Proposed Fiscal Year 2005 Budget Request for the Department of the Interior

First let me thank you, Madam Secretary, for coming today. You probably know that there is a transportation bill up on the floor. Some of the Senators are there. Some will leave there and come here, and the ones that cannot make it will pose their questions to you in due course and they can be responded to by you as quickly as possible.

I have a short opening statement, and then I will yield to Senator Bingaman and we will have a series of questions following it. First of all, you have a very vast jurisdiction that concerns a lot of the Senators on this committee. It is no surprise that they choose this committee because they have a genuine interest, whether it be the forests, the BLM, whatever, Indian rights, et cetera. We want very much to accommodate them, and we want to establish as good a working relationship with you and your chief staff people as we possibly can. We want to get answers where there is no reason to argue. We do not want to not get the answers because we do not ask. We want to establish a policy of openness towards you, and we would hope it would be the same the other way around.

So it is obvious I extend a welcome to you, and I hope that we can complete the first round of testimony on the 2005 budget of your Department this morning.

I am also pleased that Lynn Scarlett-is that how you say it?
Ms. SCARLETT. Yes.

The CHAIRMAN. The Assistant Secretary for Policy, Management and Budget is here today. Senator Bingaman, I was not properly informed and I do not know if you were or not, but that lady does a lot of work in the Department. That one over there.

[Laughter.]

Ms. SCARLETT. Thank you.

The CHAIRMAN. In fact, the Secretary is quite certain that she could not do her job without her. So we are glad she came and we thank her for her many, many hours serving the Department.

I am very pleased that you are here, Senator, so we can proceed with this as quickly as we can, and I thank you for your abiding interest in this subject.

I would first like to congratulate the Department on its work to lay out a strategic vision, and for its efforts to improve the performance and management and accounting functions of your agency. It is no small job you have undertaken. We have been expecting that of the Departments, but I can tell you that the Energy Department claims they are the first one to have completed it all. We have had no opportunity, nor do I think we will, to determine whether it is right or not, but you are right behind them as I understand.

This year, the President has requested $11 billion in current appropriations for those agencies within the Department. That represents a $250 million increase overall above the fiscal year 2004 level. Now, we understand that that does not mean that every single item in your budget got a piece of that $250 million. Some got reduced and some got more. It is hard for us to put all that together for a hearing like this, but for the programs that came down, we will hear the hue and cry before too long, and we might have to get you back or get some questions to you.

The overall budget represents a 2.3 percent increase as proposed, and that is a near-flat budget when you take inflation into account. But it is the largest Department of the Interior budget in history.

I should also note that the Department is charged with the operation of programs that will bring in an estimated $10.1 billion in receipts in fiscal year 2005. This is one of the work horse agencies for the Federal Government. With the President's continuing and necessary emphasis on defense and homeland security, many Departments, including Interior, are feeling the pinch. However, we must remember that the Department of the Interior is actively engaged in securing our most important national monuments against terrorist attacks. It is a major challenge for the Department to protect national park sites such as the Statue of Liberty and the Washington Monument, and I want to congratulate you, Madam Secretary, for the progress you have made on this front.

In spite of the budget limitations, there are some good proposals in this budget that are new. I am pleased to see that the President has committed to the recently enacted Healthy Forests legislation with a request for $209.3 million, if I understand the budget correctly, for hazardous fuel reduction activities, and I will have some questions about that.

The West in general, and Senator Bingaman's and my State specifically, continues to face the prospects of long-term drought. Many members will want to discuss the administration's water initiative in greater detail. I might say in all honesty the lack of a significant water policy initiative.

We will have to look at the budget for the U.S. Geological Survey. Proposed reductions in USGS research, if adopted, could undermine the critical role that it plays in water resource manage

ment.

Good stewardship of the public lands is our major task, as it is yours, and I think the President's Interior budget reflects the commitment. We hope you can convince us that it is adequate.

I am pleased to note that the Department has made real progress in addressing the maintenance backlog of the National Park System. I also commend you, Madam Secretary, for proposing reforms for the abandoned mine lands program. We have a Senator here who is vitally interested and he may not agree that the reforms are adequate or that we ought to proceed with what you recommend precisely as recommended. This program is scheduled to expire in September. I made a commitment in the energy conference to take up this issue early in the session, and we will be holding hearings on that very soon. Although I do not think the Department's proposal goes far enough in addressing some of the concerns of a number of our colleagues, it is important. It is an important step that you take, and I look forward to working with the Department in that area, as do many Senators.

These are a few of the issues that the committee will discuss with you today. I am pleased that you could join us. We look forward to a summary of your testimony which will be made a part of the record.

I now turn to my ranking member, Senator Bingaman. Then we will proceed with some questions.

Senator Bingaman.

STATEMENT OF HON. JEFF BINGAMAN, U.S. SENATOR
FROM NEW MEXICO

Senator BINGAMAN. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
Welcome, Secretary Norton.

Let me point out a couple of concerns that I have before we get to the statement by the Secretary. First, in the Land and Water Conservation Fund, the claim is again this year that the administration is asking for full funding of $900 million. I really do think that this is something akin to a budgetary shell game that we see being played again this year. My definition of full funding of the Land and Water Conservation Fund would essentially mean the funding level, the $900 million, committed to the two programs that are authorized to be funded in the Land and Water Conservation Fund. That is Federal land acquisition first and, second, a State open space grant program.

Now, when you look at what is actually requested for Federal land acquisition, it is $220 million. When you look at what is requested for the State grant program, it is $94 million. So the total comes up to $314 million, which is a third of the authorized level. Everything else in the $900 million is extraneous to the Land and Water Conservation Fund authorized purpose.

So we have had this discussion before. I just once again express my frustration at the continued effort to claim full funding for a program when clearly that is not what is being requested.

Second, in this area of water, the administration came up with its Water 2025 initiative, which in concept I think is worthy of support. Unfortunately, again I have got real problems with what is being requested in the budget. As I see it, the administration is proposing an $11.6 million increase in Water 2025 for the Bureau

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