[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 36, Number 28 (Monday, July 17, 2000)]
[Pages 1640-1643]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Statement on Signing the Military Construction Appropriations Act, 2001, 
Emergency Supplemental Act, 2000, and Cerro Grande Fire Supplemental

July 13, 2000

    Today I have signed into law H.R. 4425, the Military Construction 
Appropriations Act, FY 2001, Emergency Supplemental Act, FY 2000, and 
Cerro Grande Fire Supplemental, which provides funding for military 
construction and family housing programs of the Department of Defense 
(DoD), and urgently needed supplemental resources.
    I am gratified that my Administration and the Congress were able to 
reach agreement on the FY 2000 supplemental legislation included in H.R. 
4425. This important supplemental appropriation provides urgently needed 
resources to keep the peace and build stability in Kosovo, bolster 
democracy and reform elsewhere in Southeast Europe, support the 
Colombian government's fight against drug traffickers, provide needed

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home energy assistance for low-income families, provide further 
assistance to the victims of Hurricane Floyd and other natural 
disasters, including the crisis in Mozambique, and for other purposes.
    I commend the Congress for providing the critical resources needed 
to continue our support for Plan Colombia, President Pastrana's strategy 
to address Colombia's national security, socioeconomic, and drug-related 
problems. The $1.3 billion provided underscores our commitment to 
support the fight against drug traffickers and benefits the United 
States by bringing greater peace and prosperity to an important American 
ally.
    Nonetheless, I am concerned that certain provisions of the bill will 
limit the effectiveness of our assistance. Key initiatives, such as 
ground-based radar, secure field communications, and force protection 
are funded at levels below my request. Furthermore, the Congress 
substituted its own judgement for that of the U.S. and Colombian 
militaries, and provided funding for only 16 of the 30 Blackhawk 
helicopters requested for the Colombian Army, providing instead funding 
for 30 Huey II helicopters. The substitution of Huey IIs for Blackhawks 
creates logistical and pilot training problems for an already stretched 
infrastructure in Colombia, and fields a significantly less capable 
helicopter for the counterdrug mission.
    I am pleased that the bill fully funds our request for military 
operations in Kosovo. We will work to ensure that the additional 
resources for readiness, military personnel, natural disaster recovery, 
defense healthcare, fuel, equipment upgrades, and intelligence support 
high priority activities within the Department of Defense.
    I am disappointed that the bill does not include funding I requested 
for U.N. peacekeeping operations in the region, requested security and 
operational needs for embassies in Kosovo, or assistance for economic 
and democratic reforms in the region. The U.N. mission in Kosovo is 
performing an extraordinarily difficult but essential task of overseeing 
civilian administration until the people of Kosovo are able to assume 
that responsibility themselves. Secure facilities are needed in Kosovo 
to ensure the security of our employees serving U.S. interests and 
working to achieve lasting peace in the region. The requested funds 
support essential civilian infrastructure that would facilitate a 
prudent exit strategy for Kosovo and achieve long-term stability in the 
Balkans.
    I am also disappointed that the bill does not include requested 
funding for the multilateral Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) debt 
reduction initiative. Debt relief is both a moral imperative and good 
economics. Each year, most countries eligible for the HIPC initiative 
spend more on foreign debt service than on health. In many, one in ten 
children dies before his or her first birthday, one in three is 
malnourished, the average adult has had only 3 years of schooling, and 
HIV infection rates are as high as 20 percent. The failure of the 
Congress to provide this funding will result in delays in implementing 
debt reduction for qualifying countries, especially those in Latin 
America that have implemented far-reaching economic reforms. Similarly, 
while I am pleased that the Congress provided some funding for 
reconstruction assistance to Mozambique and the other Southern African 
countries devastated by recent flooding, these countries require 
additional assistance to recover from natural disasters and continue 
their progress in implementing economic and democratic reforms.
    I am disappointed that requested funding was not provided for a 
number of other important programs including:
 <bullet>    Projects designated to strengthen our critical 
            infrastructure.
 <bullet>    The Ricky Ray Hemophilia Relief Trust Fund. This request 
            was part of my plan, announced in the Mid-Session Review 
            Budget, to fully fund the $750 million Trust Fund by FY 
            2001. I will work with the Congress to find other ways to 
            achieve this goal. Delay in funding the Trust Fund will mean 
            there will be fewer hemophiliacs with HIV alive to benefit 
            from this program.
 <bullet>    Summer jobs and other education and training opportunities 
            for disadvantaged youth. The request would have ensured that 
            our Nation's young adults were not left behind as States and 
            local areas transition to the requirements of the Workforce 
            Investment Act.

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    I am pleased that the bill provides $40 million included in our 
agreement with the Government of Puerto Rico related to the Navy 
training facility on the island of Vieques. This will be used for 
projects that will meet the health, environmental, and economic concerns 
of the residents as well as fund the referendum to determine the range's 
future.
    I am especially pleased that this legislation includes over $300 
million in relief funds for Hurricane Floyd and other natural disasters. 
It also includes $600 million I requested for the Low-Income Home Energy 
Assistance Program. This funding will provide needed assistance for low-
income families.
    The bill provides $661 million to address the consequences of the 
fires in Los Alamos, New Mexico, as well as $350 million for 
firefighting activities.
    While the Congress dropped most of the objectionable riders from the 
bill, regrettably, the Congress has included several objectionable 
language provisions:
 <bullet>    Most objectionable is an anti-environmental rider that was 
            not in either the House or Senate version of the bill, which 
            could significantly slow efforts to clean up the 20,000 
            bodies of water the States have identified as too polluted 
            for fishing or swimming. Before this problematic prohibition 
            became effective, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 
            published its final clean water rule, which is the subject 
            of this rider. In the final rule, EPA responded to many of 
            the comments it received, including comments from the States 
            and Members of Congress. The EPA rule grants to the States 
            flexibility in deciding how reductions in water pollution 
            can best be achieved, contains deadlines for the development 
            of State clean water plans and additional time for achieving 
            the pollution reductions States have chosen, and drops 
            provisions that could require new permits for forestry, 
            aquaculture, and animal feeding operations. Moreover, the 
            rule's effective date coincides with the end of the 
            congressional prohibition--October 1, 2001. This delayed 
            effective date will allow States to develop their plans 
            during FY 2001, under existing clean water rules.
 <bullet>    The bill also includes a rider that would delay until the 
            end of the fiscal year environmental analysis of Central 
            Arizona Project (CAP) water allocations that must be made 
            before major Indian water rights settlements and litigation 
            over the CAP repayment obligation can be finally resolved, 
            thus jeopardizing these important settlements.
 <bullet>    The bill includes riders to Colombia assistance, limiting 
            the use of certain funds to support the initiative, placing 
            caps on U.S. personnel, and requiring detailed 
            certifications concerning Colombian compliance with specific 
            human rights provisions and the Colombian drug eradication 
            strategy. These riders may make it more difficult to provide 
            effective assistance as drug traffickers change their 
            tactics.
 <bullet>    There is also a provision that would create a burdensome 
            reporting requirement for the National Missile Defense 
            Organization.
    I am pleased that the Congress has decided not to include statutory 
language that would have interfered with the Department of the Army's 
management of the Army Corps of Engineers. The proposed legislative 
rider would have prevented the Secretary of the Army from clarifying the 
proper relationship between senior Corps of Engineers officials and the 
appointed civilian officials of the Army who have responsibility for 
overseeing the Corps of Engineers' activities. It is important and 
appropriate that the Congress has retained for these civilian officials, 
who are confirmed by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, the 
means to ensure a clear chain of command necessary for effective 
organization performance.
    Weakening this relationship statutorily would raise serious 
constitutional issues that extend to civilian-military relationships far 
beyond the Corps of Engineers. I am concerned, however, about language 
included in the Conference Statement of the Managers setting out certain 
conditions related to these management issues. As this language does not 
prevent the Army from proceeding with management improvements, to the 
extent

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the Congress has requested additional consultation, this request will be 
fully honored. The Congress has also requested that the Army not move 
forward with these clarifying improvements until ongoing investigations 
regarding the Army Corps of Engineers are made available and considered. 
We take this language to refer to the Army Inspector General's 
investigation of matters related to the Upper Mississippi study, which 
is the only investigation the Army has underway regarding the Corps of 
Engineers. I am directing the Secretary of the Army to review potential 
implications of the Inspector General's investigation for the proposed 
reforms, to take them into account if relevant, and to consult with the 
Congress about these investigations as he proceeds with his management 
improvements.
    The Act funds the vast majority of my request for military 
construction projects, the military housing program, and other quality-
of-life projects for our military personnel and their families. The 
requested projects are critical to supporting military readiness and the 
quality of life of our soldiers and their families. However, I have 
several concerns with the bill:
 <bullet>    Continuing a trend of the past few years, the Congress has 
            not provided the requested level of construction funding for 
            the Chemical Weapons Demilitarization program, an important 
            national program. This year's reduction of my funding 
            request by $20 million threatens the ability of the United 
            States to meet the 2007 Chemical Weapons Convention deadline 
            for the destruction of the U.S. stockpile of chemical 
            weapons. The sooner these weapons are destroyed, the safer 
            we will all be.
 <bullet>    The Congress has chosen to add funds for projects that DoD 
            has not identified as priorities. In particular, the bill 
            includes $475 million for 83 projects that are not in DoD's 
            Future Years Defense Program.
 <bullet>    The Congress has again included a provision (section 124) 
            that would prevent the use of funds provided by this Act for 
            Partnership for Peace Programs in the New Independent States 
            of the former Soviet Union. Although this provision would 
            have no practical effect in the short term, I believe it 
            could adversely affect U.S. foreign policy initiatives, as 
            well as future NATO-led operations, if it were to become a 
            permanent fixture in future Military Construction 
            Appropriations Acts.
    Today, I am designating as emergency requirements the funds--with 
two exceptions--in the Act that the Congress has so designated. The 
exceptions are for the Department of Health and Human Services Low-
Income Home Energy Assistance Program and the Department of the Interior 
Wildland Fire Management program. The emergency designations are 
necessary so that urgently needed funds are available for critical 
needs.
                                            William J. Clinton
 The White House,
 July 13, 2000.

 Note: H.R. 4425, approved July 13, was assigned Public Law No. 106-246.