Congressional Budget for the United States Government for Fiscal Year 2007
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET FOR THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT FOR FISCAL YEAR 2007
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AMENDMENT NO. 3074
Mr. REED. Mr. President, I call up amendment No. 3074.
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Mr. REED. Mr. President, my amendment is straightforward. It would increase funding for the LIHEAP program, the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, by $3.318 billion. It is paid for fully by the closing of corporate tax loopholes and is cosponsored by Senators KENNEDY, KERRY, CLINTON, LIEBERMAN, ROCKEFELLER, DORGAN, LEVIN, DAYTON, SCHUMER, KOHL, BAYH, JOHNSON, LEAHY, MENENDEZ, and HARKIN.
The President's budget request and the level of funding assumed in this budget resolution for LIHEAP is $1.782 billion. That represents a $379 million cut from the fiscal year 2006 enacted level. Last week we were struggling to pass an additional $1 billion. The question before us is, are we going to accept this inadequate funding knowing full well it is inadequate today. I hope we don't do that. My amendment, the increase of $3.318 billion, would reach the authorized level of $5.1 billion set by the Energy Policy Act of 2005. On five separate occasions during the course of the debate over LIHEAP in the last 6 months, the majority of the Senate has voted for this full funding level. I call upon all of those Members to join me today to ensure we have full funding. We understand this year we are short of money. The President's budget starts us off with even less.
This year we benefited from unusually warm temperatures. I don't think anyone would bet that next winter's heating season will be as mild and as forgiving as this season's. With higher energy prices--and we know they are going up--with probably lower temperatures, we are going to be in a very serious position unless we adopt this amendment.
In the course of the debate about LIHEAP, many of our colleagues from warmer States pointed out that they are not getting as much as they should. If we get to the $5.1 billion level, this will truly be a national program. Warmer weather States will have the money in the hot season where they need air conditioning to help low-income people. I hope we can do so. For example, Alabama will receive $15 million from the block grant formula under the President's budget. It would receive $87.2 million under my amendment, a 479-percent increase, and so on throughout the country.
I hope we can pass this amendment. I hope we can have the foresight to recognize that we can't start off in the hole. We cannot expect warm temperatures this next heating season. We have to do more for the most vulnerable.
I yield whatever remaining time I have back to the Senator from North Dakota.
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