    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1995, Book II)]
    [July 21, 1995]
    [Pages 1130-1131]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Statement on Budget Rescission Legislation
    July 21, 1995

        The rescission bill that the Senate approved, and that I will be
    pleased to sign, shows how we can work together to produce good
    legislation.
        From the start of this rescission process, I agreed with Congress on
    the need to cut spending. The question was, how should we do it?
        I vetoed the original rescission bill because it would have cut
    spending the wrong way by targeting education and training,
    environmental protection, and other key national priorities. I then
    worked with Republicans and Democrats alike to produce a better bill. I
    am pleased that this bill cuts $16 billion in spending while protecting
    our key investments in education and training, the environment, and
    other priorities.
        Like the earlier version, this bill also provides much-needed
    supplemental funds that I have sought for disaster relief activities of
    the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Federal responses to the
    bombing in Oklahoma City, increased antiterrorism efforts, and debt
    relief to Jordan to facilitate progress toward a Middle East peace
    settlement.

    [[Page 1131]]

        To be sure, I do not support every provision of this bill. For
    instance, I still do not believe that this bill should contain any of
    the provisions relating to timber. But the final bill does contain
    changes in the language that preserve our ability to implement the
    current forest plans and their standards and to protect other resources
    such as clean water and fisheries. Therefore, after signing the
    rescission bill into law, I will direct the Secretary of Agriculture,
    the Secretary of the Interior, and all other Federal agencies to carry
    out timber salvage activities consistent with the spirit and intent of
    our forest plans and all existing environmental laws.
        I am pleased that bipartisan leaders of Congress worked with me to
    produce a good bill. Working together, we can continue to produce good
    legislation for the American people.