|
|||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
|
Senate Stalls Funding for Half U.S. Government By J.R. Pegg WASHINGTON, DC, December 9, 2003 (ENS) - The U.S. Senate today abandoned efforts to pass a $375 billion spending bill that would fund about half the federal government, including the Environmental Protection Agency and the Departments of Agriculture, Commerce and State. The House passed the omnibus bill Monday by a vote of 242 to 176, but concerns over a slew of riders and policy prescriptions within the legislation forced Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist to delay Senate action until next year.
Bill Frist, M.D. of Tennessee is Senate Majority Leader. (Photo courtesy Office of the Senator)Frist, a Tennessee Republican, first asked the Senate for unanimous consent to take up the legislation, but was denied by Democrats. The majority leader then scheduled a vote on the bill for January 20, 2004.The decision means Congress will leave Washington for 2003 after passing only six of the 13 appropriations bills needed to fund the federal government during the current fiscal year, which began on October 1. The omnibus package contains the seven remaining appropriations bills - funding 11 federal departments. These departments and the related agencies will operate at current monthly funding levels until the omnibus measure is approved by Congress and signed by the President. Critics blamed Republicans for being fiscally irresponsible by packing the bill with special interest provisions.
Congressman David Obey of Wisconsin (Photo courtesy Office of the Congressman)"This bill is a spectacular example of legislation and political pressure run amuck," said Representative David Obey, a Wisconsin Democrat.But House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, a Texas Republican, praised lawmakers for crafting and approving the massive spending plan. The overall spending package reflects a three percent increase in discretionary spending compared to fiscal 2003 and is an "achievement in fiscal restraint," DeLay said. "This omnibus represents the values of discipline, innovation, and conviction we all treasure," DeLay said. Steve Ellis, vice president of Taxpayers for Common Sense, a national budget watchdog organization, disputed that notion and said the package contains "thousands of frivolous, bizarre and special interest earmarks for every congressional district in the nation." "From making baby food out of salmon to swimming pools in Nevada and California, this spending bill has something for almost everyone. YMCAs, museums, county libraries, ballet schools - they are all getting a piece of the action," Ellis said. Disputes over the vast array of policies affected in the bill, from unemployment benefits to the Cuba travel ban to media ownership rules, were reflected by a vote that did not fall along strict party lines - 38 Republicans opposed the measure and 58 Democrats voted in favor.
Congressman Jeff Flake of Arizona serves on the Committee on Resources responsible for forest management. (Photo courtesy Office of the Congressman)DeLay said he was "not ashamed" of the billions of dollars in special projects tucked into the measure, but Arizona Republican Representative Jeff Flake blasted colleagues for supporting the pork laden bill."We speak a great deal and at great length in this House about rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal agencies in the way we spend money with the federal government," Flake said. "I would suggest that we look no further than the earmarks that we propose in this bill and other spending bills to root out waste, fraud, and abuse." The bill provides $8.4 billion for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), $375 million more than the Bush administration's request but $74 million below fiscal 2003. The environmental riders within the omnibus bill include a roll back of the Clean Air Act, changes to Alaskan and New England fishery policies, and loan guarantees for a liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility. The LNG rider earmarks $1 million to fund a provision in the energy bill to guarantee $2 billion in federal loans for construction of an LNG facility on the West Coast and LNG tanker ships to transport the gas.
Congressman Ed Markey is a senior member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. (Photo courtesy )"I see no reason why the American taxpayer needs to subsidize huge global oil and gas companies," said Representative Ed Markey, a Massachusetts Democrat. "Clearly this is an industry meeting heightened demands without the need for another government handout."A rider tacked onto the EPA budget prohibits states from adopting California's pollution standards for small non-road gasoline and diesel engines. Under an amendment to the Clean Air Act, California is the only state with its own authority to enact its own emissions standards - as long as they are stricter than federal standards. Existing law allows states to adopt California's emissions standards, but Senator Kit Bond, a Missouri Republican, inserted a provision to remove that right. The engines in question are primarily used to power lawn and garden equipment, such as lawn mowers, generators, and weed cutters. Bond acted at the urging of engine manufacturer Briggs & Stratton. The company says allowing other states to adopt California's standards would force it to move jobs overseas. The bill contains a rider that delays implementation of stricter fishing restrictions for New England groundfish stocks until the end of fiscal year 2004 and a trio of riders affecting Alaskan fisheries. Language in the omnibus bill sets up a system of processor quotas for some Alaskan crab fisheries that critics say will turn Alaska crab fishermen into sharecroppers. The plan would force crab Bering Sea crab fishermen to sell 90 percent of their catch to specified processors, who would be allocated a set share of the total allowable catch. Additional language inserted at the request of Alaska Republican Senator Ted Stevens allocates a portion of the Aleutian Islands pollock fishery to the Aleut Corporation - the fishery has been closed since 1998 due to species depletion. Federal fish managers and conservationists believe the fishery has not yet recovered and note that part of the decision close it was to provide prey species for endangered Steller sea lions. A third fisheries rider added by Stevens will set up a pilot program that would reopen a rockfish fishery - a program that has been twice been rejected by the North Pacific Fishery Management Council. Critics believe the program in effect privatizes a federal fishery.
Congressman Bill Young of Florida chairs the House Appropriations Committee. (Photo courtesy Office of the Congressman)The presence of the Stevens' riders reflects his large role in the crafting of the omnibus bill. Much of the omnibus bill, cobbled together from House and Senate versions of the seven spending bills, was written by the staffs of Stevens and Representative Bill Young of Florida - the respective chairs of the Senate and House Appropriations Committees.During debate Monday, Young told colleagues that the riders many criticize are a natural part of the way Congress does business. "Appropriations bills have to pass and they are about the only bills here that have to pass," Young said. "That is why sometimes they attract some riders that actually cause us more problems in negotiations than the appropriations bills themselves." "If there is anybody who wants to find something at fault, something to complain about in this bill, they can do it, because there are seven bills," Young said. "I am sure there will be something there each of us may not like. But I tell my colleagues that it is the best product that we could provide for." |
