[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.

[[Page 728]]

    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.