^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ AWG E-MAIL NEWS 20001-18, 19 JUNE 2001 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ CONTENTS: 1) AGI GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS PROGRAM SPECIAL UPDATE: 6-12-01 2) AGI GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS PROGRAM ACTION ALERT: 6-15-01 3) POSITION OPENINGS 4) SUBMISSION, ADVERTISING & MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 11111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111 1) AGI GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS PROGRAM SPECIAL UPDATE: 6-12-01 *** Special Update: New Senate Majority Takes Shape IN A NUTSHELL: With the departure of Vermont Senator Jim Jeffords from the Republican Party, Democrats have assumed the chairmanships of Senate committees. The power shift will have a marked impact on the Senate agenda but is not likely to have as big an impact on the ultimate compromises reached between Congress and the Administration on major issues such as energy policy and appropriations. This special update provides a description of the new committee chairmen and some of the changes that are likely to result from the new Senate majority. ********************** When American voters went to the polls in November, they returned a 50-50 split in the Senate. For about a week in January -- after the new senators were sworn in and before the inauguration of President Bush and Vice President Cheney -- Democrats controlled the Senate with Al Gore serving in the constitutional role as tiebreaker. When Cheney assumed that role on January 20th, control switched to the Republicans who had controlled the chamber since 1995. In recognition of the even split, however, a power-sharing agreement was reached. Although Republicans held the chairmanships of all Senate committees, either the chairman or the ranking Democrat could discharge a bill from committee on a tie vote. Committee staff was evenly divided rather than the usual allotment of two-thirds to majority and one-third to minority. All that changed on May 24th when Senator Jim Jeffords of Vermont announced that he was leaving the Republican Party due to growing differences with the conservative leadership. Always a maverick, Jeffords was broadly popular with both Republicans and Democrats in Vermont, having won in November by a landslide. Although he became an independent, Jeffords announced that he would support the Democrats on organizational matters, making them the majority party. That transition took place on June 6th with Sen. Tom Daschle (D-SD) being recognized on the Senate floor as Majority Leader. Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV), who is widely credited with facilitating Jeffords' move, is the new Majority Whip. The shift in power will have significant consequences for the Senate's agenda, but it is less clear whether it will have a major impact on outcomes. Although the Republicans no longer enjoy control of the presidency and both houses of Congress, the Democrats now cling to a razor-thin majority nowhere close to the 60-vote majority necessary to overcome minority filibusters. Had a switch taken place in the House, the impact would have been much greater since that body operates much more on strict majority rule. In the Senate, cross-party compromises will remain the order of the day for most controversial issues. Although final decisions have yet to be reached on many logistical issues -- including the number of Democratic and Republican committee slots -- it appears that staff disruption will be minimal. In several cases, Republican committee staffers have switched over to remain in the majority. *** Appropriations Committee The committee that holds the federal government's purse strings is usually one of the least partisan, its members being more concerned with home-state beneficence rather than party priorities. The new chairman is Sen. Robert C. Byrd (D-WV), returning to a position he held before 1995. As the Senate's most senior Democrat, Byrd also assumes the largely ceremonial title of President Pro Tempore of the Senate, previously held by Sen. Strom Thurmond (R-SC). Byrd is known as a master of Senate procedures and a devoted provider of federal dollars to West Virginia. He has publicly complained that the president's budget request and congressional budget resolution do not provide adequate funding to pay for important programs, cautioning his colleagues that they have not left room for the many earmark requests they inevitably will make of him. Byrd has pledged to keep to the committee timeline outlined by former chairman Ted Stevens (R-AK) -- now ranking minority member and still very powerful -- for passing fiscal year 2002 appropriations bills, although some slippage is likely. Byrd also chairs the Interior and Related Agencies Subcommittee, which oversees the U.S. Geological Survey, land management agencies, Department of Energy's fossil energy programs, and the Smithsonian Institution. Sen. Conrad Burns (R-MT) becomes ranking member. Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D- MD) now chairs the VA, HUD & Independent Agencies Subcommittee, which oversees funding for the National Science Foundation, NASA, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Both Mikulski and former chair Christopher "Kit" Bond (R-MO) have been pressing their colleagues to support doubling of NSF's budget in the next five years. Mikulski has also been a strong supporter of NASA's Earth Science Enterprise, because much of the work is done at the Goddard Space Flight Center in her state. Majority Whip Reid replaces Sen. Pete Domenici (R-NM) as chair of the Energy and Water Subcommittee with responsibility for the bulk of DOE and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The biggest change is likely to be in the area of nuclear energy. Where Domenici was a strong advocate for nuclear, Reid is an implacable opponent of DOE's high-level nuclear waste disposal program, which is seeking to site a permanent repository at Yucca Mountain in Nevada. The president's budget request included a large increase for the repository program, assuming a positive recommendation by the Secretary of Energy to approve the site and begin the licensing process. Although Reid has denied that he would use his new status to stop the repository, Daschle has said that the repository is "dead," a view echoed disconsolately by former Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee chair Frank Murkowski (R-AK), one of the repository's strongest supporters. Committee web site: http://www.senate.gov/~appropriations/ *** Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee Sen. Ernest "Fritz" Hollings (D-SC) takes over from Sen. John McCain (R-AZ). A conservative Democrat, Hollings is not likely to take the committee down a sharply different path from his predecessor. One area that may see less attention, however, is climate change, which was of particular interest to McCain who had pledged to investigate the issue after hearing many questions raised by voters during his presidential campaign. Hollings also assumes the chairmanship of the Appropriations subcommittee responsible for the Commerce Department and thus will control both the authorizing and appropriating process for NOAA. Responsibility for many science agencies resides in the Commerce Subcommittee on Science, Technology & Space. Sen. John Breaux (D-LA) is likely to be the new chair (although many subcommittee designations are still not finalized), replacing freshman Sen. George Allen (R-VA). Breaux, one of the premier dealmakers in the Senate, is also a co-chair of the Congressional Oil and Gas Forum. Committee web site: http://www.senate.gov/~commerce/ *** Energy and Natural Resources Committee Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) replaces Murkowski as chairman of the committee that has become ground zero for congressional action on energy policy. Both senators introduced comprehensive energy legislation this spring, and Bingaman has indicated that he will seek to move his bill (S. 597) through the committee in smaller pieces rather than Murkowski's planned single-package, fast-track approach for his bill (S. 389). Overall, the bills share many provisions with one another and with the president's energy plan formulated by Cheney (see http://www.agiweb.org/gap/legis107/energy_update0501.html). Bingaman's bill includes a number of supply-enhancing provisions found in Murkowski's bill but has a greater focus on reducing demand. According to Bingaman: "We need to develop a balanced response that takes advantage of all the options that are available to us. We can't supply our way out of this unfortunate circumstance. We can't just conserve our way out of it either. We must do both." The new chairman does not support exploration in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, further shrinking the chances for that centerpiece of the Bush plan. Bingaman has also argued that energy policy must be addressed in the context of climate change policy. With Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) on the committee, Bingaman can be expected to take a more aggressive approach to legislation addressing the California power crisis, although he does not support federally mandated price caps. Committee web site: http://energy.senate.gov/ *** Environment and Public Works Committee At the moment, Reid chairs this committee, having served as the ranking member for the past five months. But it is expected that Reid will hand the chairmanship to Jim Jeffords who had to give up his own chairmanship of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee when he switched parties (and new HELP Committee Chair Edward Kennedy, D-MA, was not about to relinquish his seniority). Jeffords has often clashed with his former party on environmental matters, and he is expected to pursue a fairly green agenda as chairman. In March, Jeffords introduced climate-related legislation (S. 556) to reduce carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxide, sulfur dioxide, and mercury emissions from powerplants. The president's energy plan proposes increased regulation of the latter three but not CO2. Jeffords is also expected to take up legislation introduced by Reid and former committee chairman Bob Smith (R-NH) to phase out methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) in gasoline. Committee web site: http://www.senate.gov/~epw/ *** Other Committees A range of other committees address issues important to the geosciences. For example, tax provisions associated with comprehensive energy legislation will go through the Finance Committee, where the chairmanship switched from Sen. Charles Grassley (R-IA) to Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT). The Senate Foreign Relations Committee is now chaired by Sen. Joseph Biden (D-DE), whose views in support of international treaties are sharply at odds with those of former chairman Jesse Helms (R-NC). For example, Biden supports the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, which includes a major seismic verification component of interest to geoscientists. Given the lack of a filibuster-proof majority, it is unlikely that Helms's opposition will be overcome any time soon. As noted above, Kennedy will oversee the HELP Committee, which is responsible for science education. Kennedy is expected to oppose the administration's push for increased block granting of federal school aid. Committee web sites: http://www.senate.gov/committees/index.cfm -Special update prepared by David Applegate and Margaret Baker, AGI Government Affairs Program 22222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222222 2) AGI GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS PROGRAM ACTION ALERT: 6-15-01 *** House Appropriators Restore USGS, DOE Fossil Energy Funding IN A NUTSHELL: The House Appropriations Committee has restored funding for the U.S. Geological Survey and Department of Energy oil and gas research programs, slated for significant reductions in the president's request. The committee also expressed concern over recent developments at the Smithsonian Institution regarding science programs there. The bill (as yet unnumbered) next goes to the full House for a vote, and the Senate has yet to begin action. Please contact your delegation on this subject and encourage them to support the committee's action. This alert contains details of the committee's decision. ****************** Back in February, the Wall Street Journal broke the story that the administration was considering a 22 percent cut to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in its fiscal year (FY) 2002 budget request. Hundreds of geoscientists wrote to the Interior Department and the White House Office of Management and Budget to make the case for the value of this agency's programs. USGS supporters met with administration staff, and Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton showed a growing interest in the agency as she became aware of its capabilities. When the president's budget request was unveiled in April, some of those funds had been restored, but the Survey still took a 9 percent cut overall in order to make room for campaign priorities. Individual programs were hit much harder -- the cut to the Water Resources Division came in at 22 percent. Things looked even worse for oil and gas programs in the Department of Energy's Office of Fossil Energy, both receiving cuts of over 50 percent in the president's request. Since that time, supporters of both these agencies -- including several AGI member society delegations -- have met with key members of Congress and committee staff in both the House and Senate. The high profile of national energy problems, along with issues such as global climate change, has also helped to convince legislators that now is not the time to cut funding for programs that provide vital scientific information in these areas. The efforts are starting to pay off. In hearings by the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior and Related Agencies, it was clear that both the chairman, Rep. Joe Skeen (R-NM), and ranking Democrat Norm Dicks (WA) disagreed with the cuts. In a subcommittee vote last week and a full House Appropriations Committee vote two days ago, there was bipartisan support for restoring both USGS and DOE programs to full strength, even adding a small increase. But there is a long road ahead. The full House has yet to vote on this appropriations bill, and the Senate Appropriations Committee will probably not begin action until the end of this month or after the Fourth of July recess. It is important that geoscientists make an effort in the next few weeks to let their delegation know that they support the committee's action. If you live in the district of one of the House appropriators (see list at http://www.house.gov/appropriations/members.htm), please take the time to write and thank them for their support of a strong foundation of geoscience knowledge for decisionmaking. This message contains details of the House bill -- which will not receive a bill number until it reaches the House floor -- and its accompanying explanatory report language on USGS, DOE, and the Smithsonian, where science is also under fire from within the Institution. In many cases, the committee's report language will be useful for letter writing. For information on communicating with Congress, see http://www.agiweb.org/roster/howto.html. AGI testimony on the USGS and DOE budgets can be found at http://www.agiweb.org/gap/legis107/interior_fy2002.html. A sample letter that can be adapted for members of Congress was included in an earlier alert on USGS at http://www.agiweb.org/gap/legis107/usgs_alert0201.html. *** House Committee-Passed Funding for USGS Overall, the committee provided $900.5 million for the USGS, up $17.7 million from FY 2001 and up $87.1 million from the president's request. The bulk of the increase is for uncontrollable expenses (i.e. cost-of- living adjustments). The report states: "The Committee restored a number of high-priority research programs that were proposed for reduction or elimination. The Committee believes that the Department of the Interior and other Federal agencies should make resource decisions based on the best science available. The Survey's principal goals and objectives should include an appropriate mix of basic and applied science that address both the needs of the Department of the Interior as well as important scientific issues of national concern. The Committee has commissioned a number of studies by the Survey and the National Academy of Sciences that provided detailed recommendations on a program by program basis. The Committee believes that this informed process should help the Department develop a better science agency serving the Nation's best long-term interests." The Geologic Division would receive $228.2 million, up $2.9 million from FY 2001 and up $14.4 million from the request. Increases over FY 2001 include $0.4 million for the Advanced National Seismic Network and $1 million for expanding the coastal geology program. Several cuts, for example to the Alaska minerals program, are for programs traditionally supported by the Senate. The committee report notes the "important and appropriate" function of the minerals information program and looks forward to a National Academy of Sciences (NAS) review in the coming fiscal year. The report also states that "the Committee continues to believe that the Survey's highest hazards-related priority should be to continue to upgrade its various hazards monitoring networks, to acquire quality hazards information, and to engage in quality research. Therefore, the Committee has provided funding for the Survey's "Real Time Hazards" initiative. The Water Resources Division, hardest hit in the president's budget, would receive $205.5 million, up $2 million from FY 2001 and up $46 million from the request. The committee provided full funding plus a $0.5 million increase for the Water Resource Research Institutes, zeroed out in the request, and also calls on the Survey to contract with the NAS to examine water resources research. The report directs that $1 million is to go to a Mississippi River-based Long-Term Estuary Assessment Group. It calls on the Survey "to prepare a report describing the scope and magnitude of the efforts needed to provide periodic assessments of the status and trends in the availability and use of freshwater resources" in the US. The National Mapping Division would receive $130.7 million, nearly level with FY 2001 and up $7 million from the request. The Biological Resources Division would receive $163.5 million, up $2.9 million above FY 2001 and up $14.2 million over the request. The Science Support account would receive $86.3 million, a $12.5 million fixed-cost increase over FY 2001 and $5 million above the request. The Facilities account would get $86.4 million, down $2.9 million from FY 2001 and up $0.5 million from the request, primarily related to technical adjustments. The bill also restores $20 million for USGS from the Land Conservation, Preservation, and Infrastructure Improvement Program -- the so-called Title VIII money first approved in last year's appropriations bill. The president did not request any of these funds, derived from federal oil and gas royalties, for USGS. Last year's USGS funds were used for upgrading the streamgage network, cooperative geologic mapping, and earth science information delivery. *** Committee-Passed Funding for DOE Fossil Energy The Committee report includes a section responding to the administration's National Energy Policy, praising the Cheney report for recognizing "the need to explore many different options for addressing the energy needs of this country and for ensuring that energy efficiencies and emissions reductions are achieved worldwide." The committee supports the president's clean coal initiative and also recommends "restoring most of the reductions proposed in the budget request for energy conservation research and for research to improve fossil energy technologies. We need to do all these things if we are to have a balanced and rational national energy strategy." Overall, DOE Fossil Energy R&D would receive $579 million, up $146 million over FY 2001 and up $130 million over the request. In addition to the president's $150 million clean coal initiative, the bill provides $40.3 million for natural gas technologies, down $4.8 million from FY 2001 but up $19.3 million from the request. Within the gas account, it restores funding for gas hydrates research to $9.8 million as opposed to the $4.8 million requested. Natural gas exploration and production research would receive a $5.3 million boost over FY 2001. The Petroleum/Oil Technology program would receive $56 million, up $1.1 million from FY 2001 and up $25.5 million over the request. Increases over the request include $11 million for exploration and production research, $9.1 million for reservoir life extension, and $5.4 million for the effective environmental protection program. The report also calls on DOE to work with industry to develop a deep-water oil and gas research program. *** Committee Discussion of Smithsonian Recent actions by Secretary of the Smithsonian Lawrence Small to cut science programs and reorganize the reporting structure for science have raised eyebrows within the geoscience community and led Natural History Museum Director Robert Fri to announce his resignation. The House Interior Appropriations Subcommittee, which has jurisdiction over these federal museums, included the following report language: "The Committee has been concerned about the recent actions taken by the Smithsonian to set a new direction for science in the Institution, particularly the attempt to close the Conservation and Research Center in Front Royal, Virginia. The Committee commends the Board of Regents for directing the Smithsonian to form a Science Commission to advise the Smithsonian Regents on future new research strategies. The Committee supports the principle of reviewing existing research programs and improving the focus of those programs, including greater collaboration within and outside the Smithsonian. However, the process for making significant research changes must be thoroughly vetted within the research community and through the budget process. The Committee expects that no action regarding the science programs and related facilities of the Institution will be taken until the new Science Commission has made recommendations to the Regents and the Regents have approved those recommendations." -Alert prepared by David Applegate and AGI/AIPG Geoscience Policy Intern Chris Eisinger. 33333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333333 3333333 3) POSITION OPENINGS GALLATIN NATIONAL FOREST-GEOLOGIST or MINING ENGINEER, GS-1350/880-11 DUTY STATION: Bozeman, Montana The Gallatin National Forest will be filling a Geologist/Mining Engineer, permanent fulltime (PFT) position. This notification is being circulated to inform prospective applicants of this upcoming opportunity and to determine interest in the position. FOREST SERVICE EMPLOYEES ON THE WORKFORCE REDUCTION AND PLACEMENT LIST WILL RECEIVE PRIORITY CONSIDERATION AND CTAP/ICTAP CANDIDATES WILL RECEIVE THE APPROPRIATE CONSIDERATION. Interested applicants or those desiring further information should contact Mary Beth Marks at 406-587-6709; E-mail: mmarks@fs.fed.us -- or write Gallatin National Forest, 10 East Babcock, Federal Building, Bozeman, MT 59771. This position functions as an assistant to the Minerals Program manger. Incumbent is responsible for technical support to the districts in all phases of mineral and energy related activities, including locatable, leasable, and saleable minerals, and applications of the science of geology. Incumbent conducts mineral examinations for claim validity and evaluates mineral potential in support of lands actions. 44444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444444 44444444 4) SUBMISSION, ADVERTISING & MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION ***Thanks to everyone who contributed to this issue of AWG E-Mail News. For submissions to AWG E-Mail News, contact Editor Joanne Kluessendorf at editor@awg.org. For advertising, contact the Ad Editor at ads@awg.org. PLEASE SEND AD COPY OR OTHER SUBMISSIONS AS RTF FILES OR AS PART OF AN E-MAIL MESSAGE ***For membership information or to join AWG, visit our website at www.awg.org or contact our business office at office@awg.org