    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1993, Book II)]
    [November 11, 1993]
    [Page 1958]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    [[Page 1958]]

    Statement on Signing the Department of the Interior and Related Agencies
    Appropriations Act, 1994
    November 11, 1993

        Today I have signed into law, H.R. 2520, the ``Department of the
    Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1994.''
        H.R. 2520 provides funds for various programs of the Department of
    the Interior and Energy, the Forest Service (Department of Agriculture),
    and the Indian Health Service (Department of Health and Human Services).
    Funding for various independent agencies such as the Smithsonian
    Institution and the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities
    is also included.
        The Act provides funding to further the protection and
    rehabilitation of America's inventory of natural and cultural assets,
    including our national parks and forests.
        I am pleased that the Act includes funding in support of the Forest
    Plan for the Pacific Northwest, which will help both to begin
    implementation of ecosystem management and to offset economic
    disruptions to forest communities in Washington, Oregon, and Northern
    California.
        The Act provides funding for my proposal to establish a National
    Biological Survey. This new bureau within the Department of the Interior
    will facilitate improvement in the quality of biological research.
    Better science will result in improved decision-making in the management
    of the Nation's federally managed lands and will enable Federal land
    managers to avoid future contentious actions under the Endangered
    Species Act.
        The Act provides funding for a number of my investment proposals for
    energy conservation and fossil energy research and development. These
    investments are important for our Nation's energy future.

                                                          William J. Clinton

    The White House,
    November 11, 1993.

    Note: H.R. 2520, approved November 11, was assigned Public Law No. 103-
    138.