    [Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 32, Number 17 (Monday, April 29, 1996)]
    [Pages 726-729]
    [Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

    <R04>
    Statement on Signing the Omnibus Consolidated Rescissions and
    Appropriations Act of 1996

    April 26, 1996

        Today I have signed into law H.R. 3019, the ``Omnibus Consolidated
    Rescissions and Appropriations Act of 1996.''
        This bill helps us move toward a balanced budget in a way that
    honors our Nation's values by protecting our commitments to education
    and training, the environment, law enforcement, science and technology,
    and national service. It restores $5.1 billion of the $8.1 billion I had
    sought for these priorities over levels in the appropriations bills that
    I had rejected. In addition, H.R. 3019 provides emergency disaster
    funding as well as funding for our troops in Bosnia and for the
    furtherance of the Middle East peace process.
        We should have reached this conclusion 7 months ago, at the
    beginning of the fiscal year instead of more than halfway through it.
    Unfortunately, the Congress passed versions of the appropriations bills
    that were far

    [[Page 727]]

    outside of the mainstream, leaving me no choice but to veto them.
        Rather than move quickly to reach a compromise such as the one
    achieved with this legislation, the Congress shut the Government down
    twice and then I had to sign a record 13 continuing resolutions funding
    the Government.
        The extent of conflict and delay was unprecedented. It should never
    happen again.
        Nonetheless, 7 months later, we have a bill we can all be proud of,
    one that achieves savings, protects investments, and avoids outcomes
    that could have been disastrous for our environment and our people.
        For example, the bill eliminates, or permits me to suspend, the most
    egregious legislative riders that the Congress had sought to attach to
    the appropriations bills, including those that would have blocked
    enforcement of some of the Nation's key environmental laws. These riders
    reflected a philosophy of disregard for our environment that the
    American people and bipartisan majorities in previous Congresses and
    Administrations had long ago rejected.
        At my insistence the Congress dropped the rider that would have
    prevented the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from using its
    authority to protect our Nation's wetlands.
        Likewise, this bill provides me the authority to suspend three other
    riders--authority that I invoked immediately after signing this
    legislation. If I had not suspended these riders, they would have:
    <bullet>    overridden existing environmental laws and led to
                unsustainable levels of timber cutting in Alaska's Tongass
                National Forest;
    <bullet>    drastically undermined the level of protection provided to
                the Mojave National Preserve by the 1994 California Desert
                Protection Act; and
    <bullet>    prohibited proposed or final listing actions by the
                Departments of the Interior and Commerce under the
                Endangered Species Act, which could have resulted in a
                greater risk of extinction of some of the over 400 species
                that are currently either proposed for listing or for which
                proposed listings are awaiting evaluation.
        At my request, the bill also deletes the measure contained in the
    Senate- and House-passed Interior appropriations bills that would have
    extended the repeal of environmental laws and allowed the clear-cutting
    of old growth trees for 3 years or more. That authority is currently set
    to expire on September 30 of this year, just 5 months away. I am
    disappointed, however, that the Congress was unwilling to support an
    immediate repeal of these provisions, despite the fact that, by
    imperiling salmon and other species, these provisions threaten the
    environment and economy of the region.
        The bill also funds important programs that the House or the
    Senate--or both--had sought to eliminate.
        The Congress, in a bill I vetoed, sought to kill AmeriCorps, the
    National Service program. This bill retains it, as I had insisted,
    funding the Corporation for National and Community Service at $402
    million. Through National Service, we will continue to allow young
    Americans to help address vital needs in their communities, such as
    health care, crime prevention, and education, while earning a monetary
    award to help them pursue additional education or training.
        The House sought to terminate Goals 2000, which is providing schools
    throughout the country with the resources to improve teacher training
    and raise academic standards to prepare our children for the 21st
    Century. This bill restores funding for Goals 2000.
        In another bill I vetoed, the Congress sought to end the Community
    Oriented Policing Services (COPS) program, the commitment I made with
    the previous Congress to put 100,000 additional police officers on the
    streets of our cities and towns by the year 2000. At my insistence, that
    program is continued. As a result, we remain on track for fulfilling our
    commitment, with 45,000 police officers funded by the end of this fiscal
    year, including 19,000 provided by this legislation. These police are
    working hand-in-hand with their communities to fight crime. Crime is
    down in many communities across the Nation, and we can make further
    progress through the COPS program and similar efforts.

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        In the same bill that I vetoed, the Congress proposed to end the
    Department of Commerce's Advanced Technology Program (ATP), an integral
    part of my civilian technology strategy to promote economic growth.
    Adequate funding is provided for that program, while proposed language
    that would have prohibited new grants was deleted. ATP provides an
    effective mechanism for augmenting U.S. economic growth through highly-
    leveraged, industry-led research and development. It is a rigorously
    competitive, cost-shared program that fosters technology development,
    promotes industrial alliances, and creates jobs. The continuation of a
    strong ATP is a fitting tribute to the late Secretary Ron Brown, who
    deserves so much credit for making ATP what it is today.
        Other programs or agencies that one or both houses sought to end,
    but which this bill restores, include the Community Development
    Financial Institutions program, the Summer Youth jobs program, and the
    Council on Environmental Quality.
        Very importantly, the bill provides $22.8 billion for the Education
    Department. I am pleased that the Congress restored critical education
    programs--among my highest priorities to levels near or above the fiscal
    1995 levels. The restorations include important funding for Title I--
    Education for the Disadvantaged (which the House had sought to cut by
    $1.2 billion), Goals 2000, Safe and Drug-Free Schools, School-to-Work,
    and Education Technology.
        This bill also ensures that colleges, universities, and vocational
    schools can continue to choose the Federal student loan program--either
    the new Federal Direct Student Loan Program or the bank-based guaranteed
    student loan program--that best serves the needs of their students and
    ensures that students have access to the most flexible student loan
    repayment provisions, including income-contingent repayment.
    Institutions of higher education that now participate in the program or
    have planned to participate in July 1996 will be able to do so; other
    schools that wish to participate can enroll without facing limits on the
    program. Students with guaranteed student loans who want access to
    income-contingent repayment will be able to switch into the Direct Loan
    program. The House had sought to place a severe cap on the Direct Loan
    program, a step that would have had the effect of killing in its infancy
    an effort that has benefited students, colleges and universities, and
    taxpayers alike.
        The bill also restores other programs to close to, or above, last
    year's levels that at least one house of Congress had sought to cut
    deeply. These include Head Start, Department of Labor worker protection
    programs, and payments to international organizations for peacekeeping
    and other programs. To help finance these priorities, the bill provides
    new debt collection authorities, calls for selling the United States
    Enrichment Corporation, and cuts Government overhead.
        The Congress, also at my insistence, dropped from the bill the most
    seriously objectionable language provisions affecting the Education
    Department. The Congress also eliminated controversial language
    affecting Goals 2000, paving the way for renewed bipartisan support for
    this program.
        The bill provides $6.5 billion for the EPA. The cuts originally
    proposed by the House for the EPA would have crippled its ability to
    protect the health of families throughout the Nation. I am pleased that
    the Congress deleted or modified other objectionable legislative riders,
    including restrictions on the size of the diplomatic presence in
    Vietnam, the District of Columbia school voucher provision, and a
    measure that could have resulted in bans on the use of Medicaid funds
    for abortions for victims of rape or incest.
        I am also pleased that the Congress dropped political advocacy
    disclosure provisions. These provisions could have interfered with the
    First Amendment rights of such nonprofit organizations as the Girl
    Scouts, the National Conference of Catholic Bishops, and the American
    Red Cross.
        I commend the Congress for repealing the language in the 1996
    Defense Authorization Act that unfairly required the discharge of
    military personnel with HIV.
        I am disappointed that the Congress chose to modify the conditions
    under which prison grant monies are distributed to the States. The
    Congress carefully crafted a distribution mechanism just 2 years ago to
    ensure that States implementing ``truth in sentencing''

    [[Page 729]]

    would be rewarded for doing so. That mechanism is in place and has no
    need for change. These program changes will significantly delay getting
    these resources to the places they are needed most.
        I note with regret the other objectionable legislative riders that
    remain in the bill.
        They include a provision intended to allow the construction of a
    third telescope on Mt. Graham, Arizona, affecting the Mt. Graham red
    squirrel, Native American cultural lands, and the abortion accreditation
    provision.
        While I am disappointed that the Congress chose to reduce funding
    for the Legal Services Corporation, I am pleased that the bill assures
    continued funding of legal services programs for all eligible
    populations, including migrants.
        I am also disappointed that the Congress did not approve my request
    to increase funding by $250 million for our anti-drug initiative. But I
    am pleased that the conferees stated their intent to provide additional
    funds for these important programs in FY 1997, ensuring that we can
    continue our anti-drug effort at full strength.
        Unfortunately, the Congress did not include legislation I had sought
    to stabilize the Savings Association Insurance Fund. It is important for
    the Congress to take action on this issue quickly so that we can put the
    thrift crisis behind us without imposing any further costs on the
    taxpayers.
        In addition, I note that section 119(a) of the Department of the
    Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1996, contains a
    legislative veto, which would be unconstitutional under INS v. Chadha
    (462 U.S. 919) (1983). However, because I am suspending section 119(a)
    pursuant to section 119(b), the constitutional problem will be avoided.
        With regard to defense, this bill also permits the Federal
    Government to undertake a multi-year procurement of the C-17 aircraft,
    the critical next-generation military transport. The C-17 will greatly
    enhance our ability to respond to crises around the world; buying it
    this way will save hundreds of millions of dollars for the taxpayers.
        This bill represents true compromise and bipartisan cooperation.
    Clearly, when we work together we can enact good legislation for the
    American people.
        With this in mind, we should build on our efforts here and move on
    to the larger challenge of balancing the budget over the next 7 years.
    The American people deserve a balanced budget, and we should give it to
    them.
                                                William J. Clinton
    The White House,
    April 26, 1996.

    Note: H.R. 3019, approved April 26, was assigned Public Law No. 104-134.