FUNDING UPDATE

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@igc.org>]

FUNDING UPDATE

Congress is in recess this week, and the state of Defense funding bills 
remains unresolved.

1. Senate-House conferees have barely started meeting to discuss the 
Defense Authorization Act. There is a good chance, once negotiations 
resume, that the language restricting assistance to restoration 
advisory boards can be toned down significantly.

2. The Defense Appropriations Conferees voted to limit the Defense 
Environmental Restoration Account (DERA) to $1,422 million, the House 
level, $200 million below the president's request. It is likely that 
this will be the DERA funding level, even if the Authorization Act ends 
up with a higher amount.

3. The Appropriations bill was rejected by the House just before 
recess, and President Clinton has threatened a veto once it does make 
it through the House. Meanwhile, there are rumors in DC that no Defense 
Authorization Act will pass this year. In that case, none of the 
restrictions on restoration advisory board funding or grants to states 
would take effect. However, either program could still suffer from a 
shortage of funds.

Lenny