John Sarbanes: “If the Chair would tell me when 1 minute is left on my time, I would be most appreciative. Madam President, the purpose…”

“If the Chair would tell me when 1 minute is left on my time, I would be most appreciative. Madam President, the purpose of this amendment is to restore funding for a number of important environmental programs under function 300. The President's budget request and the chairman's mark on the resolution cut funding for water resources, conservation and land management, recreational resources, pollution control and abatement, and other natural resources and environmental activities by nearly $3 billion from the baseline, or almost 10 percent. This amendment would seek to add $2.9 billion to bring the function 300 total back up to baseline. It is offset with revenues from the closing of corporate tax loopholes. We have a list of possibilities, many of which have passed the Senate before and have been strongly supported by very large majorities in this body. Let me just give a few examples of the kinds of programs we are trying to at least provide some additional support for, although it falls short of what the need is; but we are trying to get back to baseline. The Army Corps of Engineers civil works program, flood control, navigation, storm protection, environmental restoration--I hardly need, in the aftermath of Katrina, to emphasize the importance of such programs. The EPA budget has been sharply cut, including nearly $200 million from the clean water State revolving loan fund, which is now in this budget at the lowest funding level ever for clean water infrastructure.…”