the analyses are officially submitted to OMB for review -- an admirable change. Climate Change Funding Chairman McIntosh opposes the President's requested increases in the Climate Change Technology Initiative (CCTI) and the Global Change Research Program (GCRP), and recommends a cut in the base of these programs. We disagree and recommend full funding of the climate change initiatives at the level requested by the President. These programs are a wise investment in America's energy future that will benefit our economy, public health, the environment, and national security. In fact, many of the energy efficiency programs were authorized on a bipartisan basis many years ago. In addition, the record before the Committee does not support a conclusion that the requested climate change funding would be used for backdoor implementation of the Kyoto Protocol. The CCTI and GCRP address a commitment the United States undertook in 1992 when the United States signed the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. Under that Convention, the United States agreed to stabilize greenhouse gas emissions at 1990 levels by the year 2000. Chairman McIntosh asserts that there is a lack of information to justify these programs. In fact, the FY00 annual plans and congressional justifications from the relevant agencies, as well as two Climate Action Reports -- each over 250 pages long -- describe many of the programs at issue. Department of Energy (DOE) Chairman McIntosh recommends that the President's requested increase in funding for weatherization and state energy grants be denied and recommends that the base funding be decreased. We disagree and recommend fully funding the weatherization and state energy grants programs at the level requested by the President. The increase would support weatherization of an estimated 9,615 low income homes and would aid state energy priorities and infrastructure. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Chairman McIntosh recommends that the President's requested increase in funding for the new Clean Air Partnership Fund be denied and that the base funding be decreased. We disagree and recommend fully funding the Clean Air Partnership Fund at the level requested in the President's Budget. Smog and air toxics in our urban areas is a very serious problem. It makes sense to create a voluntary initiative under which locally managed programs can apply for federal funds to help reduce hazardous air pollutants. a severe underfunding of the District's Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital Allotment (DSH). This underfunding resulted in part because the federal government has applied a 50% Medicaid match rather than the 70% Medicaid match that the District received in the Revitalization Act. The President's budget includes an additional $9 million for the District's DSH program, instead of an additional $26.3 million to which the District is entitled. In addition, Congresswoman Norton is seeking retroactive funding totaling up to $52.6 million that the District is owed under the DSH program for FY 1998 and FY 1999. We support these efforts. NATIONAL SECURITY, VETERANS AFFAIRS, AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS Based on completed and ongoing oversight inquiries, the minority agrees with the majority that the President's FY 2000 budget proposal for defense and military programs is a step in the right direction. The majority takes issue with the Administration, however, with respect to its proposal for $3 billion over five years to protect U.S. employees and foreign nationals overseas from terrorist attacks. The basis for the majority's criticism is the Crowe Report, which recommended $14 billion over the next ten years. The minority notes, however, that the Crowe Report came out after the Administration's budget was introduced and that its findings were not available to the Administration when it formulated its budget request. Since the report was issued, the Administration has recognized that additional factors must be addressed, as evidenced by the testimony of its representatives in recent oversight hearings. We believe the Administration's proposal represents a partial commitment toward the goal of securing the protection of our overseas employees and recommend examining this issue in greater detail. SUBCOMMITTEE ON NATIONAL ECONOMIC GROWTH, NATURAL RESOURCES, AND REGULATORY AFFAIRS Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Chairman McIntosh recommends a decrease in funding of 25% for OIRA. The record before the Committee does not support these cuts. Also, Chairman McIntosh's recommendations contain some inaccuracies and unfair criticisms. For instance, the President's Budget does not request a 20% increase for OIRA; it requests less than a 5% increase. Furthermore, Chairman McIntosh claims that "[t]he President's Budget seeks to eliminate [the] statutory requirement” in the FY99 Treasury Postal Appropriations Act regarding a paperwork reduction report when, in fact, that Act does not address what, if any, reports should be drafted in FY00. Moreover, Chairman McIntosh criticizes the fact that OMB has returned fewer regulatory proposals to the agencies for reconsideration than was the case under the Reagan and Bush Administrations. This fact may well reflect the fact that OMB under the Clinton Administration gets involved in the analysis process long before Minority Views Committee on Government Reform Comments The President's Budget Proposals for Fiscal Year 2000 Hon. Henry A. Waxman Hon. Tom Lantos Hon. Robert E. Wise, Jr. Hon. Patsy T. Mink Hon. Bernard Sanders Hon. Carolyn B. Maloney Hon. Eleanor Holmes Norton Hon. Chaka Fattah Hon. Elijah E. Cummings Hon. Dennis J. Kucinich Hon. Thomas H. Allen This letter transmits the views and estimates of the Committee on House Administration, as required by section 301(d) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, on budget matters for Fiscal Year 1999 as they relate to the Committee's jurisdiction. In FY99, there is one program subject to periodic authorization by the Committee, the Federal Election Commission. The Committee estimates that the total budget authority of the FEC and total outlays will not exceed $39 million. |