[House Report 112-589]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
112th Congress Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
2d Session 112-589
======================================================================
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, AND RELATED AGENCIES
APPROPRIATION BILL, 2013
_______
July 10, 2012.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the
State of the Union and ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Simpson, from the Committee on Appropriations,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
together with
MINORITY VIEWS
[To accompany H.R. 6091]
The Committee on Appropriations submits the following
report in explanation of the accompanying bill making
appropriations for the Department of the Interior, the
Environmental Protection Agency, and Related Agencies for the
fiscal year ending September 30, 2013. The bill provides
regular annual appropriations for the Department of the
Interior (except the Bureau of Reclamation and the Central Utah
Project), the Environmental Protection Agency, and for other
related agencies, including the Forest Service, the Indian
Health Service, the Smithsonian Institution, and the National
Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities.
CONTENTS
_______________________________________________________________________
Page number
Bill Report
Title I--Department of the Interior:
Bureau of Land Management.......................... 2
12
United States Fish and Wildlife Service............ 8
18
National Park Service.............................. 14
24
United States Geological Survey.................... 17
30
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.................. 20
31
Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement..... 21
32
Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and
Enforcement.................................... 23
33
Bureau of Indian Affairs and Bureau of Indian
Education...................................... 26
34
Office of the Secretary............................ 34
37
Insular Affairs.................................... 36
39
Office of the Solicitor............................ 39
40
Office of Inspector General........................ 39
40
Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians. 40
40
Department-wide Programs:
Wildland Fire Management, Interior Department...... 41
41
FLAME Wildfire Suppression Reserve Fund, Interior
Department..................................... 45
42
Central Hazardous Materials Fund................... 45
42
Natural Resource Damage Assessment and Restoration. 46
43
Working Capital Fund............................... 46
43
General Provisions, Department of the Interior..... 48
44
Title II--Environmental Protection Agency:
Science and Technology............................. 58
46
Environmental Programs and Management.............. 58
50
Office of Inspector General........................ 59
59
Buildings and Facilities........................... 59
60
Hazardous Substance Superfund...................... 60
60
Leaking Underground Storage Tank Program........... 60
62
Inland Oil Spill Program........................... 61
63
State and Tribal Assistance Grants................. 61
64
Administrative Provisions.......................... 66
66
Title III--Related Agencies:
Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture..... 68
67
Forest Service, Wildland Fire Management........... 73
76
FLAME Wildfire Suppression Reserve Fund, Forest
Service........................................ 76
78
Indian Health Service, DHHS........................ 84
79
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences 92
82
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry... 92
83
Other Related Agencies:
Council on Environmental Quality and Office of
Environmental Quality.......................... 94
84
Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board..... 94
84
Office of Navajo and Hopi Indian Relocation........ 95
84
Institute of American Indian and Alaska Native
Culture and Arts Development................... 96
85
Smithsonian Institution............................ 96
85
National Gallery of Art............................ 98
87
John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts..... 100
88
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars... 100
88
National Endowment for the Arts.................... 100
89
National Endowment for the Humanities.............. 101
90
Commission of Fine Arts............................ 102
91
National Capital Arts and Cultural Affairs......... 103
92
Advisory Council on Historic Preservation.......... 103
92
National Capital Planning Commission............... 103
93
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum............ 104
93
Presidio Trust..................................... N/A
94
Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission........... N/A
94
Title IV--General Provisions 104
95
INTRODUCTION
The fiscal year 2013 bill has been developed following
careful consideration of the facts and details available to the
Committee. The Committee recommends $28,000,000,000 to fund the
Department of the Interior, the Environmental Protection
Agency, the U.S. Forest Service, the Indian Health Service, the
Smithsonian Institution, and 18 other related agencies.
This amount reflects a $1,174,992,000 reduction in spending
from the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and a $1,667,096,000
reduction from the budget request. Overall spending is reduced
by four percent from fiscal year 2012 and six percent below the
budget request.
The amounts in the accompanying bill are reflected by title
in the table below. In addition, a detailed table providing the
recommended amounts for each agency/bureau, account, or program
funded through this bill is included at the end of this report.
BUDGET AUTHORITY RECOMMENDED IN BILL BY TITLE
DISCRETIONARY BUDGET AUTHORITY RECOMMENDED IN BILL BY TITLE
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Committee bill
Activity Budget estimates, Committee bill, compared with
fiscal year 2013 fiscal year 2013 budget estimates
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Title I, Department of the Interior:
New budget authority............................... $10,379,617,000 $9,902,498,000 -$477,119,000
Title II, Environmental Protection Agency:
New budget authority............................... 8,344,480,000 7,055,041,000 -1,289,439,000
Title III, Related Agencies:
New budget authority............................... 10,942,999,000 10,644,461,000 -298,538,000
Title IV, General Provisions:
New budget authority............................... 0 0 0
--------------------------------------------------------
Total, New budget authority...................... 29,667,096,000 27,602,000,000 -2,065,096,000
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BILL SUMMARY
FOCUSING ON PROVEN, CORE PROGRAMS
The fiscal challenges facing our country today are evident
in record Federal budget deficits and our staggering national
debt. Today, the Federal government borrows over 40 cents for
each dollar that it spends. While our country's fiscal
challenges can't be addressed with cuts to discretionary
programs, alone, the Committee has an obligation to reverse
unsustainable patterns of spending growth. The fiscal year 2013
Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies appropriations bill
is a step forward in that direction.
The Subcommittee has made difficult choices in fashioning
its budget recommendations. Members of Congress provided
considerable input into the content of this measure. In total,
246 Members submitted over 2,100 programmatic requests relating
to funding levels for multiple agencies and programs.
History has shown that bigger budgets don't necessarily
produce better results. Each agency under the Subcommittee's
jurisdiction is strongly encouraged to carefully evaluate how
it conducts its work during these constrained fiscal times and
focus on proven, cost-effective programs and on better
management of resources.
OVERSIGHT AND BUDGETING FOR RESULTS
The Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies
Subcommittee takes seriously its oversight responsibility and
has conducted 16 budget hearings this year (including five
hearings involving the public and American Indians) to
carefully review the programs and budgets under its
jurisdiction. Over the course of these hearings, Subcommittee
Members engaged in a rigorous process to determine the best use
of funds to meet the substantial needs and priorities outlined
in this report. The Subcommittee held the following oversight
hearings over a two-month period:
Department of the Interior FY13 budget oversight hearing--
February 16, 2012
U.S. Forest Service FY13 budget oversight hearing--February
17, 2012
Indian Health Service FY13 budget oversight hearing--
February 28, 2012
Bureau of Indian Affairs FY13 budget oversight hearing--
February 28, 2012
EPA FY13 budget oversight hearing--February 29, 2012
Fish and Wildlife Service FY13 budget oversight hearing--
March 1, 2012
Bureau of Land Management FY13 budget oversight hearing--
March 6, 2012
U.S. Geological Survey FY13 budget oversight hearing--March
6, 2012
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management/Bureau of Safety and
Environmental Enforcement FY 13 budget oversight hearing--March
7, 2012
Smithsonian Institution FY13 budget oversight hearing--
March 20, 2012
National Park Service FY13 budget oversight hearing--March
20, 2012
Public Witnesses--March 21, 2012
Public Witnesses--March 22, 2012
American Indian/Alaska Native Public Witnesses--March 27,
2012 (morning)
American Indian/Alaska Native Public Witnesses--March 27,
2012 (afternoon)
American Indian/Alaska Native Public Witnesses--March 28,
2012 (morning)
In total, 139 individuals representing the Executive
Branch, the U.S. Congress, State and local governments, the
public, and American Indians/Alaska Natives testified before
the Subcommittee. The perspectives shared on a wide-range of
issues were essential to the Subcommittee as it conducted a
thorough review of the budget request.
In addition to those who testified personally, over 150
individuals and organizations have provided written testimony
for the permanent hearing record. These hearings are contained
in eight published volumes totaling nearly 10,000 pages which
are publicly available online.
Inherent in the Committee's oversight function is the
responsibility to determine not only appropriate funding levels
for the next fiscal year but also what levels of funding remain
from past years. In furtherance of its oversight
responsibility, the Committee included in the fiscal year 2012
Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies conference report a
requirement that the Department of the Interior, EPA, Forest
Service, and the Indian Health Service report to the Committee
on a quarterly basis on the status of balances of
appropriations including all uncommitted, committed, and
unobligated funds in each program and activity. This bill
language within Title IV General Provisions is continued in the
fiscal year 2013 bill. The Committee directs that agency
reports show the status of balances at the appropriation
account level, as well as at budget activity or other lower
levels where such levels are reflected in the Committee's
report accompanying an appropriation act.
Oversight of Federal agencies extends beyond dollars and
cents. During this time of record budget deficits, the
Committee is not only carefully scrutinizing how each taxpayer
dollar is spent but ensuring that agencies are meeting
Congressional mandates and achieving measurable results.
The Committee recognizes that the traditional approach to
budgeting tends toward stove-piping and can distract both
Congress and Federal agencies from setting and accomplishing
measurable goals. Ideally, agencies should apply expertise in
setting and meeting goals to carry out their overall mission
and be held accountable to Congress and the taxpayer. The
Committee believes that such a process would result in greater
transparency and accountability, more efficient use of taxpayer
dollars, and, ultimately, better government for the American
people.
In light of this goal, the Committee has continued an
approach begun last year by funding the Forest Service's
Integrated Resource Restoration (IRR) initiative on a proof of
concept pilot basis. The Committee applauds the agency's
efforts to focus the budgeting process on achieving overall
goals in its multiple-use mandate and recognizes that IRR
provides more flexibility to meet big-picture goals. The
Committee will continue carefully evaluating whether the IRR
pilot program helps the Service to better set, accomplish, and
report management goals and enhance transparency and
accountability, as well as whether a similar budget structure
might provide better results for other agencies as well.
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY FUNDING
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) continues to play
an important role in protecting public and environmental
health. Our country has made great strides in cleaning up
pollution in the air, water, and soil over the past four
decades. However, the Committee remains concerned about the
efforts of the EPA to expand its regulatory authority beyond
what Congress intended by legislating via regulation. The
Committee is concerned about the economic uncertainty created
by the proliferation of new regulations proposed by the agency.
The impact of the EPA's regulatory agenda on our national
economy--from the tremendous burdens it places on small
businesses and large industries to the impacts felt in small
towns and rural communities across America to lost jobs and
lost economic production--is staggering.
The Committee notes that the EPA's overall budget has grown
significantly in recent years. In calendar year 2009, the
agency received over $25 billion in combined stimulus funding
and regular appropriations. Between 2009 and 2010 EPA's budget
increased by $2.65 billion, a 35 percent increase in that
calendar year. Therefore, even with targeted reductions to the
Agency's budget in fiscal years 2011 and 2012, EPA's proposed
budget for 2013, if enacted, would be its fifth highest budget
ever.
The Committee has proposed a $1.4 billion, or 17 percent,
reduction in this bill from the fiscal year 2012 enacted level.
These cuts restore a needed balance to the EPA's budget, in
light of previous increases and the severe fiscal challenges
facing our country.
The Committee notes that $866 million of this reduction
comes from the Clean Water and Safe Drinking Water State
Revolving Funds (SRFs). The recommended funding level for the
SRFs in fiscal year 2013 is consistent with the Committee's
recommendation in the fiscal year 2012 bill. While the
Committee recognizes the importance of the SRFs as a key
component of the nation's infrastructure investment, these
accounts received $6 billion in the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 and a 130 percent increase in
funding in fiscal year 2010. This funding served as the
equivalent of six years' worth of appropriations in one
calendar year.
The EPA and the States should continue to focus on fully
allocating and spending previously appropriated funds. In
addition, funding these accounts through regular appropriations
is simply unsustainable given ever growing needs. The Committee
continues to encourage the appropriate authorizing committees
to examine alternative funding mechanisms for the SRFs that are
sustainable in the long-term.
COST OF LITIGATION AND LACK OF TRANSPARENCY
The Committee continues to be concerned that many of the
legitimate goals of the Forest Service, the Department of the
Interior, and other agencies under the Committee's
jurisdiction--as well as the work of this Committee--are
undermined by litigation filed in an effort to shift land
management decisions from the agencies tasked by Congress with
those responsibilities to the courts, regardless of merit. As
litigation costs siphon funding away from critical priority
programs, agencies are forced to divert budgets intended for
effective land management away from carrying out activities
associated with their congressionally-directed missions.
In response to concerns about the cost of litigation and
agencies' inability to account for them, the Committee took a
number of steps in the fiscal year 2012 Interior, Environment,
and Related Agencies conference report to increase transparency
and ensure greater accountability of taxpayer dollars. This
included directing the Department of the Interior, the EPA, and
the Forest Service to make publicly available detailed Equal
Access to Justice Act (EAJA) fee information as well as legal
fees and costs resulting from settlements on other statutes.
The Committee expressed concern that, in most cases, agencies
did not track this information and could not account for
dollars appropriated or otherwise spent on paying for attorney
fees.
A recent GAO report on the issue entitled, ``Limited Data
Available on USDA and Interior Attorney Fee Claims and
Payments'' determined that most of the agencies did not have
this information readily available and could not determine who
received payments or how much of each agency's budget was being
used to pay for attorney fees. According to the report, ``Most
USDA and Interior agencies did not have readily available
information on attorney fee claims and payments made under EAJA
and other fee-shifting statutes for fiscal years 2000 through
2010. As a result, there was no way to readily determine who
made claims, the total amount each department paid or awarded
in attorney fees, who received the payments, or the statutes
under which the cases were brought for the claims over the 11-
year period. Both USDA and Interior officials stated that given
the decentralized nature of their departments and the absence
of an external requirement to track or report on attorney fee
information, decisions such as whether to track attorney fee
data and the manner in which to do so are best handled at the
agency level.''
The Committee notes that a Federal appeals court recently
ruled that a judge awarded excessive attorney's fees to an
environmental group following a dispute over Federal grazing
permits. The San Francisco-based Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals
ruled unanimously that EAJA ``generally does not allow for the
award of fees for administrative proceedings.'' In its
decision, the court concluded, ``An award of fees in this case
would conflict with Congress's express limitation on fee awards
for pre-litigation administrative proceedings involving grazing
permit proceedings.''
Given continued concern about this issue, the Committee is
not only continuing reporting requirements included in last
year's conference report, but is also taking additional steps
to address the costs of litigation. The Committee again directs
the Department of the Interior, the Environmental Protection
Agency and the Forest Service to provide to the House and
Senate Committees on Appropriations and make publicly
available, no later than 60 days after enactment of this Act,
and with each agency's annual budget submission thereafter, the
following information: detailed reports on the amount of
program funds used; the names of the fee recipients; the names
of the Federal judges; the disposition of the applications
(including any appeal of action taken on the applications); the
hourly rates of attorney and expert witnesses stated in the
applications that was awarded as a result of litigation; and a
brief summary of the case. The Committee also directs the
Department of the Interior, Environmental Protection Agency,
and Forest Service to report the same information on non-EAJA
settlements with litigants. Further, the Committee directs the
agency to record the disposition as a win, loss, or settlement
based on the case itself, not based on the settlement necessary
to determine potential EAJA fees. If the agencies lose a case
and negotiate a settlement for EAJA, the disposition should be
recorded as a loss.
The Committee is pleased that the Department of the
Interior and Environmental Protection Agency made an effort to
comply with EAJA reporting but notes that the reports lacked
detailed data as directed in the fiscal year 2012 Interior,
Environment, and Related Agencies conference report. The
Committee is disappointed with the Forest Service's late
response to the reporting requirements. Each of the agencies is
directed to incorporate the information listed above into
fiscal year 2014 budget justifications.
EXPIRED AUTHORIZATIONS
No less than 51 agencies and/or programs under the
jurisdiction of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies
Subcommittee remain unauthorized or have an expired
Congressional authorization of appropriations (see
``Appropriations Not Authorized by Law'' at the back of the
report). Together these unauthorized agencies and programs
comprise nearly $6 billion of this fiscal year 2013
appropriation bill.
Given the number of unauthorized programs, the Committee
reserves the option to limit future funding for unauthorized
programs or discontinue funding all together. In the fiscal
year 2013 appropriations bill, the Committee has exercised that
option by decreasing or terminating funding for fish and
wildlife conservation; funding for USGS science programs; EPA's
U.S.-Mexico border grant program; EPA's environmental education
program; and others.
The Committee urges the appropriate authorizing committees
to expeditiously reauthorize these and other unauthorized
agencies and/or programs in a timely fashion and encourages all
entities with an interest in these laws to work with those
authorizing committees to do so.
AMERICAN INDIAN AND ALASKA NATIVE PROGRAMS
In preparation of the fiscal year 2013 budget, the
Subcommittee held two days of hearings and received oral or
written testimony from nearly 200 witnesses on a variety of
topics pertaining to American Indian and Alaska Native
programs. By far the topics of most concern to the witnesses
dealt with economic empowerment, self-determination, health
care, crime, and education. The Subcommittee heard these
concerns and is working to address these issues on a bipartisan
basis.
The Committee recognizes that conditions facing American
Indians and Alaska Natives are reflected in some of the worst
health, education, and crime statistics of any demographic
group in the nation. Additional funding alone will not address
these challenges, but by continuing to target specific
concerns, the Committee is attempting to meaningfully address
programs and policies that empower and improve the lives of
American Indians and Alaska Natives. Funding increases provided
in fiscal year 2013 and prior years are, by design, gradual
steps in the implementation of this policy. Future increases
will be predicated on the ability of the agencies and American
Indian and Alaska Native leaders to continue to demonstrate
results.
PAYMENTS IN LIEU OF TAXES (PILT)
The Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program provides
compensation to local governments for the loss of tax revenue
resulting from the presence of Federal land in their county or
State. In 2011, 49 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, the
Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands
received PILT payments.
Mandatory funding for PILT payments is scheduled to expire
on September 30, 2012. At the time of the markup of the fiscal
year 2013 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies
Appropriations bill, much uncertainty remained over this
expiring mandatory authorization being extended. The
Subcommittee has included bill language extending by one year
the mandatory authorization for full PILT funding for fiscal
year 2013.
The Committee urges the authorizing committees to extend
mandatory PILT payments by the time House and Senate conferees
on the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies
Appropriations bill complete work on the fiscal year 2013
conference report.
LAND AND WATER CONSERVATION FUND (LWCF) PROGRAMS
The Committee recommends $66,000,000 for Land and Water
Conservation Fund (LWCF) programs, $256,349,000 below fiscal
year 2012 enacted levels and $383,934,000 below the 2012 budget
request. The recommended level is consistent with the
Committee's recommendation in the fiscal year 2012
appropriation bill. Funding is provided to continue to oversee
projects that were funded in previous years. Non-Federal LWCF
programs are minimally funded to allow for a limited number of
new acquisitions. No funding is provided for new Federal
acquisitions other than for small inholdings and recreational
access in national forests and on BLM lands. The Committee
directs the Forest Service and the Department of the Interior
to develop and implement a standard definition and policy for
the use of inholdings funding.
The Committee notes that the Administration's fiscal year
2013 budget request included a new category of Federal funds
for large-scale projects that were developed in close
coordination between the Forest Service and the Department of
the Interior. Despite repeated requests by the Committee, the
Administration has failed to submit consolidated, prioritized
project lists for each of the four Federal programs. As a
result, the Committee thus far has insufficient information to
determine which projects would be implemented with limited
funds. Until the Administration submits such prioritized lists,
updated as needed to reflect changing real estate market
conditions, the Committee will not invest in new projects.
CLIMATE CHANGE
The Committee remains skeptical of the Administration's
efforts to re-package existing programs and fund new ones in
the name of climate change. That the climate is changing is not
in dispute. However, recent rapid increases in funding and the
number of new and seemingly duplicative programs are
potentially wasteful. In this bill alone, between 2008 and
2011, climate change funding grew from $192 million to $372
million--a staggering 93 percent increase.
There must be a significant improvement in the level of
coordination and communication of climate change activities,
budgets, and accomplishments across the Federal agencies funded
in this bill and across the entire Federal government if there
is to be further investment by this Committee. That level of
coordination and communication continues to be lacking, which
is why the fiscal year 2012 Interior, Environment, and Related
Agencies conference report included a seven percent cut to
climate change spending. The Committee has proposed cutting
climate change spending an additional 29 percent in this bill,
terminating six programs and denying two new starts requested
by the Administration.
INVASIVE SPECIES
Throughout the fiscal year 2013 budget oversight process,
the Subcommittee has discussed the dangers of the spread of
invasive species in places like the Everglades, the Great
Lakes, and western river systems. Invasive snakes, fish,
mussels, and plants for example have demonstrated the potential
to completely alter ecosystems and inflict hundreds of millions
of dollars in economic damages.
The Committee is concerned about the decline in funding for
a problem that only continues to grow. For example, the Fish
and Wildlife Service supports only two full-time staff to
designate injurious species under the authority of the Lacey
Act. Further, even after each State and territory developed
invasive species plans as mandated under the Nonindigenous
Aquatic Nuisance Species Prevention and Control Act, less than
$30,000 annually is appropriated to each State and territory to
implement those plans. Despite deep cuts elsewhere in this
bill, the Committee is placing a higher priority on invasive
species prevention, containment, and enforcement in fiscal year
2013 by level-funding or, in some cases, increasing funding for
on-the-ground implementation programs.
While efforts have been made at various levels to
coordinate a Federal response to invasive species, the
Committee remains concerned that this coordination is not
leading to sufficient resources being spent on the ground where
these challenges most frequently occur. The Committee strongly
encourages national and regional coordinating bodies, such as
the National Invasive Species Council and the Aquatic Nuisance
Species Task Force, to increase the proportion of funding for
on-the-ground activities in fiscal year 2013. The Committee
remains committed to addressing this issue fully and intends to
hold oversight hearings with appropriate Federal officials and
stakeholders.
NATIONAL OCEAN POLICY
The bill includes within Title IV General Provisions
language prohibiting the use of funds for Executive Order 13547
regarding National Ocean Policy; requiring a report to Congress
of all Federal expenditures on such Policy during fiscal years
2011 and 2012; and requiring the President's fiscal year 2014
budget submission to account for all proposed National Ocean
Policy funding.
The Committee notes with considerable skepticism that the
Department of the Interior, for example, submitted an
``Oceans'' crosscut budget of $931 million for fiscal year 2013
yet has informed the Committee in writing that only $2 million
would be spent on National Ocean Policy. Further, none of the
other agencies in this bill have been able to identify funding
related to National Ocean Policy within their respective
budgets. Therefore, the Committee is including the general
provision to give the Congress time to ascertain the
potentially far-reaching impacts of this new policy, which was
established in 2010 without Congressional input, and to direct
the Administration to fully account for Federal funding spent
to date on the policy's development and implementation.
REPROGRAMMING GUIDELINES
The following are the procedures governing reprogramming
actions for programs and activities funded in the Department of
the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations
Act.
Definitions.--``Reprogramming,'' as defined in these
procedures, includes the reallocation of funds from one budget
activity, budget line-item or program area, to another within
any appropriation funded in this Act. In cases where either the
House or Senate Committee report displays an allocation of an
appropriation below those levels, that more detailed level
shall be the basis for reprogramming.
For construction, land acquisition, and forest legacy
accounts, a reprogramming constitutes the reallocation of
funds, including unobligated balances, from one construction,
land acquisition, or forest legacy project to another such
project.
A reprogramming shall also consist of any significant
departure from the program described in the agency's budget
justifications. This includes proposed reorganizations,
especially those of significant national or regional
importance, even without a change in funding. Any change to the
organization table presented in the budget justification shall
be subject to this requirement.
General Guidelines for Reprogramming.--
(a) A reprogramming should be made only when an unforeseen
situation arises, and then only if postponement of the project
or the activity until the next appropriation year would result
in actual loss or damage.
(b) Any project or activity, which may be deferred through
reprogramming, shall not later be accomplished by means of
further reprogramming, but instead, funds should again be
sought for the deferred project or activity through the regular
appropriations process.
(c) Except under the most urgent situations, reprogramming
should not be employed to initiate new programs or increase
allocations specifically denied or limited by Congress, or to
decrease allocations specifically increased by the Congress.
(d) Reprogramming proposals submitted to the House and
Senate Committees on Appropriations for approval shall be
considered approved 30 calendar days after receipt if the
Committees have posed no objection. However, agencies will be
expected to extend the approval deadline if specifically
requested by either Committee.
Criteria and Exceptions.--A reprogramming must be submitted
to the Committees in writing prior to implementation if it
exceeds $1,000,000 annually or results in an increase or
decrease of more than 10 percent annually in affected programs,
with the following exceptions:
(a) With regard to the tribal priority allocations of the
Bureau of Indian Affairs, there is no restriction on
reprogrammings among these programs. However, the Bureau shall
report on all reprogrammings made during a given fiscal year no
later than 60 days after the end of the fiscal year.
(b) With regard to the Environmental Protection Agency,
State and Tribal Assistance Grants account, the Committee does
not require reprogramming requests associated with States and
Tribes Partnership Grants.
Assessments.--``Assessment'' as defined in these procedures
shall refer to any charges, reserves, or holdbacks applied to a
budget activity or budget line item for costs associated with
general agency administrative costs, overhead costs, working
capital expenses, or contingencies.
(a) No assessment shall be levied against any program,
budget activity, sub-activity, budget line item, or project
funded by the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies
Appropriations Act unless such assessment and the basis
therefore are presented to the Committees on Appropriations in
the budget justifications and are subsequently approved by the
Committees. The explanation for any assessment in the budget
justification shall show the amount of the assessment, the
activities assessed, and the purpose of the funds.
(b) Proposed changes to estimated assessments, as such
estimates were presented in annual budget justifications, shall
be submitted through the reprogramming process and shall be
subject to the same dollar and reporting criteria as any other
reprogramming.
(c) The Committees direct that each agency or bureau which
utilizes assessments shall submit an annual report to the
Committees which provides details on the use of all funds
assessed from any other budget activity, line item, sub-
activity, or project.
(d) In no case shall contingency funds or assessments be
used to finance projects and activities disapproved or limited
by Congress, or to finance programs or activities that could be
foreseen and included in the normal budget review process.
(e) New programs requested in the budget should not be
initiated before enactment of the bill without notification to,
and the approval of, the Committees on Appropriations. This
restriction applies to all such actions regardless of whether a
formal reprogramming of funds is required to begin the program.
Quarterly Reports.--All reprogrammings between budget
activities, budget line-items, program areas, or the more
detailed activity levels shown in the Statement of the
Managers, including those below the monetary thresholds
established above, shall be reported to the Committees within
60 days of the end of each quarter and shall include cumulative
totals for each budget activity, budget line item, or
construction, land acquisition, or forest legacy project.
Land Acquisitions, Easements, and Forest Legacy.--Lands
shall not be acquired for more than the approved appraised
value (as addressed in section 301(3) of Public Law 91-646),
unless such acquisitions are submitted to the Committees on
Appropriations for approval in compliance with these
procedures.
Land Exchanges.--Land exchanges, wherein the estimated
value of the Federal lands to be exchanged is greater than
$1,000,000, shall not be consummated until the Committees have
had a 30-day period in which to examine the proposed exchange.
In addition, the Committee shall be provided advance
notification of exchanges valued between $500,000 and
$1,000,000.
Budget Structure.--The budget activity or line item
structure for any agency appropriation account shall not be
altered without advance approval of the House and Senate
Committees on Appropriations.
Report Language.--Any limitation or directive contained in
either the House or Senate report which is not contradicted by
the other report nor specifically denied in the conference
report shall be considered as having been approved by both
Houses of Congress.
TITLE I--DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
The Bureau of Land Management (Bureau) is responsible for
the multiple use management, protection, and development of a
full range of natural resources, including minerals, timber,
rangeland, fish and wildlife habitat, and wilderness on about
245 million acres of the Nation's public lands and for
management of 700 million additional acres of Federally-owned
subsurface mineral rights. In addition, the Bureau has trust
responsibilities on 56 million acres of Indian trust lands for
mineral operations and cadastral surveys. Surface lands under
direct Bureau management make up about 13 percent of the total
land surface of the United States and more than 40 percent of
all land managed by the Federal government, making the Bureau
the nation's largest single land manager. The Bureau is the
second largest provider of public outdoor recreation in the
Western United States.
In 1812, the General Land Office (GLO) was established to
handle the business associated with the sale of public lands
for private ownership, transforming wilderness to agricultural
use, and generating income for the Federal government. Revenue
raised by GLO land sales, mainly homesteads, was initially used
to pay war debts. As the successor agency to the original GLO,
the Bureau of Land Management was established in 1946 with the
merger of the Grazing Service and the GLO.
MANAGEMENT OF LANDS AND RESOURCES
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $960,361,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 952,017,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 946,707,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -13,654,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -5,310,000
The Committee recommends $946,707,000 for Management of
Lands and Resources, $13,654,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $5,310,000 below the budget request.
Land Resources.--The Committee recommends $241,266,000 for
Land Resources, $15,744,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $855,000 above the budget request.
The Committee does not provide funding for Landscape
Conservation Cooperatives and prohibits the Bureau from using
any funds for LCCs. The Committee questions the purpose and
effectiveness of LCCs and believes agencies can and should
coordinate and cooperate without LCCs.
Range Management.--The Committee recommends $90,000,000 for
the Range Management program, $2,608,000 above the fiscal year
2012 enacted level and $17,673,000 above the budget request.
The Committee rejects the Bureau's proposal to charge one
dollar per animal unit month and directs the Bureau to instead
report to the Committee on potential cost recovery based on
permit administration costs, not animal unit months.
The Committee has increased funding to address numerous
challenges including sage grouse conservation, completion of
grazing permit renewals, hiring of seasonal employees to ensure
timely turn-out of livestock, annual and trend monitoring of
grazing allotments, and improving the quality of Bureau work on
environmental and other documents related to livestock grazing.
The Committee commends the Bureau's range management program
for using land stewardship to achieve long-term resource
management goals including using grazing as a tool to prevent
wildfire for sage grouse habitat.
The Committee is deeply concerned by the drastic reduction
of range specialists within the Bureau of Land Management and
directs the Bureau to brief the Committee on how it will
accomplish work related to range management with so few
specialists. Further, with increased funding in fiscal year
2012 and a recommended increase for fiscal year 2013, the
Committee believes the Bureau must also increase the number of
grazing permits renewed.
The Committee includes bill language addressing range
management in Title I General Provisions including: (1) Section
112 permanently requiring would-be litigants to exhaust
administrative review before bringing a civil action against
the Bureau on grazing decisions; and, (2) Section 113 exempting
the trailing of livestock across public land from the National
Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) for fiscal years 2013 and 2014.
The Committee includes bill language addressing range
management in Title IV General Provisions (applying to both the
Bureau and the Forest Service) including Section 412 which
makes permanent the grazing permit renewal general provision
allowing permits to be renewed under the same terms and
conditions if NEPA review has not yet been completed.
Forestry Management.--The Committee recommends $9,714,000
for Forestry Management, equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $3,396,000 above the budget request. The Committee is
deeply concerned by the proposed cut in this program and notes
that much of the Bureau's public domain forestland is located
in areas with high mortality due to bark beetle infestation.
Further, the proposed reduction would greatly reduce current
efforts to prevent catastrophic wildfires while also supporting
small businesses in rural areas that contract with the Bureau
to manage forests.
Wild Horse and Burro Management.--The Committee recommends
$64,068,000 for Wild Horse and Burro Management, $10,820,000
below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $13,000,000 below
the budget request. The Committee is again troubled by the
increased cost of this program and notes that the Bureau
dramatically changed its strategy last year with the promise
that it would not request increased funding for fiscal year
2013. To the contrary, the Bureau has requested an additional
$3,000,000 above fiscal year 2012 enacted levels for fertility
control.
The Committee is very concerned about the health of Bureau
rangelands and overgrazing from wild horses and burros now that
the agency is no longer managing to maintain Appropriate
Management Levels (AML) as required under the Wild Free-Roaming
Horses and Burro Act of 1971. The Committee believes it's
critical to balance the use of public rangelands for wildlife,
livestock and other multiple uses. The Committee also notes
that overgrazing from wild horses could degrade sage grouse
habitat and contribute to the spread of invasive weeds.
The Committee retains language prohibiting any funds from
being used for the slaughter of wild horses and burros in
Administrative Provisions and allowing the Bureau to enter into
long-term contracts for holding wild horses and burros in Title
I General Provisions.
Native Plant Program.--The Committee is supportive of the
Bureau of Land Management's existing plant conservation and
native plant materials program and expects the Bureau to
continue the program through resources provided under various
accounts. The Committee directs the threatened and endangered
species account to contribute to this program.
Wildlife and Fisheries.--The Committee recommends
$65,615,000 for Wildlife and Fisheries, $15,368,000 above the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level, as requested. The Committee's
recommendation includes $15,000,000, as requested, for broad-
scale sage grouse conservation activities.
Bighorn Sheep Research.--The Bureau of Land Management is
directed to work with the Agriculture Research Service (ARS)
and the Forest Service to provide any information requested for
research and analysis of bighorn sheep and domestic sheep. The
Committee addresses at length the management of domestic sheep
with regard to bighorn sheep later in the report (Forest
Service, Forest and Rangeland Research, Bighorn Sheep
Research).
Sage Grouse.--The Committee fully funds the Bureau's
proposal for sage grouse conservation and related resource
management plan amendments. The Committee also directs the
Bureau to provide assistance to States for the implementation
of State sage grouse conservation plans to prevent the listing
of the bird.
The Committee continues to be concerned about the threat
wildfire poses to the sage grouse and directs the agency to use
resources made available under the Bureau of Land Management
and the Department of the Interior's Wildland Fire Program to
reduce and mitigate catastrophic fire.
The Committee is also concerned about the lack of quality
data with respect to sage grouse habitat mapping and notes that
some places identified as `core habitat' were recently burned
by catastrophic wildfire or have changed in other significant
ways. The Committee directs the Bureau to ensure that mapping
of habitat is verified on the ground to avoid this problem.
Further, the Committee urges the Bureau to coordinate its
efforts for sage grouse conservation by improving and
protecting habitat in places that will serve as core habitat
far into the future rather than areas that may evolve. The
Committee also urges the Bureau to encourage map consistency by
States as State borders may become difficult areas to manage
due to different mapping.
Finally, the Committee is concerned that the Bureau
considers sage grouse protection paramount to other objectives,
rather than incorporating sage grouse conservation into
multiple use as required under the Federal Lands Management and
Policy Act.
Threatened and Endangered Species.--The Committee
recommends $21,812,000 for Threatened and Endangered Species,
as requested, $179,000 above the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level.
Recreation Management.--The Committee recommends
$60,858,000 for Recreation Management, $6,608,000 below the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $9,432,000 below the budget
request.
Energy and Minerals.--The Committee recommends $130,860,000
for Energy and Minerals, $23,246,000 above the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $37,950,000 above the budget request. The
Committee rejects the budget proposal to impose new inspection
fees on onshore oil and gas producers.
The Committee notes that production of oil and gas from
Federal lands has decreased despite the overall increase of oil
and gas production in the United States from State and private
lands. The Committee is concerned that the production of oil
and gas on Federal lands has been hurt by the perception of
tremendous regulatory uncertainty in operating on Federal
lands. The Committee would remind the Bureau that when
investment capital moves to non-Federal lands that the result
is a reduction in revenue over time to Federal and State
treasuries.
The Committee continues the Oil and Gas Leasing Internet
Program through fiscal year 2013 in Title I General Provisions.
Mining Law Administration.--The Committee recommends
$39,696,000 for Mining Law Administration, as requested. There
continues to be a growing awareness in Congress about the need
for a coherent minerals policy to ensure availability of
minerals essential to the manufacturing supply chain.
Currently, less than half of the mineral needs of U.S.
manufacturing are met from domestically mined resources. To
ensure access to the minerals that are vital to our national
and economic security, the Bureau must address the role that
delays in permitting of mining activities, including the
Department's overly cumbersome Federal Register clearance
process, play in hindering the ability to develop domestic
sources.
The Committee is concerned that the Department has delayed
the publication of various Land Use Analysis documents and
Environmental Impact Statements in the Federal Register
associated with Federal mineral lease applications submitted to
the Bureau of Land Management. The Committee directs the
Secretary of the Interior to provide within 30 days of
enactment of this Act a detailed report on all land use
analysis or environmental impact statements that have been
prepared for review by the Office of Management and Budget but
have not yet been published, as well as the anticipated date of
publication.
BLM/OSM Proposed Merger.--The Committee remains concerned
about the lack of coordination and consultation with Congress
on efforts to merge functions of the Bureau of Land Management
(BLM) and the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and
Enforcement (OSM). The Committee believes that the proposal
offers little administrative savings when attempting to combine
functions of two statutorily created agencies, and directs no
further funds be spent on studies to merge functions of BLM and
OSM.
Northern Arizona Mining Withdrawal.--The Committee is aware
that on May 23, 2012 and as a part of its oversight
responsibilities, the House Committee on Natural Resources
provided the Secretary of the Interior with a detailed request
for documents related to the Draft Environmental Impact
Statement, the Final Environmental Impact Statement, and the
Record of Decision for the Northern Arizona Mineral Withdrawal.
The Committee directs the Secretary to fully comply with this
document request in an expeditious manner.
The Committee includes within Title IV General Provisions a
correction to Section 430, Claim Maintenance Fee Amendments,
included in the fiscal year 2012 Interior, Environment, and
Related Agencies conference report, that changes claim
maintenance fees for placer claims including two or more
people, to the same fees required for individual placer claims.
Challenge Cost Share.--The Committee recommends terminating
the Challenge Cost Share program.
National Landscape Conservation System.--The Committee
recommends $20,000,000 for the National Landscape Conservation
System base program, $11,819,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $15,115,000 below the budget request. The
Committee retains language prohibiting mineral leasing within
national monuments in Title IV General Provisions.
International Border.--The Committee notes that since
October, 2011, the Bureau of Land Management has brought
additional law enforcement resources to the Sonoran Desert
National Monument and the Ironwood Forest National Monument to
increase pressure on drug smuggling and illegal immigration.
The Committee also notes that the BLM has been installing
vehicle barriers in the Sonoran Desert National Monument. These
activities simultaneously seek to increase the security of the
border region as well as protect the integrity of the desert
landscape. The Committee directs the Bureau to brief the
Committee within 180 days of enactment of this Act on the
Bureau's plans for law enforcement activities in the border
area.
Wild Lands.--The Committee retains a prohibition of funds
for Secretarial Order Number 3310 in Title I General
Provisions.
Hunting and Recreational Shooting.--The Committee includes
bill language in Title IV General Provisions prohibiting the
use of appropriated funds to close areas open to recreational
hunting and shooting as of January 1, 2012.
CONSTRUCTION
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $3,570,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 0
Recommended, 2013..................................... 0
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -3,570,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
The Committee has not provided construction funding, as
requested.
LAND ACQUISITION
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $22,344,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 33,575,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 6,743,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -15,601,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -26,832,000
The Committee recommends $6,743,000 for Land Acquisition,
$15,601,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and
$26,832,000 below the budget request. The amounts recommended
by the Committee compared with the budget estimates by activity
are shown in the table at the end of this report. The Committee
has included language in the front of the report regarding Land
and Water Conservation Fund programs.
OREGON AND CALIFORNIA GRANT LANDS
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $111,864,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 112,043,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 110,025,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -1,839,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -2,018,000
The Committee recommends $110,025,000 for the Oregon and
California Grant Lands, $1,839,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $2,018,000 below the budget request.
The Committee provides no funding for the new Resource
Management planning effort for the O&C lands and subsequently
funds resource management planning at $3,635,000. No reduction
should be taken from other Resource Management subactivities.
The Committee supported the Secretary's Western Oregon
strategy pilot projects in fiscal year 2012, but notes that
these projects have not resulted in realistic long-term
solutions to the management of O&C lands. Contrary to the
original purpose of the pilots to ecologically restore
thousands of acres, projects have resulted in very few acres
treated at a very high cost. The Committee is deeply troubled
by new resource management plan initiatives for O&C lands after
$18,000,000 was spent over five years to develop the last plan.
The Committee believes a comprehensive review and change of
current policies is necessary to meet the goals of the O&C
Lands Act of 1937. The Committee notes that the law directs
that these lands be managed ``for permanent forest production .
. . with the principle of sustained yield for the purpose of
providing a permanent source of timber supply, protecting
watersheds, regulating stream flow, and contributing to the
economic stability of local communities and industries, and
providing recreational facilities'' (43 USC Sec. 1181a). Based
on current information from the Bureau, the Committee is hard
pressed to believe the new planning efforts will comply with
the O&C Lands Act of 1937.
RANGE IMPROVEMENTS
The Committee recommends an indefinite appropriation of not
less than $10,000,000 to be derived from public lands receipts
and Bankhead-Jones Farm Tenant Act lands grazing receipts.
SERVICE CHARGES, DEPOSITS, AND FORFEITURES
The Committee recommends an indefinite appropriation
estimated to be $31,053,000 for Service Charges, Deposits, and
Forfeitures, as requested.
MISCELLANEOUS TRUST FUNDS
The Committee recommends an indefinite appropriation
estimated to be $19,700,000, as requested and equal to the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level, for Miscellaneous Trust Funds.
ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS, BUREAU OF LAND MANAGEMENT
The Committee recommendation includes the requested
Administrative Provisions.
United States Fish and Wildlife Service
The mission of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service)
is to conserve, protect and enhance fish and wildlife and their
habitats for the continuing benefit of people. The Service has
responsibility for migratory birds, threatened and endangered
species, certain marine mammals, and land under Service
control. Currently, the Service accomplishes its mission by
managing more than 150 million acres of land and ocean, 556
units in the National Wildlife Refuge System, 80 Ecological
Services Field Stations, 71 National Fish Hatcheries, one
historical National Fish Hatchery, and numerous waterfowl
production areas in 206 counties.
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $1,226,177,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 1,247,044,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 1,040,488,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -185,689,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -206,556,000
The Committee recommends $1,040,488,000 for Resource
Management, $185,689,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $206,556,000 below the budget request. The Committee
accepts the proposed transfers for the diversity office but
does not accept the proposed land acquisition planning
transfer. The Committee accepts the proposed program reductions
except as otherwise indicated below. Proposed fixed costs and
program increases are not funded. Selected additional changes
to the budget request follow. A complete summary of the amounts
recommended by the Committee compared with the budget estimates
by activity are shown in the table at the end of this report.
The Committee encourages the Service to consider all line items
within a program element when determining how to distribute
reductions not specified below.
Within Candidate Conservation, the bill includes no less
than $2,000,000 to continue multiple Service initiatives begun
in fiscal year 2012 to work with States and private landowners
to facilitate and increase the use of conservation agreements
related to the Endangered Species Act. The Committee is pleased
with the progress made by the coalition of partners of the
Northern Rocky Mountain Multispecies Conservation Agreements
initiative in particular, as directed by House Report 112-331.
The Committee recognizes the monumental task being undertaken
and that additional time and resources are needed in order for
the partners to continue their work. The partners are directed
to continue to report annually to Congress.
Within Listing and Critical Habitat the Committee directs
the following reductions: $2,568,000 from listing; $375,000
from international listing; and $375,000 from petitions.
The Committee directs the Fish and Wildlife Service to
report to the Committee within 90 days of enactment of this Act
with recommendations for conservation actions that might help
to preclude new listings of the following four salamander
species in Texas: Georgetown, Jollyville Plateau, Salado, and
Austin Blind.
The Committee directs the Service to devote sufficient
funds from within Consultation to assure timely Biological
Opinions on the northern spotted owl to other Federal land
management agencies in addition to technical assistance review
and ``no take letters'' to small landowners seeking approval to
implement harvest plans.
Within Recovery, the bill includes a $2,000,000 reduction
from State of the Birds. The Committee has provided an increase
of $1,000,000 to restore the wolf livestock loss demonstration
program. The Committee urges the Administration to fund this
program through the Department of Agriculture in future years.
To ensure a timely decision on the Wyoming wolf management
plan, the Committee has included language in the bill that
provides a date certain for final agency action. The Committee
notes that the pending wolf management proposal is the result
of cooperative work between the agency and the State without
the need for disruptive litigation. If in the future the
Service determines that wolves elsewhere in the nation should
be considered for delisting, such as in the desert southwest,
this Committee will consider similar bill language until such
time as Congress has conducted a thorough review and
reauthorization of the ESA.
The Committee supports the requested funding for aplomado
falcon and California condor recovery. The Service is
encouraged to continue to support these ongoing, successful
partnerships.
Within National Wetlands Inventory, the Committee supports
continued funding for the digitization of coastal barrier maps.
Within National Fish Hatchery System Operations, the bill
includes an increase of $3,394,000. The Committee will continue
to reject proposals to reduce funding in the Service's budget
for mitigation fish hatcheries until the Administration has
secured offsetting reimbursable funds from the responsible
Federal agencies.
Within Aquatic Habitat and Species Conservation, the bill
includes reductions of $2,000,000 from Habitat Assessment and
Restoration and $850,000 from Marine Mammals. Increases include
$2,463,000 to implement approved State and interstate aquatic
invasive species plans and $1,000,000 for State and Federal
prevention, containment, and enforcement activities as
prescribed in the February 2010 Quagga-Zebra Mussel Action Plan
for Western U.S. Waters. The Committee supports the multi-state
collaborative approach taken by the Service in fiscal year
2012, and encourages continued efforts in fiscal year 2013.
The Committee expresses concern regarding the rapid spread
of several invasive species of Asian carp into the Upper
Mississippi River and Ohio River basins and tributaries, which
are threatening ecosystems and billions of dollars of economic
activity connected to outdoor recreation in States throughout
the Midwest. While Federal efforts have focused on preventing
the spread of Asian carp into the Great Lakes, there is growing
recognition of the threat these invasive species pose to other
ecosystems in the Upper Mississippi and Ohio River basins. The
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, in coordination with the Army
Corps of Engineers, National Park Service, and U.S. Geological
Survey, shall lead a multi-agency effort to slow the spread of
Asian carp in the Upper Mississippi River and Ohio River basins
and tributaries by providing high-level technical assistance,
coordination, best practices, and support to State and local
government strategies to slow, and eventually eliminate, the
threat posed by Asian carp. To the maximum extent practicable,
the multi-agency effort shall apply lessons learned and best
practices developed under the Asian Carp Control Strategic
Framework to efforts in the Upper Mississippi and Ohio River
basins.
CONSTRUCTION
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $23,051,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 19,136,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 17,755,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -5,296,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -1,381,000
The Committee recommends $17,755,000 for Construction,
$5,296,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and
$1,381,000 below the budget request. The reduction below the
budget request is from core engineering services. The amounts
recommended by the Committee compared with the budget estimates
by activity are shown in the table at the end of this report.
LAND ACQUISITION
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $54,632,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 106,892,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 15,047,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -39,585,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -91,845,000
The Committee recommends $15,047,000 for Land Acquisition,
$39,585,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and
$91,845,000 below the budget request. The amounts recommended
by the Committee compared with the budget estimates by activity
are shown in the table at the end of this report. The Committee
has included language in the front of the report regarding Land
and Water Conservation Fund programs.
COOPERATIVE ENDANGERED SPECIES CONSERVATION FUND
The Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund
provides grants to States and territories for endangered
species recovery actions on non-Federal lands and provides
funds for non-Federal land acquisition to facilitate habitat
protection. Individual States and territories provide 25
percent of grant project costs. Cost sharing is reduced to 10
percent when two or more States or territories are involved in
a project.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $47,681,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 60,000,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 14,129,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -33,552,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -45,871,000
The Committee recommends $14,129,000 for the Cooperative
Endangered Species Conservation Fund, $33,552,000 below the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $45,871,000 below the budget
request. The Committee recommendation includes funding for
administration of ongoing projects funded in prior years, and
limited funding for HCP land acquisition. The amounts
recommended by the Committee compared with the budget estimates
by activity are shown in the table at the end of this report.
The Committee has included language in the front of the report
regarding Land and Water Conservation Fund programs.
NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE FUND
This program makes payments in lieu of taxes based on their
fair market value to counties in which Service lands are
located. Payments to counties are estimated to be $16,857,000
in fiscal year 2013, with $11,958,000 derived from this
appropriation and $4,899,000 from the net refuge receipts
estimated to be collected in fiscal year 2012.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $13,958,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 0
Recommended, 2013..................................... 11,958,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -2,000,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. +11,958,000
The Committee recommends $11,958,000 for the National
Wildlife Refuge Fund, $2,000,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $11,958,000 above the budget request.
NORTH AMERICAN WETLANDS CONSERVATION FUND
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, through the North
American Wetlands Conservation Fund, leverages partner
contributions for wetlands conservation. Projects to date have
been in 50 States, 13 Canadian provinces, 25 Mexican states,
the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
In addition to this appropriation, the Service receives funding
from fines for violations of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act;
interest earned on tax receipts in the Federal Aid in Wildlife
Restoration account from taxes on firearms, ammunition, archery
equipment, pistols, and revolvers; and from the Sport Fish
Restoration account from taxes on fishing tackle and equipment,
electric trolling motors and fish finders; and certain marine
gasoline taxes. By law, sport fish restoration receipts are
used for coastal wetlands in States bordering the Pacific and
Atlantic Oceans, States bordering the Great Lakes and Gulf of
Mexico, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands,
Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the
freely associated States in the Pacific, and American Samoa.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $35,497,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 39,425,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 22,333,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -13,164,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -17,092,000
The Committee recommends $22,333,000 for the North American
Wetlands Conservation Fund, $13,164,000 below the fiscal year
2012 enacted level and $17,092,000 below the budget request.
The Committee notes that the authorization of appropriations
for this program expires in fiscal year 2012.
NEOTROPICAL MIGRATORY BIRD CONSERVATION
The Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act of 2000
authorized grants for the conservation of neotropical migratory
birds in the United States, Latin America and the Caribbean,
with 75 percent of the amounts available to be expended on
projects outside the U.S. There is a three to one matching
requirement under this program.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $3,786,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 3,786,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 1,893,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -1,893,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -1,893,000
The Committee recommends $1,893,000 for the Neotropical
Migratory Bird Conservation program, $1,893,000 below the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $1,893,000 below the budget
request. The Committee notes that the authorization of
appropriations for this program expired in fiscal year 2010.
MULTINATIONAL SPECIES CONSERVATION FUND
The Multinational Species Conservation Fund provides
technical support and cost-sharing grant assistance to
countries to strengthen anti-poaching activities; build
community support for conservation near the species' habitats;
conduct surveys, monitoring, and applied research; and provide
infrastructure and field equipment necessary to conserve
habitats. These funds help to leverage work with partners and
other collaborators to conserve and protect African and Asian
elephants, rhinoceroses, tigers, great apes and marine turtles
and their habitats.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $9,466,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 9,980,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 4,735,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -4,731,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -5,245,000
The Committee recommends $4,735,000 for the Multinational
Species Conservation Fund, $4,731,000 below the fiscal year
2012 enacted level and $5,245,000 below the budget request. The
amounts recommended by the Committee compared with the budget
estimates by activity are shown in the table at the end of this
report. The Committee notes that the authorizations of
appropriations for the programs within this Fund have expired
or will expire in fiscal year 2012.
STATE AND TRIBAL WILDLIFE GRANTS
The State and Tribal Wildlife Grants program provides funds
for States to implement their comprehensive wildlife
conservation plans for species of greatest conservation need.
States are required to provide a 50 percent cost share for
grants that implement State Wildlife Action Plans.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $61,323,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 61,323,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 30,662,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -30,661,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -30,661,000
The Committee recommends $30,662,000 for State and Tribal
Wildlife Grants, $30,661,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $30,661,000 below the budget request. The amounts
recommended by the Committee compared with the budget estimates
by activity are shown in the table at the end of this report.
The Committee notes that the State and Tribal Wildlife
Grants program does not have a stand-alone authorization. The
Committee has accordingly recommended a reduction commensurate
with reductions for other Fish and Wildlife Service programs
with expired authorizations. The Committee strongly encourages
the Service and its partners to work with Congressional
authorizing committees to seek authorization or to evaluate the
feasibility of alternatives under the Federal Aid in Wildlife
Restoration Act (16 U.S.C. 669 et seq.).
The Committee encourages the Service and the partners to
complete the Wildlife TRACS database so that the program can
better demonstrate its ability to prevent at-risk species from
having to be listed under the Endangered Species Act.
Bill Language.--The Committee has included bill language
that requires a 50 percent match of all grant funding. Not
included is language carried in prior years which allowed
unobligated funding to be re-apportioned.
National Park Service
The mission of the National Park Service (Service) is to
preserve unimpaired the natural and cultural resources and
values of the national park system for the enjoyment,
education, and inspiration of this and future generations.
Established in 1916, the National Park Service has stewardship
responsibilities for the protection and preservation of the
heritage resources of the national park system. The system,
consisting of 397 separate and distinct units, is recognized
globally as a leader in park management and resource
preservation. The national park system represents much of the
finest the Nation has to offer in terms of scenery, historical
and archeological relics, and cultural heritage. Through its
varied sites, the National Park Service attempts to explain
America's history, interpret its culture, preserve examples of
its natural ecosystems, and provide recreational and
educational opportunities for U.S. citizens and visitors from
all over the world. In addition, the National Park Service
provides support to tribal, local, and State governments to
preserve culturally significant, ecologically important, and
public recreational lands.
The National Park Service will be 100 years old in 2016,
and the Service has embarked on an historic ten-year effort to
enhance the national parks leading up to this historic
celebration. The Committee continues to support this effort and
the $2,445,198,000 recommended will help the Service prepare
for a second century of conservation, environmental stewardship
and recreation benefiting millions of visitors from throughout
the world. In spite of extraordinary fiscal challenges, the
Committee has provided funding sufficient to manage NPS units
nationwide without disruptions to operations.
Table of Allocations by Activity.--The amounts recommended
by the Committee compared with the budget estimates by activity
are shown in the table at the end of this report.
OPERATION OF THE NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $2,236,568,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 2,250,050,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 2,229,409,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -7,159,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -20,641,000
The Committee recommends $2,229,409,000 for Operation of
the National Park System (ONPS), $7,159,000 below the fiscal
year 2012 enacted level and $20,641,000 below the budget
request. This account funds the day-to-day operations of
individual park units as well as regional and headquarters
support operations of the Service. The Committee recommends the
following changes to the request:
Resource Stewardship.--The Committee recommends
$324,300,000 for Resource Stewardship, $5,542,000 below the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $9,115,000 below the budget
request. The Committee has not included requested funding for
climate-change related activities. The Committee has noted
throughout this and past reports the critical need for a
significant improvement in the level of coordination and
communication of climate change activities, budgets, and
accomplishments across the bureaus within the Department of the
Interior. These improvements have yet to be realized. Lastly,
the Committee directs that the Park Service provide no less
than $1,000,000 within available funds for quagga and zebra
mussel containment, prevention, and enforcement as prescribed
in the February 2010 Quagga-Zebra Mussel Action Plan for
Western U.S. Waters.
Visitor Services.--The Committee recommends $239,348,000
for Visitor Services, equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $1,540,000 above the budget request. The Committee
has included funding, as requested, to support security and
visitor services needs relating to the presidential
inauguration in 2013.
Park Protection.--The Committee recommends $360,669,000 for
Park Protection, equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted level
and $2,329,000 below the budget request.
Facility Operations and Maintenance.--The Committee
recommends $681,807,000 for Facility Operations and
Maintenance, as requested, which is $1,583,000 below the fiscal
year 2012 enacted level.
Park Support.--The Committee recommends $454,366,000 for
Park Support, as requested, which is $34,000 below the fiscal
year 2012 enacted level.
External Administrative Costs.--The Committee recommends
$168,919,000 for External Administrative Costs, equal to the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $10,737,000 below the budget
request.
Additional Guidance.--The following additional direction
and guidance is provided with respect to funding provided
within this account:
Park Operations.--Funding to maintain visitor services is a
core responsibility of the Service. The Committee believes that
funding of park operations ought to remain the highest priority
of the Service. The Committee rejects the Administration's
proposal to pay for fixed cuts through a reduction in park base
operations.
Civil War Sesquicentennial.--The Civil War battlefields,
sites and monuments provide vital historic and educational
opportunities for the millions of Americans that visit each
year. The 150th anniversary presents a significant opportunity
for Americans to recall and reflect upon the Civil War and its
legacy in a spirit of reconciliation and reflection, through
exploration, interpretation, and discussion. In keeping with
the Service's continued observance of the Sesquicentennial, the
Committee continues to support the efforts of the Director to
encourage discussion of the historic, social, legal, racial,
cultural and political forces that caused the American Civil
War and influenced its course and outcomes at events organized
and supported by the Service.
Flight 93 Memorial.--Since the terrorist attacks of
September 11, 2001, over 1.6 million people have visited the
site of the Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville,
Pennsylvania. The memorial honors the 40 men and women who died
saving the White House or U.S. Capitol from a potentially
catastrophic terrorist attack. Phases 1A and 1C of the
permanent memorial were dedicated in September 2011. The
current phase, focusing on education and including the
construction of a visitor center and learning center, are
scheduled to be dedicated on September 11, 2014. The Committee
remains firmly committed to the timely completion of this
project.
In addition, since 2005, the Service has recorded over
2,000 hours of audio interviews involving nearly 750
individuals including family members of the passengers and
crew, eyewitnesses, first responders, and others. The Committee
strongly encourages the Service to devote the resources
necessary to properly archive, maintain, and preserve these
invaluable historical collections.
U.S. Capitol Concerts.--The Committee continues its
longstanding support for funding for the National Capitol Area
Performing Arts Program and directs the Service to maintain
funding for the summer concert series staged on the U.S.
Capitol grounds at the fiscal year 2012 enacted level.
National Mall Restoration.--The National Mall is the most
visited national park in the nation with 25 million annual
visitors. The Committee strongly supports the public-private
partnership involved in efforts to restore the National Mall.
Integral to this effort is the management and operation of
concessions and visitor services on the National Mall.
Accordingly, the Committee directs the Service to prepare and
submit, within 90 days of enactment of this Act, a multi-year
plan for the management and operation of concessions within the
National Mall and Memorial Parks.
Everglades Restoration.--The Committee notes the
substantial progress made toward restoration of the Everglades
ecosystem and continues to fully support this important
national program. Funding is provided at the request level for
the multi-year effort to preserve one of the great ecological
treasures of the United States. The Committee urges the Service
to begin planning and design work for the additional authorized
bridging along the Tamiami Trail.
Science Education.--The Committee recognizes the importance
of promoting STEM education--Science, Technology, Engineering,
and Mathematics--to better prepare the Nation's young people
for the high technology jobs of tomorrow. The Service is
uniquely positioned to play a role in STEM education through
the management and preservation of NPS resources. The Committee
commends the Director's Call to Action, an initiative intended
to prepare the Service and its partners for a second century of
stewardship and engagement. In particular, the Committee
supports the initiative's goal to engage youth through a
variety of scientific educational opportunities. A Call to
Action aims to ``strengthen the NPS as an education
institution,'' a goal that mirrors national efforts to improve
scientific acumen among the nation's students.
Bill Language.--The Committee has included bill language to
make permanent the administrative provision carried each year
allowing the use of franchise fees for the purpose of reducing
liability for possessory or leasehold interest under National
Park Service concessions contracts.
The Committee has, since 2006, included bill language
authorizing the Secretary of the Interior to acquire or lease
property to facilitate the transportation of visitors to and
from Ellis, Governors, and Liberty Island, NY and NJ. The
language was necessitated by the need to establish a screening
process for visitors to the Statue of Liberty in the aftermath
of the events of September 11, 2011. The Service no longer
requires this lease or purchase authority. The Service will
continue its robust screening process, but no longer requires
this authority to lease or purchase new space. Therefore, with
concurrence from the Service, the Committee is dropping this
general provision from the bill.
NATIONAL RECREATION AND PRESERVATION
The National Recreation and Preservation account provides
for outdoor recreation planning, preservation of cultural and
national heritage resources, technical assistance to Federal,
State and local agencies, and administration of Historic
Preservation Fund grants.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $59,879,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 52,096,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 51,822,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -8,057,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -274,000
The Committee recommends $51,822,000 for National
Recreation and Preservation, $8,057,000 below the fiscal year
2012 enacted level and $274,000 below the budget request. The
Committee recommends the following changes to the request:
Recreation Programs.--The Committee recommends $584,000 for
Recreation Programs, equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $6,000 below the budget request.
Natural Programs.--The Committee recommends $13,354,000 for
Natural Programs, equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted level
and $177,000 below the budget request.
Cultural Programs.--The Committee recommends $24,764,000
for Cultural Programs, equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $55,000 below the budget request.
International Park Affairs.--The Committee recommends
$1,636,000 for International Park Affairs, equal to the fiscal
year 2012 enacted level and $12,000 below the budget request.
Environmental and Compliance Review.--The Committee
recommends $430,000 for Environmental and Compliance Review,
equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $4,000 below
the budget request.
Grant Administration.--The Committee recommends $1,738,000
for Grant Administration, equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $20,000 below the budget request.
Heritage Partnership Program.--The Committee recommends
$9,316,000 for the Heritage Partnership Program (HPP), as
requested, $8,057,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level.
These funds support grants to local non-profit groups in
support of historical and cultural recognition, preservation
and tourism activities.
Congress has in recent years expanded from 27 to 49 the
number of authorized heritage partnerships, creating additional
pressure on available grant funding. The Committee notes that
State and local managers of National Heritage Areas continue to
rely heavily on Federal funding. Funding for the Heritage
Partnership Program was sustained in fiscal year 2012, and
additional guidance was provided for participating heritage
areas to develop self-sufficiency plans for long-term
sustainability. These plans for long-term sustainability have
yet to be realized.
The Committee is aware that the Service is conducting
evaluations of National Heritage Areas and has been directed to
report back to Congress with its recommendation as to the
future of the Service's role with respect to each National
Heritage Area, no later than three years before the date on
which authority for Federal funding terminates. The Committee
is concerned that to date, only three evaluations have been
completed, and no reports have been delivered. The Committee
encourages the Service to continue to provide grant and
technical support to these areas in a manner consistent with
current policy whether or not the evaluations have been
completed.
Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation
Grants.--The Committee provides funding for the Native American
Graves Protection and Repatriation Grant program at the budget
request level of $1,747,000.
Japanese American Confinement Site Grants.--The Committee
maintains its support for the Japanese American Confinement
Site Grants program at the budget request level of $2,995,000.
This program leverages proportional funding through
partnerships with local preservation groups to preserve
Japanese American World War II confinement sites.
HISTORIC PRESERVATION FUND
The Historic Preservation Fund supports the State historic
preservation offices to perform a variety of functions. These
include State management and administration of existing grant
obligations; review and advice on Federal projects and actions;
determinations and nominations to the National Register; Tax
Act certifications; and technical preservation services. The
States also review properties to develop data for planning use.
Funding in this account also supports direct grants to
qualifying organizations for individual preservation projects
and for activities in support of heritage tourism and local
historic preservation.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $55,910,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 55,910,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 49,500,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -6,410,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -6,410,000
The Committee recommends $49,500,000 for historic
preservation programs, $6,410,000 below both the fiscal year
2012 enacted level and the budget request. The Committee
recommends the following changes to the request:
State and Tribal Historic Preservation Offices.--The
Committee supports the longstanding efforts of State and Tribal
Historic Preservation Offices to identify and protect
irreplaceable historic and archaeological resources. The
Committee recommends $42,500,000 for State Historic
Preservation Offices, $4,425,000 below both the fiscal year
2012 enacted level and the budget request. The Committee
recommends $7,000,000 for Tribal Historic Preservation Offices,
$1,985,000 below both the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and
the budget request.
CONSTRUCTION
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $155,366,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 131,173,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 131,173,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -24,193,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
The Committee recommends $131,173,000 for Construction,
$24,193,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and equal
to the budget request. These amounts fund major repairs and
construction of National Park Service assets. The Committee
notes that the budget request for line item construction is at
the lowest level since 1997 and does not propose funding any
new facility construction in fiscal year 2013.
LAND AND WATER CONSERVATION FUND
RESCISSION
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... -$30,000,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. -30,000,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... -30,000,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... 0
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
The Committee recommends the rescission of $30,000,000 in
the annual contract authority provided by 16 U.S.C. 460l-10a.
This authority has not been used in years and there are no
plans to use it in fiscal year 2013. The Committee does not
agree with the Administration's proposal to permanently cancel
the authority.
LAND ACQUISITION AND STATE ASSISTANCE
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $101,897,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 119,421,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 13,294,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -88,603,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -106,127,000
The Committee recommends $13,294,000 for Land Acquisition
and State Assistance, $88,603,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $106,127,000 below the budget request. The
amounts recommended by the Committee compared with the budget
estimates by activity are shown in the table at the end of this
report. The Committee has included language in the front of the
report regarding Land and Water Conservation Fund programs.
American Battlefield Protection Program.--Given the
significance of the 150th Anniversary of the Civil War, the
Committee recognizes the importance of the American Battlefield
Protection Program which provides funding to protect
historically significant battlefields outside of current NPS
boundaries. Since fiscal year 1999, more than 17,700 acres of
the most historically significant sites have been preserved
from development. The Committee provides $2,000,000 for the
program.
United States Geological Survey
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) is the Nation's largest
water, Earth, and biological science and civilian mapping
agency. Established on March 3, 1879, the USGS serves the
Nation by providing reliable scientific information to describe
and understand the Earth; minimize loss of life and property
from natural disasters; manage water, biological, energy, and
mineral resources; and enhance and protect our quality of life.
The USGS programs address increasingly complex societal issues
such as the development of alternative and unconventional
energy resources, management of critical ecosystems,
understanding and adaptation to climate change, and responses
to natural and human-induced hazards. For more than a century,
the diversity of scientific expertise has enabled the USGS to
carry out large-scale, multi-disciplinary investigations and
provide impartial scientific information to resource managers,
planners, policymakers, and the public.
SURVEYS, INVESTIGATIONS, AND RESEARCH
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $1,068,032,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 1,102,492,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 967,000,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -101,032,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -135,492,000
The Committee recommends $967,000,000 for Surveys,
Investigations, and Research, $101,032,000 below the fiscal
year 2012 enacted level and $135,492,000 below the budget
request. The Committee accepts the proposed transfers but does
not accept the proposed fixed cost increases. The Committee
does not accept the proposed program changes except as
otherwise indicated below. The bill includes a number of
general reductions to activities within this account that are
not shown below. A complete summary of the amounts recommended
by the Committee compared with the budget estimates by activity
are shown in the table at the end of this report.
Within Ecosystems, the bill includes the following program
increases, as requested: $1,000,000 for white nose syndrome in
bats; $2,000,000 for Great Lakes Asian carp control; and
$1,000,000 for Upper Mississippi Asian carp control.
Within Climate and Land Use Change, the bill includes the
following program changes, as requested: an increase of
$500,000 for climate science support on tribal lands; a
decrease of $1,750,000 from Land Remote Sensing; and an
increase of $750,000 for disaster response.
Within Energy, Minerals, and Environmental Health, the bill
includes the following program changes, as requested: an
increase of $1,000,000 for rare earth elements research; and a
decrease of $250,000 from the minerals external research
program. The Committee does not accept the proposed reductions
of $500,000 from Contaminant Biology and $2,000,000 from Toxic
Substances Hydrology. The Committee supports continuing efforts
by the Survey to conduct an in-depth analysis of the extent and
sources of endocrine-disrupting chemicals impacting fish and
wildlife in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed.
Within Natural Hazards, the bill includes the following
program decreases, as requested: $300,000 from volcano
observatory assessments; and $700,000 from the National Volcano
Early Warning System.
The Committee recognizes that earthquakes are a destructive
and costly natural hazard threat to the United States. Given
that many regions remain vulnerable to earthquake hazards, the
Committee encourages the Survey to continue its efforts with
partner stakeholders in research, development, and outreach to
increase preparedness across the country. Furthermore, the
Committee recognizes the importance of a robust earthquake
monitoring network to the safety and vitality of our Nation and
encourages the Survey, in conjunction with stakeholders, to
continue efforts to maintain and develop the Advanced National
Seismic System in order to enable early earthquake warnings.
Within Water Resources, the bill includes the following
program changes: an increase of $2,500,000 for a groundwater
network, as requested; a decrease of $459,000 from National
Water Quality Assessment instead of the requested $6,049,000
decrease; and an increase of $3,112,000 for disaster response
within the National Streamflow Information Program instead of
the requested $5,500,000 increase.
Within Core Science Systems, the bill includes the
following program decreases, as requested: $700,000 from data
management; and $446,000 from data preservation.
Within Administration and Enterprise Information, the bill
includes a combined decrease of $3,691,000 from Administrative
Services, as requested.
Within Facilities, the bill includes a program decrease of
$4,390,000 due to operations and maintenance efficiencies, as
requested.
Bill Language.--The bill provides two-year funding
authority except for satellite operations and deferred
maintenance and capital improvement projects, which are no-year
authority. Provisos include a funding limitation on surveys on
private property and a cost-share requirement on topographic
mapping and water resources activities carried on in
cooperation with States and municipalities.
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management is responsible for
the environmentally and economically sound development of the
Nation's offshore energy and mineral resources. The Bureau's
management of these resources helps meet the Nation's energy
needs by providing access to--and fair return to the American
taxpayer for--offshore energy and mineral resources through
strategic planning and resource and economic evaluation.
Conventional energy activities include development of the Five-
Year Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Oil and Gas Leasing Program;
assessment of mineral resource potential, tracking of
inventories of oil and gas reserves, and development of
production projections; and economic evaluation to ensure the
receipt of fair value through lease sales and lease terms.
OCEAN ENERGY MANAGEMENT
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $59,696,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 62,701,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 59,696,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... 0
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -3,005,000
The Committee recommends an appropriation of $59,696,000
for Ocean Energy Management, equal to the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $3,005,000 below the budget request. The
collection of offsetting rental receipts and cost recovery fees
total $101,404,000, as requested, $322,000 below the fiscal
year 2012 enacted level. The recommendation also continues
language in Title I General Provisions originating in the
fiscal year 2011 Continuing Resolution allowing the
reorganization of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management and the
Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement only in
conformance with Committee reprogramming guidelines.
The Committee does not provide funding for National Ocean
Policy Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning.
Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement
The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement is
responsible for oversight of exploration, development, and
production operations for oil, gas, and other marine minerals
on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). Leases in Federal waters
off the shores of California, Alaska, and the Gulf of Mexico
provide about 25 percent of the Nation's oil production and
more than 10 percent of domestic natural gas production. The
Bureau facilitates the safe and environmentally responsible
development of oil and gas and the conservation of offshore
resources. The Bureau's safety and environmental compliance
activities include oil and gas permitting; facility
inspections, regulations and standards development; safety and
oil spill research; field operations; environmental compliance
and enforcement; review of operator oil spill response plans;
production and development; and operation of a national
training center for inspectors and engineers.
OFFSHORE SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $61,375,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 81,399,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 61,375,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... 0
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -20,024,000
The Committee recommends an appropriation of $61,375,000
for Offshore Safety and Environmental Enforcement, equal to the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $20,024,000 below the budget
request. The collection of offsetting rental receipts, cost
recovery fees and inspection fees totals $125,881,000, as
requested, $4,800,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level.
The Committee continues to be concerned with the Bureau's
stated intentions for the expansion of regulatory authority
over non-lease holders under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands
Act (OCSLA). The authority and need for this action has not
been explained or justified to the Committee, nor how this
diversion of limited resources would impact the Bureau's
current mission and objectives identified in the fiscal year
2013 budget request. The agency is directed to use all the
resources provided toward the regulatory efforts presented in
the fiscal year 2013 budget request (with the exception of the
National Ocean Policy and Marine Spatial Planning). Further,
the Committee directs that no funds be expended for other
purposes until the agency has fully explained its authority,
intentions, and objectives to the Committee and the public.
OIL SPILL RESEARCH
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $14,899,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 14,899,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 14,899,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... 0
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
The Committee recommends $14,899,000 for Oil Spill
Research, as requested, equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level. This funding is derived from the Oil Spill Liability
Trust Fund to conduct oil spill research and financial
responsibility and inspection activities associated with the
Oil Pollution Act of 1990, Public Law 101-380.
Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
The Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
(OSM), through its regulation and technology account, regulates
surface coal mining operations to ensure that the environment
is reclaimed once mining is completed. The OSM accomplishes
this mission by providing grants and technical assistance to
those States that maintain their own regulatory and reclamation
programs and by conducting oversight of State programs.
Further, the OSM administers the regulatory programs in the
States that do not have their own programs and on Federal and
tribal lands. Through its Abandoned Mine Land (AML) reclamation
program, the OSM provides funding for environmental restoration
at abandoned coal mines based on fees collected from current
coal production operations. In their un-reclaimed condition
these abandoned sites endanger public health and safety, and
prevent the beneficial use of land and water resources.
Mandatory appropriations provide funding for the abandoned coal
mine sites as required under the 2006 amendments to the Surface
Mining Control and Reclamation Act.
The amounts recommended by the Committee for each Office of
Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement appropriation
account, compared with the budget estimates by activity, are
shown in the table at the end of this report.
REGULATION AND TECHNOLOGY
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $122,713,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 113,053,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 122,713,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... 0
Budget estimate, 2013............................. +9,660,000
The Committee recommends $122,713,000 for Regulation and
Technology, equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and
$9,660,000 above the budget request. The Committee funds
regulatory grants at $68,700,000, equal to the fiscal year 2012
enacted level. The Committee directs OSM and the Administration
to discontinue efforts to push States to raise fees on industry
as the bill provides the funds necessary for States to run
their regulatory programs. Federal regulatory grants to primacy
States results in the highest benefit and the lowest cost to
taxpayers, and if a State were to relinquish primacy, OSM would
have to hire and train sufficient numbers and types of Federal
employees. The cost to implement the Federal program would be
significantly higher and as such the Committee summarily
rejects the proposal.
The Committee similarly rejects the proposal to increase
inspections and enhanced Federal oversight of State regulatory
programs. Delegation of the authority to the States is the
cornerstone of the surface mining regulatory program, and State
regulatory programs do not need enhanced Federal oversight to
ensure continued implementation of a protective regulatory
framework. Accordingly, the Committee has not provided the
$3,994,000 and 25 FTE increase requested for those activities
within the Regulation and Technology account.
OSM/BLM Merger.--The Committee remains concerned about the
lack of coordination and consultation with Congress on efforts
to merge functions of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and
the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement (OSM).
The Committee believes that the proposal offers little
administrative savings when attempting to combine functions of
two statutorily created agencies, and directs no further funds
be spent on studies to merge functions of BLM and OSM.
ABANDONED MINE RECLAMATION FUND
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $27,399,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 27,548,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 27,366,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -33,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -182,000
The Committee recommends $27,366,000 for the Abandoned Mine
Reclamation Fund, $33,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $182,000 below the budget request.
Bureau of Indian Affairs and Bureau of Indian Education
The Bureau of Indian Affairs and Bureau of Indian Education
(Bureau) were founded in 1824 to establish a government-to-
government relationship and trust responsibility that results
from treaties with Native groups. The Bureau delivers services
to over 1.7 million American Indians and Alaska Natives. In
addition, the Bureau provides education programs to American
Indians through the operation of 169 schools and 14
dormitories. The Bureau administers more than 56 million acres
of land held in trust status. Over 10 million of these acres
belong to individuals and 46 million acres are held in trust
for Tribes.
OPERATION OF INDIAN PROGRAMS
(INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $2,367,738,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 2,379,431,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 2,404,672,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... +36,934,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. +25,241,000
The Committee recommends $2,404,672,000 for the Operation
of Indian Programs, $36,934,000 above the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $25,241,000 above the budget request. The
amounts recommended by the Committee compared with the budget
estimates by activity are shown in the table at the end of this
report. Changes to the budget request follow.
Within Tribal Government, the bill includes an increase of
$2,250,000 for road maintenance.
The Committee directs the Bureau to work with Tribes and
tribal organizations to explore options for improving the
transparency of current year contract support cost information,
and to report back to the Committee within 90 days of enactment
of this Act.
Within Education, the bill includes the following
increases: $12,991,000 to make up half of the projected
shortfall in administrative cost grants, which the Committee
notes are also contract support costs; and $1,000,000 for the
Johnson-O'Malley (JOM) program.
The Committee is disappointed that the Bureau failed to
update its count of students eligible for JOM program funding
and to report back to the Committee as directed in House Report
112-331. The Committee directs the Bureau, in coordination with
the Department of Education, and in consultation with the
Tribes, to update its count of students eligible for the
Johnson-O'Malley Program funding and to report the results to
this Committee within 180 days of enactment of this Act. In
addition, the Committee directs the Bureau to reestablish the
full-time permanent Johnson-O'Malley coordinator position that
was terminated in 2005.
Within Public Safety and Justice, the bill includes the
following increases: $7,443,000 for law enforcement; and
$557,000 for tribal courts.
For the purpose of addressing the needs of American Indian
youth in custody at tribal detention centers operated or
administered by the BIA, the Committee considers educational
and health-related services to juveniles in custody to be
allowable costs for detention/corrections program funding.
Within Community and Economic Development, the bill
includes an increase of $1,000,000 for minerals and mining
management. The Committee directs the Department to work with
Tribes to develop a pilot program to accelerate conventional
energy and mineral development on lands held in trust for
American Indians. The Committee notes that not all Federal
lands are public lands; that conventional energy and mineral
development on Tribal trust lands is lagging behind State and
private lands; that energy and mineral development on Tribal
trust lands can have tremendous economic benefits for people
who, as a group, suffer from some of the worst economic
conditions in the country; that the Department has an
obligation to act in their best interests to the greatest
extent allowable by law; and that it must be Tribes themselves
who determine what is in their best interests, particularly on
lands held in trust specifically for them. The Committee took
testimony this year from several witnesses who highlighted a
number of concerns with the current energy and mineral
development approval process, including permit fees, the need
for additional Federal and Tribal personnel and training, and
fair distribution of personnel around the country. The
Committee directs the Department to use the pilot program to
make a good faith effort, using existing authorities, to
address these concerns and others identified by Tribes.
The Committee remains concerned that efforts to implement
new administrative policies for P.L. 102-477 funds have the
potential to add additional costs to Tribes, thereby diverting
funds from the important services that this program provides.
The Committee notes that there has been no evidence of misuse
of these funds since the program's inception 20 years ago. The
Committee recognizes the significant progress made by the P.L.
102-477 Tribal Work Group and the Administration to resolve the
issues surrounding these policies, as directed by House Report
112-331, and feels strongly that these joint efforts should
continue in pursuit of a permanent resolution. In particular,
the parties are urged to resolve the financial reporting issues
in a way that meets the goals of administrative flexibility and
fiscal accountability without impeding the end outcome goals of
the ``477'' program.
CONSTRUCTION
(INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $123,630,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 105,910,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 117,110,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -6,520,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. +11,200,000
The Committee recommends $117,110,000 for Construction,
$6,520,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and
$11,200,000 above the budget request. The amounts recommended
by the Committee compared with the budget estimates by activity
are shown in the table at the end of this report. Changes to
the budget request follow.
Within Education, the bill includes an increase of
$9,200,000 for replacement school construction, which should
complete the next project on the 2004 priority list. The
Committee continues to urge the Bureau to move with all
deliberate speed to publish a new replacement school
construction priority list and to request funding in fiscal
year 2014 to implement projects on the list.
The Committee notes the conditions of the Bug O Nay Ge Shig
School of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe as an example of the
significant safety and health hazards that have not received
due attention by this Administration. The Committee urges the
Bureau to continue to work with the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe
and other Tribes to replace and repair their school facilities.
The Committee commends the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes of the
Fort Hall Indian Reservation for their initiative in addressing
their law enforcement needs by constructing a justice center to
house their adult and juvenile detention and rehabilitation
center, tribal courts, and police department. The Committee
also commends the Bureau of Indian Affairs in its efforts to
assist the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes in ensuring that the Center
continues to operate effectively. Knowing that work must be
done in consultation with Tribes, the Committee continues to
encourage the Bureau to consider establishing regional
detention centers at new or existing facilities, such as the
Shoshone-Bannock Tribes' Justice Center, as it works to combat
the crime problem in Indian Country.
Within General Administration, the bill includes an
increase of $2,000,000 for Construction Program Management.
INDIAN LAND AND WATER CLAIM SETTLEMENTS AND MISCELLANEOUS PAYMENTS TO
INDIANS
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $32,802,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 36,293,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 36,293,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... +3,491,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
The Committee recommends $36,293,000 for Indian Land and
Water Claim Settlements and Miscellaneous Payments to Indians,
as requested, $3,491,000 above the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level.
INDIAN GUARANTEED LOAN PROGRAM ACCOUNT
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $7,103,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 5,000,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 10,000,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... +2,897,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. +5,000,000
The Committee recommends $10,000,000 for the Indian
Guaranteed Loan Program Account, $2,897,000 above the fiscal
year 2012 enacted level and $5,000,000 above the budget
request.
Departmental Offices
Office of the Secretary
The Office of the Secretary supports a wide-range of
Departmental business, policy, and oversight functions. In
September 2010, Secretarial Order 3306 established the Office
of Natural Resources Revenue as part of the reorganization of
the former Minerals Management Service (MMS). This revenue
collection and compliance function is now managed within the
Office of the Secretary.
DEPARTMENTAL OPERATIONS
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $261,897,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 261,631,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 247,777,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -14,120,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -13,854,000
The Committee recommends $247,777,000 for Departmental
Operations, $14,120,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $13,854,000 below the budget request. The detailed
allocation of funding by program is included in the table at
the end of this report.
Leadership and Administration.--The Committee recommends
$120,160,000 for Leadership and Administration, equal to the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $1,551,000 below the budget
request.
Management Services.--The Committee recommends $8,199,000
for Management Services, $14,120,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $12,112,000 below the budget request. The
reduction below the request is to the Office of Valuation
Services.
Office of Natural Resources Revenue.--The Committee
recommends $119,418,000 for the Office of Natural Resources
Revenue, equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and
$191,000 below the budget request.
Additional Guidance.--National Monument Designations.--The
Department is directed to work collaboratively with interested
parties, including the Congress, States, local communities,
tribal governments and others prior to planning, implementing,
or making national monument designations.
Technical Assistance.--The Committee understands and values
the technical expertise and depth of knowledge that Federal
land managers and researchers possess, and sees the potential
value in providing volunteer opportunities for senior agency
leaders to share their expertise and technical assistance to
supporting national parks and forests in other countries. The
Committee encourages the Secretary of the Interior and the
Chief of the Forest Service to connect willing former and
current senior employees with nongovernmental organizations
seeking to assist other countries in building the capacity to
manage natural resources and public lands.
Aerial Monitoring.--The Department has indicated that it
utilizes unmanned aircraft on loan from the Department of
Defense to develop an ``operational capability strategy'' to
support DOI's natural resource missions. According to the
Department, operations are limited to Federal (Interior) lands
and are vetted with interagency partners such as the FAA. Each
operation undergoes an approval process including DOI Solicitor
review which is intended to mitigate risk of misuse. These
aircraft are centrally managed by the Department's Office of
Aircraft Services which maintains inventory control. The
Committee directs the Department to submit a report to the
House and Senate Committees on Appropriations within 180 days
of enactment of this Act that identifies by fiscal year: the
specific location and nature of work being performed by
unmanned aerial vehicles; the amount of funding spent to
contract for aerial over-flights; the contractor performing the
work; and the number of flights performed. The report shall
include expenditures for each fiscal year up through fiscal
year 2012.
Bill Language.--The Committee has continued to include bill
language that deducts two percent of State royalties to help
cover Federal administrative costs.
The Committee has eliminated bill language from prior years
relating to a limitation on personal services. Based on various
existing statutory prohibitions imposing limits on the use of
funds, the provision is redundant and no longer necessary.
The Committee has included bill language extending
mandatory funding of the Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT)
Program for fiscal year 2013.
Insular Affairs
ASSISTANCE TO TERRITORIES
The Office of Insular Affairs (OIA) was established on
August 4, 1995, through Secretarial Order No. 3191, which also
abolished the former Office of Territorial and International
Affairs. The OIA has important responsibilities to help the
United States government fulfill its responsibilities to the
four U.S. territories of Guam, American Samoa (AS), U.S. Virgin
Islands (USVI) and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana
Islands (CNMI) and also the three freely associated States: the
Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), the Republic of the
Marshall Islands (RMI) and the Republic of Palau. The permanent
and trust fund payments to the territories and the compact
nations provide substantial financial resources to these
governments. During fiscal year 2004, financial arrangements
for the Compacts of Free Association with the FSM and the RMI
were implemented. These also included mandatory payments for
certain activities previously provided in discretionary
appropriations as well as Compact impact payments of
$30,000,000 per year split among Guam, CNMI, AS, and Hawaii.
During fiscal year 2013 permanent funding of $487,254,000 will
be made available to these governments in addition to the
discretionary funding discussed below.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $87,901,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 84,946,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 79,946,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -7,955,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -5,000,000
The amounts recommended by the Committee for the Office of
Insular Affairs appropriations accounts compared with the
budget estimates by activity are shown in the table at the end
of this report. The Committee recommends $79,946,000 for
Assistance to Territories, $7,955,000 below the fiscal year
2012 enacted level and $5,000,000 below the budget request.
COMPACT OF FREE ASSOCIATION
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $17,313,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 3,054,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 3,313,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -14,000,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. +259,000
The Committee recommends $3,313,000 for the Compact of Free
Association, $14,000,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $259,000 above the budget request. The Committee
expects the Compact will be renegotiated and therefore the
discretionary stopgap funding will not be necessary in fiscal
year 2013. Further, the Committee finds insufficient
justification to reduce funding for the Enewetak program and
maintains funding at the fiscal year 2012 enacted level.
ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS, INSULAR AFFAIRS
Bill language has been included to provide the Secretary
with authority to redistribute capital improvement funds in
fiscal year 2013 based upon expenditure rates in the
territories.
Office of the Solicitor
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $66,190,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 64,939,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 64,654,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -1,536,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -285,000
The Committee recommends $64,654,000 for Salaries and
Expenses of the Office of the Solicitor, $1,536,000 below the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $285,000 below the budget
request. The detailed allocation of funding by program is
included in the table at the end of this report.
Bill Language.--The bill includes modified language in
Title I General Provisions addressing the trailing of livestock
across public lands. The language modification is necessitated
by the Office of the Solicitor providing information on bill
language to the Committee on Appropriations during development
of the fiscal year 2012 Interior, Environment, and Related
Agencies Appropriations conference report and subsequently
changing its legal interpretation of the language following the
bill's enactment.
Office of Inspector General
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $49,392,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 48,493,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 48,493,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -899,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
The Committee recommends $48,493,000 for Salaries and
Expenses of the Office of Inspector General, $899,000 below the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level and equal to the budget request.
The detailed allocation of funding by program is included in
the table at the end of this report.
Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians
FEDERAL TRUST PROGRAMS
(INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)
The Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians was
established by the American Indian Trust Fund Management Reform
Act of 1994 (Public Law 103-412). The Department of the
Interior is responsible for managing 55 million surface acres
and 57 million acres of subsurface mineral interests for over
300,000 Individual Indian Money (IIM) accounts and over 2,900
trust accounts (over 250 Tribes). On these lands, the
Department of the Interior manages over 100,000 leases for
individual Indians and Tribes. The Department received
approximately $401,000,000 in fiscal year 2011 from leases,
permits, land sale revenues, royalties from mineral resources,
settlements and judgments, and investment income for Individual
Indian Money accounts, and approximately $609,000,000 for
Tribal accounts.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $152,075,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 146,000,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 146,000,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -6,075,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
The Committee recommends $146,000,000 for Federal Trust
Programs, as requested, $6,075,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level. The detailed allocation of funding by program is
included in the table at the end of this report.
DEPARTMENT-WIDE PROGRAMS
Wildland Fire Management
(INCLUDING TRANSFERS OF FUNDS)
The Department's Wildland Fire Management and FLAME
wildfire suppression reserve accounts support fire activities
for the Bureau of Land Management, the National Park Service,
the Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Bureau of Indian
Affairs.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $483,589,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 726,473,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 746,473,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... +262,884,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. +20,000,000
The Committee recommends $746,473,000 for Wildland Fire
Management at the Department of the Interior, $262,884,000
above the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $20,000,000 above
the budget request. The Committee's recommendation, combined
with $92,000,000 recommended in the FLAME wildfire suppression
reserve account, fully funds the 10-year fire suppression
average expenditures. The Committee notes that the dramatic
increase in appropriations compared to fiscal year 2012 is due
to: (1) an increase in the 10-year fire suppression average
expenditures for the Department of the Interior; and (2) the
use of $189,577,000 in emergency carry-over suppression dollars
in fiscal year 2012 to offset appropriations.
Wildfire Preparedness.--The Committee recommends
$279,508,000 for Wildfire Preparedness, as requested,
$2,986,000 above the fiscal year 2012 enacted level. The
Committee believes that the Department and the Forest Service
must work together, along with States and other partners, to
maintain sufficient readiness within the preparedness program.
The Department should immediately notify the Committees on
Appropriations if it appears that funding shortfalls may limit
needed firefighting capacity.
Wildfire Suppression Operations.--The Committee recommends
$276,508,000, as requested, for Wildfire Suppression
Operations, $6,027,000 above the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level. The Committee recommendation, including the FLAME
wildfire suppression reserve fund, fully funds the 10-year fire
suppression average expenditures.
Hazardous Fuels.--The Committee recommends $167,315,000 for
the Hazardous Fuels program, $15,706,000 below the fiscal year
2012 enacted level and $22,000,000 above the budget request.
As stated in the fiscal year 2012 Interior, Environment,
and Related Agencies conference report, the Committee is aware
of the duplication that exists in the Department of the
Interior's wildland fire programs (multiple parallel
organizations in four bureaus with multiple levels to manage
multiple fire activities). The Committee is deeply concerned
about the growth of the Department's Office of Wildland Fire
Coordination in Boise, Idaho, especially with few or no FTE
reductions in other areas. The Committee notes that FTE's for
the Boise office are expected to increase dramatically in
fiscal year 2013 with no identifiable benefit.
The Committee awaits the report required on the
Department's wildland fire programs per the fiscal year 2012
Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies conference report.
Until this report is received, and its recommendations are
approved by the Committee, the Department is directed to
maintain the Office of Wildland Fire Coordination at current
levels.
The Committee again directs the Department to continue
funding hazardous fuels reduction on the highest priority
projects in the highest priority areas rather than spending
funds based on percentages of acres treated in the wildland
urban interface.
The Committee directs the Department to better coordinate
hazardous fuels funding with Department agencies and States to
protect core sage grouse habitat from catastrophic wildfires
using both hazardous fuels dollars to prevent wildfires and
preparedness/suppression dollars to suppress fires. Further,
the Committee expects Department agencies to devote a higher
portion of funds on these efforts.
FLAME Wildfire Suppression Reserve Fund
(INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $91,853,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 92,000,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 92,000,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... +147,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
The Committee recommends $92,000,000 for the FLAME Wildfire
Suppression Reserve Fund, as requested, $147,000 above the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level. As discussed above under the
Wildland Fire Management account, the Committee fully funds the
10-year average expenditure for wildfire suppression.
Central Hazardous Materials Fund
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $10,133,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 9,598,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 9,133,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -1,000,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -465,000
The Committee recommends $9,133,000 for the Central
Hazardous Materials Fund, $1,000,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $465,000 below the budget request.
Natural Resource Damage Assessment and Restoration
NATURAL RESOURCE DAMAGE ASSESSMENT FUND
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $6,253,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 6,263,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 6,000,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -253,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -263,000
The Committee recommends $6,000,000 for the Natural
Resource Damage Assessment Fund, $253,000 below the fiscal year
2012 enacted level and $263,000 below the budget request. The
detailed allocation of funding by program is included in the
table at the end of this report.
Working Capital Fund
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $61,920,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 70,647,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 56,936,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -4,984,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -13,711,000
The Committee recommends $56,936,000 for the Working
Capital Fund, $4,984,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $13,711,000 below the budget request.
The Committee recommends $56,936,000 for the Financial and
Business Management System (FBMS), equal to the fiscal year
2012 enacted level and $10,211,000 below the budget request.
The Committee has not included the requested increase of
$3,500,000 for Cultural and Scientific Collections.
Bill Language.--The Committee has included bill language
from prior years continuing the Department of the Interior's
prohibition on establishing reserves in the appropriated
Working Capital Fund other than for accrued annual leave and
depreciation of equipment without the prior approval of the
House and Senate Committees on Appropriations.
The Committee has continued language from prior years
relating to the Department's ability to recover its costs for
leasing space and providing for training, professional services
and equipment to State, local and tribal government employees
at the National Indian Program Training Center in Albuquerque,
New Mexico. The National Indian Training Center's mission is to
establish partnerships with State, local and tribal governments
for providing educational opportunities in support of the
Department's trust responsibilities to American Indians. Any
funds recovered shall only be available to the National Indian
Program Training Center.
The Committee has also included language, as requested,
providing authority to enter into grants and cooperative
agreements associated with ONRR's minerals revenue collection
and management functions including the State and Tribal Audit
Program. ONNR had such authority under the former Bureau of
Ocean Energy, Management, Regulation and Enforcement prior to
its transfer to the Office of the Secretary.
The Committee has included an Administrative Provision
governing the acquisition of certain aircraft but has not
included the requested authority for the acquisition of 250
unmanned aircraft. The Committee believes the use of certain
unmanned aerial vehicles may be beneficial in supporting a
variety of the Department's natural resource missions. Because
of a number of questions and concerns raised about the aerial
monitoring of public lands, the Committee has requested a
report detailing the specific nature of this work.
General Provisions, Department of the Interior (Including Transfers of
Funds)
Section 101 continues a provision providing for emergency
transfer authority (intra-bureau) with the approval of the
Secretary.
Section 102 continues a provision providing for emergency
transfer authority (Department-wide) with the approval of the
Secretary.
Section 103 continues a provision providing for the use of
appropriations for certain services.
Section 104 continues a provision permitting the transfer
of funds between the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Office of
the Special Trustee for American Indians.
Section 105 continues a provision allowing the Secretary to
pay private attorney fees for employees and former employees in
connection with Cobell v. Salazar.
Section 106 continues a provision allowing Outer
Continental Shelf inspection fees to be collected by the
Secretary of the Interior.
Section 107 continues a provision authorizing the Bureau of
Land Management to implement an oil and gas Internet leasing
program.
Section 108 continues a provision allowing for the
reorganization of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management,
Regulation and Enforcement only in conformance with Committee
reprogramming guidelines.
Section 109 continues a provision allowing the Bureau of
Indian Education to utilize funds recovered from grants or ISDA
contracts to Tribes upon re-assumption of school operations by
the Bureau.
Section 110 continues a provision allowing the Bureau of
Land Management to enter into long-term cooperative agreements
for long-term care and maintenance of excess wild horses and
burros on private land.
Section 111 continues a provision dealing with the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service's responsibilities for mass marking
of salmonid stocks.
Section 112 modifies a provision addressing BLM actions
regarding grazing on public lands.
Section 113 modifies a provision providing for the trailing
of livestock across public lands through fiscal year 2014.
Section 114 continues a provision prohibiting funds to
implement, administer or enforce Secretarial Order 3310 issued
by the Secretary of the Interior on December 22, 2010.
Section 115 makes corrections on claim maintenance fee
amendments.
Section 116 extends by one year the reporting deadline for
the Indian Law and Order Commission to complete its report to
Congress. The Commission's work was delayed by a year due to a
lack of Federal funds.
Section 117 requires the Secretary to make a timely
decision on the matter of a proposal to delist gray wolves.
Section 118 extends National Heritage Area authorities.
Section 119 provides the BLM and BIA with certain hiring
authorities.
TITLE II--ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was created by
Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1970, which consolidated nine
programs from five different agencies and departments. Major
EPA programs include air and water quality, drinking water,
hazardous waste, research, pesticides, radiation, toxic
substances, enforcement and compliance assurance, pollution
prevention, Inland oil spill, Superfund, Brownfields, and the
Leaking Underground Storage Tank program. In addition, EPA
provides Federal assistance for wastewater treatment, sewer
overflow control, drinking water facilities, other water
infrastructure projects, and diesel emission reduction
projects. The Agency is responsible for conducting research and
development, establishing environmental standards through the
use of risk assessment and cost-benefit, monitoring pollution
conditions, seeking compliance through enforcement actions,
managing audits and investigations, and providing technical
assistance and grant support to States and Tribes, which are
delegated authority for much of the program implementation.
Under existing statutory authority, the Agency contributes to
specific homeland security efforts and may participate in
international environmental activities.
Among the statutes for which the Environmental Protection
Agency has sole or significant oversight responsibilities are:
National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended.
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, as
amended.
Toxic Substances Control Act, as amended.
Clean Water Act [Federal Water Pollution Control Act], as
amended.
Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, as amended.
Ocean Dumping Act [Marine Protection, Research, and
Sanctuaries Act of 1972], as amended.
Oil Pollution Act of 1990.
Safe Drinking Water Act [Public Health Service Act (Title
XIV)], as amended.
Solid Waste Disposal Act, as amended by the Resource
Conservation and Recovery Act.
Clean Air Act, as amended.
Great Lakes Legacy Act of 2002.
Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002.
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and
Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA), as amended.
Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields
Revitalization Act of 2002 (amending CERCLA).
Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act of 1986.
Pollution Prevention Act of 1990.
Pollution Prosecution Act of 1990.
Pesticide Registration Improvement Act of 2003.
Energy Policy Act of 2005.
Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007.
For fiscal year 2013, the Committee recommends
$7,055,041,000 for the Environmental Protection Agency,
$1,394,344,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and
$1,289,439,000 below the budget request. The amounts
recommended by the Committee are changes to the request.
Comparison to the budget request and 2012 enacted levels are
shown by account, program area and selected activity in the
table at the end of the report.
Reprogramming.--The Agency is held to the reprogramming
limitation of $1,000,000. This limitation will be applied to
each program area in every account at the levels provided in
the detailed table at the end of this report. This will allow
the Agency the flexibility to reprogram funds within a set
program area. However, where the Committee has cited funding
levels for certain program projects or activities within a
program area, the reprogramming limitation continues to apply
to those funding levels. Further, the Agency may not use any
amount of deobligated funds to initiate a new program, office,
or initiative, without the prior approval of the Committee. The
other guidelines laid out in the ``Reprogramming Guidelines''
section of this report continue to be in effect.
Congressional Budget Justification.--The Committee directs
the Agency to include in future Justifications the following
items: (1) a comprehensive index of programs and activities
within the program projects; (2) the requested bill language,
with changes from the enacted language highlighted, at the
beginning of each account section; (3) a justification for
every program/project, including those proposed for
elimination; (4) a comprehensive, detailed explanation of all
changes within a program project; (5) a table showing
consolidations, realignments or other transfers of resources
and personnel from one program project to another such that the
outgoing and receiving program projects offset and clearly
illustrate a transfer of resources; and, (6) a table listing
the budgets and FTE by major office within each National
Program Management area with pay/non-pay breakouts. The
Committee notes that the Congressional Justification includes
the bill language for each account. The Committee directs the
Agency to highlight and explain any changes to the proposed
bill language in the Congressional Justification.
Science and Technology
The Science and Technology (S&T) account funds all
Environmental Protection Agency research (including Superfund
research activities paid with funds moved into this account
from the Hazardous Substance Superfund account). This account
includes programs carried out through grants, contracts, and
cooperative agreements, cooperative research and development
agreements, and interagency agreements, with other Federal
agencies, States, universities, nonprofit organizations, and
private business, as well as in-house research. It also funds
personnel compensation and benefits, travel, supplies and
operating expenses, including rent, utilities and security, for
all Agency research. Research addresses a wide range of
environmental and health concerns across all environmental
media and encompasses both long-term basic and near-term
applied research to provide the scientific knowledge and
technologies necessary for preventing, regulating, and abating
pollution, and to anticipate emerging environmental issues.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $793,728,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 807,257,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 738,357,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -55,371,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -68,900,000
The Committee recommends $738,357,000 for Science and
Technology, $55,371,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $68,900,000 below the budget request. The Committee
recommends that $22,979,000 be paid to this account from the
Hazardous Substance Superfund account for ongoing research
activities. The changes to the request, as recommended by the
Committee, appear in the table at the end of this report. The
Committee provides the following additional detail by program
area.
Clean Air and Climate.--The Committee recommends
$115,819,000, which is $8,559,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $11,289,000 below the budget request. The
Committee has not provided the requested increase to implement
the Cross-State Air Pollution rule, and maintains funding for
Federal Vehicle and Fuels standards at the fiscal year 2012
enacted level.
Enforcement.--Funding for forensics support has been
maintained at the 2012 enacted level of $15,269,000, which is
$324,000 below the budget request.
IT/Data Management.--Funding has been maintained at the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level of $3,652,000, which is $395,000
below the budget request.
Operations and Administration.--The Committee recommends
$68,970,000 for Facilities Infrastructure and Operations,
$3,049,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and
$6,515,000 below the budget request. The Committee continues to
support plans to reduce energy utilization rates in order to
mitigate rising utility costs.
Pesticide Licensing.--Funding has been maintained at the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level of $6,563,000 which is $535,000
below the budget request.
Research: Air, Climate and Energy.--The Committee
recommends $95,043,000, which is $3,802,000 below the fiscal
year 2012 enacted level and $10,851,000 below the budget
request. From within this amount, $77,195,000 is for Research:
Clean Air and $15,805,000 is for Research: Global Change.
Research: Chemical Safety and Sustainability.--The
Committee recommends $123,047,000, which is $8,241,000 below
the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $11,699,000 below the
budget request.
Research: National Priorities.--The bill provides
$5,000,000 which shall be used for extramural research grants,
independent of the STAR grant program, to fund high-priority
water quality and availability research by not-for-profit
organizations who often partner with the Agency. Funds shall be
awarded competitively with priority given to partners proposing
research of national scope and who provide a 25 percent match.
The Agency is directed to allocate funds to grantees within 180
days of enactment of this Act.
Research: Safe and Sustainable Water Resources.--The
Committee recommends $101,921,000, which is $11,555,000 below
the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $19,269,000 below the
budget request. Within the funds provided, the Committee
supports the requested increase for research to reduce combined
sewer overflow impacts. The Committee has not provided the
requested $4,250,000 increase for additional hydraulic
fracturing research, or the $2,000,000 increase for the new
Southern New England Program. Further, the Committee rejects
the proposed $2,326,000 cut to the innovative research on small
drinking water systems.
Research: Sustainable and Healthy Communities.--The
Committee recommends $152,707,000, which is $18,034,000 below
the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $13,023,000 below the
budget request.
Additional Guidance.--The Committee has included the
following additional guidance with respect to funding provided
under this account.
Endocrine Disruptor Research.--The Committee has
longstanding interest in EPA's effort in determining possible
health and environmental effects of chemicals. To improve
analysis of chemicals, EPA needs to improve its scientific
understanding of chemical properties in order to better inform
the Agency's Contaminant Candidate List as required by the Safe
Drinking Water Act; Air Toxics Strategy as required under the
Clean Air Act; and all required activities under the Toxic
Substances Control Act. EPA is directed to provide a report to
the Committee that details its current and future efforts to
develop approaches to understand the toxicity of chemicals in
terms of molecular ``groups'' or ``families'' based on the
chemical's intrinsic properties. In addition, as part of EPA's
overall efforts to modernize risk assessment protocols, the
Committee encourages EPA to incorporate the various
recommendations of the National Academy of Sciences report,
``Science and Decisions,'' and develop a report on the latest
scientific literature on low-dose toxicity and non-monotonic
dose response curves.
Hydraulic Fracturing.--In 2010, the Committee urged EPA to
research whether there is a relationship between hydraulic
fracturing and drinking water. The Committee understands EPA
has incorporated a review of environmental justice impacts into
this study, which the Committee finds to be outside the scope
of the 2010 language and an inappropriate use of funds. No
funds have been provided in the bill to research environmental
justice impacts related to hydraulic fracturing, and EPA shall
discontinue the use of any resources that may have been
diverted to this subactivity. The Committee directs the Agency
to release the study's findings with respect to whether there
is a relationship between hydraulic fracturing and drinking
water following appropriate public comment as directed in House
Report 112-151 and peer review.
Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS).--The Committee
strongly supports the goals of EPA's IRIS Program and believes
a transparent, robust, and reproducible approach for
synthesizing scientific information is an important element of
influential Federal scientific assessment programs. However, it
has become increasingly clear that fundamental improvements in
the policies and practices of the IRIS program are necessary to
ensure that the assessments developed are firmly based on up-
to-date scientific knowledge, meet the highest of standards of
scientific inquiry, and are evaluated in accordance with
acceptable scientific approaches. Therefore, building from the
directives in the fiscal year 2012 Interior, Environment, and
Related Agencies conference report, the Committee directs the
Agency to take the following actions:
(a) For draft and final IRIS assessments released in fiscal
year 2013, the Agency shall include documentation describing
how the Chapter 7 recommendations of the National Academy of
Sciences (NAS) have been implemented or addressed, including an
explanation for why certain recommendations were not
incorporated.
(b) The Agency shall issue a progress report to the House
and Senate Committees on Appropriations and relevant
Congressional authorizing committees no later than March 1,
2013, describing the IRIS Program's implementation of the
National Research Council's Chapter 7 recommendations.
(c) Accordingly, the Committee directs EPA to re-evaluate,
using acrylonitrile and other relevant assessments as case
studies, the methods previously used to evaluate and interpret
the body of available scientific data, including the weight-of-
evidence approach, and include in the report called for in
section (b) a chapter on whether there are scientifically more
appropriate methods to assess, synthesize and draw conclusions
regarding likely human health effects associated with likely
exposures to the substances.
Laboratory Workforce Planning.--In July 2011, the GAO found
that EPA needs a more coordinated approach to managing its
laboratories. Of particular concern to the Committee, the GAO's
findings reiterated that the Agency has failed to
comprehensively plan for managing its workforce across its
laboratories. The Committee is pleased that the Agency has
identified a number of science-related positions as mission
critical occupations. However, EPA should develop a
comprehensive workforce planning process for all laboratories
that is based on reliable workforce data in order to identify
future needs across all Agency laboratories.
Title 42 Hiring Authority.--The Committee has increased the
authorized cap for Title 42 slots from 30 to 50 in the
Administrative Provisions section. While the Committee
recognizes the world class talent that currently resides within
the Agency, EPA should identify where critical talent gaps
exist and actively recruit accredited scientists with the
knowledge and expertise needed by the Agency. As such, the
Committee continues to direct EPA to use Title 42 authority to
recruit external talent to the Agency.
ToxCast.-- The Committee supports EPA's leadership role in
the creation of a new paradigm for chemical risk assessment
based on the incorporation of advanced molecular biological and
computational methods in lieu of animal toxicity tests. The
Committee encourages EPA to continue to expand its support for
the use of human biology-based experimental and computational
approaches in health research to further define toxicity and
disease pathways and develop tools for their integration into
evaluation strategies. Funding should be made available for the
evaluation of the relevance and reliability of Tox21 methods
and prediction tools to assure readiness and utility for
regulatory purposes, including pilot studies of pathway-based
risk assessments. The Committee directs that EPA provide a
report on associated funding in fiscal year 2013 for the
aforementioned activities and a progress report of Tox21
activities in the fiscal year 2014 Congressional justification,
featuring a five-year plan for projected budgets for the
development of Tox21 methods, and including prediction models
and activities specifically focused on establishing scientific
confidence in them for regulatory applications.
Environmental Programs and Management
The Environmental Programs and Management account
encompasses a broad range of abatement, prevention,
enforcement, and compliance activities, and personnel
compensation, benefits, travel, and expenses for all programs
of the Agency except Science and Technology, Hazardous
Substance Superfund, Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust
Fund, Inland Oil Spill Programs, and the Office of Inspector
General.
Abatement, prevention, and compliance activities include
setting environmental standards, issuing permits, monitoring
emissions and ambient conditions and providing technical and
legal assistance toward enforcement, compliance, and oversight.
In most cases, the States are directly responsible for actual
operation of the various environmental programs, and the
Agency's activities include oversight and assistance.
In addition to program costs, this account funds
administrative costs associated with the operating programs of
the Agency, including support for executive direction, policy
oversight, resources management, general office and building
services for program operations, and direct implementation of
Agency environmental programs for headquarters, the ten EPA
regional offices, and all non-research field operations.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $2,678,222,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 2,817,179,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 2,479,081,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -199,141,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -338,098,000
The Committee recommends $2,479,081,000 for Environmental
Programs and Management, $199,141,000 below the fiscal year
2012 enacted level and $338,098,000 below the budget request.
The changes to the request, as recommended by the Committee,
appear in the table at the end of this report. The Committee
provides the following additional detail by program area:
Brownfields.--The Committee recommends $23,642,000, equal
to the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $2,043,000 below the
budget request. The Committee has not provided funding for the
Smart Growth program, a voluntary interagency partnership
established in 2009 without a Congressional mandate. The
Committee maintains the FTE at the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level as grants in the STAG account have been reduced.
Clean Air and Climate.--The Committee recommends
$256,709,000, $29,399,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $56,486,000 below the budget request. Within the
amount provided, the Committee directs the following changes to
the request:
For the Climate Protection Program, the Committee provides
$84,919,000, which is $14,562,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $23,072,000 below the budget request. The
Committee provides the following program amounts from within
this total: (1) $48,063,000 for the Energy Star program; (2)
$6,400,000 for the Greenhouse Gas Registry; and (3) $25,529,000
for voluntary climate protection programs which divert funds
away from EPA's core mission responsibilities and often lack a
statutory mandate.
For Federal Stationary Source Regulations, the Committee
provides $20,590,000, which is $6,708,000 below the fiscal year
2012 enacted level and $13,552,000 below the budget request.
This amount provided does not include funding for the
greenhouse gas New Source Performance Standards. Further, EPA's
justification identifies 70 air toxics rules that need to be
under development by fiscal year 2013. EPA's regulatory agenda
is out of control and it must be tempered. Further, the
committee disagrees with the proposal to add 24 new Federal
regulators for stationary sources.
For Federal Support for Air Quality Management, the
Committee provides $115,270,000, which is $8,199,000 below the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $19,571,000 below the budget
request. The recommended level includes a $3,100,000 reduction
from the budget request to fund EPA's greenhouse gas stationary
source permitting programs at the fiscal year 2011 enacted
level.
Compliance.--The Committee provides $106,707,000, equal to
the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $18,502,000 below the
budget request.
Enforcement.--The Committee recommends $226,555,000, which
is $23,004,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and
$38,887,000 below the budget request. For fiscal year 2013, EPA
continues to propose increases for the enforcement budget
despite reductions in the FTE levels.
Environmental Protection: National Priorities.--The bill
provides $15,000,000 for a competitive grant program to provide
rural and urban communities with technical assistance to
improve water quality and provide safe drinking water. Of the
amount provided, $13,000,000 shall be for grants to qualified
not-for-profits providing training and technical assistance on
a national level, or multi-state regional basis, and $2,000,000
shall be for grants to qualified not-for-profits to provide
technical assistance to private drinking water well owners. EPA
shall award grants to not-for-profit organizations that provide
at least a 10 percent match, including in-kind contributions.
EPA shall give priority to those organizations that are
supported by a majority of small community water systems or
currently provide assistance to private well owners. The Agency
is directed to allocate funds to grantees within 180 days of
enactment of this Act.
Geographic Programs.--The Committee recommends
$346,261,000, which is $63,458,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $65,441,000 below the budget request. The
Committee has provided funding for programs that support
restoration and protection of our nation's most important water
bodies, as protection of these resources continues to be a
priority for the Committee. From within the amount provided,
the Committee directs the following changes to the request:
Great Lakes Restoration Initiative.--The Committee
recommends $250,000,000 for the Great Lakes Restoration
Initiative (GLRI), $49,520,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $50,000,000 below the budget request. The
GLRI continues to be the largest single recipient of funds
within Geographic Programs, and restoration of the Great Lakes
continues to be a key priority for the Committee. EPA may
distribute the funds provided among the five focus areas but
shall not spend less than the fiscal year 2012 enacted level
for Toxic Substances and Areas of Concern and for the Invasive
Species focus areas. The Committee directs the Agency to
provide a revised spending plan for the Great Lakes program
that includes funding levels for the five focus areas at the
same time the Agency submits its Operating Plan. Once
submitted, changes to the funding amounts for the focus areas
are subject to a reprogramming threshold of $5,000,000. The
Agency is further directed to report quarterly to the
Committees on Appropriations on changes below the threshold.
The Committee is pleased with EPA's recent announcement
establishing a non-governmental advisory board to solicit
stakeholder input in a structured manner. The Committee reminds
EPA and its Federal agency partners that funds for this
initiative are to supplement rather than supplant those funds
already being spent on Great Lakes programs by the agencies
prior to the establishment of the initiative. The Committee
urges the Agency to review the size and scope of its grants to
allow for increased dollar levels for individual projects that
would address the areas of greatest challenge to the long-term
health of the ecosystem even if these projects would result in
an unbalanced distribution of funds throughout the Great Lakes
States.
The Nearshore Health and Nonpoint Source Pollution focus
area under the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative is critical
for maintaining healthy communities within the Great Lakes
region. The Committee directs the EPA and other Federal
partners to prioritize work surrounding algal bloom control to
improve water quality in the Great Lakes, particularly within
the focus area for Nearshore Health and Nonpoint Source
Pollution.
Lastly, the Committee directs EPA and the other Federal
partners to prioritize action oriented projects in lieu of
additional studies, monitoring and evaluations. Sound science
should continue to serve as the backbone for all decisions in
the Great Lakes; however, the Committee expects to see
measurable results from the large increases provided over the
last few fiscal years.
Chesapeake Bay.--The Committee recommends $50,000,000 for
the Chesapeake Bay Program, $7,299,000 below the fiscal year
2012 enacted level and $22,618,000 below the budget request.
From within the amount provided, $8,000,000 is for nutrient and
sediment removal grants and $2,000,000 is for small watershed
grants to control polluted runoff from urban, suburban and
agricultural lands.
Puget Sound.--The Committee provides $29,952,000, equal to
the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $10,663,000 above the
budget request. Funds shall be allocated in the same manner as
directed in House Report 112-331. The Committee directs EPA to
expeditiously obligate funds, in a manner consistent with the
authority and responsibilities under Section 320 and the
National Estuary Program.
Community Action for a Renewed Environment (CARE).--
Consistent with fiscal year 2012 levels, the Committee provides
no funding for the CARE program in fiscal year 2013.
Other Geographic Activities.--The Committee has not
provided funding for the Northwest Forest program as it lacks
demonstrable results.
Information Exchange/Outreach.--The Committee recommends
$115,793,000, which is $14,899,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $23,611,000 below the budget request. The
recommendation provides $43,638,000 for Congressional,
Intergovernmental, and External Relations. From within this
amount, $2,200,000 has been provided for the Administrator's
Immediate Office. The bill provides $4,235,000 for the Office
of Congressional and Intergovernmental Relations, which is
$4,000,000 below the budget request. The Committee is acutely
aware that a backlog of responses to Congressional letters,
informal questions, and questions for the record exists as
Member offices have requested the Committee's assistance to
obtain answers. The consistent lack of responsiveness to
Congressional inquiries has been a pervasive concern raised at
oversight hearings throughout the year and the pattern suggests
a systematic approach to hindering Congressional oversight.
International Programs.--The Committee recommends
$17,604,000, equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and
$1,530,000 below the budget request. Similarly, all program
areas have within the amounts provided been maintained at the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level.
IT/Data Management/Security.--The Committee recommends
$93,689,000, which is $1,036,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $2,072,000 below the budget request.
Legal/Science/Regulatory/Economic Review.--The Committee
recommends $89,234,000, which is $21,518,000 below the fiscal
year 2012 enacted level and $43,218,000 below the budget
request. The Committee has not included funding for the Smart
Growth Program and the Promoting a Greener Economy Initiative
in fiscal year 2013. On average, EPA produces 150 new
regulations per year and the process for the regulatory
development is overseen by the Office of Regulatory Policy and
Management. EPA's regulatory agenda has had a chilling effect
on infrastructure investments and the reductions come not only
at a critical time for reducing spending but also at a time to
reduce the pace of new regulations.
Operations and Administration.--The Committee recommends
$473,695,000, which is $13,388,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $37,503,000 below the budget request. EPA has
the flexibility to redirect any funds from rent or utility
savings in order to meet other identified needs within the
recommended level.
Pesticides Licensing.--The Committee recommends
$110,348,000, equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and
$659,000 below the budget request.
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.--The Committee
recommends $112,469,000, equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $4,829,000 below the budget request. The Committee
has not provided the $2,000,000 request to develop the e-
manifest system. The Committee strongly supports efforts to
build a cost-effective IT system to manage manifest
transactions electronically along with efforts to provide EPA
with the authority to collect user fees to offset the cost to
the taxpayer.
Toxics Risk Review Prevention.--The Committee recommends
$97,678,000, which is $2,293,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $11,529,000 below the budget request. The
endocrine disruptor program is funded at the requested level of
$7,238,000.
Water: Ecosystems.--The Committee recommends $48,174,000,
equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $6,815,000
below the budget request. Funding for the National Estuary
Program/Coastal Waterways and the Wetlands programs has been
maintained at the fiscal year 2012 level. Considering the
October 6, 2011 decision by the Federal District Court for the
District of Columbia in NMA v. Jackson which affirmed a
``statutory ceiling'' for EPA's involvement in the issuance of
Section 404 Clean Water Act permits, the Committee remains
concerned with the backlog of mining permits that still need to
be approved, particularly in Appalachia. The Committee also
remains concerned about the EPA's development of comprehensive
guidance for permitting reviews under the CWA and Surface
Mining Control and Reclamation Act, which has not only
circumvented Congressional prerogatives but also unduly
hampered States' statutory role in implementing federally
approved permitting programs and caused further delays and
hardships in obtaining CWA and SMCRA permits. The Committee
therefore expects EPA will use the funds provided to accelerate
the processing of these mining permits with the Corps of
Engineers. Further, the Committee directs EPA, in consultation
with the Corps of Engineers, to report quarterly on the number
of Section 404 permits under review including: the date
received, the number of days each permit has been under review,
the ``DA number'', the permittee, the project name, the permit
type, geographical information (county and State), and where
action was taken on a permit the report should include
disposition of each permit, and the date issued or remanded.
Water: Human Health Protection.--The Committee recommends
$96,315,000, which is $4,784,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $9,000,000 below the budget request.
Water Quality Protection.--The Committee recommends
$192,188,000, which is $24,566,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $30,973,000 below the budget request.
Additional Guidance.--The Committee has included the
following additional guidance with respect to funding provided
under this account.
Administrator Priorities.--The Committee notes that EPA has
failed to submit the report on Administrator Priorities as
directed in the fiscal year 2012 Interior, Environment, and
Related Agencies conference report. The lack of transparency in
budgeting is troubling particularly for these funds that lack
known performance metrics. As such, no funds have been provided
in the bill, and EPA is directed to submit a report within 90
days of enactment of this Act that identifies how any fiscal
year 2011 and 2012 funding was used, by account, program area,
and program project. Each activity funded should include a
justification for the effort and any anticipated results.
Aerial Compliance Monitoring.--EPA has indicated that the
Agency and States have used aerial over-flights as a cost-
effective tool to verify compliance with environmental laws in
impaired watersheds for nearly a decade. The Committee directs
EPA to submit a report to the House and Senate Committees on
Appropriations within 180 days of enactment of this Act that
identifies by fiscal year: the amount of funding spent to
contract for aerial over-flights, the contractor performing the
work, the number of flights performed, and geographical areas
(county and State) that the contracted flights surveyed. The
report shall include expenditures from fiscal year 2003 to
fiscal year 2012. The report shall also include data that
identifies by fiscal year the number of enforcement actions
where aerial survey information was utilized as contributing
evidence, and the outcome of each action.
Bed Bugs.--The Committee is pleased that EPA has initiated
a process establishing efficacy standards for conventional
pesticides that claim to kill or control bed bugs. However, the
Committee is concerned that EPA has decided not to apply these
standards to products that fall under Section 25(b) of the
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act, where the
greatest abuse of consumers is occurring. These products have
proliferated in the marketplace and many either only kill bed
bugs on contact, or do not work at all, and do not control bed
bug infestations. The Committee encourages EPA to apply any
efficacy standards that it develops for products that claim to
kill or control bed bug infestations to all products that claim
to do so.
Brown Marmorated Stink Bug.--The Committee continues to
encourage EPA's Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution
Prevention to work collaboratively with the U.S. Department of
Agriculture, including the Agricultural Research Service, the
National Institute of Food and Agriculture, and the Animal and
Plant Health Inspection Service, and State partners to
expeditiously approve a control program for the brown
marmorated stink bug as soon as the appropriate agents are
evaluated for release.
Confidential Business Information.--Fundamental
improvements to the policies and practices of the Office of
Pollution Prevention's review and evaluation of confidential
business information (CBI) claims are necessary to ensure that:
legitimate claims for trade secrets and CBI are protected from
disclosure; structurally-descriptive generic names are provided
in lieu of confidential chemical identity; and appropriate
health and safety information is still made available to the
public. The Committee directs that no fiscal year 2013 funds
shall be used to propose or issue any final rules removing
existing regulatory provisions addressing claims of
confidentiality for chemical identity in health and safety
studies under the Toxic Substances Control Act. Further, the
Committee strongly urges EPA to enhance and update its current
guidance on the use and development of structurally-descriptive
generic names to be used in lieu of confidential chemical
identity.
Drinking Water Treatment Compliance Flexibility.--The
Committee recognizes that EPA's Long Term 2 Enhanced Water
Treatment Rule presents significant costs and technical
challenges for systems serving fewer than 100,000 persons. When
setting the compliance schedule, the Committee understands EPA
has provided as much flexibility as it could statutorily offer
under the Safe Drinking Water Act. Nonetheless, the current
timeframes present significant challenges for communities
seeking to annualize the capital investment required to
implement a number of EPA rulemakings. The Committee directs
EPA and the States to work as partners with municipalities who
are progressing in good faith toward complying with the rule
and simply need additional time to minimize volatility in water
utility rates for rate payers. The Committee directs EPA to
convene a working group of Federal, State, and local
stakeholders to discuss options for compliance schedules and
report to the Committee within 180 days of enactment of this
Act about interim options for ensuring protection of human
health and the environment under the rule without the use of an
enforcement action or an administrative order.
Emissions Control Area Pilot.--The Committee has included
bill language in Title IV General Provisions establishing a
pilot program for vessels to demonstrate alternative methods to
comply with international emissions standards. The
participating vessel owners will report to EPA utilizing simple
averaging and weighted averaging methodologies to be agreed
upon, and including utilization of shore power where available.
The EPA Administrator will report to the Committees on
Appropriations on the effectiveness of the equivalent methods
of compliance, the results of the modeling and atmospheric
testing, the availability of low sulfur fuel, and recommended
modifications to the next phase of implementation in order to
ensure achievement of the human health objectives of the
International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from
Ships, 1973/78 (MARPOL), Annex VI, Regulation 4 in as cost-
effective manner as possible.
Exceptional Events.--The Committee is aware that on May 2,
2011 EPA released its Draft Guidance on the Implementation of
the Exceptional Rule in order to ``clarify key provisions of
the 2007 Exceptional Events Rule to respond to questions and
issues that have arisen since the rule was promulgated.'' After
receiving comments, EPA has not revised its guidance or
proposed revisions to a new Exceptional Events Rule. The
Committee directs EPA to take the necessary steps to implement
an approach to exclude from air quality data exceedences of air
quality standards caused by so-called exceptional events, or
events that are not reasonably controllable or preventable,
that maximizes transparency and predictability for States,
Tribes, and local governments and minimizes the regulatory and
cost burdens States, Tribes, and local governments bear.
Further, EPA is directed to provide a report within 180 days of
enactment of this Act that includes by Region the annual number
of submitted exceptional event demonstrations as well as the
number approved, disapproved, and withdrawn from March 2007
through May 2011.
Endocrine Disruptors.--The Committee recognizes that EPA is
continuing to extend existing long-term reproduction studies in
birds, fish, and other species to two- or multi-generation
tests for the Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program (EDSP). The
Committee is also aware that EPA is considering replacing the
two-generation mammalian study with an extended one-generation
test on the basis of an international review of rat
reproduction studies that shows the lack of utility of a second
generation. The Committee directs EPA to maximize the
efficiency of each protocol and minimize unnecessary costs and
animal use by assessing the utility (including sensitivity,
specificity and value of information added relative to the
assessment of endocrine disruption) of each endpoint in the
study, including specifically the need to produce more than one
generation of offspring in the bird, fish, and amphibian EDSP
Tier 2 tests and issue a public report on its findings for
comment. The Committee also directs EPA to determine what
information the Agency requires to assess and manage potential
risks to human health and the environment in regards to
endocrine disruption, to minimize unnecessary endocrine
screening and testing, and to use existing scientific data in
lieu of requiring new data, when possible. The Committee
understands that EPA is currently working with OECD to develop
and modify EDSP methods. EPA should work within the framework
and timing of the OECD Test Guideline work plan to minimize
duplicative efforts.
Navajo Generating Station.--The Committee is aware that, in
2009, EPA announced its intention to issue a rule for
controlling emissions from Northern Arizona's Navajo Generating
Station (NGS) that could affect visibility in Class I Areas
under the Clean Air Act (CAA). Since then, EPA has collected
information on the five statutory factors the CAA requires for
determining which technologies constitute the Best Available
Retrofit Technology (BART) for NGS. EPA previously indicated
promulgation of a rule to determine what control technology
constitutes BART for NGS was imminent and would be issued early
in 2012. Yet, the Administrator testified at the fiscal year
2013 budget hearing that a proposal could be expected in ``late
summer'' of 2012. The economic impacts of the options being
considered could have dramatic impacts on tribal stakeholders,
the State's economy, and Arizona water users, with even the
timing of the proposal being influential to the on-going
operation of the Station itself. Given the duration of this
process and the recent completion of the National Renewable
Energy Laboratory study, the Committee urges EPA to issue a
proposed rule as soon as possible.
Personnel and Full Time Equivalents.--The Committee remains
concerned about the distribution of regional FTE to
headquarters and the Agency is directed to bring the
headquarters FTE in line with the regional FTE. EPA is also
directed to cap its FTE level at no more than the fiscal year
2010 level of 16,594, which is consistent with the direction
provided in the fiscal year 2012 Interior, Environment, and
Related Agencies conference report. The Committee believes EPA
can achieve this reduction of 515 FTE from the budget request
with the funding provided.
Regional Haze.--The Committee appreciates EPA's recent work
with States to identify cost-effective solutions to address
regional haze issues. However, concerns remain about which
modeling tools and cost estimates are the most appropriate. The
Committee believes the process for reviewing State
implementation plans would be well-served if EPA, States, and
industry worked collaboratively to ensure that dispersion
models are continually improved and updated to ensure the most
accurate predictions of visibility impacts, as well as a
uniform set of cost estimates. The bill includes language
directing EPA to initiate an update of its Air Pollution
Control Cost Manual, which was last published in 2002. In
addition, the Committee encourages EPA to work with all
stakeholders to establish other methods to ensure accurate
estimates of the cost of compliance, including the costs of new
emissions control technology. The bill also includes language
directing EPA to formally initiate a necessary dialogue between
the Agency, modeling experts, and other stakeholders that may
result in updates to EPA's approved modeling techniques. As
part of that discussion, the Committee encourages EPA to
establish guidelines for how the Agency will analyze future
updates of CALPUFF and other dispersion models.
Reporting of Official Time.--The Committee notes that
official time authorized by the Agency for labor unions that
are the exclusive representative of Agency employees has
steadily increased from fiscal year 2009 through fiscal year
2011. In light of resource constraints, the Committee expects
that both official time and the associated support are properly
managed and efficiently used. The Agency shall provide a
consolidated report on union official time which includes: time
and attendance data; salaries and expenses; cost estimates for
dedicated office space, equipment, information technology
services, travel and Per Diem for fiscal year 2012 within 90
days of the end of the fiscal year. In addition, the Agency
will provide consolidated information concerning the deduction
of dues and the allotment of those dues to the exclusive
representative. Further, the report will reflect information on
any authorized full-time union positions.
Risk Management Plans.--The Committee is troubled by the
EPA announcement that it intends to make risk management plans
publicly available via its website, reversing a longstanding
practice of making those documents available only upon request
or as a hard copy. The Committee directs EPA to maintain its
practice of only releasing all Risk Management Plan information
pursuant to a FOIA request or in EPA reading rooms.
Rodenticides.--The Committee is aware the proposed
cancellation of consumer uses of second-generation
anticoagulant rodenticides could lead to a significant loss in
the effectiveness of rodent control. Moreover, the Scientific
Advisory Panel that raised the aforementioned concerns has also
commented that EPA failed to appropriately address the social
benefits of these more effective rodenticides and the loss
therein of these benefits if EPA were to cancel the consumer
use of second generation anticoagulants. Before taking further
cancellation actions, the Committee expects EPA will respond to
the comments of the Scientific Advisory Panel, address relevant
concerns with the risk assessment, and more appropriately
consider the potential impacts of rodent resistance in the
United States, the economic and public health consequences of
the proposed cancellation, and the benefits of having second
generation rodenticides available for consumer use as allowable
under FIFRA. The Committee urges EPA to discontinue the
proposed cancellation if the Agency is unable to demonstrate
how the risk of consumer use of second-generation anticoagulant
rodenticides exceeds the benefits.
Sanitation Infrastructure in Indian Country.--The Committee
is concerned about the lack of sanitation infrastructure in
Indian country and Alaska Native Villages. In collaboration
with the Indian Health Service and the Bureau of Indian
Affairs, the Environmental Protection Agency is directed to
report to the Committee on a unified strategy across the
relevant government agencies to correct these sanitation
deficiencies over a 10-year period. EPA shall provide this
report within six months of enactment of this Act.
State Role in Clean Air Act Implementation.--It has come to
the Committee's attention that the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) has been moving forward with implementation of the
Clean Air Act in a manner that appears in contravention of the
Act's goal of State primacy in critical air quality decision-
making. EPA has a statutory requirement to act on submitted
State implementation plans (SIPs). However, EPA's delays in the
State implementation plan approval process have invited
lawsuits by nongovernmental organizations and resulted in
negotiated agreements that yield Federal intervention rather
than State-driven regulatory outcomes. The Committee directs
EPA to implement the Clean Air Act in a manner that maximizes
Congress' intent for the States to play the lead role in
relevant air quality regulatory decisions. In addition, EPA is
directed to provide this Committee, not later than 180 days
after the date of enactment of this Act, a report that lists,
by region, all State implementation plan submittals that are
currently before EPA, including descriptions of each such
submittal and an indication for each such submittal as to
whether such submittal has been before the Agency for longer
than the statutory time period for required action.
TSCA Self-Certification.--The Committee directs the
Administrator, in consultation with the Secretary of
Transportation, to review the TSCA self-certification process
to ensure vessel owners are not abusing the process to avoid
the costs associated with responsible vessel recycling, and
report findings to the Committee within 180 days of enactment
of this Act.
Office of Inspector General
The Office of Inspector General (OIG) provides audit,
evaluation, and investigation products and advisory services to
improve the performance and integrity of EPA programs and
operations. The Inspector General (IG) will continue to perform
the function of IG for the Chemical Safety and Hazard
Investigation Board. This account funds personnel compensation
and benefits, travel, and expenses (excluding rent, utilities,
and security costs) for the Office of Inspector General. In
addition to the funds provided under this heading, this account
receives funds from the Hazardous Substance Superfund account.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $41,933,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 48,273,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 41,933,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... 0
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -6,340,000
The Committee recommends $41,933,000, equal to the fiscal
year 2012 level and $6,340,000 below the budget request. In
addition, the Committee recommends $9,939,000 as a payment to
this account from the Hazardous Substance Superfund account,
equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted level.
The IG is directed to continue to submit quarterly staffing
reports to Congress until such time as the Committee informs
the Inspector General that the quarterly staffing reports are
no longer required.
The Committee has again included authorization for the EPA
IG to serve as the IG for the Chemical Safety and Hazard
Investigation Board.
Buildings and Facilities
The Buildings and Facilities account provides for the
design and construction of EPA-owned facilities as well as for
the repair, extension, alteration, and improvement of
facilities used by the Agency. The funds are used to correct
unsafe conditions, protect health and safety of employees and
Agency visitors, and prevent deterioration of structures and
equipment.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $36,370,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 41,969,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 36,370,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... 0
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -5,599,000
The Committee recommends $36,370,000, equal to the fiscal
year 2012 enacted level and $5,599,000 below the budget
request. The Committee supports the proposed projects that will
reduce Agency operational and rent costs. EPA should prioritize
projects based on anticipated cost savings and allocate funds
accordingly.
Hazardous Substance Superfund
The Hazardous Substance Superfund (Superfund) program was
established in 1980 by the Comprehensive Environmental
Response, Compensation, and Liability Act to clean up emergency
hazardous materials, spills, and dangerous, uncontrolled, and/
or abandoned hazardous waste sites. The Superfund Amendments
and Reauthorization Act (SARA) expanded the program
substantially in 1986, authorizing approximately $8,500,000,000
in revenues over five years. In 1990, the Omnibus Budget
Reconciliation Act extended the program's authorization through
1994 for $5,100,000,000 with taxing authority through calendar
year 1995.
The Superfund program is operated by EPA subject to annual
appropriations from a dedicated trust fund and from general
revenues. Enforcement activities are used to identify and
induce parties responsible for hazardous waste problems to
undertake cleanup actions and pay for EPA oversight of those
actions. In addition, responsible parties have been required to
cover the cost of fund-financed removal and remedial actions
undertaken at spills and waste sites by Federal and State
agencies. Funds are paid from this account to the Office of
Inspector General and Science and Technology accounts for
Superfund related activities.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $1,213,808,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 1,176,431,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 1,164,917,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -48,891,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -11,514,000
The Committee recommends $1,164,917,000 for the Hazardous
Substance Superfund program, $48,891,000 below the fiscal year
2012 enacted level and $11,514,000 below the budget request.
The changes to the request, as recommended by the Committee,
appear in the table at the end of this report. The Committee
provides the following additional detail by program area.
Audits, Evaluations, and Investigations.--The Committee
recommends $9,939,000, equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $925,000 below the budget request.
Compliance.--The Committee recommends $1,221,000, equal to
the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $2,000 below the budget
request.
Enforcement.--The Committee has provided $169,408,000,
which is $17,327,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level
and $15,000,000 below the budget request.
Indoor Air and Radiation.--The Committee recommends
$2,468,000, equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and
$169,000 below the budget request.
Legal/Science/Regulatory/Economic Review.--The Committee
recommends $1,526,000, equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $106,000 below the budget request.
Operations and Administration.--The Committee recommends
$130,758,000, which is $5,000,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $9,623,000 below the budget request.
Superfund Cleanup.--The Committee has provided
$769,649,000, which is $26,231,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $14,434,000 above the budget request. Within
this amount the Committee has provided $546,771,000 for the
Remedial program, $15,000,000 above the budget request. The
Committee is disappointed that the President's budget requested
deep cuts for the Remedial program while proposing marginal
reductions or increases for other Superfund line items. The
Committee finds this to be the wrong distribution of funds for
the Superfund account. Similarly, the President's budget
proposes to reduce four of the six performance metrics for the
program including reductions in the number of annual
``construction completes'' and ``sites ready for anticipated
reuse.'' The Committee finds this to be the wrong policy for
addressing the nation's most contaminated hazardous waste
sites.
Bill Language.--Bill language authorizing transfers to the
Science and Technology account, and the Office of Inspector
General account, has not been included. Such transfer authority
is not essential to ensuring funding will be allocated for
Superfund research and Inspector General reviews. As shown in
the table at the end of this report, the bill has maintained
funding for both Superfund research and for Superfund audits,
evaluations, and investigations at the fiscal year 2012 enacted
levels.
Additional Guidance.--The Committee has included the
following additional guidance with respect to funding provided
under this account:
Financial Assurance.--The Committee is concerned that the
promulgation of new financial responsibility requirements
pursuant to section 108(b) of the Comprehensive Environmental
Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C.
9608(b)) will impose a severe economic burden on industries of
the United States. Such a result would directly conflict with
the President's general principles of regulation as provided in
Executive Order No. 13563 of January 18, 2011, which include
``promoting economic growth . . . and job creation''. The
Committee directs the Administrator of the Environmental
Protection Agency to complete a thorough analysis of the
capacity of the financial and credit markets to provide the
necessary instruments (surety bonds, letters of credit,
insurance, and trusts) for meeting any new financial
responsibility requirements pursuant to section 108(b) of the
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and
Liability Act of 1980 (42 U.S.C. 9608(b)). Until the
Administrator demonstrates that such an analysis has been
completed, the Committee provides no funds for the
Environmental Protection Agency to develop, propose, finalize,
implement, enforce, or administer any regulation that would
establish any such new financial responsibility requirements.
The Environmental Protection Agency should not, as a matter of
policy and in this strained economy, impose a new regulatory
program on industries of the United States if the financial and
credit markets cannot serve the demand for additional financial
assurance.
Superfund Special Accounts.--The Committee is encouraged by
the steps EPA has taken toward the effective centralized
management of Superfund special accounts. However, the
Committee remains concerned about the pace at which the $1.8
billion in balances residing in Special Accounts is spent. The
Committee directs EPA to report to the Committees on
Appropriations within 120 days of enactment of this Act on the
practical and legal implications of re-prioritizing funds
planned for future-year activities (such as five year reviews)
to cleanup activities addressing human health and environmental
concerns in the near-term. The report should evaluate
alternative uses for these funds, including short-term
activities to reduce or eliminate human exposures and
groundwater migration.
In addition, the Committee is concerned the special exhibit
found in Appendix A of the Congressional justification does not
provide information on the multi-year availability or the
geographic use of the funds. The Committee directs EPA to
incorporate the Superfund special accounts exhibit into the
Superfund section of the Congressional justification, add a new
table to the exhibit showing the available balance at the
beginning and end of year, receipts, interest, obligations,
reclassifications, and transfers to the Trust fund for the
prior year, current year, and budget year. EPA should also
include a separate table that breaks out the prior year data
outlined above by EPA region.
Superfund Alternative Sites.--The Committee continues to
direct the Agency to report annually, by Region, on the sites
using the Superfund Alternative Approach Agreements, including
intramural and extramural costs.
Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund Program
Subtitle I of the Solid Waste Disposal Act, as amended by
the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act, authorized
the establishment of a response program for cleanup of releases
from leaking underground storage tanks. Owners and operators of
facilities with underground tanks must demonstrate financial
responsibility and bear initial responsibility for cleanup. The
Federal trust fund is funded through the imposition of a motor
fuel tax of one-tenth of a cent per gallon.
In addition to State resources, the Leaking Underground
Storage Tanks (LUST) Trust Fund provides funding to clean up
sites, enforces necessary corrective actions and recovers costs
expended from the Fund for cleanup activities. The underground
storage tank response program is designed to operate primarily
through cooperative agreements with States. Funds are also used
for grants to non-State entities, including Indian Tribes,
under Section 8001 of the Resource Conservation and Recovery
Act. The Energy Policy Act of 2005 expanded the authorized
activities of the Fund to include the underground storage tank
program. In 2006, Congress amended section 9508 of the Internal
Revenue Code to authorize expenditures from the trust fund for
prevention and inspection activities.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $104,142,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 104,117,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 104,117,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -25,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
The Committee recommends $104,117,000 for the Leaking
Underground Storage Tank (LUST) Trust Fund Program, $25,000
below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and equal to the
budget request.
Inland Oil Spill Programs
This appropriation, authorized by the Federal Water
Pollution Control Act, as amended by the Oil Pollution Act of
1990, provides funds to prepare for and prevent releases of oil
and other petroleum products in navigable waterways. In
addition, EPA is reimbursed for incident specific response
costs through the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund managed by the
United States Coast Guard.
EPA is responsible for directing all cleanup and removal
activities posing a threat to public health and the
environment; conducting site inspections; providing a means to
achieve cleanup activities by private parties; reviewing
containment plans at facilities; reviewing area contingency
plans; pursuing cost recovery of fund-financed cleanups; and
conducting research of oil cleanup techniques. Funds for this
appropriation are provided through the Oil Spill Liability
Trust Fund which is composed of fees and collections made
through provisions of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990, the
Comprehensive Oil Pollution Liability and Compensation Act, the
Deepwater Port Act of 1974, the Outer Continental Shelf Lands
Act Amendments of 1978, and the Federal Water Pollution Control
Act, as amended. Pursuant to law, the Trust Fund is managed by
the United States Coast Guard.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $18,245,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 23,531,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 18,223,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -22,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -5,308,000
The Committee recommends $18,223,000 for the Inland Oil
Spill program, $22,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level
and $5,308,000 below the budget request. The Committee has not
provided additional funds and FTE requested for increased
facility inspections under the latest SPCC rule, but recognizes
these activities will be a priority within base funds.
State and Tribal Assistance Grants
The State and Tribal Assistance Grants (STAG) account
provides grant funds for programs operated primarily by State,
local, tribal and other governmental partners. The account
includes two broad types of funds: (1) Infrastructure
Assistance, which is used primarily by local governments for
projects supporting environmental protection; and, (2)
Categorical Grants, which assist State and tribal governments
and other environmental partners with the operation of
environmental programs. The account also includes specific
program grants such as competitive Brownfields grants and
diesel emissions reduction grants.
In the STAG account, EPA provides funding for
infrastructure projects through two State Revolving Funds
(Clean Water and Drinking Water), geographic specific projects
in Alaskan Native Villages and on the United States-Mexico
Border, Brownfields revitalization projects, diesel emission
reduction grants, and other targeted infrastructure projects.
The State Revolving Funds (SRFs) provide Federal financial
assistance to protect the Nation's water resources. The Clean
Water SRF helps eliminate municipal discharge of untreated or
inadequately treated pollutants and thereby helps maintain or
restore the country's water to a swimmable and/or fishable
quality. The Clean Water SRF provides resources for municipal,
inter-municipal, State, and interstate agencies and tribal
governments to plan, design, and construct wastewater
facilities and other projects, including non-point source,
estuary, stormwater, and sewer overflow projects. The Safe
Drinking Water SRF finances improvements to community water
systems so that they can achieve compliance with the mandates
of the Safe Drinking Water Act and continue to protect public
health.
Many of the major Federal environmental statutes include
provisions that allow the Federal government, through EPA, to
delegate to the States and Tribes the day-to-day management of
environmental programs or to approve State and Tribal
environmental programs. The Federal statutes were designed to
recognize the States as partners and co-regulators, allowing
the States to issue and enforce permits, carry out inspections
and monitoring, and collect data. To assist the States in this
task, the statutes also authorized EPA to provide grants to the
States and Tribes. These grants, which cover every major aspect
of environmental protection, include those programs authorized
by sections 319 and 106 of the Clean Water Act (Federal Water
Pollution Control Act, as amended) (for non-point source
pollution and the water quality permits programs), sections 105
and 103 of the Clean Air Act (for State and Local air quality
management programs), section 128 of CERCLA (for State and
tribal response programs), section 1443(a) of the Safe Drinking
Water Act (for public water system supervision), and section
3011 of RCRA (for the implementation of State hazardous waste
programs).
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $3,612,937,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 3,355,723,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 2,602,043,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -1,010,894,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -753,680,000
The Committee recommends $2,602,043,000 for the State and
Tribal Assistance Grants account, $1,010,894,000 below the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $753,680,000 below the
budget request. The changes to the request, as recommended by
the Committee, appear in the table at the end of this report.
The Committee provides the following additional detail by
program area:
Infrastructure Assistance.--For infrastructure assistance,
the Committee recommends $1,608,000,000, which is $916,124,000
below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $545,291,000 below
the budget request.
During calendar year 2009, the Committee provided over $11
billion for water and wastewater infrastructure assistance.
Since then, the Committee provided an additional $4.87 billion
for fiscal years 2011 and 2012. As a result, EPA has $2.4
billion in unobligated SRF balances yet to be transferred to
States. In addition, the States have yet to spend nearly $5
billion that the Federal government has allocated for drinking
water and wastewater projects. The Committee believes that EPA
and the States must aggressively put this $7.4 billion on to
projects in order to address the pressing infrastructure needs
facing the nation. The bill provides funding at the fiscal year
2008 enacted levels for the Clean Water and Drinking Water
State Revolving Funds: $689,000,000 and $829,000,000
respectively.
The Committee continues bill language to allow EPA and the
States to provide additional forms of subsidy to those
communities which cannot afford the below market rates provided
by an SRF loan. These subsidies will apply to 20 to 30 percent
of the funds appropriated for the SRFs. The Committee has
carried forward this authority recognizing that many small,
rural and/or disadvantaged communities do not have the
resources to borrow from the SRFs with the responsibility to
pay back the loan, even with the lower interest rate. The
Committee directs the Agency to submit a report within 180 days
of enactment of this Act detailing how EPA and the States have
used this authority including information on the number and
amounts of loans awarded with additional subsidization,
recipient communities, and descriptions of projects funded.
The Committee has not included bill language mandating that
States must use SRF grants for green infrastructure projects.
While decentralized, alternative infrastructure projects may
prove to be an important component in the efforts to improve
and restore our waters, it should not be a mandatory function
of the State Revolving Funds.
Alaska Native Villages.--The Committee has not included
funding for this unauthorized grant program in fiscal year 2013
recognizing that low income and disadvantaged communities may
apply for water and wastewater infrastructure funding through
the State Revolving Funds. Additional subsidies are available
for those communities that may not be able to afford the
traditional low-interest SRF loans.
Brownfields Infrastructure Projects.--The Committee has
provided $60,000,000 for Brownfields Infrastructure Projects,
$34,848,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and
$33,291,000 below the budget request. The Committee supports
the continued work of the Brownfields program, but at a reduced
rate.
Diesel Emissions Reductions Grants (DERA).--The Committee
maintains funding for DERA grants at $30,000,000, which is
$48,000 above the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and
$15,000,000 above the budget request.
U.S.-Mexico Border.--The Committee has not included funding
for these regional water infrastructure project grants given
that funding is available for these projects through the Clean
and Drinking Water State Revolving funds.
Categorical Grants.--For categorical grants to States and
other environmental partners for the implementation of
delegated programs, the Committee recommends $994,043,000,
which is $94,770,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level
and $208,389,000 below the budget request. The changes to the
request, as recommended by the Committee, appear in the table
at the end of this report. Further, no funds have been provided
for greenhouse gas permitting grants, or for the greenhouse gas
reporting rule under the State and Local Air Quality Management
budget line.
State and Local Air Quality Management Grant Program.--The
Committee directs EPA to allocate funds for this program using
the same formula as fiscal year 2012.
Bill Language.--The Committee recommends the following
changes to the proposed STAG bill language:
(1) deletes the green infrastructure requirement for
the State Revolving Funds;
(2) deletes the authorization for the United States-
Mexico Border infrastructure grants;
(3) deletes the authorization for the Alaska Native
Villages infrastructure grants;
(4) sets the additional subsidization requirement for
the State Revolving Funds between 20 and 30 percent;
(5) removes a limitation on the amount of Clean Water
State Revolving Funds that may be available for
additional subsidization; and
(6) deletes the language authorizing additional
Section 106 grants for nutrient reductions.
Additional Guidance.--The Committee has included the
following additional guidance with respect to funding provided
under this account:
Brownfields Technical Assistance Centers.--Within the funds
provided for State and Tribal Assistance Grants, $2,000,000 is
included for the EPA's Technical Assistance to Brownfields
Communities program.
Administrative Provisions
(INCLUDING TRANSFER AND RESCISSION OF FUNDS)
The Committee recommendation continues the language,
carried in prior years, concerning Tribal Cooperative
Authority, the collection and obligation of pesticides fees,
and additional transfer authorities for the purposes of
implementing the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative.
The Committee has not included proposed bill language to
allow EPA to use funds to implement the Community Action for a
Renewed Environment (CARE) projects. Funding has not been
provided for the CARE program in fiscal year 2013.
The Committee has expanded upon the President's proposal to
rescind prior year funds. Bill language has been included to
rescind $130,000,000 from the STAG and Superfund accounts.
The Committee has included bill language authorizing up to
$150,000 to be spent for facility repairs at any one time.
The Committee has increased the authorized cap for Title 42
slots from 30 to 50. Upon receiving the authority in fiscal
year 2006, EPA was allocated 30 slots and EPA indicates it will
fill all 30 positions by the end of fiscal year 2012.
Therefore, the Committee finds that an increase in the cap is
warranted.
Bill language authorizing oil spill transfer authority has
not been included as the Administration has repeatedly failed
to demonstrate why administrative delays in reimbursement from
the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund should be a Congressional
issue. The Administration's proposal to eliminate the
Congressional reporting requirement further demonstrates that
the Administration prefers flexibility rather than a resolution
to the problem. As such, the Committee has no desire to
entertain the Administration's proposal for a second year.
Bill language has not been included authorizing new Energy
STAR user fees.
TITLE III--RELATED AGENCIES
Department of Agriculture
FOREST SERVICE
The U.S. Forest Service manages 193 million acres of
National Forests, Grasslands, and a Tallgrass Prairie,
including lands in 44 States and the Commonwealth of Puerto
Rico, and cooperates with States, other Federal agencies,
Tribes and private landowners to sustain the Nation's forests
and grasslands. The Forest Service administers a wide variety
of programs, including forest and rangeland research, State and
private forestry assistance, cooperative forest health
programs, an international program, National Forest System, and
wildland fire management. The National Forest System (NFS)
includes 155 national forests, 20 National grasslands, 20
National recreation areas, a National Tallgrass prairie, six
National monuments, and six land utilization projects. The NFS
is managed for multiple uses, beginning with wood, water and
forage, and expanded under the Multiple Use Sustained Yield Act
to include recreation, grazing, fish and wildlife habitat
management. The Forest Service celebrated its centennial in
2005.
Health and Vitality of National Forests.--The Committee is
deeply concerned about the declining health of our national
forests and mortality due to insects, disease, and catastrophic
wildfire. As a result, the Committee has made active forest
management the priority in its recommendations. Numerous
scientific studies have shown that proactive management results
in more resilient forested landscapes that are less susceptible
to insects, disease, and other threats. The Committee applauds
the Forest Service's document, ``Increasing the Pace of
Restoration and Job Creation on Our National Forests'',
including the plans to expand collaborative landscape
partnerships, improve the efficiency of the planning process
for restoration projects, and improve implementation and the
efficiency of contracts. However, the Committee notes that the
Forest Service must move more expeditiously than outlined in
the document to prevent additional, large-scale forest health
problems. The Committee encourages the Forest Service to
consider innovative and creative management solutions including
geo-spatial analysis to determine the best and most effective
means of managing the Nation's forests.
USDA Administrative Solutions Services Project.--The
Committee is concerned by the lack of transparency surrounding
the Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Administrative Solutions
Services Project, also referred to as the Blueprint for
Stronger Service. The Department has neither consulted with
Congress regarding proposed or implemented reorganizations and
restructurings nor has the Department submitted appropriate
reprogramming requests as required in the report accompanying
the fiscal year 2012 Omnibus Appropriations Act. The Committee
has received disturbing reports from employees across various
USDA Mission Areas that reveal a lack of analysis of business
functions, poor data quality, inconsistent approaches between
agencies, and an absence of cost savings or other efficiencies
that justify the radical changes proposed. Therefore, within
available funds, the Committee directs the Department of
Agriculture to award a grant or contract to the National
Academy of Public Administration, an independent, nonpartisan
organization chartered by Congress, to conduct an in-depth
review of this effort as it affects the Forest Service. This
review will examine: the basis and case for change; the
analysis used to generate recommendations; the standards and
benchmarks used to evaluate the current state; and, the
criteria used for driving decisions.
Forest Service Washington and regional offices.--The
Committee is concerned about the amount of resources devoted to
the Forest Service's Washington Office and nine regional
offices. The Committee believes that regional offices should
carry out the goals of the Forest Service Chief instead of
creating new initiatives or policies. Additional resources need
to be devoted to much-needed projects and on-the-ground
management of national forests. The Committee was extremely
dismayed to learn that some national forests did not receive an
increased allocation from the region even with a significant
funding increase in a program. In light of limited funding, the
Committee directs the Forest Service to examine the amount of
personnel and resources in these offices to identify
duplicative functions. The Forest Service should include these
findings and recommendations in its fiscal year 2014 budget
request.
FOREST AND RANGELAND RESEARCH
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $295,300,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 292,796,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 247,796,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -47,504,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -45,000,000
The Committee recommends $247,796,000 for Forest and
Rangeland Research, $47,504,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $45,000,000 below the budget request.
The Committee is deeply concerned about the Forest and
Rangeland Research program noting that many research stations
have fixed costs that exceed 90 percent of their budget with no
long-term plan to remedy this problem. The Committee is also
concerned that there is a lack of coordination between research
stations, the Washington Office, regional offices and national
forests.
Forest Inventory and Analysis.--The Committee recommends
$71,805,000 for the Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA)
program, $5,000,000 above the budget request. The Committee
supports the proposed consolidation of the FIA program into one
line item. The Committee finds that State forestry agencies and
their cooperators are often able to accomplish critical FIA
work with equal quality at lower costs than the Forest Service.
The Forest Service is directed to work with State foresters to
identify ways to more efficiently deliver the program in all
States, including timely inventory updates, and should explore
opportunities to work with additional State forestry agencies
and their cooperators who can accomplish necessary field work
at lower cost.
Localized Needs Research.--The fiscal year 2012 Interior,
Environment, and Related Agencies conference report
specifically directed the Forest Service to expand its
localized needs research in support of project development on
national forests, yet the budget request reduces funding of
localized needs by $10,000,000. The Committee once again
directs the Forest Service to expand its localized needs
research beyond the fiscal year 2012 enacted level.
Specifically, the Committee encourages the Forest Service to
continue and complete research on the effectiveness of Multiple
Indicator Monitoring for measuring bank alteration. The
Committee also directs additional research on whether Multiple
Indicator Monitoring and other bank stability measures are
effective in predicting actual harm to fish.
Wolverine Research.--The Committee strongly supports the
research conducted on interactions between wolverines and
winter recreation use and expects the Forest Service to
continue to fund robust research on this issue with resources
provided under the Forest and Rangeland Research program.
Bighorn Sheep Research.--The management of domestic sheep
within the range of bighorn sheep on national forests and
public lands, particularly the possibility of disease
transmission and spread within bighorn sheep herds, is of major
concern to the Committee.
In fiscal year 2012, the Committee included a one-year
moratorium on reductions to domestic sheep grazing due to
concerns over potential disease transmission. However, the
Committee recognizes that, over the long term, such decisions
by either future Congresses or Federal agencies must be guided
by the application of sound science, both with respect to the
biological factors related to the pathogens for which bighorns
seem to be susceptible, but also to the risks of disease
transmission between the two species in the wild. Such
information is vital to both sound decisions by agency managers
and to a greater public acceptance of those decisions.
As referenced in the Consolidated and Further Continuing
Appropriations Act of 2012, the Appropriations Subcommittees
for Agriculture have directed the Agricultural Research Service
(ARS) to increase its involvement in bighorn sheep disease
research. Building on these efforts, the Committee directs the
Forest Service to work diligently with the ARS in the
development of scientifically defensible analyses, specifically
on the probability of sufficient contact for pathogen
transmission and, if there is transmission, the probability of
disease and spread of the disease to the herd in the wild. The
Committee is not convinced that this important step was
thoroughly addressed in the Payette National Forest's Final
Environmental Impact Statement and Record of Decision announced
on July 28, 2010 and further directs the Forest Service to
cooperate fully with the ARS in a review of the risk analysis
and assessment portions in that decision, with the objective of
assuring a more defensible and sound basis for future decisions
in other parts of the West where there are bighorn and domestic
sheep conflicts. The Committee directs the Forest Service to
brief the Committee on its progress every six months.
STATE AND PRIVATE FORESTRY
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $252,926,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 250,730,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 183,000,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -69,926,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -67,730,000
The Committee recommends $183,000,000 for State and Private
Forestry, $69,926,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level
and $67,730,000 below the budget request. The reduction
compared to the request is largely due to the recommended
reduction in the Forest Legacy Program and the shift of
cooperative fire protection programs to Wildland Fire
Management.
Landscape Scale Restoration.--The Committee is supportive
of the new line item and recommends $16,000,000 for Landscape
Scale Restoration, $2,000,000 below the budget request. The
Committee notes that this line item is simply a consolidation
of the competitive funds within State and Private Forestry.
Forest Health Management.--The Committee recommends
$112,000,000 for Forest Health Management, as requested, which
is $265,000 above the fiscal year 2012 enacted level (including
forest health funds under Wildland Fire Management). The
Committee is supportive of the transfer of forest health line
items from Wildland Fire Management to State and Private
Forestry, but expects the funding to be allocated in a manner
similar to previous years.
Urban and Community Forestry.--The Committee recommends
$25,000,000 for Urban and Community Forestry, $6,327,000 below
the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $3,040,000 below the
budget request. The Committee supports the urban forest
research program through which the Forest Service assists urban
communities in monitoring and caring for their forests. The
Committee directs the Forest Service to maintain a vibrant
urban forest research program that will assist urban
communities in systematically inventorying and assessing the
changing conditions and health of urban forests and plan
strategic actions to sustainably maintain these urban green
spaces.
International Forestry.--The Committee recommends
$6,000,000 for International Forestry, $1,987,000 below the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $2,088,000 above the budget
request. International Forestry enables forestry experts from
the Federal government to participate in negotiations for trade
agreements and assist with forestry work abroad. This program
plays a large role in protecting the U.S. forest products
industry by improving the sustainability and legality of timber
management overseas thereby reducing the amount of underpriced
and illegally harvested timber on the world market. Much of the
funding for these activities is provided by other departments
or agencies, including the Department of State, the United
States Trade Representative, and the U.S. Agency for
International Development. Though the program is funded at a
low level, it leverages roughly three dollars for every dollar
it receives from other funding sources.
NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $1,554,137,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 1,623,591,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 1,495,484,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -58,653,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -128,107,000
The Committee recommends $1,495,484,000 for the National
Forest System, $58,653,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $128,107,000 below the budget request.
The Committee notes that similar to fiscal years 2012 and
2011, the budget request included a major restructuring in
which several programs were combined into a new entity,
Integrated Resource Restoration (IRR). The Committee has not
approved this request but will continue the proof of concept
pilot established in the fiscal year 2012 Interior,
Environment, and Related Agencies conference report. The
Committee is, however, disappointed with the Forest Service's
delayed communication on the implementation and progress of
IRR. The Committee will only continue the pilot if management
efficiencies, tangible accomplishments, and accountability are
demonstrated.
Planning.--The Committee provides no funding for Planning,
$39,936,000 below the fiscal year 2012 level. The Committee
does not accept the proposed merging of the Planning and
Inventory and Monitoring line items.
The Committee has significant concerns about the
implementation and cost of the new planning rule. The Committee
believes the Forest Service has ignored the direction of
Congress embodied in the National Forest Management Act. The
rule places too many conflicting requirements on forest plans
and will likely lead to increased litigation. The new inventory
requirements for invertebrates will very likely cost millions
upon millions of dollars and are virtually impossible to
complete. The Committee could potentially support the rule if
the eight proposed pilot forest plan revisions were
successfully completed through the 2012 Planning Rule.
The Committee retains language in Title IV General
Provisions allowing forest management plans to expire if the
Service has made a good faith effort to update plans
commensurate with appropriated funds. The Committee modifies
this language by allowing forest plans to be completed under
the 1982 planning rule and allows these plans to be used in
place of revised plans that would be completed under the 2012
Planning Rule.
Inventory and Monitoring.--The Committee recommends
$161,721,000 for Inventory and Monitoring, equal to the fiscal
year 2012 enacted level. The Committee does not accept the
proposed merging of this line item with the planning line item.
The Committee is concerned about the lack of monitoring
related to livestock grazing allotments and strongly encourages
the Forest Service to increase both annual and trend monitoring
on allotments. The Committee directs the Forest Service to
allocate a greater portion of monitoring funds for these
efforts. The Committee also encourages the Forest Service to
work with State agencies, universities, professional societies
and other USDA agencies, such as the Natural Resource
Conservation Service, to efficiently increase allotment
monitoring.
The Committee also encourages the Forest Service to improve
and increase its monitoring of grazing permits in allotments
where riparian streamside health is a concern for listed or
threatened species. The Committee also directs each Forest
Service region to increase transparency and reporting on how
the limited monitoring resources are used on the ground to
satisfy monitoring requirements or for other purposes.
Recreation, Heritage and Wilderness.--The Committee
recommends $260,066,000 for Recreation, Heritage and
Wilderness, $21,110,000 below fiscal year 2012 enacted funding
and $7,000,000 below the budget request.
Travel Management Plans.--The Committee is concerned about
travel management plans on some national forests, though it
notes that many national forests have completed plans with few
problems. The Committee has been informed by several
communities that travel management plans did not properly
include public and community input and needs. Where communities
are dissatisfied with travel management plans, the Committee
directs the Forest Service to revise these plans.
Eastern Oregon Travel Management Plans.--The Committee
notes that appropriate first steps have been taken to overhaul
problematic travel management plans in eastern Oregon but much
work remains to be done. The Committee strongly encourages the
Forest Service to include community input in the new plan in
addition to emphasizing existing uses important to the public.
California Travel Management Plans.--Due to specific
concerns related to all travel management plans in the State of
California, the Committee includes language in Title IV General
Provisions prohibiting the implementation of travel management
plans in California until the agency completes additional
analysis to include more routes. The language also prevents the
agency from designating maintenance level 3 (ML-3) roads as
highways. The Committee notes that the California State Patrol
has confirmed numerous times that it does not consider ML-3
roads as highways.
Pittsburg Landing.--The Committee is supportive of
legislation naming the campground at Pittsburg Landing in the
Hells Canyon National Recreation Area the Tracy L. Vallier
Campground at Pittsburg Landing. The Committee urges the
appropriate authorizing committees to work with the Forest
Service to accomplish this goal through an Act of Congress.
Grazing Management.--The Committee recommends $55,356,000
for Grazing Management, equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $14,976,000 above the budget request. The Committee
urges the Forest Service to devote greater resources toward
renewing grazing permits and administering allotments to forest
plan standards.
Wallow Fire Area Grazing.--The Committee commends the
Forest Service for its work following the Wallow Fire to
approve the return of approximately seventy percent of
permitted livestock to affected allotments. The Committee
encourages the Forest Service to continue forage monitoring and
infrastructure repair and replacement, including ensuring
proper ``right of way'' clearances to prevent further
infrastructure damage related to Wallow Fire impacts, with the
goal of returning the remainder of displaced livestock to their
proper pasture rotations as soon as possible.
The Committee includes bill language addressing range
management in Title IV (applying to both the Bureau and the
Forest Service) including Section 412 which makes permanent the
grazing permit renewal general provision allowing permits to be
renewed under the same terms and conditions if NEPA review has
not yet been completed.
Forest Products.--The Committee recommends $342,211,000 for
Forest Products, $6,700,000 above the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level.
The Committee has recommended a two percent increase of
funding for Forest Products, Vegetation and Watershed
Management, and Wildlife and Fish Habitat Management as these
programs, in addition to the hazardous fuels program under
Wildland Fire Management, provide the largest on-the-ground
benefit to national forests. The Committee believes these
programs are fundamental to the health and vitality of our
national forests and expects the Forest Service to increase its
accomplishments in each line item.
The Forest Service is currently removing less than ten
percent of the annual net growth on national forests. This,
combined with fire suppression policies, has resulted in
overcrowded, unhealthy forests susceptible to insects, disease
and catastrophic wildfire. To accomplish the monumental amount
of work necessary to improve the health of national forests and
protect communities from catastrophic wildfires, forest
products mills and logging infrastructure, where it still
exists, must be maintained. These businesses provide
significant living-wage jobs, many of which operate in rural
areas with higher levels of unemployment. Further, without this
infrastructure, the cost of treating national forests increases
dramatically and greatly reduces the amount of acres feasibly
treated with appropriated dollars.
The Committee expects the Forest Service to increase
vegetative and timber management activities to sell not less
than three billion board feet in fiscal year 2013, with the
expectation of increasing this target in future fiscal years.
This can be accomplished by implementing larger projects and
reducing unit costs.
Region 10 Timber Supply.--The Committee notes that over the
last ten years the timber supply in Region 10 has been
constrained to less than ten percent of the allowable sale
quantity in the current land management plan. As a result,
numerous mills have closed. In an effort to restore confidence
in the timber supply and foster and allow investment in new
facilities, the Forest Service pledged to prepare and offer
four 10-year timber sales each with a volume of 150-200 million
board feet. The agency recently converted the first two timber
sales to smaller stewardship projects. These projects will
neither restore confidence, nor will they allow investment in
new facilities. The Committee directs the Forest Service to
prepare and offer, within two years, the four 10-year timber
sales as promised.
Vegetation and Watershed Management.--The Committee
recommends $187,646,000 for Vegetation and Watershed
Management, $3,600,000 above the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level.
Wildlife and Fish Habitat Management.--The Committee
recommends $142,736,000 for Wildlife and Fish Habitat
Management, $2,700,000 above the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level. The Committee directs the Service to increase monitoring
of threatened and endangered fish and their habitat, especially
in grazing allotments, and expects funding from this program to
be allocated for this purpose.
Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Fund.--The
Committee recommends $40,000,000, for the Collaborative Forest
Landscape Restoration Fund (CFLR), as requested, $64,000 above
the fiscal year 2012 enacted level. The Committee has been
supportive of the CFLR program in the past but is concerned
about the lengthy time frame to implement projects and achieve
positive outcomes. The Committee directs the Forest Service to
report to the Committee within 60 days of enactment of this Act
on the implementation of CFLR-funded projects and the outcomes
of those projects to date. The report should include
performance measures as described in the CFLR 2011 Annual
Report accomplishment form available on the Forest Service's
website.
Bill Language.--The Committee includes language in Title IV
General Provisions including: (1) Section 426 extending the
Herger-Feinstein Quincy Library Group for one year; (2) Section
427 extending the `Good Neighbor Cooperative Conservation
Authority' to all Western States for five years; (3) Section
428 directing the Forest Service to identify three acres for
small communities to build a fire station; (4) Section 429
extending cost recovery authorities for the Forest Service
regarding special uses; (5) Section 430 streamlining the
administration of interpretative associations by the Forest
Service; (6) Section 432 allowing designation by description
and prescription for forest management; (7) Section 437
clarifying notice, comment, and appeals for categorical
exclusions; and, (8) Section 438 prohibiting the use of
appropriated funds to close areas open to recreational hunting
and shooting as of January 1, 2012.
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT AND MAINTENANCE
(INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $394,089,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 346,379,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 356,086,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -38,003,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. +9,707,000
The Committee recommends $356,086,000 for Capital
Improvement and Maintenance, $38,003,000 below the fiscal year
2012 enacted level and $9,707,000 above the budget request.
Facilities Maintenance and Capital Improvement.--The
Committee recommends $49,463,000 for Facilities Maintenance and
Capital Improvement, $26,201,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $50,000,000 below the budget request.
Road Maintenance and Construction.--The Committee
recommends $182,525,000 for Road Maintenance and Construction,
equal to the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $24,707,000
above the budget request. Specifically, the Committee
recommends $147,812,000 for road maintenance and $34,713,000
for road construction.
The Committee realizes the Forest Service has limited funds
compared to its road infrastructure needs and encourages the
use of stewardship contracts and other combined projects (for
example improving forest health and maintaining or
reconstructing roads) to accomplish more work with less
funding.
Legacy Road and Trail Remediation.--The Committee
recommends $35,000,000 for Legacy Road and Trail Remediation,
$9,928,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level.
Bill Language.--The Committee includes language in Title IV
General Provisions clarifying the role of forest roads in
silvicultural operations as it relates to the Federal Water
Pollution Control Act.
LAND ACQUISITION
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $52,521,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 57,934,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 16,494,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -36,027,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -41,440,000
The Committee recommends $16,494,000 for Land Acquisition,
$36,027,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and
$41,440,000 below the budget request. The amounts recommended
by the Committee compared with the budget estimates by activity
are shown in the table at the end of this report. Funds for
priority recreational access do not have to be cost-shared and
are not to be capped at $250,000. The Committee has included
language in the front of this report regarding Land and Water
Conservation Fund programs.
ACQUISITION OF LANDS FOR NATIONAL FORESTS SPECIAL ACTS
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $953,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 955,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 955,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... +2,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
The Committee recommends $955,000 for Acquisition of Lands
for National Forests Special Acts, as requested, and $2,000
above the fiscal year 2012 enacted level.
ACQUISITION OF LANDS TO COMPLETE LAND EXCHANGES
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $227,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 227,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 227,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... 0
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
The Committee recommends $227,000, as requested, for
Acquisition of Lands to Complete Land Exchanges under the Act
of December 4, 1967 (16 U.S.C. 484a). Under the Act, deposits
made by public school districts or public school authorities to
provide for cash equalization of certain land exchanges can be
appropriated to acquire similar lands suitable for national
forest system purposes in the same State as the national forest
lands conveyed in the exchanges.
RANGE BETTERMENT FUND
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $3,257,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 2,360,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 2,360,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -897,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
The Committee recommends $2,360,000, as requested, for the
Range Betterment Fund, to be derived from grazing receipts from
national forests (Public Law 94-579) and to be used for range
rehabilitation, protection, and improvements including seeding,
reseeding, fence construction, weed control, water development,
and fish and wildlife habitat enhancement in 16 western States.
GIFTS, DONATIONS AND BEQUESTS FOR FOREST AND RANGELAND RESEARCH
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $45,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 46,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 46,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... +1,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
The Committee recommends $46,000 for Gifts, Donations and
Bequests for Forest and Rangeland Research, as requested,
$1,000 above the fiscal year 2012 enacted level.
MANAGEMENT OF NATIONAL FOREST LANDS FOR SUBSISTENCE USES
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $2,573,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 0
Recommended, 2013..................................... 2,000,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -573,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. +2,000,000
The Committee recommends $2,000,000 for the Management of
National Forest Lands for Subsistence Uses in Alaska and does
not support the proposed transfer of this program to the
National Forest System.
Wildland Fire Management
(INCLUDING TRANSFERS OF FUNDS)
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $1,734,851,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 1,971,394,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 2,072,799,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... +337,948,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. +101,405,000
The Committee recommends $2,072,799,000 for Wildland Fire
Management, $337,948,000 above the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $101,405,000 above the budget request. The
Committee's recommendation, combined with $315,000,000
recommended in the FLAME wildfire suppression reserve account,
fully funds the 10-year fire suppression average expenditures.
The Committee notes that the increase in appropriations
compared to fiscal year 2012 is due to: (1) the use of
$240,000,000 in emergency carry-over suppression dollars in
fiscal year 2012 to offset appropriations; and, (2) the fiscal
year 2013 request's shift of $76,000,000 from Wildland Fire
Management to the National Forest System, which was not
approved by the Committee.
Wildfire Preparedness.--The Committee recommends
$1,001,513,000 for Wildfire Preparedness, as requested,
$2,929,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level.
Wildfire Suppression Operations.--The Committee recommends
$616,000,000 for Wildfire Suppression Operations, as requested,
$77,758,000 above the fiscal year 2012 enacted level. The
Committee recommendation fully meets the 10-year average
expenditure on all emergency and discretionary funded
suppression actions.
Hazardous Fuels.--The Committee recommends $345,005,000 for
hazardous fuels reduction, $27,929,000 above the fiscal year
2012 enacted level and $103,405,000 above the budget request.
The recommendation also includes $5,000,000 for biomass
utilization grants.
The Committee again directs the Forest Service to focus
hazardous fuels reduction dollars based on areas with the
greatest need, as determined by land managers, instead of
percentages of acres treated in the Wildland Urban Interface.
The Committee also strongly encourages the Forest Service
to focus on Fire Regime Condition Class II and III areas. These
areas are the most prone to catastrophic fire and many times
require mechanical thinning followed by prescribed burns. The
Committee realizes much of this work is more expensive than
prescribed burning alone, but encourages the Forest Service to
leverage hazardous fuels dollars by combining projects and
using tools such as stewardship contracting and timber sales.
State Fire Assistance.--The Committee recommends
$72,688,000 for State Fire Assistance, as requested,
$13,275,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level (including
State Fire Assistance funds under State and Private Forestry).
The Committee supports the proposed consolidation of the
program under Wildland Fire Management and directs the Forest
Service to allocate funds in a way that meets the regional
resource needs for hazard mitigation and preparedness as
determined in consultation with State foresters.
Volunteer Fire Assistance.--The Committee recommends
$11,733,000 for Volunteer Fire Assistance, as requested,
$1,292,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level (including
Volunteer Fire Assistance funds under State and Private
Forestry). The Committee supports the proposed consolidation of
the program under Wildland Fire Management and directs the
Forest Service to allocate funds in a way that meets the rural
firefighting resource needs as determined in consultation with
State foresters.
Timely Delivery of Critical Reports.--In the wake of the
tragic Station Fire in Southern California, it is necessary to
ensure that the Forest Service's firefighting policies provide
the most effective initial response possible, particularly for
forests close to urban areas. The Committee remains concerned
that the Forest Service has not produced two critical documents
in a timely fashion. The Forest Service is strongly encouraged
to provide the results of the nationwide assessment of the
agency's night flying operations (both the helicopter portion
and fixed-wing portion) within 90 days of enactment of this
Act. The Forest Service is also strongly encouraged to release
the third and final phase of the cohesive wildland fire
strategy, as required by the FLAME Act, that includes critical
components of that strategy such as considering potential
approaches for addressing the growing wildfire threat,
estimating the costs of each approach, and identifying trade-
offs--within 180 days of enactment of this Act.
Wildland Firefighting.--The Committee encourages the Forest
Service to thoroughly evaluate the impact of crew size on
operational efficacies and firefighter safety with respect to
wildland firefighting operations. The Forest Service should
report its findings to the Committee.
Federal Coordination with State and Local Fire Managers.--
The Committee is aware that the facility housing the Forest
Service's Southern California Geographical Coordination Center
has been condemned and that it houses a number of fire
emergency managers, including the California Department of
Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE). The Committee
recognizes the importance of close Federal coordination with
State and local fire managers when fighting wildland fire and
the significant role collocation of fire emergency managers can
play in facilitating this coordination. The Committee notes
that CAL FIRE has expressed its desire to continue this
collocation within the new Southern California Geographical
Coordination Center. The Committee encourages the Forest
Service to continue working with CAL FIRE to collocate their
operations at the new Southern California Geographical
Coordination Center.
FLAME Wildfire Suppression Reserve Fund
(INCLUDING TRANSFERS OF FUNDS)
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $315,381,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 315,000,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 315,000,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -381,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
The Committee recommends $315,000,000 for the FLAME
Wildfire Suppression Reserve Fund, as requested, $381,000 below
the fiscal year 2012 enacted level.
ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS, FOREST SERVICE
(INCLUDING TRANSFERS OF FUNDS)
The Committee has continued all administrative provisions
included in the fiscal year 2012 Omnibus Appropriations Act.
The Committee has corrected a citation to the Volunteers in
the National Forest Act.
The Committee has included new language limiting funds
available to the Forest Service for cost pools 1-5.
The Committee has made language regarding the National
Forest Foundation and interest earned from Federal funds
permanent. This provision was included to clarify the intent of
Congress in the fiscal year 2002 Interior, Environment, and
Related Agencies Appropriations Act where this provision was
made permanent, but subsequently never removed from
Administrative Provisions.
Forest Service Cost Pools.--A decade ago, the Committee
agreed to the use of cost pools to fund Forest Service
administrative activities as a mechanism to facilitate and
simplify financial accounting. At that time, the Committee
required that the Service summarize in its annual budget
justifications planned indirect expenditures from the cost
pools to the region, station, area, and detached unit office
(RSA) level. This requirement is found at 16 U.S.C. 579d.
Additionally, the Committee has included a general provision
annually for each year since fiscal year 2004 requiring
disclosure of estimated overhead charges, deductions, reserves
and holdbacks from programs, projects, activities and
subactivities. The Committee is concerned about non-compliance
with these disclosure requirements. While the Service's budget
justifications do show the source of the cost pool funds by
budget line item, no information is provided on the amounts in
each cost pool or the distribution of those funds to the RSA
level, as required by law. The budget justifications also lack
detailed information explaining how the cost pool amounts were
derived or the activities and number of personnel they support.
The Forest Service is directed to include tables in the
fiscal year 2014 and future budget justifications that clearly
display the source of funding for each cost pool by budget line
item, the amount for each cost pool, and direct and indirect
expenditures from each cost pool by RSA. The prior, current,
and future budget years should be shown for each table. In
addition to tabular material, the Forest Service should
explain, in detail, the activities and FTEs supported by each
cost pool. Changes from the current year to the budget year
should be explained in the same level of detail as contained in
the appropriation accounts sections of the Forest Service
budget justification.
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Indian Health Service
The provision of Federal health services to Indians is
based on a relationship between Indian Tribes and the U.S.
Government first set forth in the 1830s by the U.S. Supreme
Court under Chief Justice John Marshall. Numerous treaties,
statutes, constitutional provisions, and international law have
reconfirmed this relationship. Principal among these is the
Snyder Act of 1921, which provides the basic authority for most
Indian health services provided by the Federal Government to
American Indians and Alaska Natives. The Indian Health Service
(IHS) provides direct health care services in 29 hospitals, 66
health centers, two school health centers, and 41 health
stations. Tribes and tribal groups, through contracts and
compacts with the IHS, operate 16 hospitals, 254 health
centers, 4 school health centers, and 74 health stations
(including 166 Alaska Native village clinics).
INDIAN HEALTH SERVICES
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $3,866,181,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 3,978,974,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 4,049,612,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... +183,431,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. +70,638,000
The Committee recommends $4,049,612,000 for Indian Health
Services, $183,431,000 above the fiscal year 2012 enacted level
and $70,638,000 above the budget request. The amounts
recommended by the Committee compared with the budget estimates
by activity are shown in the table at the end of this report.
Except as otherwise indicated below, the Committee expects the
Indian Health Service to implement its fiscal year 2013 budget
in accordance with its budget justification.
Staffing costs for new and expanded health care
facilities.--The Committee recommends $48,418,000 for staffing
costs for new and expanded health care facilities, $3,638,000
above the budget request. Funds are limited to facilities
funded through the Health Care Facilities Construction Priority
System or the Joint Venture Construction Program that are newly
opened in fiscal year 2012 or that open in fiscal year 2013.
None of the funds may be allocated to a facility until such
facility has achieved beneficial occupancy status.
Hospitals and Health Clinics.--The Committee recommends
$1,851,448,000 for Hospitals and Health Clinics, $40,482,000
above the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $2,138,000 above
the budget request. The bill includes a decrease of $1,500,000
below the budget request for health information technology and
an increase of $3,638,000 above the budget request for staffing
costs for new and expanded health care facilities, as described
above.
Dental Health.--The Committee recommends $166,597,000 for
Dental Health, $7,157,000 above the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $300,000 above the budget request. The increase above
the budget request is for staffing in support of the Early
Childhood Caries initiative.
The Committee supports the Administration's request of
$1,000,000 for the electronic dental record system. The
continued funding has allowed the Dental Division to complete
implementation at 118 of the 230 Federal and Tribal dental
sites. The Committee strongly encourages the Service to
continue to press forward with this program and, if possible,
to accelerate implementation to the remaining dental programs.
The Committee is pleased that dental vacancies have dropped
from 140 in fiscal year 2009 to 30 in fiscal year 2012.
However, an improving economy could negatively impact
recruitment. The Committee, therefore, directs the Indian
Health Service to issue a report regarding the use of direct
hire authority, and addressing the following questions: (1) how
various divisions within the Indian Health Service use this
authority and to what extent there is a discrepancy between
divisions; and (2) how the Division of Oral Health can have the
same direct hire authority as other health disciplines in order
to enhance future recruitments.
Contract Health Services.--The Committee recommends that
the Service consider proposing a new name for this program in
the fiscal year 2014 budget request in order to be more clear
and consistent with the program's activities. The Committee
directs the Indian Health Service to implement the
recommendations of the Government Accountability Office (GAO-
12-446) in order to ensure equitable allocation of resources
for the Contract Health Services program.
Urban Indian Health.--The Committee recommends $45,488,000
for Urban Indian Health, $2,504,000 above the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $2,500,000 above the budget request.
Indian Health Professions.--The Committee recommends
$41,598,000 for Indian Health Professions, $1,002,000 above the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $1,000,000 above the budget
request. The increase above the budget request is for the loan
repayment program.
Direct Operations.--The Committee recommends $67,567,000
for Direct Operations, $4,086,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $5,300,000 below the budget request. The
decrease below the budget request is from Headquarters
operations.
The Committee is aware of the departures of approximately
25 senior staff during the past two years. The continued loss
of well-trained and experienced agency leaders represents a
serious threat to the agency's corporate knowledge, ongoing
ability to manage programs and resources, and ability to be
responsive to Tribes and Federal accountability requirements in
a timely and credible manner. The Committee directs the Service
to provide a report within 30 days of enactment of this Act:
(1) detailing the number and position of senior personnel that
have left the agency within the past two years and how many of
these positions remain unfilled to date; (2) describing whether
and how the Service is allocating funds that would have
otherwise been spent on the salaries and expenses related to
these positions; and (3) describing the steps the agency has
taken to identify and address the underlying conditions that
created this trend, in order to shore up its public health and
administrative infrastructure with highly qualified and
experienced replacements.
Contract Support Costs.--The Committee recommends
$546,446,000 for Contract Support Costs, $75,009,000 above the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $70,000,000 above the budget
request. With this increase, the Committee is attempting to
fund the projected shortfall so the Federal government can meet
its contractual obligations. The Committee directs the Service
to work with Tribes and tribal organizations to explore options
for improving the transparency of current year contract support
cost information, and to report back to the Committee within 90
days of enactment of this Act.
Health Research.--The Committee is concerned by the
continued disparity of the health status of American Indians
and Alaska Natives (AI/ANs) compared to the general U.S.
population. The Committee recognizes that identifying
successful strategies for reducing these disparities depends on
monitoring ongoing health trends. Therefore, the Committee is
disappointed that the Service has fallen behind in tracking the
health status and treatment needs of AI/ANs. The Service's last
Trends in Indian Health and Regional Difference in Indian
Health report was based on data gathered for the 2002-2003
edition. In addition, supplemental reports targeting specific
health issues have been discontinued. The last vision survey
was completed in 1994; obstetrics in 1996; and oral health in
1999. Examining the prevalence of emerging issues like the
incidence of HIV/AIDS, teen suicide outbreaks, disparities
plaguing AI/AN males, and drug overdoses and alcohol abuse are
vital for developing policies and programs that ensure adequate
health care for all AI/ANs. The Committee strongly urges the
Service to reinstate ongoing and timely monitoring of health
trends as a means for the Service and Tribes to better target
resources to improve the health status and eliminate the health
disparities of AI/ANs.
INDIAN HEALTH FACILITIES
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $440,346,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 443,502,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 443,864,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... +3,518,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. +362,000
The Committee recommends $443,864,000 for Indian Health
Facilities, $3,518,000 above the fiscal year 2012 enacted level
and $362,000 above the budget request. The amounts recommended
by the Committee compared with the budget estimates by activity
are shown in the table at the end of this report. Except as
otherwise indicated below, the Committee expects the Indian
Health Service to implement its fiscal year 2013 budget in
accordance with its budget justification.
Facilities and Environmental Health Support.--The Committee
recommends $204,741,000 for Facilities and Environmental Health
Support, $5,328,000 above the fiscal year 2012 enacted level
and $362,000 above the budget request. The increase above the
budget request is for staffing costs for new and expanded
health care facilities. These funds are subject to the same
limitations as described earlier in this report under the
Indian Health Services account.
National Institutes of Health
NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH SCIENCES
The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
(NIEHS), an agency within the National Institutes of Health,
was authorized in section 311(a) of the Comprehensive
Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980
and in section 126(g) of the Superfund Amendments and
Reauthorization Act of 1986 to conduct certain research and
worker training activities associated with the nation's
Hazardous Substance Superfund program.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $78,928,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 78,928,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 74,928,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -4,000,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -4,000,000
The Committee recommends $74,928,000 for the National
Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, $4,000,000 below
both the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and the budget request.
The Committee remains highly supportive of NIEHS' worker
training program and notes the program trained 143,000 workers
last year, teaching those participants how to reduce the risks
of exposure to hazardous materials. This program has been
offered to workers for years at no charge wherein many other
governmental training programs include a course fee. The
Committee directs NIEHS to explore the feasibility of
incorporating a nominal fee to recoup administrative or other
costs associated with the worker training program. NIEHS should
include a report that summarizes findings and recommendations
with the fiscal year 2014 budget request.
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
TOXIC SUBSTANCES AND ENVIRONMENTAL PUBLIC HEALTH
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
(ATSDR), an agency in the Department of Health and Human
Services, was created in section 104(i) of the Comprehensive
Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act
(CERCLA) of 1980. The Agency's mission is to serve the public
through responsive public health actions to promote healthy and
safe environments and prevent harmful toxic exposures. ATSDR
assesses hazardous exposures in communities near toxic waste
sites and advises the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and
other government agencies, community groups and industry
partners on actions needed to protect people's health. In
addition, ATSDR conducts toxicological and applied research to
support environmental assessments, supports health surveillance
systems and registries, develops and disseminates information
on hazardous substances, provides education and training on
hazardous exposures, and responds to environmental emergencies.
Through a national network of scientists and public health
practitioners in State health departments, regional EPA offices
and headquarters, ATSDR has been in the front ranks in
protecting people from acute toxic exposures that occur from
hazardous leaks and spills, environment-related poisonings, and
natural and terrorism-related disasters.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $76,215,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 76,300,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 74,039,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -2,176,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -2,261,000
The Committee recommends $74,039,000 for the Agency for
Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), $2,176,000 below
the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $2,261,000 below the
budget request.
Within the funds provided, $2,000,000 has been included to
continue the important epidemiological studies of health
conditions caused by exposures to uranium released from mining
and milling operations in the Navajo Nation.
OTHER RELATED AGENCIES
Executive Office of the President
COUNCIL ON ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY AND OFFICE OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) was established
by Congress under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969
(NEPA). The Office of Environmental Quality (OEQ), which
provides professional and administrative staff for the Council,
was established in the Environmental Quality Improvement Act of
1970. The Council on Environmental Quality has statutory
responsibility for overseeing Federal agency implementation of
the requirements of NEPA. CEQ also assists in coordinating
environmental programs among the Federal agencies in the
Executive Branch.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $3,148,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 3,106,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 2,661,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -487,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -445,000
The Committee recommends $2,661,000 for the Council on
Environmental Quality and Office of Environmental Quality,
$487,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $445,000
below the budget request. Commensurate with the appropriation,
the authorized level for CEQ FTE is capped at 19, equivalent to
the fiscal year 2006 utilization level.
Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $11,129,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 11,403,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 10,000,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -1,129,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -1,403,000
The Committee recommends $10,000,000 for Salaries and
Expenses of the Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board
(the Board), which is $1,129,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level and $1,403,000 below the budget request.
Bill Language.--The Committee continues to carry language,
as in prior years, authorizing the EPA Inspector General to act
as the Inspector General for the Board. The Committee has not
provided funds to be transferred to the EPA IG who reports
sufficient existing funding to cover these responsibilities.
Office of Navajo and Hopi Indian Relocation
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
The Office of Navajo and Hopi Indian Relocation was
established by Public Law 93-531 to plan and conduct relocation
activities associated with the settlement of a land dispute
between the Navajo Nation and the Hopi Tribe.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $7,738,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 8,400,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 7,600,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -138,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -800,000
The Committee recommends $7,600,000 for Salaries and
Expenses of the Office of Navajo and Hopi Indian Relocation,
$138,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $800,000
below the budget request.
Institute of American Indian and Alaska Native Culture and Arts
Development
PAYMENT TO THE INSTITUTE
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $8,519,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 9,369,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 8,348,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -171,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -1,021,000
The Committee recommends $8,348,000 for the Institute of
American Indian and Alaska Native Culture and Arts Development,
$171,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and
$1,021,000 below the budget request.
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is the world's largest museum
and research complex, with 19 museums and galleries, numerous
research centers, a library, archives, and the National
Zoological Park. Funded by both private and Federal sources,
the Smithsonian is unique in the Federal establishment. Created
by an Act of Congress in 1846 to carry out the trust included
in James Smithson's will, it has been engaged for 165 years in
the ``increase and diffusion of knowledge.'' In 2011, the
Smithsonian attracted nearly 30 million visitors to its
museums, galleries, and zoological park. Additional millions
also view Smithsonian traveling exhibitions and participate in
the annual Folklife Festival on the National Mall. As custodian
of the National Collections, the Smithsonian is responsible for
more than 137 million art objects, natural history specimens,
and artifacts. These scientific and cultural collections are a
vital resource for global research and conservation efforts.
The collections are displayed for the enjoyment and education
of visitors and are available for research by the staff of the
Institution and by thousands of visiting students, scientists,
and historians each year.
The amounts recommended by the Committee for the
Smithsonian Institution, compared with the budget estimates by
activity, are shown in the table at the end of this report.
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $635,512,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 660,333,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 643,634,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... +8,122,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -16,699,000
The Committee recommends $643,634,000 for Salaries and
Expenses of the Smithsonian Institution, $8,122,000 above the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $16,699,000 below the budget
request.
Additional Guidance.--The following additional direction
and guidance is provided with respect to funding provided
within this account:
Collections Care.--The Committee maintains its longstanding
commitment to the preservation of Smithsonian Institution
collections and has included, as requested, $1,400,000 for the
Collections Care Initiative. The Committee urges the
Smithsonian to continue placing a high priority on the
preservation of these priceless, irreplaceable historical
collections.
Exhibit Maintenance.--The Committee has provided requested
funding for exhibit maintenance and critical collections needs
at the National Air and Space Museum ($100,000), the National
Museum of Natural History ($130,000), and the National Museum
of American History ($100,000) which remain among the most
highly visited Smithsonian sites.
National Museum of African American History and Culture.--
The Committee maintains its support for the National Museum of
African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) and has included
$5,550,000 to facilitate collections acquisitions, development
of exhibitions, and strengthen and expand the museum's capital
campaign which is responsible for raising matching funds for
the construction of the NMAAHC. Federal dollars for the
construction of the NMAAHC are being matched on a 1:1 basis.
Joint Venture.--The Committee maintains its support for the
joint venture between the Library of Congress and the
Smithsonian Institution creating a comprehensive compilation of
audio and video recordings of personal histories and
testimonials of individuals who participated in the Civil
Rights movement.
Latino Programs, Exhibitions, Collections and Public
Outreach.--The Committee supports the Smithsonian Latino
Center's goal of promoting the inclusion of Latino
contributions in Smithsonian Institution programs, exhibitions,
collections and public outreach. The Committee urges
collaboration among interested parties to advance these goals
more fully by utilizing existing Smithsonian Institution museum
locations for the expansion of the Smithsonian Latino Center's
programming, exhibition and collection space.
FACILITIES CAPITAL
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $174,720,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 196,500,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 145,544,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -29,176,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -50,956,000
The Committee recommends $145,544,000 for Facilities
Capital, $29,176,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level
and $50,956,000 below the budget request.
The Committee supports revitalization of Smithsonian
Institution facilities and the planning and design of future
projects. The Committee also supports and remains committed to
the construction of the Congressionally authorized National
Museum of African American History and Culture. Accordingly,
the Committee recommends $50,000,000 for ongoing construction
of the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
These funds, which will ensure that construction continues,
complement $45,000,000 provided by the Committee in prior years
for pre-construction planning and design and $74,880,000
provided in fiscal year 2012 to complete design and begin
construction. Federal funds for the construction of the NMAAHC
are being matched on a 1:1 basis.
The Committee has provided funding, as requested, to
address critical repairs at the National Air and Space Museum
and structural and seismic upgrades at the Museum Support
Center.
The Committee further directs that the balance of
Facilities Capital funding be devoted to the highest and best
use for revitalization efforts of Smithsonian Institution
assets on a priority basis. A growing number of projects
necessitate the need for the Smithsonian Institution to set
clear priorities within the Facilities Capital account. The
Committee urges the Smithsonian to establish, and present in
priority order in future annual budget justifications, all
Facilities Capital program activities.
National Gallery of Art
The National Gallery of Art is one of the world's great
galleries. Its magnificent works of art, displayed for the
benefit of millions of visitors annually, and its two iconic
buildings and sculpture garden, serve as an example of a
successful cooperative endeavor between private individuals and
institutions and the Federal Government. With the special
exhibitions shown in the Gallery, and through the many
exhibitions which travel across the country, the Gallery brings
great art treasures to Washington, DC, and to the Nation.
Through its educational and teacher training programs and its
website, the Gallery provides art history materials, rich
online educational materials, direct loans, and broadcast
programs to millions of Americans in every State.
Table of Allocations by Activity.--The amounts recommended
by the Committee compared with the budget estimates by activity
are shown in the table at the end of this report.
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $113,883,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 120,000,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 113,121,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -762,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -6,879,000
The Committee recommends $113,121,000 for Salaries and
Expenses of the National Gallery of Art, $762,000 below the
fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $6,879,000 below the budget
request. Within the amount provided, the Committee includes
$3,518,000, as requested, for the Gallery's Special Exhibition
program.
Bill Language.--The Committee has included bill language,
as requested, specifying the amount provided for Special
Exhibitions.
REPAIR, RESTORATION AND RENOVATION OF BUILDINGS
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $14,493,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 23,000,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 12,679,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -1,814,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -10,321,000
The Committee recommends $12,679,000 for Repair,
Restoration and Renovation of buildings at the National Gallery
of Art, $1,814,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and
$10,321,000 below the budget request. Reductions from the
request are to defer Master Facilities Plan work.
Bill Language.--The Committee has included bill language,
as requested, relating to lease agreements of no more than 10
years that addresses space needs created by ongoing renovations
in the Master Facilities Plan.
John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts is a
living memorial to the late President Kennedy and is the
National Center for the Performing Arts. The Center houses nine
stages and seven theaters which have a total of more than 7,300
seats. The Center consists of over 1.5 million square feet of
usable floor space with visitation averaging 8,000 on a daily
basis. The support systems in the building often operate at
capacity 18 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.
OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $23,163,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 22,379,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 22,379,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -784,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
The Committee recommends $22,379,000 for Operations and
Maintenance, as requested, $784,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level.
CAPITAL REPAIR AND RESTORATION
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $13,628,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 13,588,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 13,588,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -40,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
The Committee recommends $13,588,000 for Capital Repair and
Restoration, as requested, $40,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level.
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars is a
unique institution with a special mission to serve as a living
memorial to President Woodrow Wilson. The Center performs this
mandate through its role as an international institute
promoting policy-relevant research and dialogue to increase
understanding and enhance the capabilities and knowledge of
leaders, citizens, and institutions worldwide. The Woodrow
Wilson Center hosts scholars and policy makers to do their own
advanced study, research and writing and facilitates debate and
discussions among scholars, public officials, journalists and
business leaders from across the country on relevant, major
long-term issues facing this Nation and the world.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $10,987,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 10,492,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 10,492,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -495,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
The Committee recommends $10,492,000 for Salaries and
Expenses of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for
Scholars, as requested, $495,000 below the fiscal year 2012
enacted level.
National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities
National Endowment for the Arts
GRANTS AND ADMINISTRATION
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $146,021,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 154,255,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 132,000,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -14,021,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -22,255,000
The Committee recommends $132,000,000 for the National
Endowment for the Arts (NEA), $14,021,000 below the fiscal year
2012 enacted level and $22,255,000 below the budget request.
The Committee values greatly the longstanding collaborative
relationship between the NEA and the States. State Arts
Agencies (SSAs) support the arts for communities at the
grassroots level regardless of their geographic location,
providing much of their funding to smaller organizations,
community groups, and schools rather than well-established arts
organizations. The Committee supports the continuation of this
effective partnership and urges the NEA to work constructively
with States in developing and implementing arts education
programs and policies.
The Committee remains committed to supporting proven
national initiatives with broad geographic reach. The Big Read,
Challenge America, and Shakespeare in American Communities are
among the cost-effective grant programs with broad, bipartisan
Congressional support that meet these criteria, supporting the
NEA's goal of extending the arts to underserved populations in
both urban and rural communities across the United States.
The National Council on the Arts has historically played a
substantive role in directing the development and direction of
the NEA's programs. The Committee is concerned that the Council
is playing a diminishing role and urges the NEA to fully engage
the Council in its statutorily mandated advisory role in the
decision-making process relating to the NEA's grant-making
policies and programmatic initiatives, in addition to the
Council's traditional advisory role in the awarding of NEA
grants.
The Committee has not provided $3,000,000 in requested
funding for expenses associated with an anticipated relocation
of the NEA from its current location at the Old Post Office
Building. At the time of the markup of this bill, a detailed
justification, including specific relocation costs, had not
been presented to the Committee for consideration. The
Committee would be negligent in its oversight responsibilities
by providing funding for relocation without this level of
detail. Therefore, the Committee directs the NEA to work with
the General Services Administration (GSA) to identify cost-
effective options and submit to the Committee at the earliest
possible date a detailed justification for the relocation of
the NEA.
The Committee notes that the NEA's Congressional
authorization expired in 1993 and, therefore, urges the NEA to
work with the appropriate authorizing committees on
expeditiously renewing its Congressional authorization.
Bill Language.--Each year, the Committee provides in bill
language specific guidelines under which the Endowment is
directed to distribute taxpayer dollars in support of the arts.
With the exception of established honorific programs, grant
funding to individual artists is strictly prohibited. The
Committee directs that priority be given to providing services
or grant funding for projects, productions, or programs that
encourage public knowledge, education, understanding, and
appreciation of the arts. Any reduction in support to the
States for arts education should be no more than proportional
to other funding decreases taken in other NEA programs.
Reforms originally instituted by the Committee in P.L. 108-
447 relating to grant guidelines and program priorities are
fully restated in Sections 415 and 416 of the bill. The
Committee expects the NEA to adhere to them fully. These
reforms maintain broad bipartisan support and continue to serve
well both the NEA and the public interest.
Further, the Committee has included bill language
addressing grant award matching requirements and waiver
procedures. This language is the result of extensive
collaboration and consultation between the NEA and State Arts
Agencies as directed in the fiscal year 2012 Interior,
Environment, and Related Agencies conference report.
The allocation of funding among NEA activities is shown in
the table at the end of this report.
National Endowment for the Humanities
GRANTS AND ADMINISTRATION (INCLUDING MATCHING GRANTS)
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $146,021,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 154,255,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 132,000,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -14,021,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -22,255,000
The Committee recommends a total of $132,000,000 for the
National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), $14,021,000 below
the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $22,255,000 below the
budget request.
The Committee commends the NEH Federal/State Partnership
for its ongoing, successful collaboration with State humanities
councils in each of the 50 states as well as Washington, D.C.,
the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam,
the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and American
Samoa. Every NEH dollar received by a council is matched by a
local contribution. In recent years, the proportion of NEH
program funds supporting the work of State humanities councils
has grown to nearly 40 percent. The Committee urges the NEH to
sustain program funding to support the critical work of State
humanities councils consistent with the guidance provided in
the fiscal year 2012 Interior, Environment, and Related
Agencies conference report.
The Committee does not support the budget request proposal
to discontinue the We the People program. A similar proposal
made last year was rejected. We the People was initiated on
Constitution Day--September 17, 2002--and should remain a core
NEH grant program designed to promote the teaching, study, and
understanding of American history, culture, and democratic
principles. Grants awarded through the We the People program
have historically leveraged millions of non-Federal dollars
supporting enrichment and educational materials provided to
thousands of educators, schools, community colleges, and
libraries nationwide. We the People is a proven, cost-effective
national grant program with broad geographic reach and
bipartisan Congressional support. The Committee, therefore,
directs that it be sustained as an individual initiative at no
less than $3,500,000 in fiscal year 2013.
The Committee has not provided $3,000,000 in requested
funding for expenses associated with an anticipated relocation
of the NEH from its current location at the Old Post Office
Building. At the time of the markup of this bill, a detailed
justification, including specific relocation costs, had not
been presented to the Committee for consideration. The
Committee would be negligent in its oversight responsibilities
by providing funding for relocation without this level of
detail. Therefore, the Committee directs the NEH to work with
the General Services Administration (GSA) to identify cost-
effective options and submit to the Committee at the earliest
possible date a detailed justification for the relocation of
the NEH.
The Committee notes that the NEH's Congressional
authorization expired in 1993 and, therefore, urges the NEH to
work with the appropriate authorizing committees on
expeditiously renewing its Congressional authorization.
The allocation of funding among NEH activities is shown in
the table at the end of this report.
Commission of Fine Arts
The Commission of Fine Arts was established in 1910 to
advise the government on matters pertaining to the design of
national symbols, and particularly to guide the architectural
development of Washington, D.C. The Commission's work includes
advice on designs for parks, public buildings, public art, as
well as the design of national monuments, coins and medals, and
overseas American military cemeteries. In addition, the
Commission conducts design reviews of semipublic and private
structures within the Old Georgetown Historic District and
within certain areas of the National Capital that are adjacent
to areas of Federal interest. The Commission reviews more than
600 projects annually. The Commission also administers the
National Capital Arts and Cultural Affairs program.
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $2,396,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 2,175,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 2,175,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -221,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
The Committee recommends $2,175,000 for Salaries and
Expenses of the Commission of Fine Arts, as requested, $221,000
below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level.
National Capital Arts and Cultural Affairs
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $1,997,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 0
Recommended, 2013..................................... 1,950,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -47,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. +1,950,000
The National Capital Arts and Cultural Affairs program was
established in Public Law 99-190 to support organizations that
perform, exhibit, and/or present the arts in the Nation's
Capital. The Committee recommends $1,950,000, which is $47,000
below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and $1,950,000 above
the budget request.
Advisory Council on Historic Preservation
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
The National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 established
the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation. The ACHP was
granted permanent authorization as part of the National
Historic Preservation Act Amendments of 2006 (Public Law 109-
453). The ACHP promotes the preservation, enhancement, and
productive use of our nation's historic resources and advises
the President and Congress on national historic preservation
policy.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $6,098,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 7,023,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 5,723,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -375,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -1,300,000
The Committee recommends $5,723,000 for Salaries and
Expenses of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation
(ACHP), $375,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level and
$1,300,000 below the budget request.
The Committee is concerned by the Council's decision to
intervene in the review of the proposed Susquehanna-Roseland
Transmission line almost two years after the review process was
initiated and following the closure of the public comment
process on the draft environmental impact statement. This
initiative, which is critical to the supply of electricity to
58 million consumers in 13 States and Washington, DC, is one of
seven electric transmission lines that has been accelerated
through a pilot demonstration to streamline Federal permitting
and increase cooperation at the Federal and State level. The
Council is directed to work cooperatively with the Department
of the Interior to avoid any further delays so that the
Department, as directed in the fiscal year 2012 Interior,
Environment, and Related Agencies conference report, adheres to
its scheduled issuance of a final Record of Decision in
October, 2012.
The Committee has not provided $1,300,000 in requested
funding for expenses associated with an anticipated relocation
of the ACHP from its current location at the Old Post Office
Building. At the time of the markup of this bill, a detailed
justification, including specific relocation costs, had not
been presented to the Committee for consideration. The
Committee would be negligent in its oversight responsibilities
by providing funding for relocation without this level of
detail. Therefore, the Committee directs the ACHP to work with
the General Services Administration (GSA) to identify cost-
effective options and submit to the Committee at the earliest
possible date a detailed justification for the relocation of
the ACHP.
National Capital Planning Commission
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
The National Capital Planning Act of 1952 designated the
National Capital Planning Commission as the central planning
agency for the Federal government in the National Capital
Region. The three major functions of the Commission are to
prepare and adopt the Federal elements of the National Capital
Comprehensive Plan; prepare an annual report on a five-year
projection of the Federal Capital Improvement Program; and
review plans and proposals submitted to the Commission.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $8,141,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 7,977,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 7,977,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -164,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
The Committee recommends $7,977,000 for Salaries and
Expenses of the National Capital Planning Commission, as
requested, $164,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted level.
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL MUSEUM
In 1980, Congress passed legislation creating a 65-member
Holocaust Memorial Council with the mandate to create and
oversee a living memorial/museum to victims of the Holocaust.
The museum opened in April 1993. Construction costs for the
museum came solely from donated funds raised by the U.S.
Holocaust Memorial Museum Campaign, and appropriated funds were
used for planning and development of programmatic components,
overall administrative support, and annual commemorative
observances. Since the opening of the museum, appropriated
funds have been provided to pay for the ongoing operating costs
of the museum as authorized by Public Law 102-529 and Public
Law 106-292. Private funds support educational outreach
throughout the United States.
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $50,717,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 51,788,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 49,900,000
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -817,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -1,888,000
The Committee recommends $49,900,000 for the Holocaust
Memorial Museum, $817,000 below the fiscal year 2012 enacted
level and $1,888,000 below the budget request.
Presidio Trust
PRESIDIO TRUST FUND
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $11,981,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 0
Recommended, 2013..................................... 0
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -11,981,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. 0
As requested, no funding is proposed for the Presidio Trust
in fiscal year 2013. Funds provided in fiscal year 2012
fulfilled the commitment made by Congress to support the
transition of the Presidio Army Base to a mixed-use,
financially independent facility by the year 2013 as authorized
by Public Law 104-333. The Presidio's self-sufficiency plan
stipulated that the Presidio Trust receive Federal
appropriations through fiscal year 2012, at which time the
Trust would become responsible for funding the operations and
maintenance of the Presidio in perpetuity.
Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission
The Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission was created by
Congress in 1999 through Public Law 106-79 for the purpose of
establishing a permanent national memorial to Dwight D.
Eisenhower, Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in Europe in
World War II and 34th President of the United States. The
Commission consists of 12 members, four members of the House of
Representatives, four Senators, and four private citizens
appointed by the President.
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $1,997,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 5,600,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 0
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -1,997,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -5,600,000
The bill does not include funding for the Salaries and
Expenses account. The Committee is aware that the design of the
Eisenhower Memorial has garnered a significant amount of
interest. The Committee notes that an open, public, and
transparent process exists for deciding the components of the
final design. The process is intended to be collaborative and
incorporate multiple perspectives. The Committee urges the
Commission to continue working with all constituencies as
partners in the planning process including, but not limited to,
the National Park Service, the Commission on Fine Arts, and the
National Capitol Planning Commission.
Further, in order for the Committee to remain informed as
to the status of fund raising efforts the Eisenhower Commission
is directed to include a table in its annual Congressional
justification that shows the total amount of private (non-
Federal) contributions to date, and the total obligations and
total expenditures of those funds.
CAPITAL CONSTRUCTION
Appropriation enacted, 2012........................... $30,940,000
Budget estimate, 2013................................. 54,240,000
Recommended, 2013..................................... 0
Comparison:
Appropriation, 2012............................... -30,940,000
Budget estimate, 2013............................. -54,240,000
The bill does not include funding for the Capital
Construction account. The Committee provided the Commission a
total of $32,937,000 in fiscal year 2012 to finance the initial
groundbreaking of the memorial in August 2012. Additional
considerations for a number of the design elements required a
revision of the schedule. The fiscal year 2013 budget offers an
updated schedule with groundbreaking beginning in January 2013.
As a result, the Commission will not have spent the
construction funds provided for fiscal year 2012. The Committee
finds the previously appropriated funds will be sufficient to
initiate construction in fiscal year 2013, and thus, has not
provided additional funds.
TITLE IV--GENERAL PROVISIONS
Section 401 modifies a provision providing for public
availability of information governing the use of consulting
services contracts.
Section 402 continues a provision prohibiting activities to
promote public support or opposition to legislative proposals.
Section 403 continues a provision providing for annual
appropriations unless expressly provided otherwise in this Act.
Section 404 modifies a provision providing for restrictions
on departmental assessments unless approved by the Committees
on Appropriations.
Section 405 continues a provision preventing the use of
funds to sell giant sequoia trees on National Forest or Bureau
of Land Management lands in a manner different than such sales
were conducted in the past.
Section 406 continues a limitation on accepting and
processing applications for patents and on the patenting of
Federal lands; permits processing of grandfathered
applications; and permits third-party contractors to process
grandfathered applications.
Section 407 continues a provision regarding the payment of
contract support costs.
Section 408 modifies a provision allowing Forest Service
land management plans to be more than 15 years old if the
Secretary is acting in good faith to update such plans.
Section 409 continues a provision limiting preleasing,
leasing, and related activities within the boundaries of
National Monuments.
Section 410 continues a provision which restricts funding
for acquisition of land from being used for declarations of
taking or complaints in condemnation.
Section 411 continues a provision addressing timber sales
involving Alaskan western red cedar.
Section 412 modifies a provision continuing certain
authorities to renew grazing permits or leases administered by
the Forest Service or Department of the Interior.
Section 413 continues a provision which prohibits no-bid
contracts and grants except under certain circumstances.
Section 414 continues a provision which requires public
disclosure of certain reports.
Section 415 continues a provision which delineates the
grant guidelines for the National Endowment for the Arts.
Section 416 continues a provision which delineates the
program priorities for the programs managed by the National
Endowment for the Arts.
Section 417 provides guidelines relating to National
Endowment for the Arts grant awards to States.
Section 418 continues a provision requiring the Department
of the Interior, the EPA, the Forest Service, and the Indian
Health Service provide the Committees on Appropriations a
quarterly report on the status of balances of appropriations.
Section 419 requires the President to submit a report to
the Committees on Appropriations no later than 120 days after
the fiscal year 2014 budget is submitted to Congress describing
in detail all Federal agency obligations and expenditures for
climate change programs and activities in fiscal year 2012.
Section 420 continues a provision prohibiting the use of
funds to promulgate or implement any regulation requiring the
issuance of permits under title V of the Clean Air Act for
carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, water vapor, or methane
emissions.
Section 421 continues a provision prohibiting the use of
funds to implement any provision in a rule if that provision
requires mandatory reporting of greenhouse gas emissions from
manure management systems.
Section 422 clarifies Silvicultural Operations under the
Federal Water Pollution Control Act.
Section 423 directs the Secretary of the Interior to
reissue a final rule that shall not be subject to judicial
review.
Section 424 continues a provision prohibiting the
government from entering into contracts or agreements with any
corporation that was convicted of a felony criminal violation
under any Federal law within the preceding 24 months.
Section 425 continues a provision prohibiting funds for
contracts or agreements with entities with unpaid Federal tax
liabilities that have not entered into payment agreements to
remedy the liability.
Section 426 extends the Herger-Feinstein Library Group
Forestry Recovery Act.
Section 427 extends the Colorado Good Neighbor authority to
all western states.
Section 428 requires the Forest Service to identify land
for fire stations within National Recreation Areas.
Section 429 extends Forest Service cost recovery for
special uses for five years.
Section 430 allows interpretive associations to partner
with the Forest Service.
Section 431 extends the maximum authorized term for grazing
permits and leases.
Section 432 clarifies the Forest Service may use
designation by description and prescription.
Section 433 prohibits the Forest Service in California from
implementing the travel management rule without additional
analysis and prevents the agency from designating ML-3 roads as
highways.
Section 434 prohibits the use of funds to develop, adopt,
implement, administer, or enforce a change or supplement to a
rule or guidance documents pertaining to the definition of
waters under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act.
Section 435 prohibits the use of funds to develop, carry
out, implement, or enforce proposed regulations published on
June 18, 2010.
Section 436 prohibits the use of funds to expand the
stormwater discharge program under section 402(p) of the
Federal Water Pollution Control Act until certain criteria are
met.
Section 437 clarifies current Appeals Reform Act
requirements for Forest Service activities.
Section 438 prohibits the use of funds to limit
recreational shooting and hunting on Federal and public lands
except for public safety.
Section 439 prohibits the use of funds to develop, propose,
finalize, administer, or implement the National Ocean Policy
under Executive Order 13547; requires a report identifying all
Federal expenditures for the development, administration, or
implementation of such Policy in fiscal years 2011 and 2012;
and requires that the President's budget submission for fiscal
year 2014 identify funding proposed for the implementation of
such Policy.
Section 440 establishes a pilot program for vessels to
demonstrate alternative methods to comply with emissions
control area standards.
Section 441 precludes the need for a municipal separate
storm sewer system permit under certain conditions.
Section 442 applies Buy American requirements to the Clean
Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds.
Section 443 prohibits EPA from using funds to implement,
administer, or enforce the lead renovation rule until EPA has
approved a commercially available lead test kit.
Section 444 prohibits EPA from using funds to prepare,
propose, promulgate, finalize, implement, or enforce
regulations for greenhouse gas emissions from new motor
vehicles or motor engines after model year 2016, and to grant a
waiver to a State or political subdivision thereof to adopt or
enforce standards for greenhouse gas emissions from new motor
vehicles or motor engines after model year 2016.
Section 445 prohibits EPA from using funds to finalize
proposed guidance on false or misleading pesticide labels.
Section 446 prohibits EPA from using funds to implement,
administer, or enforce NESHAP regulations for asbestos with
respect to residential buildings with four or fewer dwelling
units unless such buildings meet certain criteria.
Section 447 prohibits EPA from using funds to develop,
propose, finalize, implement, enforce, or administer any
regulation that would establish new financial responsibility
requirements under CERCLA.
Section 448 prohibits from using funds to develop, issue,
implement, or enforce any greenhouse gas New Source Performance
Standards on any new or existing source that is an electric
utility generating unit.
Section 449 directs EPA to begin development of a seventh
addition of a cost manual.
Section 450 directs EPA to solicit comments on revising an
air quality model.
Section 451 establishes a Spending Reduction Account as
required by Section 3(j) of H. Res. 5.
Bill-Wide Reporting Requirements
The following items are included in accordance with various
requirements of the Rules of the House of Representatives:
FULL COMMITTEE VOTES
Pursuant to the provisions of clause 3(b) of rule XIII of
the Rules of the House of Representatives, the results of each
roll call vote on an amendment or on the motion to report,
together with the names of those voting for and those voting
against, are printed below:
STATEMENT OF GENERAL PERFORMANCE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
Pursuant to clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, the following is a statement of
general performance goals and objectives for which this measure
authorizes funding:
The Committee on Appropriations considers program
performance, including a program's success in developing and
attaining outcome-related goals and objectives, in developing
funding recommendations.
RESCISSION OF FUNDS
Pursuant to clause 3(f)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, the following table is submitted
describing the rescission recommended in the accompanying bill:
Department and activity:
Amounts recommended for rescission:
Department of the Interior: Land and Water Conservation
Fund (contract authority) $30,000,000.
Environmental Protection Agency: State and Tribal
Assistance Grants $130,000,000.
TRANSFERS OF FUNDS
Pursuant to clause 3(f)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, the following table is submitted
describing the transfer of funds in the accompanying bill.
APPROPRIATION TRANSFERS RECOMMENDED IN THE BILL
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Account to which transfer is
Account from which transfer is made Amount (000's) made Amount (000's)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Department of the Interior, National Park not specified Department of Transportation, not specified
Service. Federal Highway
Administration.
Department of the Interior, Operation of not specified Indian forest land assistance not specified
Indian Programs. accounts.
Department of the Interior, Bureau of not specified Bureau of Reclamation........ not specified
Indian Affairs Construction.
Department of the Interior, Office of not specified Secretary of Agriculture..... not specified
Insular Affairs.
Department of the Interior, Office of the not specified Department of the Interior, not specified
Special Trustee for American Indians. Bureau of Indian Affairs,
Office of Indian Programs;
Office of the Solicitor,
Salaries and Expenses;
Office of the Secretary,
Salaries and Expenses.
Department of the Interior, Wildland Fire not specified Department of the Interior, not specified
Management. for repayment of advances
made during emergencies.
Department of the Interior, Wildland Fire up to $50,000 Forest Service, Wildland Fire up to $50,000
Management. Management.
Department of the Interior, FLAME Wildfire not specified Department of the Interior, not specified
Suppression Reserve Fund. Wildland Fire Management.
Environmental Protection Agency, Hazardous not specified Other Federal Agencies....... not specified
Substance Superfund.
Environmental Protection Agency, up to $250,000 Any Federal Department or up to $250,000
Environmental Programs and Management. Agency for Great Lakes
Initiative.
Forest Service, Capital Improvement and not specified General Fund of the Treasury. not specified
Maintenance.
Forest Service, Capital Improvement and up to $13,000 Forest Service, National up to $13,000
Maintenance. Forest System.
Forest Service, Wildland Fire Management... not specified Forest Service, for repayment not specified
of advances made during
emergencies.
Forest Service, Wildland Fire Management... not specified Forest Service, State and not specified
Private Forestry.
Forest Service, Wildland Fire Management... not specified Forest Service, National not specified
Forest System.
Forest Service, Wildland Fire Management... not specified Forest Service, Forest and not specified
Rangeland Research.
Forest Service, Wildland Fire Management... up to $50,000 Secretary of the Interior.... up to $50,000
Forest Service, Wildland Fire Management... up to $21,000 Forest Service, National up to $21,000
Forest System.
Forest Service, FLAME Wildfire Suppression not specified Forest Service, Wildland Fire not specified
Reserve Fund. Management.
Forest Service............................. not specified Forest Service, Wildland Fire not specified
Management.
Forest Service............................. up to $82,000 USDA, Working Capital Fund... up to $82,000
Forest Service............................. up to $14,500 USDA, Greenbook.............. up to $14,500
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DISCLOSURE OF EARMARKS AND CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING ITEMS
Neither the bill nor the report contains any Congressional
earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as
defined by clause 9 of rule XXI.
COMPLIANCE WITH RULE XIII, CLAUSE 3(E) (RAMSEYER RULE)
In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new
matter is printed in italic, and existing law in which no
change is proposed is shown in roman):
SECTION 6906 OF TITLE 31, UNITED STATES CODE
Sec. 6906. Funding
For each of fiscal years 2008 through [2012] 2013--
(1) * * *
* * * * * * *
----------
SECTION 10101 OF THE OMNIBUS BUDGET RECONCILIATION ACT OF 1993
SEC. 10101. FEE.
(a) Claim Maintenance Fee.--
(1) Lode mining claims, mill sites, and tunnel
sites.--The holder of each unpatented lode mining
claim, mill site, or tunnel site, located pursuant to
the mining laws of the United States [on] before, on,
or after August 10, 1993, shall pay to the Secretary of
the Interior, on or before September 1 of each year, to
the extent provided in advance in appropriations Acts,
a claim maintenance fee of $100 per claim or site,
respectively. Such claim maintenance fee shall be in
lieu of the assessment work requirement contained in
the Mining Law of 1872 (30 U.S.C. 28-28e) and the
related filing requirements contained in section 314
(a) and (c) of the Federal Land Policy and Management
Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1744 (a) and (c)).
(2) Placer mining claims.--The holder of each
unpatented placer mining claim located pursuant to the
mining laws of the United States [located] before, on,
or after August 10, 1993, shall pay to the Secretary of
the Interior, on or before September 1 of each year,
the claim maintenance fee described in subsection (a),
for each 20 acres of the placer claim or portion
thereof.
* * * * * * *
----------
SECTION 15 OF THE INDIAN LAW ENFORCEMENT REFORM ACT
SEC. 15. INDIAN LAW AND ORDER COMMISSION.
(a) * * *
* * * * * * *
(f) Report.--Not later than [2 years] 3 years after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Commission shall submit to the
President and Congress a report that contains--
(1) * * *
* * * * * * *
----------
PUBLIC LAW 109-54
* * * * * * *
TITLE II--ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
* * * * * * *
Administrative Provisions
* * * * * * *
For fiscal years 2006 through 2015, the Administrator may,
after consultation with the Office of Personnel Management,
employ up to [thirty persons] fifty persons at any one time in
the Office of Research and Development under the authority
provided in 42 U.S.C. 209.
* * * * * * *
----------
SECTION 415 OF THE DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, ENVIRONMENT, AND RELATED
AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2012
extension of grazing permits
Sec. 415. The terms and conditions of section 325 of Public
Law 108-108 (117 Stat. 1307), regarding grazing permits at the
Department of the Interior and the Forest Service, shall remain
in effect for fiscal years 2012 and 2013 and subsequent fiscal
years. A grazing permit or lease issued by the Secretary of the
Interior for lands administered by the Bureau of Land
Management that is the subject of a request for a grazing
preference transfer shall be issued, without further
processing, for the remaining time period in the existing
permit or lease using the same mandatory terms and conditions.
If the authorized officer determines a change in the mandatory
terms and conditions is required, the new permit must be
processed as directed in section 325 of Public Law 108-108.
----------
SECTION 5 OF THE NATIONAL FOUNDATION ON THE ARTS AND THE HUMANITIES ACT
OF 1965
ESTABLISHMENT OF THE NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS
Sec. 5. (a) * * *
* * * * * * *
(g)(1) * * *
* * * * * * *
(4)(A) The amount of each allotment to a State for any fiscal
year under this subsection shall be available to each State,
which has a plan approved by the Chairperson in effect on the
first day of such fiscal year to pay not more than 50 per
centum of the total cost of any project or production described
in paragraph (1). The amount of any allotment made under
paragraph (3) for any fiscal year which exceeds $125,000 shall
be available, at the discretion of the Chairperson, to pay up
to 100 per centum of such cost of projects and productions if
such projects and productions would otherwise be unavailable to
the residents of that State: Provided, That the total amount of
any such allotment for any fiscal year which is exempted from
such 50 per centum limitation shall not exceed 20 per centum of
the total of such allotment for such fiscal year. Whenever a
State agency requests that the Chairperson exercise such
discretion, the Chairperson shall--
(i) give consideration to the various circumstances
the State is encountering at the time of such request;
and
(ii) ensure that such discretion is not exercised
with respect to such State in perpetuity.
* * * * * * *
(C) Funds made available under this subsection shall not be
used to supplant non-Federal funds. The non-Federal funds
required by subparagraph (A) to pay 50 percent of the cost of a
program or production shall be provided from funds directly
controlled and appropriated by the State involved and directly
managed by the State agency of such State.
* * * * * * *
----------
SECTION 402 OF THE FEDERAL WATER POLLUTION CONTROL ACT
national pollutant discharge elimination system
Sec. 402. (a) * * *
* * * * * * *
(l) Limitation on Permit Requirement.--
(1) * * *
* * * * * * *
(3) Silvicultural activities.--The Administrator
shall not require a permit under this section, nor
shall the Administrator directly or indirectly require
any State to require a permit, for discharges of
stormwater runoff from roads, the construction, use, or
maintenance of which are associated with silvicultural
activities, or from other silvicultural activities
involving nursery operations, site preparation,
reforestation and subsequent cultural treatment,
thinning, prescribed burning, pest and fire control,
harvesting operations, or surface drainage.
* * * * * * *
(p) Municipal and Industrial Stormwater Discharges.--
(1) * * *
* * * * * * *
(3) Permit requirements.--
(A) * * *
* * * * * * *
(C) Limitation.--The Administrator or a State
may notrequire a municipality operating a
municipal separate stormsewer system serving a
population of less than 100,000 toobtain a
permit under this subsection for a discharge
that--
(i) is composed entirely of
stormwater from a facilitythat is not
owned or operated by the municipality;
and
(ii) does not enter into the
municipal separate stormsewer system.
* * * * * * *
----------
SECTION 331 OF THE DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR AND RELATED AGENCIES
APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2001
Sec. 331. Federal and State Cooperative Watershed Restoration
and Protection [in Colorado]. (a) Use of [Colorado] State
Forest Service.--The Secretary of Agriculture, via cooperative
agreement or contract (including sole source contract) as
appropriate, [may permit the Colorado State Forest Service]
with any of the sixteen contiguous Western States (as defined
in section 3 of Public Law 95-514 (43 U.S.C. 1902)) may permit
the State Forest Service of the State to perform watershed
restoration and protection services on National Forest System
lands in the State [of Colorado] when similar and complementary
watershed restoration and protection services are being
performed by the State Forest Service on adjacent State or
private lands. The types of services that may be extended to
National Forest System lands include treatment of insect
infected trees, reduction of hazardous fuels, and other
activities to restore or improve watersheds or fish and
wildlife habitat across ownership boundaries.
(b) State as Agent.--Except as provided in subsection (c), a
cooperative agreement or contract under subsection (a) [may
authorize the State Forester of Colorado] with any of the
sixteen contiguous Western States may authorize the State
Forester of the State to serve as the agent for the Forest
Service in providing all services necessary to facilitate the
performance of watershed restoration and protection services
under subsection (a). The services to be performed by [the
Colorado State] a State Forest Service may be conducted with
subcontracts utilizing State contract procedures. Subsections
(d) and (g) of section 14 of the National Forest Management Act
of 1976 (16 U.S.C. 472a) shall not apply to services performed
under a cooperative agreement or contract under subsection (a).
(c) Retention of NEPA Responsibilities.--With respect to any
watershed restoration and protection services on National
Forest System lands proposed for performance by [the Colorado
State] a State Forest Service under subsection (a), any
decision required to be made under the National Environmental
Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) may not be
delegated to [the State Forester of Colorado] a State Forester
or any other officer or employee of [the Colorado State] a
State Forest Service.
(d) Inclusion of [Colorado] BLM Lands.--The authority
provided by this section shall also be available to the
Secretary of the Interior with respect to public lands in the
[State of Colorado] sixteen contiguous Western States
administered by the Secretary through the Bureau of Land
Management.
(e) Expiration of Authority.--The authority of the Secretary
of Agriculture and the Secretary of the Interior to enter into
cooperative agreements and contracts under this section expires
[September 30, 2013] September 30, 2018, and the term of any
cooperative agreement or contract entered into under this
section shall not extend beyond that date.
----------
SECTION 331 OF THE DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR AND RELATED AGENCIES
APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2000
Sec. 331. Enhancing Forest Service Administration of Rights-
of-way and Land Uses. (a) The Secretary of Agriculture shall
[develop and implement a pilot program] implement a program for
the purpose of enhancing [forest service] Forest Service
administration of rights-of-way and other land uses. The
authority for this program shall be for fiscal years 2000
[through 2012] through 2017. [Prior to the expiration of the
authority for this pilot program, the Secretary shall submit a
report to the House and Senate Committees on Appropriations,
and the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the Senate
and the Committee on Resources of the House of Representatives
that evaluates whether the use of funds under this section
resulted in more expeditious approval of rights-of-way and
special use authorizations. This report shall include the
Secretary's recommendation for statutory or regulatory changes
to reduce the average processing time for rights-of-way and
special use permit applications.]
(b) Deposit of Fees.--Subject to subsections (a) and (f),
during fiscal years 2000 through [2012,] 2017, the Secretary of
Agriculture shall deposit into a special account established in
the Treasury all fees collected by the Secretary to recover the
costs of processing applications for, and monitoring compliance
with, authorizations to use and occupy National Forest System
lands pursuant to section 28(l) of the Mineral Leasing Act (30
U.S.C. 185(l)), section 504(g) of the Federal Land Policy and
Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1764(g)), section 9701 of
title 31, United States Code, and section 110(g) of the
National Historic Preservation Act (16 U.S.C. 470h-2(g)).
* * * * * * *
----------
SECTION 402 OF THE FEDERAL LAND POLICY AND MANAGEMENT ACT OF 1976
GRAZING LEASES AND PERMITS
Sec. 402. (a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this
section, permits and leases for domestic livestock grazing on
public lands issued by the Secretary under the Act of June 28,
1934 (48 Stat. 1269, as amended; 43 U.S.C. 315 et. seq.) or the
Act of August 28, 1937 (50 Stat. 874, as amended; 43 U.S.C.
1181a-1181j), or by the Secretary of Agriculture, with respect
to lands within National Forests in the sixteen contiguous
Western States, shall be for a term of [ten years] 20 years
subject to such terms and conditions the Secretary concerned
deems appropriate and consistent with the governing law,
including, but not limited to, the authority of the Secretary
concerned to cancel, suspend, or modify a grazing permit or
lease, in whole or in part, pursuant to the terms and
conditions thereof, or to cancel or suspend a grazing permit or
lease for any violation of a grazing regulation or of any term
or condition of such grazing permit or lease.
(b) Permits or leases may be issued by the Secretary
concerned for a period shorter than [ten years] 20 years where
the Secretary concerned determines that--
(1) * * *
(2) the land will be devoted to a public purpose
prior to the end of [ten years] 20 years; or
(3) it will be in the best interest of sound land
management to specify a shorter term: Provided, That
the absence from an allotment management plan of
details the Secretary concerned would like to include
but which are undeveloped shall not be the basis for
establishing a term shorter than [ten years] 20 years:
Provided further, That the absence of completed land
use plans or court ordered environmental statements
shall not be the sole basis for establishing a term
shorter than [ten years] 20 years unless the Secretary
determines on a case-by-case basis that the information
to be contained in such land use plan or court ordered
environmental impact statement is necessary to
determine whether a shorter term should be established
for any of the reasons set forth in items (1) through
(3) of this subsection.
* * * * * * *
----------
SECTION 14 OF THE NATIONAL FOREST MANAGEMENT ACT OF 1976
TIMBER SALES ON NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM LANDS
Sec. 14. (a) * * *
* * * * * * *
(g) [Designation, marking when necessary,] Designation,
including marking when necessary, or designation by description
or by prescription, and supervision of harvesting of trees,
portions of trees, or forest products shall be conducted by
persons employed by the Secretary of Agriculture. Such persons
shall have no personal interest in the purchase or harvest of
such products and shall not be directly or indirectly in the
employment of the purchaser thereof.
* * * * * * *
----------
SECTION 322 OF THE DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR AND RELATED AGENCIES
APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 1993
[SEC. 322. FOREST SERVICE DECISIONMAKING AND APPEALS REFORM.
[(a) In General.--In accordance with this section, the
Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the Chief of the
Forest Service, shall establish a notice and comment process
for proposed actions of the Forest Service concerning projects
and activities implementing land and resource management plans
developed under the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources
Planning Act of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) and shall modify
the procedure for appeals of decisions concerning such
projects.
[(b) Notice and Comment.--
[(1) Notice.--Prior to proposing an action referred
to in subsection (a), the Secretary shall give notice
of the proposed action, and the availability of the
action for public comment by--
[(A) promptly mailing notice about the
proposed action to any person who has requested
it in writing, and to persons who are known to
have participated in the decisionmaking
process; and,
[(B)(i) in the case of an action taken by the
Chief of the Forest Service, publishing notice
of action in the Federal Register; or
[(ii) in the case of any other action
referred to in subsection (a), publishing
notice of the action in a newspaper of general
circulation that has previously been identified
in the Federal Register as the newspaper in
which notice under this paragraph may be
published.
[(2) Comment.--The Secretary shall accept comments on
the proposed action within 30 days after publication of
the notice in accordance with paragraph (1).
[(c) Right to Appeal.--Not later than 45 days after the date
of issuance of a decision of the Forest Service concerning
actions referred to in subsection (a), a person who was
involved in the public comment process under subsection (b)
through submission of written or oral comments or by otherwise
notifying the Forest Service of their interest in the proposed
action may file an appeal.
[(d) Disposition of an Appeal.--
[(1) Informal disposition.--
[(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph
(B), a designated employee of the Forest
Service shall offer to meet with each
individual who files an appeal in accordance
with subsection (c) and attempt to dispose of
the appeal.
[(B) Time and location of the meeting.--Each
meeting in accordance with subparagraph (A)
shall take place--
[(i) not later than 15 days after the
closing date for filing an appeal; and
[(ii) at a location designated by the
Chief of the Forest Service that is in
the vicinity of the lands affected by
the decision.
[(2) Formal review.--If the appeal is not disposed of
in accordance with paragraph (1), an appeals review
officer designated by the Chief of the Forest Service
shall review the appeal and recommend in writing, to
the official responsible for deciding the appeal, the
appropriate disposition of the appeal. The official
responsible for deciding the appeal shall then decide
the appeal. The appeals review officer shall be a line
officer at least at the level of the agency official
who made the initial decision on the project or
activity that is under appeal, who has not participated
in the initial decision and will not be responsible for
implementation of the initial decision after the appeal
is decided.
[(3) Time for disposition.--Disposition of appeals
under this subsection shall be completed not later than
30 days after the closing date for filing of an appeal,
provided that the Forest Service may extend the closing
date by an additional 15 days.
[(4) If the Secretary fails to decide the appeal
within the 45-day period, the decision on which the
appeal is based shall be deemed to be a final agency
action for the purpose of chapter 7 of title 5, United
States Code.
[(e) Stay.--Unless the Chief of the Forest Service determines
that an emergency situation exists with respect to a decision
of the Forest Service, implementation of the decision shall be
stayed during the period beginning on the date of the
decision--
[(1) for 45 days, if an appeal is not filed, or
[(2) for an additional 15 days after the date of the
disposition of an appeal under this section, if the
agency action is deemed final under subsection (d)(4).]
----------
PUBLIC LAW 104-333
* * * * * * *
DIVISION II
* * * * * * *
TITLE I--NATIONAL COAL HERITAGE AREA
* * * * * * *
SEC. 107. SUNSET.
The Secretary may not make any grant or provide any
assistance under this title after September 30, [2012] 2014.
* * * * * * *
TITLE II--TENNESSEE CIVIL WAR HERITAGE AREA
* * * * * * *
SEC. 208. SUNSET.
The Secretary may not make any grant or provide any
assistance under this title after September 30, [2012] 2014.
* * * * * * *
TITLE III--AUGUSTA CANAL NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA
* * * * * * *
SEC. 310. SUNSET.
The Secretary may not make any grant or provide any
assistance under this title after September 30, [2012] 2014.
* * * * * * *
TITLE IV--STEEL INDUSTRY HERITAGE PROJECT
* * * * * * *
SEC. 408. SUNSET.
The Secretary may not make any grant or provide any
assistance under this title after September 30, [2012] 2014.
* * * * * * *
TITLE V--ESSEX NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA
* * * * * * *
SEC. 507. SUNSET.
The Secretary may not make any grant or provide any
assistance under this title after September 30, [2012] 2014.
* * * * * * *
TITLE VI--SOUTH CAROLINA NATIONAL HERITAGE CORRIDOR
* * * * * * *
SEC. 607. SUNSET.
The Secretary may not make any grant or provide any
assistance under this title after September 30, [2012] 2014.
* * * * * * *
TITLE VII--AMERICA'S AGRICULTURAL HERITAGE PARTNERSHIP
* * * * * * *
SEC. 707. SUNSET.
The Secretary may not make any grant or provide any
assistance under this title after September 30, [2012] 2014.
* * * * * * *
TITLE VIII--OHIO & ERIE CANAL NATIONAL HERITAGE CORRIDOR
* * * * * * *
SEC. 809. SUNSET.
The Secretary may not make any grant or provide any financial
assistance under this title after September 30, [2012] 2014.
* * * * * * *
TITLE IX--HUDSON RIVER VALLEY NATIONAL HERITAGE AREA
* * * * * * *
SEC. 910. SUNSET.
The Secretary may not make any grant or provide any
assistance under this title after September 30, [2012] 2014.
* * * * * * *
----------
SECTION 7 OF PUBLIC LAW 99-647
SEC. 7. TERMINATION OF COMMISSION.
The Commission shall terminate on the date that is 6 years
after [the date of enactment of the John H. Chafee Blackstone
River Valley National Heritage Corridor Reauthorization Act of
2006] September 30, 2014.
----------
SECTION 12 OF PUBLIC LAW 100-692
SEC. 12. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
(a) * * *
* * * * * * *
(c) Management Action Plan.--
(1) In general.--To implement the management action
plan created by the Commission, there is authorized to
be appropriated $1,000,000 for each of fiscal years
2000 through [2012] 2014.
* * * * * * *
(d) Termination of Assistance.--The authority of the
Secretary to provide financial assistance under this Act
terminates on [the date that is 5 years after the date of
enactment of this subsection] September 30, 2014.
* * * * * * *
----------
SECTION 108 OF PUBLIC LAW 106-278
SEC. 108. SUNSET PROVISION.
The Secretary shall not provide any grant or other assistance
under this title after September 30, [2012] 2014.
CHANGES IN APPLICATION OF EXISTING LAW
Pursuant to clause 3(f)(1)(A) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, the following statements are
submitted describing the effect of provisions in the
accompanying bill, which directly or indirectly change the
application of existing law. In most instances these provisions
have been included in prior appropriations Acts.
The bill includes the following changes in application of
existing law:
OVERALL BILL
Providing that certain appropriations remain available
until expended or extends the availability of funds beyond the
fiscal year where programs or projects are continuing but for
which legislation does not specifically authorize such extended
availability. This authority tends to result in savings by
preventing the practice of committing funds on low priority
projects at the end of the fiscal year to avoid losing the
funds.
Limiting, in certain instances, the obligation of funds for
particular functions or programs. These limitations include
restrictions on the obligation of funds for administrative
expenses, travel expenses, the use of consultants, and
programmatic areas within the overall jurisdiction of a
particular agency.
Limiting official entertainment or reception and
representation expenses for selected agencies in the bill.
Continuing ongoing activities of those Federal agencies,
which require annual authorization or additional legislation,
which has not been enacted.
TITLE I--DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Bureau of Land Management
MANAGEMENT OF LANDS AND RESOURCES
Providing funds to the Bureau for the management of lands
and resources.
Providing funds to the National Fish and Wildlife
Foundation under certain conditions.
Permitting the use of fees for processing applications for
permit to drill.
Permitting the use of fees for conducting oil and gas
inspections.
Permitting the use of mining fee collections for program
operations.
Permitting the use of fees from communication site rentals.
LAND ACQUISITION
Requiring that funding for the program is derived from the
Land and Water Conservation Fund.
OREGON AND CALIFORNIA GRANT LANDS
Providing funds for the Oregon and California Grant Lands.
Authorizing the transfer of certain collections from the
Oregon and California Land Grants Fund to the Treasury.
RANGE IMPROVEMENTS
Allowing certain funds to be transferred to the Department
of the Interior for range improvements.
SERVICE CHARGES, DEPOSITS, AND FORFEITURES
Allowing the use of certain collected funds for certain
administrative costs and operation of termination of certain
facilities.
Allowing the use of funds on any damaged public lands.
Authorizing the Secretary to use monies from forfeitures,
compromises or settlements for improvement, protection and
rehabilitation of public lands under certain conditions.
MISCELLANEOUS TRUST FUNDS
Allowing certain contributed funds to be advanced for
administrative costs and other activities of the Bureau.
ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS
Permitting the Bureau to enter into agreements with public
and private entities, including States.
Permitting the Bureau to manage improvements to which the
United States has title.
Permitting the payment of rewards for information on
violations of law on Bureau lands.
Providing for cost-sharing arrangements for printing
services.
Permitting the Bureau to conduct certain projects for State
governments on a reimbursable basis.
Prohibiting the use of funds for the destruction of wild
horses and burros.
United States Fish and Wildlife Service
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Limiting funding for certain Endangered Species Act
programs.
LAND ACQUISITION
Requiring that funding for the program is derived from the
Land and Water Conservation Fund.
Prohibiting the use of funds for administrative overhead,
planning or other management costs.
COOPERATIVE ENDANGERED SPECIES CONSERVATION FUND
Requiring that portions of funding for the program are
derived from the Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation
Fund and the Land and Water Conservation Fund.
STATE AND TRIBAL WILDLIFE GRANTS
Specifying the State and tribal wildlife grants
distribution formula, the planning and cost-sharing
requirements, and limiting administrative costs.
ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS
Providing that programs may be carried out by direct
expenditure, contracts, grants, cooperative agreements and
reimbursable agreements with public and private entities.
Providing for repair of damage to public roads.
Providing options for the purchase of land not to exceed
$1.
Permitting cost-shared arrangements for printing services.
Permitting the acceptance of donated aircraft.
National Park Service
OPERATION OF THE NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM
Designating funds for Everglades restoration.
Providing for repair, rehabilitation and maintenance of
National Park Service assets.
NATIONAL RECREATION AND PRESERVATION
Providing for expenses not otherwise provided for.
HISTORIC PRESERVATION
Providing for expenses derived from the Historic
Preservation Fund.
CONSTRUCTION
Providing funds for construction, improvements, repair or
replacement of physical facilities including modified water
deliveries to Everglades National Park with certain
restrictions.
LAND AND WATER CONSERVATION FUND
Rescinding $30,000,000 in Land and Water Conservation Fund
contract authority.
LAND ACQUISITION AND STATE ASSISTANCE
Requiring that funding for the program is derived from the
Land and Water Conservation Fund.
ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS
Allowing certain franchise fees to be available for
expenditure without further appropriation to extinguish or
reduce liability for certain possessory interests.
Providing for the retention of administrative costs under
certain Land and Water Conservation Fund programs.
Allows National Park Service funds to be transferred to the
Federal Lands Highway Administration for purposes authorized
under 23 U.S.C. 204 for reasonable administrative support
costs.
United States Geological Survey
SURVEYS, INVESTIGATIONS, AND RESEARCH
Providing funds to perform surveys, investigations, and
research covering topography, geology, hydrology, biology, and
the mineral and water resources.
Providing funds to classify lands as to their mineral and
water resources.
Funding engineering supervision to power permittees and
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission licensees.
Funding the administration of the minerals exploration
program (30 U.S.C. 641) to conduct inquiries into the economic
conditions affecting mining and materials processing
industries.
Prohibiting the conduct of new surveys on private property
without permission.
Requiring cost sharing for cooperative topographic mapping
and water resource data collection activities.
administrative provisions
Allowing funds to be used for certain contracting,
technical services, construction, maintenance, acquisition, and
representation expenses.
Permitting the use of certain contracts, grants, and
cooperative agreements.
Recognizing students and recent graduates as Federal
employees for the purposes of travel and work injury
compensation.
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
Permitting funds for mineral leasing and environmental
study; enforcing laws and contracts; and for matching grants.
Provides that funds may be used which shall be derived from
non-refundable cost recovery fees collected in 2013.
Permitting the use of certain excess receipts from Outer
Continental Shelf leasing activities.
Providing for reasonable expenses related to volunteer
beach and marine cleanup activities.
BUREAU OF SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL ENFORCEMENT
Permitting funds for mineral leasing and environmental
study; enforcing laws and contracts; and for matching grants.
Provides that funds may be used which shall be derived from
non-refundable cost recovery fees collected in 2013.
Permitting the use of certain excess receipts from Outer
Continental Shelf leasing activities.
Permitting the use of funds derived from non-refundable
inspection fees collecting in 2013.
Requiring that not less than 50 percent of inspection fees
expended be used on personnel, expanding capacity and reviewing
applications for permit to drill.
OIL SPILL RESEARCH
Providing that funds shall be derived from the Oil Spill
Liability Trust Fund.
Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement
REGULATION AND TECHNOLOGY
Permitting payment to State and tribal personnel for travel
and per diem expenses for training.
ABANDONED MINE RECLAMATION FUND
Allowing the use of debt recovery to pay for debt
collection.
Allowing that certain funds made available under title IV
of Public Law 95-87 may be used for any required non-Federal
share of the cost of certain projects.
Allowing funds to be used for travel expenses of State and
tribal personnel while attending certain OSM training.
administrative provision
Permits the Secretary to transfer title for computer
equipment to States and Tribes hereafter.
Bureau of Indian Affairs and Bureau of Indian Education
Operation of Indian Programs
Allowing the use of certain funds for official reception
and representation expenses.
Limiting funds for welfare assistance payments, except for
disaster relief.
Limiting funds for contract support costs.
Limiting the use of funds for school operations of Bureau-
funded schools and other education programs.
Permitting the use of tribal priority allocations for
general assistance payments to individuals, for contract
support costs, and school operations costs.
Providing for an Indian self-determination fund.
Limiting funds for administrative cost grants under certain
circumstances.
Allowing the transfer of certain forestry funds.
Allows the use of funds to purchase uniforms or other
identifying articles of clothing for personnel if it enhances
the safety of Bureau field employees.
CONSTRUCTION
Providing for the transfer of Navajo irrigation project
funds to the Bureau of Reclamation.
Providing that six percent of Federal Highway Trust Fund
contract authority may be used for construction management
costs.
Providing Safety of Dams funds on a non-reimbursable basis.
Requiring the use of administrative and cost accounting
principles for certain school construction projects and
exempting such projects from certain requirements.
Requiring conformance with building codes and health and
safety standards.
Specifying the procedure for dispute resolution.
Limiting the control of construction projects when certain
time frames have not been met.
Allowing reimbursement of construction costs from the
Office of Special Trustee.
INDIAN GUARANTEED LOAN PROGRAM ACCOUNT
Limiting funds for administrative expenses and for
subsidizing total loan principal.
ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS
Allowing the use of funds for direct expenditure,
contracts, cooperative agreements, compacts, and grants.
Allowing contracting for the San Carlos Irrigation Project.
Limiting the use of funds for certain contracts, grants and
cooperative agreements.
Allowing Tribes to return appropriated funds.
Prohibiting funding of Alaska schools.
Limiting the number of schools and the expansion of grade
levels in individual schools.
Specifying distribution of indirect and administrative
costs for certain Tribes.
Departmental Offices
OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY, SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Allowing the use of certain funds for official reception
and representation expenses.
Permitting payments to former Bureau of Mines workers.
Allowing certain refunds of overpayments in connection with
certain Indian leases.
Providing two percent deduction of State royalties to help
cover Federal administrative costs.
Designating funds for mineral revenue management
activities.
Extending mandatory funding for Payment in Lieu of Taxes.
Allowing certain payments authorized for the Payments in
Lieu of Taxes Program to be retained for administrative
expenses.
Providing that no Payments in Lieu of Taxes Program payment
be made to otherwise eligible units of local government if the
computed amount of the payment is less than $100.
Providing that a payment made to a unit of general local
government for fiscal year 2013 may be reduced by the Secretary
to correct overpayments, and increased by the Secretary to
correct underpayments, to such unit of local government for the
previous fiscal year.
Providing that to the extent that the aggregate increases
in payment required in the preceding proviso exceed the
aggregate reductions in payment under such proviso, the amount
necessary to cover any remaining underpayment shall be taken as
a prorated reduction to all payments.
Insular Affairs
ASSISTANCE TO TERRITORIES
Designating funds for various programs and for salaries and
expenses of the Office of Insular Affairs and providing until
expended for the former.
Allowing audits of the financial transactions of the
Territorial and Insular governments by the GAO.
Providing grant funding under certain terms of the
Agreement of the Special Representatives on Future United
States Financial Assistance for the Northern Mariana Islands.
Providing for capital infrastructure in various
Territories.
Allowing appropriations for disaster assistance to be used
as non-Federal matching funds for hazard mitigation grants.
COMPACT OF FREE ASSOCIATION
Providing grants to Palau, the Marshall Islands, and
Micronesia.
ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS, INSULAR AFFAIRS
Allowing, at the request of the Governor of Guam, for
certain discretionary and mandatory funds to be used to assist
securing certain rural electrification loans through the U.S.
Department of Agriculture.
Allowing the Secretary to redistribute capital improvement
funds in the territories based on expenditure rates.
Office of Special Trustee for American Indians
FEDERAL TRUST PROGRAMS
Limiting the amount of funding available for the historical
accounting of Indian trust fund accounts.
Allowing transfers to other Department of the Interior
accounts.
Providing no-year funding for certain Indian Self
Determination Act grants.
Specifying that the statute of limitations shall not
commence on any claim resulting from trust funds losses.
Exempting quarterly statements for Indian trust accounts
$15 or less.
Requiring annual statements and records maintenance for
Indian trust accounts.
Limiting use of funds to correct administrative errors in
Indian trust accounts.
Permitting the use of recoveries from erroneous payments
pursuant to Indian trust accounts.
DEPARTMENT-WIDE PROGRAMS
Wildland Fire Management
Providing funds for wildland fire management.
Limiting funds for renovation or construction of fire
facilities.
Permitting the repayments of funds transferred from other
accounts for firefighting.
Permitting the use of funds for lodging and subsistence of
firefighters.
Permitting the use of grants, contracts and cooperative
agreements for hazardous fuels reduction, including cost-
sharing and local assistance.
Permitting cost-sharing of cooperative agreements with non-
Federal entities under certain circumstances.
Permitting reimbursement to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service for
consultation activities under the Endangered Species Act.
Providing certain terms for leases of real property with
local governments.
Providing for the transfer of funds between the Department
of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture for wildland
fire management.
Providing funds for support of Federal emergency response
actions.
FLAME Wildfire Suppression Reserve Fund
Providing funds for the FLAME fund.
Central Hazardous Materials Fund
Providing funds for response action, including associated
activities, performed pursuant to the Comprehensive
Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act.
Natural Resource Damage Assessment Fund
Providing funds for activities to carry out the
Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and
Liability Act, the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, the Oil
Pollution Act of 1990, and Public Law 101-337.
Working Capital Fund
Allowing funds for the financial and business management
system and information technology improvement.
Prohibiting use of funds to establish reserves in the
working capital fund with exceptions.
Allowing assessments for reasonable charges for training
services at the National Indian Program Center and use of these
funds hereafter under certain conditions.
Providing that the Secretary may enter into grants and
cooperative agreements to support the Office of Natural
Resource Revenue's collection and disbursement of royalties,
fees, and other mineral revenue proceeds, as authorized by law.
administrative provisions
Allowing acquisition of certain aircraft.
Allowing the sale of existing aircraft with proceeds used
to offset the purchase price of replacement aircraft.
Allowing for the transfer of certain aircraft and providing
that such aircraft shall revert back to the Department of the
Interior in the future is such aircraft is no longer needed.
General Provisions, Department of the Interior
Allowing transfer of funds for certain reconstruction of
facilities, aircraft or utilities in emergency situations.
Allowing transfer of funds in certain emergency situations,
including wildfires and oil spill response, if other funds
provided in other accounts will be exhausted within 30 days and
a supplemental appropriation is requested as promptly as
possible.
Permitting the Department to use limited funding for
certain services.
Permitting the transfer of funds between the Bureau of
Indian Affairs and the Office of Special Trustee for American
Indians and limiting amounts for historical accounting
activities.
Allowing payment of attorney fees for Federal employees
related to the Cobell v. Salazar litigation.
Providing the authority for the Secretary to collect
nonrefundable inspection fees.
Providing the authority for the Secretary to implement an
oil and gas leasing Internet program.
Permitting the reorganization of the Bureau of Ocean Energy
Management, Enforcement and Regulation.
Authorizing the use of Indian education funds to benefit
schools re-assumed by the Bureau of Indian Education.
Permitting the Secretary of the Interior to enter into
long-term agreements for wild horse and burro holding
facilities.
Requiring the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to mark
hatchery salmon.
Requiring the exhaustion of administrative review before
litigants may file in Federal court.
Providing an exemption for trailing livestock in fiscal
years 2013 and 2014.
Prohibiting the use of funds to implement, administer or
enforce Secretarial Order 3310.
Making corrections on claim maintenance fee amendments.
Extending the deadline for the Indian Law and Order
Commission to report to Congress.
Requiring the Secretary of the Interior to issue a final
rule pursuant to the Endangered Species Act.
Extending National Heritage Area authorities.
Providing the BLM and BIA with certain hiring authorities.
TITLE II--ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
Science and Technology
Providing for operating expenses in support of research and
development.
Designating funding for National Priorities research as
specified in the explanatory statement to this Act.
ENVIRONMENTAL PROGRAMS AND MANAGEMENT
Allowing hire and maintenance of passenger motor vehicles
and operation of aircraft and purchase of reprints and library
memberships in societies or associations which issue
publications to members only or at a price to members lower
than to subscribers who are not members.
Limiting amounts for official representation and reception
expenses.
Providing two-year funding availability for administrative
costs of Brownfields program.
Designating funding for specific Geographic Programs as
specified in the explanatory statement to this Act.
Designating funding for National Priorities as specified in
the explanatory statement to this Act.
HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCE SUPERFUND
Allowing distribution of funds to purchase services from
other agencies under certain circumstances.
Providing for the transfer of funds within certain agency
accounts.
LEAKING UNDERGROUND STORAGE TANK PROGRAM
Providing for grants to Federally-recognized Indian Tribes.
STATE AND TRIBAL ASSISTANCE GRANTS
Limiting funding amounts for certain programs.
Specifies funding for capitalization grants for the Clean
Water and Drinking Water State Revolving Funds and allows
certain amounts for additional subsidies.
Designating funds for specific sections of law.
Limits the amount of funds for section 104(k) for certain
activities.
Providing certain grants under authority of section 103,
Clean Air Act.
Providing funding for environmental information exchange
network initiatives grants, statistical surveys of water
resources and enhancements to State monitoring programs, tribal
grants, and underground storage tank projects.
Providing waivers for certain uses of Clean Water and
Drinking Water State Revolving Funds for State administrative
costs for grants to Federally-recognized Indian Tribes and
grants to specific Territories and Freely Associated States.
Requiring that not less than 20 percent but not more that
30 percent of Clean Water and Drinking Water funds shall be
used by States for forgiveness of principal or negative
interest loans.
Prohibiting the use of funds for jurisdictions that permit
development or construction of additional colonia areas.
ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS
Allowing awards of grants to Federally-recognized Indian
Tribes.
Authorizing the collection and obligation of pesticide
registration service fees.
Allowing the transfer of funds from the ``Environmental
Programs and Management'' account to support the Great Lakes
Restoration Initiative and provides for certain interagency
agreements and grants to various entities in support of this
effort.
Providing amounts for construction, alteration, repair,
rehabilitation, and renovation of facilities.
Authorizing additional persons that may be hired under
certain authorities.
TITLE III--RELATED AGENCIES
Forest Service
FOREST AND RANGELAND RESEARCH
Providing funds for forest and rangeland research.
Designating funds for the forest inventory and analysis
program.
STATE AND PRIVATE FORESTRY
Providing for forest health management, including
treatments of certain pests or invasive plants, and for
restoring damaged forests, and for cooperative forestry,
education and land conservation activities, and conducting an
international program.
Deriving forest legacy funding from the Land and Water
Conservation Fund.
NATIONAL FOREST SYSTEM
Providing funds for the National Forest System.
Designating funds for forest products.
Depositing funds in the Collaborative Forest Landscape
Restoration Fund.
Designating funds in the Integrated Resource Restoration
pilot program.
CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT AND MAINTENANCE
Providing funds for construction, reconstruction, and
maintenance and acquisition of buildings and other facilities
and infrastructure; and for construction, capital improvement,
decommissioning, and maintenance of forest roads and trails.
Designating funds for the Legacy Road and Trail Remediation
program.
Requiring that funds becoming available in fiscal year 2012
for the road and trails fund (16 U.S.C. 501) shall be
transferred to the Treasury.
Transferring funds to the Integrated Resource Restoration
pilot program.
LAND ACQUISITION
Deriving funding from the Land and Water Conservation Fund.
RANGE BETTERMENT FUND
Providing that six percent of range betterment funds may be
used for administrative expenses.
Wildland Fire Management
Permitting the use of funds for emergency rehabilitation
and restoration and hazardous fuels reduction to support
emergency response and wildfire suppression.
Allowing the use of wildland fire funds to repay advances
from other accounts.
Allowing reimbursement of States for certain wildfire
emergency activities.
Designating funds for the Joint Fire Sciences Program and
extending research authorities to the program.
Allowing funds to be available for emergency
rehabilitation, hazardous fuels reduction and emergency
response.
Designating funds for hazardous fuels reduction and
national fire plan research.
Designating funds for State fire assistance, volunteer fire
assistance and forest health on Federal and State and private
lands.
Allowing the transfer of funds to other Forest Service
accounts.
Providing for cost-shared cooperative agreements.
Providing for the transfer of funds for training and
monitoring associated with hazardous fuels reduction as
prescribed in a community wildfire protection plan.
Allowing funds available for Community Forest Restoration
Act to be used on non-federal land.
Limiting the transfer of wildland fire management funds
between the Department of the Interior and the Department of
Agriculture.
Providing for the use of hazardous fuels reduction funds
for biomass grants.
Limiting the assessment for cost pools from the FLAME
Wildfire Suppression Reserve Fund.
Permitting the transfer of funds for the Integrated
Resources Restoration pilot.
FLAME Wildfire Suppression Reserve Fund
Providing fund for the FLAME fund.
ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS
Permitting the purchase of passenger motor vehicles and
proceeds from the sale of aircraft may be used to purchase
replacement aircraft.
Allowing funds for certain employment contracts.
Allowing funds to be used for purchase and alteration of
buildings.
Allowing for acquisition of certain lands and interests.
Allowing expenses for certain volunteer activities.
Providing for the cost of uniforms.
Providing for debt collections on certain contracts.
Allowing transfer of funds in certain emergency situations
if all other funds provided for wildfire suppression will be
obligated within 30 days and the Secretary notifies the
Committees.
Allowing funds to be used through the Agency for
International Development for work in foreign countries and to
support other forestry activities outside of the United States.
Allowing the Forest Service, acting for the International
Program, to sign certain funding agreements with foreign
governments and institutions as well as with certain domestic
agencies.
Prohibiting the transfer of funds under the Department of
Agriculture transfer authority under certain conditions and
preventing reprogramming without advance approval of the
Appropriations Committees.
Limiting funds available for cost pools.
Limiting the transfer of funds for the Working Capital Fund
and Department Reimbursable Program (also known as Greenbook
charges).
Limiting funds to support the Youth Conservation Corps and
Public Lands Corps.
Limiting the use of funds for official reception and
representation expenses.
Providing for matching funds for the National Forest
Foundation.
Providing for matching funds for the National Fish and
Wildlife Foundation.
Allowing funds to be used for technical assistance for
certain rural communities.
Allowing funds for payments to counties in the Columbia
River Gorge National Scenic Area.
Allowing funds to be used for the Older American Act.
Permitting funding assessments for facilities maintenance,
rent, utilities, and other support services.
Limiting funds to reimburse the Office of General Counsel
at the Department of Agriculture.
Permitting eligible employees to be considered a Federal
Employee.
Requiring the Forest Service to request expedited
environmental review for rehabilitation from large wildfires.
Indian Health Service
INDIAN HEALTH SERVICES
Providing that tribal contract and grant funding is deemed
obligated at the time of grant or contract award and remains
available until expended.
Providing no-year funds for contract medical care including
the Indian Catastrophic Health Emergency Fund.
Providing for certain funding to be allocated at the
discretion of the Director.
Providing for loan repayment under sections 104 and 108 of
the Indian Health Care Improvement Act with certain conditions
and making the funds available for certain other purposes.
Providing funding and allocation direction for the
methamphetamine, domestic violence, and substance abuse
programs.
Providing that certain contracts and grants may be
performed in two fiscal years.
Providing for use of collections and reporting of
collections under Title IV of the Indian Health Care
Improvement Act.
Providing no-year funding for scholarship funds.
Exempting certain tribal funding from fiscal year
constraints.
Limiting contract support cost spending.
Providing for the collection of individually identifiable
health information relating to the Americans with Disabilities
Act by the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Permitting the use of Indian Health Care Improvement Fund
monies for facilities improvement and providing no-year funding
availability.
Indian Health Facilities
Providing that facilities funds may be used to purchase
land, modular buildings and trailers.
Providing for TRANSAM equipment to be purchased from the
Department of Defense.
Prohibiting the use of funds for sanitation facilities for
new homes funded by the Department of Housing and Urban
Development.
Allowing for the purchase of ambulances.
Providing for a demolition fund.
ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS
Providing for per diem expenses for senior level positions.
Providing for payments for telephone service in private
residences in the field, purchase of motor vehicles, aircraft
and reprints.
Providing for purchase and erection of modular buildings.
Providing funds for uniforms.
Allowing funding to be used for attendance at professional
meetings.
Providing that health care may be extended to non-Indians
at Indian Health Service facilities, subject to charges, and
for the expenditure of collected funds.
Providing for transfers of funds from the Department of
Housing and Urban Development to the Indian Health Service.
Prohibiting limitations on certain Federal travel and
transportation expenses.
Limiting the use of funds for assessments or charges by the
Department of Health and Human Services except under certain
conditions.
Allowing de-obligation and re-obligation of funds applied
to self-governance funding agreements.
Prohibiting the expenditure of funds to implement new
eligibility regulations.
Permitting certain reimbursements for goods and services
provided to Tribes.
Providing that reimbursements for training, technical
assistance, or services include total costs.
Prohibiting changing the appropriations structure without
approval of the Appropriations Committees.
Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry
TOXIC SUBSTANCES AND ENVIRONMENTAL PUBLIC HEALTH
Providing for the conduct of health studies, testing, and
monitoring.
Designating funds for Individual Learning Accounts and
providing no-year funding.
Providing deadlines for health assessments and studies.
Limiting use of funds for administrative costs.
Limiting the number of toxicological profiles.
Executive Office of the President
Council on Environmental Quality and Office of Environmental Quality
Limiting the use of funds for official reception and
representation expenses.
Designating the appointment and duties of the chairman.
Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board
Permitting use of funds for hire of passenger vehicles,
uniforms or allowances, and limiting the use of funds for per
diem expenses and the number of senior level positions.
Providing for the appointment of the EPA, Inspector General
to serve as Inspector General for the Board.
Office of Navajo and Hopi Indian Relocation
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Defining eligible relocatees.
Prohibiting movement of any single Navajo or Navajo family
unless a new or replacement home is available.
Limiting re-locatees to one new or replacement home.
Establishing a priority for relocation of Navajos to those
certified eligible who have selected and received homesites on
the Navajo reservation or selected a replacement residence off
the Navajo reservation.
Smithsonian Institution
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Limiting certain lease terms.
Providing for purchase of passenger vehicles and certain
rental, repair and cleaning of uniforms.
Designating funds for certain programs including the
National Museum of African American History and Culture and
providing no-year funds.
Providing that funds may be used to support American
overseas research centers.
Allowing for advance payments to independent contractors
performing research services or participating in official
Smithsonian presentations.
Facilities Capital
Designating funds for maintenance, repair, rehabilitation,
and construction and for consultant services.
Providing funding to continue construction of the National
Museum of African American History and Culture.
National Gallery of Art
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Allowing payment in advance for membership in library,
museum, and art associations or societies.
Allowing for purchase, repair, and cleaning of uniforms for
guards and employees and allowances therefor.
Allowing purchase or rental of devices for protecting
buildings and contents thereof, and maintenance, alteration,
improvement, and repair of buildings, approaches, and grounds.
Providing for restoration and repair of works of art by
contract under certain circumstances.
Providing no-year funds for special exhibitions.
Repair, Restoration, and Renovation of Buildings
Providing lease agreements of no more than 10 years
addressing space needs created by renovations under the Master
Facilities Plan.
Permitting the Gallery to perform work by contract under
certain circumstances.
John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE
Providing funds to the John F. Kennedy Center for the
Performing Arts Kennedy Center for operational and maintenance
costs.
capital repair and restoration
Providing funds to the John F. Kennedy Center for the
Performing Arts Kennedy Center for facility repair.
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Providing funds to the Woodrow Wilson Center for Scholars.
National Endowment for the Arts
GRANTS AND ADMINISTRATION
Provides funds for the support of projects and productions
in the arts, including arts education and public outreach
activities.
National Endowment for the Humanities
GRANTS AND ADMINISTRATION
Specifies funds to carry out the matching grants program.
Allowing obligation of National Endowment for the
Humanities current and prior year funds from gifts, bequests,
and devises of money for which equal amounts have not
previously been appropriated.
ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS, NATIONAL FOUNDATION ON THE ARTS AND THE
HUMANITIES
Prohibiting the use of funds for grants and contracts which
do not include the text of 18 U.S.C. 1913.
Prohibiting the use of appropriated funds and permitting
the use of non-appropriated funds for reception expenses.
Allowing the chairperson of the National Endowment for the
Arts to approve small grants under certain circumstances.
Commission of Fine Arts
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Permitting the charging and use of fees for its
publications and accepting gifts related to the history of the
Nation's Capital.
National Capital Arts and Cultural Affairs
Providing funding for the National Capital Arts and
Cultural Affairs.
National Capital Planning Commission
Providing funding for the National Capital Planning
Commission.
Providing that one-quarter of one percent may be used for
official reception and representational expenses.
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum
Designating funds for equipment replacement and for repair,
rehabilitation and for exhibition design and production and
providing no year availability for these funds.
TITLE IV--GENERAL PROVISIONS
Providing for public availability of information on
consulting services contracts.
Prohibiting the use of funds to promote or oppose
legislative proposals on which Congressional action is
incomplete.
Providing for annual appropriations unless expressly
provided otherwise in this Act.
Requiring assessments against programs in this bill to be
presented to the Committee for approval.
Limiting funds for sale of giant sequoia trees in a manner
different from the past.
Continuing a limitation on accepting and processing
applications for patents and on the patenting of Federal lands;
permitting processing of grandfathered applications; and
permitting third-party contractors to process grandfathered
applications.
Limiting the use of funds for contract support costs on
Indian contracts.
Limiting funds for completing or issuing the five-year
program under the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources
Planning Act.
Limiting leasing and preleasing activities within National
Monuments.
Limiting takings for acquisition of lands except under
certain conditions.
Modifying a provision addressing timber sales involving
Alaskan Red Cedar.
Modifying a provision continuing certain authorities to
renew grazing permits or leases administered by the Forest
Service or Department of the Interior.
Prohibiting funds to enter into certain no-bid contracts
except under certain conditions.
Requiring reports to Congress to be posted on public agency
websites.
Continuing a provision that delineates grant guidelines for
the National Endowment for the Arts.
Continuing a provision that delineates program priorities
for the programs managed by the National Endowment for the
Arts.
Providing guidance on matching grant awards and waive-of-
match provisions to States.
Requiring that the Department of the Interior, the EPA, the
Forest Service, and the Indian Health Service provide the
Committees on Appropriations a quarterly report on the status
of balances of appropriations.
Requiring a government-wide report regarding expenditures
on climate change.
Continuing a provision prohibiting the use of funds to
promulgate or implement any regulation requiring the issuance
of permits under title V of the Clean Air Act for carbon
dioxide, nitrous oxide, water vapor, or methane emissions.
Continuing a provision prohibiting the use of funds to
implement any provision in a rule if that provision requires
mandatory reporting of greenhouse gas emissions from manure
management systems.
Clarifying Silvicultural Operations under the Federal Water
Pollution Control Act.
Directing the Secretary of the Interior to reissue a final
rule that shall not be subject to judicial review.
Prohibiting the government from entering into contracts or
agreements with any corporation that was convicted of a felony
criminal violation under any Federal law within the preceding
24 months.
Prohibiting funds for contracts or agreements with entities
with unpaid Federal tax liabilities that have not entered into
payment agreements to remedy the liability.
Extending the Herger-Feinstein Quincy Library Group
Forestry Recovery Act.
Extending the Good Neighbor Cooperative Conservation
Authority to 16 western states.
Requiring the Forest Service to identify land for fire
stations within National Recreation Areas.
Extending Forest Service cost recovery for special uses for
five years.
Allowing interpretive associations to partner with the
Forest Service.
Extending the authorized term for grazing permits and
leases.
Clarifying that the Forest Service may use designation by
description and prescription.
Prohibiting implementation of travel management rules in
Region 5 of the Forest Service.
Prohibiting the use of funds to develop, adopt, implement,
administer, or enforce a change or supplement to a rule or
guidance documents pertaining to the definition of waters under
the Federal Water Pollution Control Act.
Prohibiting the use of funds to develop, carry out,
implement, or enforce proposed regulations published on June
18, 2010.
Prohibiting the use of funds to expand the stormwater
discharge program under section 402(p) of the Federal Water
Pollution Control Act until certain criteria are met.
Clarifying the current Appeals Reform Act requirements for
Forest Service Activities.
Prohibiting the use of funds to limit recreational shooting
and hunting on Federal and public lands except for public
safety.
Prohibiting the use of funds to implement the National
Ocean Policy under Executive Order 13547 and requiring a report
identifying Federal expenditures for the development,
administration, and implementation of such Policy.
Establishing a pilot program for vessels to demonstrate
alternative methods to comply with emissions control area
standards.
Precluding the need for a municipal separate storm sewer
system permit under certain conditions.
Applying Buy American requirements to the Clean Water and
Drinking Water State Revolving Funds.
Prohibiting EPA from using funds to implement, administer,
or enforce the lead renovation rule until EPA has approved a
commercially available lead test kit.
Prohibiting EPA from using funds to prepare, propose,
promulgate, finalize, implement, or enforce regulations for
greenhouse gas emissions from new motor vehicles or motor
engines after model year 2016, and granting a waiver to a State
or political subdivision thereof to adopt or enforce standards
for greenhouse gas emissions from new motor vehicles or motor
engines after model year 2016.
Prohibiting EPA from using funds to finalize proposed
guidance on false or misleading pesticide labels.
Prohibiting EPA from using funds to implement, administer,
or enforce NESHAP regulations for asbestos with respect to
residential buildings with four or fewer dwelling units unless
such buildings meet certain criteria.
Prohibiting EPA from using funds to develop, propose,
finalize, implement, enforce, or administer any regulation that
would establish new financial responsibility requirements under
CERCLA.
Prohibiting the use of funds to develop, issue, implement,
or enforce any greenhouse gas New Source Performance Standards
on any new or existing source that is an electric utility
generating unit.
Directing EPA to begin development of a seventh addition of
a cost manual
Directing EPA to solicit comments on revising an air
quality model.
Establishing a Spending Reduction Account as required by
Section 3(j) of H. Res. 5.
Appropriations Not Authorized by Law
Pursuant to clause 3(f)(1)(B) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, the following table lists the
appropriations in the accompanying bill which are not
authorized by law:
[Dollars in thousands]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Appropriations
Last year of Authorization in last year Appropriations
authorization level of in this bill
authorization
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Bureau of Land Management:
All discretionary programs.................... 2002 Such sums... 1,681,437 1,076,678
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service:
Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et 1992 41,500 42,373 132,017
seq.)........................................
Partners for Fish and Wildlife Act (16 U.S.C. 2011 75,000 60,134 41,156
3771 et seq.)................................
National Wildlife Refuge Volunteer Act (16 2009 2,000 2,000 1,705
U.S.C. 742f note)............................
Coastal Barrier Resources Act (16 U.S.C. 3501 2010 2,000 2,000 N/A
et seq.).....................................
Junior Duck Stamp Conservation and Design 2010 350 250 250
Program Act..................................
Nonindigenous Aquatic Nuisance Species 2002 6,000 6,000 N/A
Prevention and Control Act (16 U.S.C. 4701 et
seq.)........................................
Marine Mammal Protection Act (16 U.S.C. 1361 1999 14,768 2,008 4,972
et seq.).....................................
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation 2010 25,000 7,537 7,525
Establishment Act (16 U.S.C. 3701 et seq.)...
North American Wetlands Conservation Act (16 2012 75,000 35,497 22,333
U.S.C. 4401 et seq.).........................
Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act 2010 6,500 5,000 1,893
(16 U.S.C. 6101 et seq.).....................
African Elephant Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 2012 5,000 1,645 823
4201 et seq.)................................
Rhinoceros and Tiger Conservation Act (16 2012 10,000 2,471 1,236
U.S.C. 5301 et seq.).........................
Asian Elephant Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 2012 5,000 1,645 823
4201 et seq.)................................
Great Ape Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 6301 et 2010 5,000 2,500 1,030
seq.)........................................
Marine Turtle Conservation Act (16 U.S.C. 2009 5,000 2,000 823
6601)........................................
U.S. Geological Survey
National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program 2009 88,900 88,900 44,125
Reauthorization Act (42 U.S.C. 7701 et seq.).
Water Resources Research Act (42 U.S.C. 10301 2011 80,000 6,490 6,490
et seq.).....................................
Energy Independence and Security Act (Carbon 2012 30,000 8,986 7,186
Sequestration Program) (42 U.S.C. 17271).....
Energy Independence and Security Act 2012 75,000 1,495 1,495
(Geothermal Energy Resources Program) (42
U.S.C. 17271)................................
Bureau of Indian Affairs
The No Child Left Behind Act (20 U.S.C. 7401 2007 Such sums... 549,293 671,662
et seq.).....................................
Environmental Protection Agency:
Hazardous Substance Superfund................. 1994 5,100,000 1,480,853 1,164,917
Clean Air Act................................. 1997 Such sums... 450,000 583,979
Clean Water Act............................... 1990 135,000 .............. 336,677
National Estuary Program...................... 2010 35,000 33,000 27,014
Great Lakes................................... 2008 79,000 60,000 250,000
Lake Champlain Basin.......................... 2008 11,000 3,000 1,399
Long Island Sound Restoration................. 2010 40,000 7,000 2,962
Lake Pontchartrain............................ 2011 20,000 1,000 955
Chesapeake Bay Restoration.................... 2005 40,000 23,000 50,000
FIFRA......................................... 1991 95,000 112,000 110,348
Toxic Substances Control Act.................. 1983 62,000 69,000 97,678
Resource Conservation Act--General 1988 80,000 75,000 112,469
Authorization................................
Environmental Education....................... 1996 9,000 9,000 0
State and Tribal Assistance Grants:
Alaska Native Villages.................... 2000 15,000 Not available 0
BEACH Act................................. 2005 30,000 9,920 0
Brownfields Projects...................... 2006 200,000 89,000 60,000
Clean Water SRF........................... 1992 1,800,000 2,400,000 689,000
CERCLA/Brownfields Cat Grant.............. 2006 50,000 49,000 47,752
Drinking Water SRF........................ 2003 1,000,000 963,000 829,000
Grants for State Public Water............. 2003 100,000 93,000 105,320
Lead Containment Control Act of 1988...... 1992 Such sums... Not available 14,572
Non-Point Source Management Program....... 1991 130,000 51,000 150,505
Pollution Prevention Act.................. 1993 8,000 6,800 4,922
Radon Abatement Act....................... 1991 10,000 9,000 8,045
State Hazardous Waste Program Grants...... 1988 60,000 67,000 102,974
Toxic Substances Control Act.............. 1983 1,500 5,100 5,081
Underground Injection Control Grants...... 2003 15,000 11,000 10,852
USDA Forest Service, National Forest Foundation... 1997 Such sums... 2,000 3,000
National Endowment for the Arts................... 1993 Such sums... 174,460 132,000
National Endowment for the Humanities............. 1993 Such sums... 177,403 132,000
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
COMPARISON WITH BUDGET RESOLUTION
Section 308(a)(1)(A) of the Congressional Budget and
Impoundment Control Act of 1974 (Public Law 93-344), as
amended, requires that the report accompanying a bill providing
new budget authority contain a statement detailing how the
authority compares with the reports submitted under section 302
of the Act for the most recently agreed to concurrent
resolution on the budget for the fiscal year. This information
follows:
[In millions of dollars]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Budget authority Outlays
---------------------------------------------------
Committee Amount of Committee Amount of
allocation bill allocation bill
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Comparison of amounts in the bill with Committee allocations
to its subcommittees: Subcommittee on Interior, Environment
and Related Agencies
General purpose discretionary........................... 28,000 27,602 31,058 \1\30,641
Mandatory............................................... 58 58 58 58
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\Includes outlays from prior-year budget authority.
FIVE-YEAR OUTLAY PROJECTIONS
In compliance with section 308(a)(1)(B) of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (Public Law 93-344), as
amended, the following table contains five-year projections
associated with the budget authority provided in the
accompanying bill:
[In millions of dollars]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Budget authority Outlays
---------------------------------------------------
Committee Amount of Committee Amount of
allocation bill allocation bill
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Projection of outlays associated with the recommendation:
2013.................................................... ........... ........... ........... \2\18,479
2014.................................................... ........... ........... ........... 5,557
2015.................................................... ........... ........... ........... 2,143
2016.................................................... ........... ........... ........... 938
2017 and future years................................... ........... ........... ........... 435
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\Excludes outlays from prior-year budget authority.
ASSISTANCE TO STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS
In accordance with section 308(a)(1)(C) of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974 (Public Law 93-344), as
amended, the financial assistance to State and local
governments is as follows:
[In millions of dollars]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Budget authority Outlays
---------------------------------------------------
Committee Amount of Committee Amount of
allocation bill allocation bill
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Financial assistance to State and local governments for 2013 n.a. 4,977 n.a. \2\2,242
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\Excludes outlays from prior-year budget authority.
n.a.: Not applicable.
CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY
Pursuant to section 6(e) of the rules of the Committee on
Appropriations, the following statement is submitted regarding
the specific powers granted to Congress in the Constitution to
enact the accompanying bill:
The principal constitutional authority for this legislation
is clause 7 of section 9 of article I of the Constitution of
the United States which States ``No money shall be drawn from
the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law.
. . .'' Appropriations contained in this Act are made pursuant
to this specific power granted by the Constitution.
DETAILED TABLE OF FUNDING RECOMMENDATIONS
The following table provides the amounts recommended by the
Committee compared with the budget estimates by activity and
sub-activity. The reprogramming guidelines apply to levels
outlined below.
MINORITY VIEWS
With its significant funding cuts and numerous special
interest riders and funding limitations, the FY 2013 Interior,
Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill falls far
short of what is needed to advance the preservation of
America's great natural and cultural heritage or to protect the
environment and public health. Consequently, we cannot support
the bill in its current form.
We are extremely disappointed that House Republicans walked
away from the bipartisan agreement to establish $1.047 trillion
as the Committee's allocation. This action has introduced
uncertainty about the discretionary allocation for fiscal year
2013 and about whether the majority will again threaten to shut
down government. This uncertainty will inevitably slow down the
appropriations process. If their austere House allocation were
allowed to stand, it would stall economic growth and impede job
creation.
We are already seeing the impact of the majority's
decision. As a result of the blind adherence to their House
budget resolution, Republicans have saddled the Interior,
Environment, and Related Agencies Subcommittee with an
unacceptable and unrealistic 302(b) allocation. The $28 billion
allocated to the subcommittee is $1.2 billion below FY 2012
appropriations and $1.7 billion below the President's request.
This has resulted in a large number of deep and unsustainable
cuts to a whole host of important programs funded under the
bill.
We appreciate that even as he labored under the severely
constrained committee allocation, Chairman Simpson carried out
his duties in an open and collaborative manner. Our working
relationship with him has been excellent. The chairman is to be
commended for his diligence in chairing 16 budget hearings this
past spring and receiving testimony from nearly 140 witnesses.
As much as we appreciate the process, we can't support the
product. When it comes to funding, there is little good news in
this bill. The list of cuts is long and deep.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service would be cut by $316
million below current appropriations; an incredible 21 percent
cut in their budget. A broad range of programs would see
sizeable cuts, including a $48 million cut to the National
Wildlife Refuge System, a $42 million cut to endangered
species, and a $19.5 million cut to migratory birds, law
enforcement, and international conservation.
In committee, we attempted to restore the $48 million cut
to the National Wildlife Refuge System, using as an offset
increased oil and gas public health and safety inspection fees,
which had been requested, this year and last, by the
Administration and which Congress approved last year but only
for offshore oil and gas operations. Unfortunately, the
Republican majority again chose to side with the oil and gas
companies and continue to require taxpayers to foot the bill
for inspections of onshore oil and gas operations.
The U.S. Geological Survey, one of our nation's premier
science agencies, would be cut by $101 million below current
appropriations. These cuts would negatively impact a range of
science programs, including fisheries, wildlife and terrestrial
(-$28.7 million) and natural hazards (-$27.1 million).
The Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) program would
be funded at just $66 million, a cut of $279 million or 80
percent below current appropriations and the lowest level since
the fund's creation. The reduction to the LWCF is part of an
unfortunate pattern of cuts to conservation and recreation
programs. The bill would also cut funding for the National
Landscape Conservation System by one-third; with recreation,
heritage and wilderness in the Forest Service being cut by $21
million.
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the National
Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) would each be cut by $14
million below FY 2012. The $132 million proposed to be provided
to each would be below the FY 2008 funding level. This lack of
funding is shortsighted since the programs of the NEA and NEH
not only advance the quality of life in our communities but
also provide an important economic boost to numerous towns and
cities across America.
These cuts, as significant as they are, pale in comparison
to the proposed cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA). The majority proposes to cut the agency by $1.4 billion
or 17 percent below current levels. While there are some
Republicans who claim these cuts as a badge of honor, the
impact of such cuts would put at risk the very health and
safety of Americans.
EPA's science and technology programs would be cut by $55
million; geographic programs by $63 million; water quality and
health programs by $29 million; and Hazardous Substances
Superffind by $49 million.
The Safe Drinking Water and Clean Drinking Water Revolving
Funds would cut by $866 million. These are important programs
that protect our drinking water; prevent the spread of
waterborne diseases and create thousands of jobs in our
communities in a sector with high unemployment.
On a bipartisan basis, the bill protects the social,
health, and education programs of Native Americans. We also
appreciate the majority's efforts to provide the necessary
funds to meet our Wildland firefighting needs. We only wish
that needed resources could have been extended to the many
other worthy and important programs funded by the bill,
including climate change programs that address the actions that
have intensified the severity of the forest fires burning in
the western United States.
As bad as the funding is in this bill, we are equally
concerned about and strongly oppose the numerous special
interest riders and funding limitations included in the
legislation. The breadth and scope of these provisions are wide
ranging and if allowed to stand, they would do serious harm to
our environment.
Wolf delisting, suspension of Clean Air and Clean Water Act
enforcement, and the blocking of the National Oceans policy are
just a few of these problematic provisions. While we will give
some credit to the majority for not including as many riders
and limitations in this year's bill as they did in their FY
2012 proposal, there are still far too many controversial and
divisive provisions.
Nearly a dozen of these provisions are new this year, and
five of them make permanent changes in law. As an example,
there are three grazing provisions alone on this list. Each of
them constitutes permanent law, including permanent changes to
administrative appeal procedures; permanent extension of
grazing permits without the required National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA) review; and a permanent change in the term of
a grazing permit from 10 to 20 years.
Also tucked into the legislation is a provision for the
benefit of the hardrock mining industry. The committee approved
language that would prevent the EPA from even proposing a rule
to require hardrock mine owners' to provide financial
assurance. Unless hardrock mine operators provide such
financial assurance, taxpayers will likely be left to pay the
bill in cases where a mine operator releases hazardous waste,
abandons the mine site, or files for bankruptcy.
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) in 2011
testimony, noted that between fiscal years 1998 and 2007, the
Bureau of Land Management, the Forest Service, EPA, and the
Office of Surface Mining spent at least $2.6 billion (in 2008
constant dollars) to reclaim abandoned hardrock mines. Of the
four agencies, EPA has spent the most, about $2.2 billion (in
constant 2008 dollars) for mine clean ups. We strongly oppose
this provision which will help shield private, foreign-
controlled mining companies from their financial
responsibilities and leave taxpayers vulnerable for the cost of
mine clean ups.
Efforts to substantially modify environmental and natural
resource management policy, including blocking implementation
and enforcement of current or proposed rules and making
permanent changes in law, should take place under the purview
of the authorizing committees, after hearings and real debate,
and not be quietly slipped into appropriations bills.
We are hopeful that as this appropriations bill moves
through the legislative process, its fiscal and legislative
shortcomings can be corrected so that in the end we may have a
bipartisan bill that protects the environment and enhances the
preservation and use of the resources our nation has been
blessed with.
Norm Dicks.
Jim Moran.