Ken Calvert: “I want to thank Chairman Rogers for his leadership and support. Under his guidance, the Appropriations Committee is…”

“I want to thank Chairman Rogers for his leadership and support. Under his guidance, the Appropriations Committee is again setting the standard for getting things done in the House. This is the seventh of the appropriation bills that have come to the floor that we, hopefully, will be able to pass tomorrow. I also want to thank my good friend and Ranking Member McCollum for her partnership and work on this bill. Finally, I want to thank each of our committee members for their efforts and their collegiality. It continues to be the hallmark of our subcommittee's deliberations. Even though we may have differences of opinion within this bill, I greatly appreciate the members' constructive contributions, and I mean that sincerely. The committee has made some very difficult choices in preparing this bill. As reported by the Appropriations Committee, the fiscal year 2016 Interior Appropriations bill is funded at $30.17 billion, which is $246 million below the fiscal year 2015 enacted level and $3 billion below the budget request. We have made a sincere effort to prioritize the needs within our 302(b) allocation. I would like to point out some of the highlights of the bill. Again, this year, the committee has provided robust wildland fire funding, fire suppression accounts. The Department of the Interior and Forest Service are fully funded at the 10-year average level.…”