This monthly review goes out to members of the AGI Government Affairs Program (GAP) Advisory Committee, the leadership of AGI's member societies, and other interested geoscientists as part of a continuing effort to improve communications between GAP and the geoscience community that it serves.
Congress Has Long Way To Go On Appropriations
Senate Appropriators Call for Doubling of NSF Budget
AAPG Testifies at Senate Hearing on Natural Gas Supply
Kansas Republicans Vote Out Evolution Opponents
Valles Caldera National Preserve Signed Into Law
Senate Committee Passes Oil Royalty Revenue Bill
Commission Releases Report on Women and Minorities
in Science
Action on Science Education Bills Probably Over
TMDL Standards Promulgated Over Hill Objections
Ocean Policy Gets Congressional Attention
USGS Briefs Congressional Staff on Drought Tools
Schedule of Upcoming GAP Activities
New Material on Web Site
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Congress Has Long Way To Go On Appropriations
Congress has left town for the month of August, trading committees
and caucuses for conventions and campaigning. When they return in early
September, the focus will be on appropriations, appropriations, and appropriations.
If science programs are to do well in this frantic end game, it is imperative
that when members of Congress are back in their home districts they hear
from their constituents about the value of federal investments in science.
AGI encourages member society members to contact their representative and
senators to make the case for the geosciences.
Despite Congress's best attempts to keep the appropriations process moving, they have passed only one of the thirteen appropriation bills. They can draw some small comfort in that they are ahead of last year's process. Unlike last year, however, members are eager to get out of town by the targeted adjournment date of October 6th in order to campaign some more. Before leaving for the August recess, Congress did make progress on a number of key bills affecting the geosciences. The Senate passed H.R. 4578, the FY 2001 Interior Appropriations bill, on July 18th. The Senate version would provide the U.S. Geological Survey with a total of $847.6 million and provide the Department of Energy's Office of Fossil Energy R&D with $401.3 million, an increase of $25.8 million above the budget request. Funding for the FY 2001 Energy and Water Appropriations bill (H.R. 4733), which passed the Senate Appropriations Committee on July 18th, would provide $915 million for the Department of Energy's (DOE) Basic Energy Science program, well shy of the $1 billion requested. That same day, the FY 2001 Commerce Appropriations bill (H.R. 4690) passed its Senate subcommittee. The bill would provide NOAA with $2.7 billion, well above the House figure of $2.2 billion but still less than the $2.9 billion in the President's budget request.
Once Congress returns from the recess, these three bills will be on a fast track. To move these and other appropriations bills, Congress has shifted money from the politically popular VA/HUD bill -- which funds NSF, NASA, and EPA -- hoping they can translate its popularity into a mandate at the end of the session to break spending caps in order to fully fund the bill. More at http://www.agiweb.org/gap/legis106/appropsfy2001.html.
Senate Appropriators Call for Doubling of NSF Budget
An AGI action alert on July 21st urged geoscientists to encourage their
senators to sign on to a "Dear Colleague" letter being circulated by Senators
Kit Bond (R-MO) and Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), who are seeking to convince
the Senate leadership to support a doubling of the National Science Foundation
(NSF) budget over the next five years. Bond and Mikulski -- the Chairman
and Ranking Member, respectively, of the Senate VA/HUD Appropriations Subcommittee,
which funds NSF -- are seeking to translate their colleagues' support for
the National Institutes of Health into support for the physical science
research that underlies high-profile biomedical and information technology
advances. The across-the-board doubling proposed by Bond and Mikulski would
substantially benefit the Geosciences Directorate, which is the second-largest
at NSF. The alert, including text of the "Dear Colleague" letter, can be
found at http://www.agiweb.org/gap/legis106/bondletter_alert.html.
AAPG Testifies at Senate Hearing on Natural Gas
Supply
The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources held a hearing
on July 26th to address rising natural gas prices, which have doubled in
recent months and are expected to spike further this winter. AAPG Division
of Professional Affairs President G. Warfield "Skip" Hobbs was invited
to testify on domestic natural gas supply. In his testimony, Hobbs emphasized
the abundance of US natural gas resources, the current supply crunch, and
the need to open public lands to exploration. In response to Hobbs' presentation,
committee chair Frank Murkowski (R-AK) emphasized the need to help the
public recognize the disconnect between declining proven reserves and the
abundant resources that have been identified but cannot be accessed. Complete
testimony is available at http://energy.senate.gov.
The day before the hearing, Chevron, Conoco and Murphy Oil filed suit against
the federal government for blocking their ability to develop natural gas
leases they purchased from the federal government nearly 20 years ago off
the Florida coast. Last month, the Supreme Court ruled against the federal
government in a similar suit dealing with leases offshore North Carolina.
More at http://www.agiweb.org/gap/legis106/ocs106.html.
Kansas Republicans Vote Out Evolution Opponents
Nearly a year ago, the Kansas State Board of Education voted 6-4 to
remove evolution and the age of the Earth from state science education
standards. Of the six board members who voted for the new standards, three
faced Republican primary challenges and a fourth chose not to run for re-election.
Two of the three, including board chairman Linda Holloway, were defeated
by moderates in the Aug. 1 primary, and the open seat also went to a moderate.
All of the challengers made opposition to the anti-evolution standards
the central focus of their campaign. Board member Steve Abrams, who helped
write the new standards, was the lone anti-evolution board member to prevail.
In the primary to decide the Republican challenger for Rep. Dennis Moore,
the state's only Democratic House member, the moderate candidate who opposed
the new standards lost to a conservative candidate who did not discuss
the evolution issue. More at http://www.agiweb.org/gap/legis106/evolution.html.
Valles Caldera National Preserve Signed Into Law
President Clinton signed S. 1892, the Valles Caldera Preservation and
Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act, into law on July 25th. Forming
the center of the Jemez Mountain range, the Valles Caldera is a resurgent
caldera created by massive volcanic eruption over a million years ago.
It is more than a half-mile deep and close to 15 miles across. Although
most of the Jemez is public land, the Valles Caldera is primarily within
the privately held Baca Ranch. S. 1892 was introduced on November 9, 1999
by Sen. Pete Domenici (R-NM) and Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) to authorize
the acquisition of the Baca by the U.S. Forest Service. The Senate passed
the bill by unanimous consent in April 2000, and the House passed it on
July 12th by a 377-45 vote. At the signing ceremony, the president said,
"Under an innovative arrangement, [this] new preserve will be managed in
a way that allows for sustainable resource use while ensuring public access
and full protection of the ranch's extraordinary natural assets." More
information is available at http://www.agiweb.org/gap/legis106/baca.html.
Senate Committee Passes Oil Royalty Revenue Bill
The same day that President Clinton signed the Valles Caldera bill,
the
Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee passed a bill designed
to greatly increase the funds available for federal land acquisition. Following
a contentious, five-day markup, the committee passed its version of the
H.R. 701, the House-passed Conservation and Reinvestment Act (CARA), by
a 13-7 vote. The final bill represented a compromise between committee
chair Frank Murkowski (R-AK) and ranking Democrat Jeff Bingaman (D-NM).
Other western Republicans generally opposed the bill, characterizing it
as an entitlement that unnecessarily encroaches on private property rights.
The legislation supplies nearly $3 billion in outer continental shelf oil
and gas revenues to a host of conservation programs for each of the next
15 years, $450 million of which is to go to federal land acquisition under
the Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF). If Congress fails to appropriate
a full $450 million for land acquisition in a given fiscal year, then none
of the other conservation programs will be funded that year. While many
amendments were proposed during the committee's marathon markup, only two
passed, one dealing with water rights and the other with easements. More
at http://www.agiweb.org/gap/legis106/ocs106.html.
Commission Releases Report on Women and Minorities
in Science
The congressionally mandated Commission on the Advancement of Women
and Minorities in Science, Engineering, and Technology Development released
its recommendations on how the nation can build its domestic science, engineering,
and technology (SET) work force by increasing the participation of women,
underrepresented minorities and persons with disabilities. The commission
found that community colleges, which serve a large population of women
and minorities, need to improve links with four-year institutions. They
propose a program to target and encourage potentially able students at
the high school and community college levels to move into four-year colleges,
as well as to increase Pell Grants for those SET students. To improve career
opportunities, the report recommends that public and private employers
should be required to report yearly on the comparative pay, career development
and advancement of these groups. The report urges a media campaign to battle
stereotypes and improve the public image of scientists and engineers. Finally,
the commission recommends the formation of a collaborative body to continue
to coordinate, monitor and oversee the implementation of these plans. More
at http://www.agiweb.org/gap/legis106/womenscience.html.
Action on Science Education Bills Probably Over
On July 25th, the House Science Committee unanimously passed the National
Science Education Act (H.R. 4271), the keystone of Rep. Vern Ehlers's (R-MI)
three-bill package to reform federal K-12 science education programs. Further
progress on H.R. 4271 or the other two bills in the package (H.R. 4272
and H.R. 4273) is unlikely given that Congress will spend most of its remaining
legislative days on the must-pass appropriations bills. Further action
is also unlikely on Congress's massive overhaul of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act (ESEA), which passed the House but awaits action in the Senate.
The delay is good news for the Eisenhower science and math education programs,
which are targeted for elimination in the ESEA reform measures. Both the
Ehlers bills and ESEA reform are certain to return in the 107th Congress.
More at http://www.agiweb.org/gap/legis106/ike106.html.
TMDL Standards Promulgated Over Hill Objections
On July 11th, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator
Carol Browner signed a rule to revise the Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL)
program in the Clean Water Act prior to enactment of a congressional bill
that would have blocked funding for the rule.
Senators Tim Hutchinson (R-AR) and Blanche Lambert Lincoln (D-AR) had
attached an amendment to H.R. 4425, the Military Construction Appropriations
Act for fiscal year (FY) 2001, that blocked promulgation of "new" TMDL
rules. Because President Clinton waited to sign the appropriations bill
until two days after Browner signed the TMDL rule, the rider did not apply.
Opposition to the rule stems mainly from agriculture and timber groups
who argue that it would cost too much and restrict state authority to control
water pollution through other voluntary measures. The new TMDL rule still
faces pressure from Senator Hutchinson, who may push for restrictive language
to be added to the Senate VA-HUD appropriations bill (H.R. 4635), which
has not yet undergone markup. On July 26th, similar TMDL moratorium language
was removed from S. 2417, Clean Water Act reform legislation introduced
by Senators Bob Smith (R-NH) and Mike Crapo (R-ID) in April. The bill substantially
increases the authorization of funds for non-point pollution programs under
the Clean Water Act -- up to $750 million annually for FY 2001 through
FY 2007. It also authorizes a National Academy of Sciences study to evaluate
the science behind the TMDL rule, its implementation cost, and the availability
of alternative non-point pollution programs; and a National Academy of
Public Administration study on the breadth and success of state and other
non-point pollution control programs. More at http://www.agiweb.org/gap/legis106/cwa106.html.
Ocean Policy Gets Congressional Attention
The American Geophysical Union and American Association for the Advancement
of Science hosted an Ocean Policy Conference on July 18th in conjunction
with the House Oceans Caucus. Formed earlier this year to raise the profile
of oceans issues within the House and develop appropriate legislation,
the caucus used the meeting's panel discussions to develop a policy framework
in four key areas -- biology, pollution, national security, and governance.
One panel dealt with marine protected areas while another addressed both
the importance of a sustained, integrated ocean observation system and
the consequences of U.S. failure to ratify the United Nations Law of the
Sea Convention. Other panels discussed the impacts of non-point source
pollution on the coastal ocean as well as ocean governance in the twenty-first
century. Speakers included Jean-Michel Cousteau, President and Founder
of the Ocean Futures Society; Dr. Robert Ballard, President of the Institute
for Exploration; Dr. Sylvia Earle, noted marine biologist and author of
the 1995 book "Sea Change -- A Message of the Oceans"; Dr. Ellen Prager,
Assistant Dean of the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine
and Atmospheric Science; and Dr. William Brown, Science Advisor to Secretary
of the Interior Bruce Babbitt.
USGS Briefs Congressional Staff on Drought Tools
AGI, AGU, the Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin (ICPRB),
and the American Water Resources Association cosponsored a U.S. Geological
Survey (USGS) briefing on "Water Management During Drought: Lessons Learned."
The well-attended Capitol Hill briefing was the sixth and final presentation
of the USGS series on Science for Safer and Healthier Communities. Speakers
from USGS and NOAA discussed real-time, interactive information available
on streamflow (http://water.usgs.gov/dwc)
and drought conditions (http://www.cpc.noaa.gov).
ICPRB Executive Director Joe Hoffman closed the session by talking about
how water managers use the end-products of the USGS and other agencies
in decision making. All three speakers encouraged the development of a
real-time groundwater monitoring system to aid water management decisions.
More on the briefing series at
http://www.usgs.gov/safer/.
Schedule of Upcoming GAP Activities
| August 19 | AGI Executive Cmte Mtg | Hartford CT |
| Sept. 13 | NASULGC Mineral/Energy Mtg. | Wash. DC |
| Oct. 10-14 | AIPG National Meeting | Milwaukee WI |
| Nov. 11-16 | GSA Annual Meeting | Reno NV |
New Material on Web Site
The following updates and reports were added to the Government Affairs
portion of AGI's web site http://www.agiweb.org
since the last monthly update:
Sources: Associated Press, Energy and Environment Daily, Federal Register, Greenwire, House Science Committee, Library of Congress, Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, USBudget.com.
Please send any comments or requests for information to AGI Government Affairs Program at govt@agiweb.org.
Posted August 3, 2000
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