Steny Hoyer: “I rise today because I have some genuine concerns about the funding levels of specific accounts within H.R. 4194, the…”

“I rise today because I have some genuine concerns about the funding levels of specific accounts within H.R. 4194, the Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development and Independent Agencies appropriations bill for fiscal year 1999. I understand the difficulty that the chairman and the ranking member faced in crafting this legislation within the tight fiscal constraints that the Appropriations Committee had this year. However, I am concerned that certain initiatives, which have been priorities of the committee and the Congress in the past, will not receive the necessary level of funding in fiscal year 1999. First, the bill proposals a $59 million reduction to NASA's Earth Science Program. This important program can help predict weather and climate changes up to a year in advance, will yield tremendous benefits for agricultural and natural resources productivity, will save money and lives by allowing natural disasters to be predicted earlier, and involves partnerships with Japan, the United Kingdom, Brazil, and France. Goddard Space Flight Center, located in Greenbelt, Maryland, is NASA's lead center for these efforts and has an extraordinary reputation for Earth Science studies. I have visited with the scientists working on this program and I can tell you that their work is amazing. Funding for Earth Science will produce both practical benefits and a long term understanding of the environment.”