Jim Nussle: “I rise to speak on H.R. 4568, the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill for fiscal year 2005. H.R. 4568…”

“I rise to speak on H.R. 4568, the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill for fiscal year 2005. H.R. 4568 provides $20.0 billion in budget authority and $20.2 billion in outlays--an increase of $78 million in BA and $629 million in outlays from fiscal year 2004. As Chairman of the House Budget Committee, I am pleased to report that the bill is generally consistent with the Conference Report on the Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for fiscal year 2005 (H. Con. Res. 95) which recently passed the full House but has yet to pass the Senate. The bill comes in at its 302(b) allocation for fiscal year 2005 and therefore complies with section 302(f) of the budget resolution, which limits appropriations measures to the allocation of the reporting subcommittee. A very important component of this bill is the funding for suppression of wildfires. In addition to fully funding wildland fire suppression activities at their ten-year average, H.R. 4568 provides an additional $500 million for fire suppression within the Forest Service and the Department of Interior in both fiscal years 2004 and 2005.”