                    and closures, LA.                                                                                                Vitter
Corps of Engineers--Flood Control and   In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Stormproofing interior pump stations, LA..............        90,000,000  The President, Senators Landrieu,
 Coastal Emergencies.                                                                                                                                     Vitter
Corps of Engineers--Flood Control and   In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Levee and critical element armoring, LA...............       459,000,000  The President, Senators Landrieu,
 Coastal Emergencies.                                                                                                                                     Vitter
Corps of Engineers--Flood Control and   In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Navigable closure at the Inner Harbor Navigation              53,000,000  The President, Senators Landrieu,
 Coastal Emergencies.                    Canal, LA.                                                                                                       Vitter
Corps of Engineers--Flood Control and   In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Incorporation of Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, Non-         456,000,000  The President, Senators Landrieu,
 Coastal Emergencies.                    Federal levee.                                                                                                   Vitter
Corps of Engineers--Flood Control and   In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, reinforcing or Replacing Floodwalls in the existing          412,000,000  The President, Senators Landrieu,
 Coastal Emergencies.                    Lake Ponchartrain and Vicinity, and West Bank and Vicinity Projects in New Orleans, LA.                          Vitter
Corps of Engineers--Flood Control and   In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, repair and restoration of authorized protections and         393,000,000  The President, Senators Landrieu,
 Coastal Emergencies.                    floodwalls in New Orleans, LA.                                                                                   Vitter
Corps of Engineers--Flood Control and   In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, complete authorized Lake Ponchartrain and Vicinity and       359,000,000  The President, Senators Landrieu,
 Coastal Emergencies.                    West Bank and Vicinity projects in New Orleans, LA.                                                              Vitter
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                    SUBCOMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION, AND HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT, AND RELATED AGENCIES
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Department of Housing and Urban         Permanent Supportive Housing vouchers for the State of Louisiana for elderly, disabled and           73,000,000  Senator Landrieu
 Development: Permanent Supportive       other at-risk homeless individuals directly impacted by Hurricane Katrina.
 Housing.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


  Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, today, the Senate Appropriations Committee 
reported the fiscal year 2009 Labor, Health and Human Services, 
Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act. In this bill, the 
Senate Committee has continued its aggressive efforts to improve the 
safety of miners in the coal fields.
  After the deadly tragedy at the Sago Mine in 2006, the Congress 
passed the Mine Improvement and New Emergency Response, MINER, Act, 
which I was pleased to cosponsor. Among other things, that bill 
required the immediate installation of emergency breathing devices and 
also the installation of wireless communications and tracking equipment 
by June 2009. The MINER Act also required the Mine Safety and Health 
Administration, MSHA, to draft several new regulations, including rules 
on penalties, mine rescue teams, and the sealing of abandoned areas. It 
also required a report from the National Institute for Occupational 
Safety and Health, NIOSH, on refuge alternatives, as well as a report 
on belt-air ventilation and the fire-retardant properties of belt 
materials from a technical study panel. I would note that the 
Appropriations Committee included two amendments to the MINER Act in 
the fiscal year 2008 Omnibus appropriations bill directing MSHA to 
finalize regulations later this year that would implement the 
recommendations on refuge alternatives and belt safety provided by 
NIOSH and the Technical Study Panel. MSHA issued the proposed rules 
this month for comment.
  In order to meet these new mandates and so that MSHA can fulfill its 
other important health and safety responsibilities, like completing 100 
percent of statutory inspections, the Senate Appropriations Committee 
increased funding for coal enforcement from $117 million in fiscal year 
2006, to $150 million in fiscal year 2008. In May 2006, the Senate 
Appropriations Committee also directed MSHA to hire 170 new coal 
inspectors and provided $25.6 million to accomplish that task. Since 
then, MSHA has hired 322 coal enforcement personnel--increasing the 
number of inspectors from 587 in June 2006, to 750 in May 2008.
  I also proudly note that the committee has added funding for mine 
safety research at NIOSH, increasing to $50 million the budget for the 
development of health and safety technologies. The committee also 
provided $23 million in the fiscal years 2006 and 2007 Supplemental 
Appropriations Acts in order to expedite the deployment of safety 
technologies. With the funding the committee has provided since Sago, 
NIOSH has unveiled an improved self-contained, self-rescuer, SCSR, that 
allows miners to replace their oxygen supply without removing their 
SCSR. NIOSH has also announced progress on more durable and survivable 
communications systems, and completed critical studies of seals and 
refuge alternatives, which MSHA has used as the basis for its 
regulatory proposals.
  Having increased funding in previous years, the Appropriations 
Committee focused this year on ensuring that the administration does 
not back away from its commitment to mine safety. In his fiscal year 
2009 budget, President Bush proposed cutting coal enforcement by $10 
million. The committee-reported fiscal year 2009 bill rejects this 
proposal, and increases the budget for coal enforcement to $155 
million. This is $4.4 million above the fiscal year 2008 enacted level, 
and when you discount $6 million of one-time expenditures last fiscal 
year, the total increase is more than $10 million.
  This funding would enable MSHA to continue to hire inspectors, 
specialists, and support staff, and to implement the MINER Act. It 
would also enable MSHA to achieve 100 percent compliance with its 
statutory mandates. In addition, the fiscal year 2009 committee-
reported bill includes $2 million above the president's budget request 
for MSHA to minimize coal dust levels through increased spot 
inspections. This is a new funding priority for the committee, in light 
of NIOSH reports in 2007 about alarming clusters of rapidly progressing 
black lung around southern West Virginia. The bill also

[[Page 14068]]

includes language requiring by March 31, 2009, a report from MSHA on 
the feasibility and efficacy of MSHA assuming responsibility for 
collecting dust samples and using single, full-shift measurements 
instead of averages to ensure compliance with the law.
  Mr. President, I praise the work of the dedicated enforcement 
personnel laboring in the coal fields. With funding from the 
Appropriations Committee, they have been working overtime and putting 
in long and hard hours. After too many years of neglect in the 
President's budgets, I am proud to note that there are visibly and 
noticeably more inspectors in the coal fields today, and additional 
inspectors are on the way. That is real, tangible progress. We must 
continue it. The argument that MSHA can now afford to cut back its 
budget for coal enforcement must not be allowed to take root. We must 
provide MSHA personnel with everything they need to do their job. As 
coal production increases across the Nation and MSHA struggles to 
implement the mandates of the MINER Act, the Congress must ensure 
sufficient funding to ensure that each and every mandate of the Coal 
Act is enforced.
  Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, over the past few months I have spoken 
several times in this Chamber about the need to approve a supplemental 
request from the President for appropriations to fund activities and 
operations of the Department of Defense. Progress on this request has 
been terribly slow. It has now been more than 500 days since the 
President submitted his request.
  In a hearing before the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee last 
month, Secretary of Defense Gates testified that the military personnel 
accounts that pay our soldiers, and the operations and maintenance 
accounts that fund readiness, training and salaries of civilian 
employees were running dry. Secretary Gates has been able to forestall 
this depletion of funds for a short period of time, but only by 
employing measures that are disruptive to the operations and management 
of the Department of Defense.
  Secretary Gates has had to transfer funding from Air Force, Navy and 
Marine accounts to the Army to enable the Army to meet its military and 
civilian payroll, and to fund current operations. It is incredible to 
think that to be able to pay military personnel who are on the 
frontlines, engaged in combat, the Secretary of Defense has had to 
transfer funding between accounts because the Congress will not act on 
a supplemental request that has been pending for almost a year and a 
half.
  The delay in providing supplemental funding has caused the Defense 
Department to divert thousands of man hours from focusing on how best 
to support our men and women in uniform to figuring out how to cash 
flow the Defense Department so our men and women in uniform will 
receive a paycheck. We will probably never know how many millions of 
dollars have been wasted during this shell game. And we will probably 
never know how many sailors, soldiers, airmen or marines have been put 
at greater risk because Defense Department leaders and managers have 
had to shift their attention from supporting the warfighter to figuring 
out how to make the payroll, or deciding what activities are ``exempt'' 
from cessation because the Department's funding has been depleted.
  The delay in providing funding for our troops has disrupted 
operations in Afghanistan as well as Iraq. Admiral Mullen, the Chairman 
of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, testified at a Defense Appropriations 
Subcommittee hearing that during his visit to the front lines he 
learned that the soldiers were unable to allocate funds from the 
Commander's Emergency Response Program because all the money had 
essentially already been allocated. We are more than two-thirds of the 
way through the fiscal year, yet Congress has provided less than one-
third of the funds requested for this emergency response. Admiral 
Mullen said, and I quote,

       I'm especially concerned about the availability of funds 
     into the Commander's Emergency Response Program, authority 
     for which expires next month. (The program) has proven in 
     most cases more valuable and perhaps more rapid than bullets 
     or bombs in the fight against extremism . . .

  I worry that the Congress is becoming an impediment to the efficiency 
and the capability of our government, and to our Department of Defense 
particularly. I worry that we are not acting as expeditiously as we 
should to protect our troops in the field that are conducting dangerous 
missions. The delays we have experienced with this supplemental were as 
unnecessary as they are inexcusable.
  I am also disappointed that the supplemental before the Senate means 
that the gulf coast's ongoing recovery from Hurricane Katrina will be 
slowed. Mississippi's gulf coast suffered tremendous devastation as 
Senators know as a result of Hurricane Katrina. There was significant 
loss of life as well as significant damage to property. In last year's 
supplemental spending bill, the Congress tasked the U.S. Army Corps of 
Engineers to recommend measures to protect the Mississippi gulf coast 
from future storms. The Corps of Engineers has drafted its 
recommendations, and the Senate responded by including funding for 
these important Corps-recommended projects in our version of the 
supplemental appropriations bill.
  One of the projects included in the Senate-passed supplemental is the 
restoration of Mississippi's Barrier Islands. These islands, which are 
federally owned, suffered terrible damage after Hurricane Camille in 
1969 and are now so vulnerable that even a relatively small hurricane 
may destroy them completely. These are my State's last line of defense 
before a major hurricane moves inland. Continued delay leaves my state 
more vulnerable.
  The Corps of Engineers also concluded that homeowner relocation 
assistance would be the most effective alternative for reducing the 
risk from future hurricane surge events by relocating structures and 
population centers from the high risk zones. This voluntary program 
would assist those who are looking to locate outside the high-hazard 
area. It is vital not only to recovery but also for protection from a 
future disaster. We are now in the midst of another hurricane season, 
and every day this Congress does not act is 1 more day that 
Mississippians are at risk.
  Unfortunately, all of these items were dropped from the bill by the 
other body, and because of the long delay in acting on the supplemental 
there is now no time or opportunity to consider the matter further. I 
share the President's concerns about excessive spending. But 16 months 
have passed since the President's supplemental request was submitted, 
and 6 months have passed since the 2008 bills were enacted. In that 
time natural disasters have occurred and additional disaster-related 
needs have become apparent.
  In March of this year, three barracks at Camp Shelby in Mississippi 
suffered significant damage and destruction after violent weather. 
Fourteen soldiers were hospitalized; four of the soldiers sustained 
serious injuries. Many other structures were damaged. The Senate-passed 
spending bill contained funding to rebuild these barracks, but the 
continued delays in funding prevent this important work from being 
started. Floodwaters continue to inflict damages to farms, homes, and 
businesses along the Mississippi River. There is little question that 
additional resources will be required to respond to this continuing 
disaster.
  I am speaking today in part to draw attention to what I feel has been 
a poor performance by Congress on this bill. But I also come to the 
floor because there is no other venue to express my views on the 
supplemental. There was no conference committee appointed to resolve 
differences between the House and Senate. There were no meetings of the 
chairmen and ranking members of the Appropriations Committees or of the 
subcommittees involved. And there has been virtually no opportunity for 
Members of this body to offer amendments to the bill. I regret that. It 
is not the way we should discharge our responsibilities. I think there 
is little question that had we followed regular order we could have 
enacted a supplemental a month ago, and spared our men and women in the 
field a great deal of uncertainty.

[[Page 14069]]

  I support this supplemental and urge my colleagues to do the same, 
but hope that we can do better next time.
  Mr. REID. Mr President, momentarily, the Senate will move to pass the 
domestic portion of the emergency supplemental appropriations bill.
  After months of negotiation, I am confident that we will pass this 
legislation by an overwhelming bipartisan margin.
  For our troops, for the unemployed, and for those who have suffered 
from natural disasters and economic hardship, this legislation is a 
long-overdue victory.
  I am glad we have reached this point, but it has not come easily.
  My colleagues will recall that when President Bush requested yet 
another supplemental war funding bill, he said to Congress--give me my 
war money and not a penny more.
  He said that even after appropriating $660 billion for war, any 
effort by Congress to address our needs here at home would be met with 
a veto.
  Some of our Republican colleagues said--why bother trying--why take 
the time to legislate--when the President has made his veto plans 
clear?
  Our answer then was it is our job to legislate.
  The Constitution calls for three separate but equal branches of 
government.
  A President's veto threat must not stop us from doing what we think 
is right.
  So we did not blink or back down. We said that after $600 billion 
spent on Iraq, it is long past time to take care of some problems right 
here in America.
  We did exactly what the Congress is meant to do: we legislated. We 
negotiated. We compromised.
  And because we did, we now stand ready to deliver a major victory for 
the American people.
  After months of inching ever closer--despite some Republicans who 
said it wasn't worth the cost--we are delivering a new GI bill to our 
courageous troops.
  Some on the other side of the aisle started out opposing this effort. 
My Republican colleagues from Arizona, South Carolina, and North 
Carolina opposed it, apparently because they and others felt it was too 
generous to the troops who serve.
  They pursued their own bill, which in my view was but a pale shadow 
of the GI bill we vote on tonight.
  It would have fallen far short of providing our troops what they 
deserve. In the face of their opposition, we persisted.
  President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signed the original GI bill into 
law 64 years ago.
  He said at the time that the bill ``Gives emphatic notice to the men 
and women in our Armed Forces that the American people do not intend to 
let them down.''
  Since President Roosevelt affixed his name to that historic 
legislation, nearly 8 million veterans have advanced their education, 
gotten better jobs, and blazed a path to a brighter future for 
themselves and their families.
  Those 8 million men and women have gone on to become teachers, 
doctors, entrepreneurs and public servants.
  Several of our colleagues are among them--Dan Akaka, Chuck Hagel, Dan 
Inouye, Frank Lautenberg, Ted Stevens, John Warner and Jim Webb.
  I don't think it is presumptuous to say that each one of them would 
credit the GI bill as one reason for what they have achieved.
  In his time, President Roosevelt promised to never let our troops 
down, and today we stand poised to renew and reinvigorate his pledge.
  The new GI bill will increase educational benefits for all members of 
the military who have served on active duty since September 11, 
including reservists and National Guard.
  The years since September 11 have seen our troops strained to a level 
not seen since Vietnam, so these benefits are hard-earned and well-
deserved.
  This new GI bill so covers college expenses to match the full cost of 
an in-state public school, plus books and a stipend for housing.
  For those who have said it costs too much, I say our troops have more 
than earned it.
  And every dollar we invest in educating our veterans today comes back 
to our economy seven times over.
  But, new GI bill is not the only important investment this 
supplemental legislation makes.
  It also extends unemployment insurance for all states by 13 weeks and 
an additional 13 weeks for States with the highest unemployment.
  The Congressional Budget Office and many economists say that 
extending unemployment insurance is among the most effective steps we 
can take to stimulate the economy.
  We have talked for months about the need to help struggling Americans 
keep their heads above water as our economy continues to flounder. We 
could have passed this extension months ago, but passing it today is an 
important step.
  This supplemental appropriations bill also: Provides long overdue 
assistance to victims of Hurricane Katrina with matching funds for 
levee construction, law enforcement, hospitals, homelessness and 
reconstruction projects in Mississippi; comes to the aid of victims of 
other natural disasters like floods and droughts that have devastated 
certain crops; rolls back the Bush administration's attempts to 
regulate Medicaid into oblivion by blocking six of seven administration 
regulations aimed at depriving children, the elderly and people with 
disabilities of critical services; and, this legislation invests in a 
variety of other critical priorities, including infrastructure repair, 
food and drug safety, and firefighters' assistance.
  It is no secret that many Democrats--myself included--wish that there 
was no such thing as an emergency supplemental appropriations bill.
  We wish that the urgent domestic needs of the American people had 
been addressed by President Bush and funded in the ordinary budget 
process.
  And we wish that the $660 billion we have already spent on the war in 
Iraq could have gone toward eliminating our record deficit, and 
investing in schools, hospitals, roads, job training and public safety.
  But despite the crushing weight of a war that will cost us well more 
than $2 trillion when all is said and done--it is our responsibility to 
always put the needs of the American people first.
  This supplemental appropriations bill fulfills that responsibly. I 
urge all of my colleagues to support it.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I strongly support the extension of 
unemployment insurance benefits. Extending unemployment insurance 
benefits would fairly and rightly extend much needed assistance to 
Americans who are struggling to find jobs. While I was disappointed 
that the provision in this bill does not include extra benefits for 
states with high unemployment rates, I believe this unemployment 
insurance extension, or benefits of an additional 13 weeks for all 
States, is an important step forward. If the trend of rising 
unemployment rates continues, it is my hope that Congress will consider 
another emergency unemployment insurance package that will do more to 
help states struggling with the highest rates of unemployment.
  The Nation's unemployment rate jumped to 5.5 percent in May from 5 
percent in April--the biggest jump in 1 month in 22 years. Since the 
beginning of the Bush administration, Michigan has suffered significant 
jobs losses and the State's unemployment rate has increased from 4.5 
percent in January 2001 to 8.5 percent in May of this year, the highest 
unemployment rate in the Nation. Michigan has not seen an unemployment 
rate this high since October of 1992. For too long, the administration 
has stood idle as 3.3 million manufacturing jobs have been lost, and as 
working families have felt the squeeze of the rising costs of energy, 
health care and food. An estimated 428,000 Michigan residents were 
unemployed in May. Between May 2007 and May of this year, over 170,000 
residents exhausted their unemployment benefits and could not find 
jobs. This year, on average each month about 15,000 more Michigan 
residents face this same predicament.
  President Bush's opposition to an extension of unemployment benefits 
is

[[Page 14070]]

apparently based on his belief that, somehow, the availability of 
unemployment benefits would discourage people from looking for a job. I 
am disappointed that President Bush would repeat this tired and 
inaccurate excuse for failing to provide Americans the help they need 
in these tough times. The devastating reality is that about 7.6 million 
Americans are unemployed and cannot find jobs, not because they are 
refusing to look, but because the labor market simply does not have the 
jobs. Millions of workers have been searching for a job for over 6 
months, to no avail. The number of long-term unemployed workers is now 
higher than when it was when we provided an unemployment insurance 
extension in 2002. The high rate of unemployment has disproportionately 
affected veterans, minorities, and young people. While Americans 
continue to search high and low for a job, their unemployment benefits 
are running out.
  Our people face tremendous economic pressures, from a rate of home 
foreclosures that is up 130 percent from 2006, soaring costs of health 
care, to skyrocketing prices for food and gas. Unfortunately, this 
situation is unlikely to improve soon. Since President Bush took 
office, the price of health insurance is up 44 percent, the price of 
college tuition is up 47 percent, the price of gas is up 95 percent, 
the Federal debt has almost doubled and the dollar has lost a third of 
its value.
  Meanwhile, American families are facing a cost crunch. According to a 
study by a prominent Harvard Law School professor, the median household 
income fell by $1,175, in 2007 dollars, between 2000 and 2006. During 
that same period, consumer expenditures for basic family needs such as 
mortgage payments, gas, food, phone bills, household appliances, and 
health insurance increased by $3,552, also in 2007 dollars. Available 
data in 2008 suggest that the cost of basic needs has continued to 
increase since 2006, and, between a lower real income and higher basic 
costs, families are facing as much as a $5,700 shortfall, as compared 
with 2000 figures.
  Extending unemployment insurance during times of recession is nothing 
new. In the past 30 years, Congress has acted three times to establish 
temporary extended unemployment benefits, each time during a recession. 
On average, the length of time that Americans have struggled to get by 
without a job is longer than it has been in the 30 years since Congress 
first extended unemployment insurance benefits.
  Extending unemployment insurance during tough times is one of the 
most effective ways to stimulate the economy, dollar for dollar, and 
this money can be distributed within weeks. Extending unemployment 
insurance is essential to provide much-needed support to those who have 
lost their jobs and are struggling to reenter the job market. Workers 
who receive these unemployment benefits are likely to spend them 
quickly, making this one of the fastest ways to infuse money into our 
economy in the short term.
  I supported an economic stimulus package considered in the Senate, 
which included important provisions including an unemployment insurance 
extension. Unfortunately, this legislation was blocked due to a 
filibuster by Senate Republicans. It was deeply disappointing that the 
Senate was forced to pass a short-term stimulus package that did not 
include an unemployment insurance extension. On May 22, 2008, the 
Senate overwhelmingly supported an amendment to the Emergency 
Supplemental bill that included a 13-week extension for unemployment 
benefits, with an additional 13 weeks for states like Michigan with 
high levels of unemployment. While the latter important provision is 
not included in the bill before us, I believe Congress must act with 
urgency to provide an emergency unemployment extension and therefore I 
support this legislation.
  Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, I support the amendment to the emergency 
supplemental funding bill that provides needed assistance for Wisconsin 
and other flood-stricken Midwestern States, unemployed workers, and 
veterans.
  As a result of the horrifying floods that have ravaged the Midwest 
over the last 3 weeks, a number of people have lost their lives, 
including two residents of Wisconsin, and many more have lost homes or 
suffered other harm.
  I joined a number of my colleagues from affected States in asking 
that flood relief money be included in the supplemental, and I am very 
pleased to support the $2.65 billion in disaster relief in the 
amendment for States suffering from record flooding. I cannot emphasize 
enough how crucial this disaster relief is to the people of Wisconsin. 
Beginning on June 5, Wisconsin was struck by 7 to 9 inches of rain that 
fell over a 24-hour period, followed by destructive winds and 
tornadoes. So far, 28 counties in Wisconsin have been declared disaster 
areas and we expect that at least 2 more will be declared disasters 
shortly. This water is draining into the Mississippi as we speak and 
has inundated communities throughout Iowa, Indiana, Illinois, Missouri 
and surrounding States.
  With damage assessments underway, over $400 million of damage has 
been identified in the State of Wisconsin alone. Over 15,000 residents 
have registered for individual assistance in the 22 declared Wisconsin 
counties. An estimated 4,000 wells have been contaminated. The damage 
to crops will be considerable. We have not seen devastation like this 
in my State since 1993.
  The assistance provided in this amendment will go a long way to help 
families and businesses get back on their feet, but additional funds 
may be needed down the road. I will continue to work with my colleagues 
in the Senate to ensure that the Federal Government's response is 
prompt and complete.
  I am also pleased that this amendment provides thirteen weeks of 
extended unemployment insurance benefits to workers who have exhausted 
their regular unemployment insurance benefits. At this critical time in 
our Nation's economy, it is important that Congress do what it can for 
workers and families who are struggling. Earlier this month, the 
Department of Labor released its unemployment figures for the month of 
May showing a 1-month increase of half a percentage point in the 
unemployment rate to 5.5 percent, which was one of the biggest 1-month 
increases in over two decades. I joined a number of my Senate 
colleagues in requesting an extension of unemployment benefits as part 
of the stimulus package Congress passed earlier this year due to the 
fact that increasing unemployment benefits has a high stimulative 
effect on the economy. It is clear that an extension of unemployment 
benefits is needed in our States and local communities now.
  I strongly support the provisions of this amendment that update the 
GI bill to provide comprehensive educational benefits for this 
generation of veterans. This legislation will help thousands of 
servicemembers transition back to civilian life as they return from 
demanding tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. It will also benefit the 
entire Nation as veterans' contributions to the workforce are enhanced 
through higher education. While these provisions should have been paid 
for, passing them is the least we can do for a brave generation of 
Americans who have served their country honorably.
  There are other provisions in the amendment that I support, including 
a moratorium on six rules proposed by the administration that would 
undermine the Medicaid Program. I am disappointed, however, that the 
bill no longer includes vital funding for Byrne grants, LIHEAP and 
other domestic priorities. And I continue to be extremely disappointed 
at the willingness of too many of my colleagues to provide the 
President with funds to continue the misguided war in Iraq. While that 
funding is not included in the amendment we will vote on today, I will 
continue to oppose efforts to fund a war that is damaging our national 
security.
  Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, the spending bill we consider today 
contains many provisions that address urgent needs facing our Nation's 
economy, our Nation's families, and our Nation's troops.
  Among the most important, this legislation extends unemployment 
insurance benefits at a time where too many

[[Page 14071]]

Americans are struggling to find jobs, it postpones six Medicaid 
regulations that would have impeded access to health care for those who 
need it most, and it provides veterans returning from Iraq and 
Afghanistan with a new level of educational benefits that will cover 
the full costs of an education at a State institution.
  We have an obligation to respond to the growing economic crisis and 
the needs it has created for American families. People are losing their 
homes and their jobs, and along with those jobs, their health care. 
Since March 2007, the number of unemployed has increased by 1.1 million 
workers. We learned a few weeks ago that the unemployment rate in our 
country shot up by a half a point, from approximately 5 to 5.5 percent. 
The Baltimore Sun reported last week that the Goodwill Industries of 
the Chesapeake's Baltimore center has seen an estimated 50 percent 
increase in clients seeking job placement assistance.
  This bill includes provisions that respond to these growing needs. It 
extends unemployment benefits by 13 weeks for all the Nation's workers. 
Extending unemployment insurance this way helps families. That is 
critically important. But it will also help our economy. Economists 
estimate that every dollar spent on benefits leads to $1.64 in economic 
growth. With this extension, we will provide critical stimulus to our 
slowing economy.
  The bill also extends a freeze on six Medicaid rules issued by the 
administration that would have put a tremendous burden on State and 
local budgets already under pressure and affected access to services 
for many Marylanders and Americans all around the country.
  I want to talk about the impact of just two of those rules: one that 
would eliminate Medicaid coverage of transportation services required 
by students with special needs and the second that would change 
benefits for case management services that help some of our most 
vulnerable individuals access needed medical, social, and educational 
services. In addition to impeding access to care, these two rules alone 
would have cost Maryland $67 million in their first year. I was a proud 
cosponsor of S. 2819 that would have prohibited the Secretary of Health 
and Human Services from implementing these rules and am glad to see 
that a moratorium on these rules will become law.
  I am especially pleased to support provisions that provide veterans 
returning from Iraq and Afghanistan with a new level of educational 
benefits that will cover the full costs of an education at a State 
institution. Some of my colleagues have argued that the benefit is too 
generous. But this country provided our troops a similar opportunity 
after World War II. That investment created a generation of great 
leaders and an economic boom that transformed our country.
  A new GI bill allows a new generation of brave men and women to 
fulfill their dreams and adjust to civilian life. Just today a young 
man came into my office, a Maryland National Guardsman, who had served 
two tours of duty in Iraq. While overseas on his second tour, he missed 
the birth of his first child. Now that he is home, he wants to pursue 
an education. Although interested in a program at my State's flagship 
institution, the University of Maryland at College Park, the tuition 
was beyond his means and he enrolled in a community college instead 
where he will shortly complete his associate's degree program. He came 
into my office to explain his situation and ask whether there was any 
way we could help him continue his education at a 4-year institution.
  That is an opportunity we owe the service men and women, including 
activated reservists and National Guard, who this administration has 
asked to serve extended and repeated combat tours. I am so proud that 
we will live up to that obligation today. But a new GI bill is also a 
wise investment; it allows our economy to fully benefit from these 
veterans' talent, leadership, and experience.
  There are other critical provisions in this bill. It provides funding 
to address the devastating Midwest flooding and other natural 
disasters. It addresses critical quality of life and medical care 
issues for our troops including funding to improve barracks, build VA 
hospitals and polytrauma centers, and create new military child care 
centers. It provides the funding we need to implement the 2005 BRAC 
recommendations.
  The bill makes critical investments to improve our competitiveness by 
funding research and other programs at the National Institutes of 
Health, the National Science Foundation, the National Aeronautics and 
Space Administration, and the Department of Energy. At a time we are 
all avoiding tomatoes, this bill makes a major investment in food 
safety by providing additional resources to the Food and Drug 
Administration.
  I want to commend my colleagues who refused to give up on these 
priorities even in the face of initial opposition and a veto threat 
from our President. I am encouraged that we may have a chance in the 
near future to act on other domestic priorities including increased 
energy assistance to low-income Americans facing skyrocketing fuel 
prices and commercial fishery disaster assistance that could help 
Maryland's watermen.
  Former President John F. Kennedy said, ``To govern is to choose.'' In 
this bill, this Congress is choosing to prioritize those issues that 
affect Americans' lives every day, our access to jobs, to health care, 
to education, to safe food. I am proud to offer this bill my support.


                  national synchrotron light source II

  Mr. SCHUMER. Mr. President, I rise today to ask my colleague, the 
chairman of the Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee, about a 
matter that may become an issue if we do not pass the fiscal year 2009 
appropriations bills in a timely manner. As you know, there are several 
critically important projects in the Department of Energy's Office of 
Science budget in various stages of development. One of the projects is 
the National Synchrotron Light Source II at Brookhaven National 
Laboratory. This project is in the design phase and is expected to 
begin construction in the early part of 2009.
  The fiscal year 2008 Omnibus appropriations bill provided 
approximately $20 million less than the budget request, and the fiscal 
year 2009 budget request has a substantial increase, which is 
consistent with the funding profile. I am concerned about the impact a 
continuing resolution for several months may have on the schedule and 
overall cost for the National Synchrotron Light Source II project. One 
issue is that under a continuing resolution less money would be 
available than if the budget request were enacted. A more pressing 
issue is that under some previous continuing resolution rules 
construction would not be allowed to begin as that would be a new 
activity.
  Could my colleague please comment on these matters?
  Mr. DORGAN. I thank the gentleman from New York for the question. 
There are several projects in the Office of Science and in the 
Department of Energy that are in various stages of planning, design, 
and construction. Like the National Synchrotron Light Source II 
project, these other projects may also be impacted if a long-term 
continuing resolution is enacted.
  I very much appreciate my colleague's concern about the project at 
Brookhaven National Laboratory and will work with him to attempt to 
address these issues if a long-term continuing resolution becomes a 
reality.
  Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, I rise today to discuss the emergency 
supplemental bill that we are considering in the Senate.
  This new version of the emergency supplemental bill represents a 
change from the previous version. It is less expensive--$3 billion less 
in domestic, nonmilitary spending that didn't belong in this bill in 
the first place.
  The bill is also better for overall defense than the last version. I 
am speaking of the GI bill provisions in this legislation. Changes have 
been made to try and address the transferability of benefits. These 
changes also attempt to deal with the concern the Department of Defense 
raised about the retention of

[[Page 14072]]

our servicemembers by requiring extended service for extended 
transferable benefits. It does not fully address the concerns, but it 
is a step forward.
  Congressional leaders have sat down with the administration and 
developed a bill that President Bush can sign.
  I recently had the opportunity to address Wyoming's American Legion 
convention in Riverton, WY. They support improvements in the GI bill 
but never want to see any veterans, from World War II to our current 
operation, be used for gotcha politics. I think they will be pleased 
that changes and improvements were made.
  This isn't a perfect bill. There is still some overspending on non-
military matters. The bill was force fed through the process. 
Amendments that could improve the bill further were shunned by the 
majority leadership.
  The fact remains, however, that we need to fund our troops. We need 
to provide our men and women in uniform with the best possible 
equipment and the funding they need to do their job fighting the wars 
in Iraq and Afghanistan. We have a responsibility to make this happen 
in an expeditious manner. Sending this legislation to President Bush is 
the only way that will happen and so I will support the supplemental 
bill.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the question is on 
agreeing to the motion to concur.
  Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I ask for the yeas and nays on the motion 
to concur.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second?
  There is a sufficient second.
  The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk called the roll.
  Mr. DURBIN. I announce that the Senator from Massachusetts (Mr. 
Kennedy) is necessarily absent.
  Mr. KYL. The following Senator is necessarily. absent: the Senator 
from Arizona (Mr. McCain).
  The result was announced--yeas 92, nays 6, as follows:

                      [Rollcall Vote No. 162 Leg.]

                                YEAS--92

     Akaka
     Alexander
     Barrasso
     Baucus
     Bayh
     Bennett
     Biden
     Bingaman
     Bond
     Boxer
     Brown
     Brownback
     Bunning
     Burr
     Byrd
     Cantwell
     Cardin
     Carper
     Casey
     Chambliss
     Clinton
     Cochran
     Coleman
     Collins
     Conrad
     Corker
     Cornyn
     Crapo
     Dodd
     Dole
     Domenici
     Dorgan
     Durbin
     Ensign
     Enzi
     Feingold
     Feinstein
     Graham
     Grassley
     Gregg
     Hagel
     Harkin
     Hatch
     Hutchison
     Inhofe
     Inouye
     Isakson
     Johnson
     Kerry
     Klobuchar
     Kohl
     Landrieu
     Lautenberg
     Leahy
     Levin
     Lieberman
     Lincoln
     Lugar
     Martinez
     McCaskill
     McConnell
     Menendez
     Mikulski
     Murkowski
     Murray
     Nelson (FL)
     Nelson (NE)
     Obama
     Pryor
     Reed
     Reid
     Roberts
     Rockefeller
     Salazar
     Sanders
     Schumer
     Sessions
     Shelby
     Smith
     Snowe
     Specter
     Stabenow
     Stevens
     Sununu
     Tester
     Thune
     Vitter
     Warner
     Webb
     Whitehouse
     Wicker
     Wyden

                                NAYS--6

     Allard
     Coburn
     Craig
     DeMint
     Kyl
     Voinovich

                             NOT VOTING--2

     Kennedy
     McCain
       
  The motion was agreed to.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the motion to 
reconsider is made and laid upon the table.
  The Senator from Florida is recognized.

                          ____________________