Alan Simpson: “I appreciate the gentleman from New York's observation that we are working with some very difficult numbers, and he's…”

“I appreciate the gentleman from New York's observation that we are working with some very difficult numbers, and he's absolutely right. And this is an account, frankly, that I think is important. The invasive species and trying to control invasive species across this country is of high importance. It's as of high importance in Idaho as it is in New York and other places across the country. But as the gentleman noted, the concern is the offset. While we actually treated this account better than most other accounts within this budget, we actually only reduced it by 2\1/2\ percent. Some other accounts, EPA's account is down 18 percent, and some other things. Most accounts received substantially less funding. And where you're taking this money from, as I said on the last amendment, the Office of the Secretary is funded in this bill $33\1/2\ million below the budget's request. That was before we took out another $20 million in an earlier amendment to put it into the Land and Water Conservation Fund. So now we're doing $53\1/2\ million. We add this to it and we are going to be down $62 million. Sometimes these, what appear to be small amounts, add up. If we're going to have a Secretary's office that actually functions, we have to keep enough resources there so that he can do his job. And while I appreciate what the gentleman is trying to do, I sympathize with what he's trying to do and support the effort of what he's trying to do.…”