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NFC: Fw: River Policy Update, Week of June 11, 2001
American Rivers' Policy Update
Week of June 11, 2001
IN THIS WEEK'S UPDATE:
* Fisheries/endangered species
* Energy policy
* Appropriations
* Bush administration environmental nominees
* Congressional calendar
* Take action
* Jobs
FISHERIES/ENDANGERED SPECIES
Pacific Salmon Bill hits the House floor
The Pacific Salmon Recovery Act, HR 1157, is scheduled to hit the
House floor this week. Rep. Mike Thompson (D-CA) is the sponsor of
the bill, which is nearly identical to legislation passed in the
House last September (HR 2798) but did not have time to work its way
through the Senate. The Pacific Salmon Recovery Act would give
authority to provide financial assistance to five states (Alaska,
Washington, Oregon, California, and Idaho) and qualified tribal
governments for salmon research and habitat restoration activities.
$200 million would be equally divided among the states over three
years, with 15% allocated to tribal governments. Specific projects
that would be funded include watershed evaluation, assessment and
planning for specific watershed improvements; watershed planning and
project monitoring and evaluation; and watershed organization
support. In addition, other potential projects include post-
completion maintenance and monitoring, and training for private
landowners on sustainable land and water management practices to
protect and restore salmon habitat. In order to ensure that the
funding goes toward salmon protection, the bill would ban states and
tribes from participating if they cut other spending on salmon
habitat programs.
Magnuson Act reauthorization
This Thursday the House Resources fisheries subcommittee will hold
the third in a series of hearings on the reauthorization of the
Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, which
expired in September 1999. The law, last authorized in 1996,
regulates commercial and recreational fishing in federally-controlled
ocean waters, and is also known as the Sustainable Fisheries Act.
The subcommittee is expected to explore how ecosystem-based fishery
management can be integrated into the Act. This concept focuses on
habitat and biodiversity rather than traditional individual species
management.
House Resources Committee investigates Klamath water dispute
The House Resources Committee will hold a hearing this Saturday in
Klamath Falls Oregon to investigate the tension between irrigated
agriculture and the Endangered Species Act at the Bureau of
Reclamation's Klamath Project. The Bureau has been forced to stop
distributing irrigation water to hundreds of farmers this summer in
order to protect fish (including endangered coho salmon, Lost River
sucker and shortnosed sucker) and a wintering population of over 1000
bald eagles =96 the largest in the contiguous 48 states. Glen Spain
of
the Pacific Coast Federation of Fisherman's Associations has pointed
out that protecting and restoring endangered Klamath River coho
salmon would have important economic benefits. "Downriver economic
losses have already been staggering," Spain said. "Roughly 3,780
family-wage jobs have already been lost in these downriver fishing-
based economies by the failure to protect and restore salmon within
the Klamath basin, and several thousand remaining jobs are now at
risk."
Hearing: 9:00 am, Saturday, June 16th at the Klamath County Fair
Grounds, 3531 South 6th Street, Klamath Falls, OR
ENERGY POLICY
Barton energy bill dies
Last week House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Billy Tauzin
(R-LA) effectively killed Rep. Joe Barton's (R-TX) emergency power
bill (H.R. 1647) by canceling attempts at marking it up. The markup
failed when committee members were unable to agree on whether to
include price caps for wholesale power prices in the legislation.
Environmentalists welcomed the development, as the bill, though
already stripped of some of its worst elements, still contained a
Clean Air Act override and a provision that may have allowed
subsidized Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) customers such as
the aluminum industry to resell their contract power allotment at
higher prices. Such resale of subsidized power could force BPA to
seek greater hydroelectric generation, which typically comes at the
expense of migrating salmon in the Snake and Columbia rivers.
APPROPRIATIONS
Agriculture Spending Bill
This Wednesday the House Appropriations Committee will mark up the
agriculture appropriations bill for FY 02. The bill will allocate
$74.2 billion among various programs, and would provide more funding
than was requested in Bush's proposed budget. The increase would be
directed toward a number of conservation programs headed by the
Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), the Agriculture
Department's main conservation branch. Most NRCS funds provide
technical assistance to over one million landowners annually. Other
conservation programs that would receive additional funding include
watershed and flood prevention, resource conservation and
development, and watershed surveys and planning. In addition, the
Environmental Quality Incentives Program received $26 million more
than requested to assist farmers. The Administration did not seek
funding for the Wetland Reserve Program, the Wildlife Habitat
Incentives Program and the Farmland Protection Program, and these
programs were not funded in the Agriculture subcommittee markup.
Markup: 10:00 am, Wednesday, June 13, in 2359 Rayburn
Interior spending bill expands
The Interior bill will be the first bill considered this week when
the full Appropriations Committee meets this Wednesday to act on the
formal allocation of funding for all 13 subcommittees. The $18.9
billion funding package includes $800 million more than requested by
the Bush administration, including substantial increases in the water
resources division of the U.S. Geological Survey, which the
Administration had sought to cut. The Interior subcommittee rejected
an Administration proposal to end citizen enforcement of endangered
species listing deadlines and critical habitat designations through
the courts. However, the subcommittee did implement the
administration's request to cap funding for new listings at $8.1
million, a $2.1 increase over last year's funding. Endangered
species advocates argue that even this raised cap will slow down the
listing process, thus further endangering imperiled species; they are
seeking $24 million for listings this year.
Markup: 10:00 am, Wednesday, June 13, in 2359 Rayburn
BUSH ADMINISTRATION ENVIRONMENTAL NOMINEES
Floor action is possible this week for a number of nominees awaiting
confirmation by the Senate for federal environmental and energy
positions.
According to Senate Majority Whip Harry Reid (D-NV), Stephen Johnson
awaits confirmation by the full Senate to be assistant administrator
for toxic substances for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Jeffrey Holmstead also waits to be confirmed as the EPA's assistant
administrator for air and radiation. Committee members are waiting
for the release of documents Holmstead created while working for
former President Bush. James Connaughton's nomination to head the
White House Council on Environmental Quality is expected to come
before the full Senate this week for a vote. Steven Griles'
nomination awaits a Senate vote on becoming deputy secretary of
Interior. Griles, a former coal and oil lobbyist, has received
strong opposition from the environmental community. John Graham
still awaits confirmation by the full Senate to be head of the Office
of Management and Budget's Office of Information and Regulatory
Affairs. Graham's positions on risk analysis have drawn criticism
from a wide range of environmental and other public interest
organizations. If confirmed, the position would give Graham veto
authority over a wide range of environmental regulations. Jesse Hill
Roberson is still awaiting a second confirmation hearing to be the
Department of Energy's assistant secretary of environmental
management.
CONGRESSIONAL CALENDAR
SENATE:
Wednesday, June 13
Hearing on EPA, CEQ appropriations
Appropriations Committee
10 a.m., 138 Dirksen
Hearing on electricity restructuring
Government Affairs Committee
9:30 a.m., 342 Dirksen
HOUSE:
Tuesday, June 12
Hearing on coal, oil and gas R&D
Science Committee
10 a.m., 2318 Rayburn
Hearing on several park bills
Resources Committee
10 a.m., 1334 Longworth
Hearing on energy tax laws
Ways and Means Committee
2 p.m., 1100 Longworth
Wednesday, June 13
Markup of Interior spending bill
Appropriations Committee
10 a.m., 2359 Rayburn
USDA appropriations markup
Appropriations Committee
10 a.m., 2359 Rayburn
Hearing on national energy policy
Energy and Commerce Committee
10 a.m., 2123 Rayburn
Hearing on energy tax laws
Ways and Means Committee
10 a.m., 1100 Longworth
Thursday, June 14
Magnuson-Stevens hearing
Resources Committee
9:30 a.m., 1324 Longworth
Hearing on nuclear, hydrogen research
Science Committee
10 a.m., 2318 Rayburn
Markup of supplemental budget request
Appropriations Committee
TBA, 2359 Rayburn
Saturday, June 16
Hearing on Klamath Basin water and endangered species issue
Resources Committee
9:00 a.m., Klamath County Fair Grounds, 3531 South 6th Street,
Klamath Falls, OR
TAKE ACTION
Follow the latest American Rivers' Action Alerts and Press Releases!
Take action to help save America's Rivers. Visit
http://www.amrivers.org/takeaction/.
JOBS
American Rivers currently has a number of job openings. See our
employment page at http://www.amrivers.org/jobs/default.htm for the
following opportunities:
* Online Community Manager
* Conservation Assistant-Outreach
* Organizer/Outreach Specialist-Missouri River Campaign
Questions?
Contact Michael Garrity, Conservation Assistant, at 202-347-7550.
Legislative information taken from sources including: Environment and
Energy Daily, Greenwire, Congressional Green Sheets, and members of
the American Rivers conservation staff.
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