    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2001, Book II)]
    [November 5, 2001]
    [Page 1346]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Statement on Signing the Department of the Interior and Related Agencies
    Appropriations Act, 2002
    November 5, 2001

        Today I have signed into law H.R. 2217, the ``Department of the
    Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2002.''
        I appreciate the bipartisan effort that has gone into producing this
    Act. The bill abides by the agreed upon aggregate funding level for
    Fiscal Year 2002 of $686 billion and supports several of my
    Administration's key initiatives with:

         funding from the Land and Water Conservation Fund to
                acquire and conserve lands in national parks, forests,
                refuges, and public lands, and assist States in promoting
                conservation and outdoor recreation;
         funding to reduce the National Park Service deferred
                maintenance backlog and meet the growing demands on park
                facilities and resources;
         funding for Indian school construction to keep us on the 5-
                year path to eliminate the current school repair and
                maintenance backlog by 2006; and
         full funding for key energy programs, such as the Clean
                Coal Power initiative, to work in partnership with industry
                to direct research towards reducing the environmental impact
                of coal used for power generation in the United States.

        I am disappointed that my initiative to increase the Low-Income
    Weatherization Assistance Program by $120 million was reduced by $43
    million in the final version of this bill. This reduction will deny
    program benefits for over 17,000 low-income families, compared with my
    request.
        Several provisions in the bill purport to require congressional
    approval before executive branch execution of aspects of the bill. I
    will interpret such provisions to require notification only, since any
    other interpretation would contradict the Supreme Court ruling in INS v.
    Chadha.

                                                              George W. Bush

    The White House,

    November 5, 2001.

    Note: H.R. 2217, approved November 5, was assigned Public Law No. 107-
    63.