Jeff Bingaman: “I wish to talk today about an amendment I am hoping to offer. It is amendment No. 480. It relates to the funding of our…”

“I wish to talk today about an amendment I am hoping to offer. It is amendment No. 480. It relates to the funding of our national public land management agencies so they can create jobs and do the important work that needs to be done in their various jurisdictions. We have had a lot of talk about how it is important that we focus the funds we have in this legislation on jobs that can be created quickly. We have had lots of talk about how we need to focus these resources on the real needs of the country and jobs where we can actively monitor the decisions that are made so we know that the money is not being wasted. In my view, this amendment does all of those things. It is a proposal to add an additional $2.5 billion to funding for the National Park Service, for the Forest Service, for the Fish and Wildlife Service, for the Bureau of Land Management, and for the Bureau of Indian Affairs to carry out the critical land and resource management projects they have identified that need to be carried out on our public lands.”