Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2018

Floor Speech

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Mr. Chairman, it is my distinct honor to bring to the House floor the fiscal year 2018 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies appropriations bill.

Before I go into the details of the bill, I would like to commend Chairman Frelinghuysen for his commitment to the appropriations process. Under Chairman Frelinghuysen's leadership, the committee has moved its bills through the full committee and is now bringing all 12 fiscal year 2018 bills to the House floor.

As reported by the Appropriations Committee, the fiscal year 2018 Interior and Environment bill is funded at $31.456 billion, which is $824 million below the fiscal year 2017 enacted level and $4.3 billion above the budget request.

This legislation makes a concerted effort to prioritize critical needs within our allocation while also addressing specific interests and concerns brought to our attention through more than 5,000 individual Member requests.
In the interest of time, I won't outline all of the programs and activities funded in this bill, but I would like to point out a few highlights. The committee has provided robust wildland fire funding in this bill. Fire suppression accounts are again fully funded at the 10- year average level, and the bill increases funding for hazardous fuels reduction.

The bill funds the Payments in Lieu of Taxes, PILT, program at the fiscal year 2017 enacted level. Rural counties in 49 of the 50 States rely on these funds to make up for lost tax revenue.

Overall, funding for the EPA is reduced by $534 million, or 6.5 percent, from last year. This legislation provides $5 billion worth of investment in water infrastructure through funding in the WIFIA program and the Clean Water and Drinking Water revolving loan funds. This bill also provides increases to accelerate the cleanup of contaminated Superfund and Brownfield sites. These programs help create jobs and spur economic development in communities across the country.

The bill provides $2.9 billion for the National Park Service. It increases the construction account by $10 million and maintains increases provided last year to address longstanding park operations and deferred maintenance needs.

We have also addressed a number of concerns within the Fish and Wildlife Service accounts. The bill restores core programs and popular grant programs to fiscal year 2017 enacted levels. It also restores funds to combat international wildlife trafficking, protects fish hatcheries from cuts and closures, continues funding to fight invasive mussels and Asian carp, and reduces the backlog of species that are recovered but not yet delisted.

The bill provides $275 million for Land and Water Conservation Fund programs that enjoy bipartisan support.
The West Coast, and my home State of California in particular, is counting on the expertise of the USGS to make earthquake early warning systems operational. This bill provides $10.2 million for this public safety program that will protect millions of lives and critical infrastructure.

The bill also makes critical investments in Indian Country--a top priority of the committee. It honors our commitment to Native Americans with particular emphasis on Indian health, law enforcement, education, and water settlements.

In closing, I would like to thank the staff on both sides of the aisle who have worked long hours on this legislation. On the minority side, I would like to thank Rita Culp, Jocelyn Hunn, and Rebecca Taylor. On the majority side, I would like to thank Darren Benjamin, Betsy Bina, Jason Gray, Jackie Kilroy, Kristin Richmond, and Dave LesStrang, our chief clerk from the committee staff; as well as on my personal staff, Ian Foley, Rebecca Keightley, Tricia Evans, and Dave Kennett for a job well done.

Lastly, I would like to thank my good friend and ranking member, Betty McCollum, for working with me to address a number of critical needs throughout the bill. While we may disagree on some issues, we are never disagreeable with each other and we continue to work well together.

Mr. Chairman, this is a good bill, and I urge its adoption.

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