[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 15]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 20556]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




     DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, AND RELATED AGENCIES 
                        APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2010

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. BETTY McCOLLUM

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, July 31, 2009

  Ms. McCOLLUM. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of the Fiscal 
Year 2010 Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies 
Appropriations Act (H.R. 2996). This important bill makes timely 
investments to protect and preserve our country's natural resources, 
enhance climate change research and adaptation efforts, empower Native 
American communities, and support the arts. I thank Chairman Obey, 
Chairman Dicks, my colleagues on the Appropriations Committee, and the 
House leadership for their hard work on this legislation.
  This legislation upholds America's leadership in environmental 
stewardship. It includes an 8 percent funding increase for the National 
Parks Service and a 6 percent increase for the National Wildlife 
Refuges. I am pleased that the bill includes my language for the first 
ever national, comprehensive study to identify best practices to 
protect and preserve the Mississippi River, America's greatest 
waterway. Additionally, by passing this bill, Congress is investing in 
tackling the urgent challenge of global climate change. The bill 
provides over $178 million for climate change programs in the 
Department of the Interior, $80 million for climate change planning and 
on-the-ground conservation efforts at the Fish and Wildlife Service, 
and $31 million for climate change adaptation activities at the Bureau 
of Land Management, the National Park Service, and Bureau of Indian 
Affairs. Climate change is happening now, and Congress must invest to 
adapt to its impacts on America's lands and economy.
  My state of Minnesota is blessed with fresh water resources, 
including over 10,000 lakes and the headwaters of the Mississippi 
River. This legislation provides $667 million--$507 million over 
FY2009--in much-needed investments to promote and protect our nation's 
great water bodies. This includes $475 million for the Great Lakes 
Restoration Initiative, which will involve the coordination and 
collaboration of 16 Federal agencies, the States of the Great Lakes 
Region, local government, and citizens groups in an effort to restore 
the source of 20 percent of the world's fresh surface water. This bill 
also directs EPA to invest in essential research on the human health 
and environmental impacts of endocrine disrupting compounds and other 
contaminants in our water supply.
  This bill makes important investments to empower our country's Native 
American communities and enhance support of the arts. It provides $6.8 
billion for programs at the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Indian 
Health Service, including almost an almost $7 million increase in 
funding for the Urban Indian Health Program. And finally, H.R. 2996 
includes funding increases for the National Endowment of the Arts and 
the National Endowment for the Humanities. I strongly support these 
investments and applaud the Committee for these including these 
provisions.
  I urge passage of this legislation.

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