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GOP proposes major budget cuts, including $1.6 billion from EPA, $1 billion from high-speed rail.
Attack on EPA continues with proposed $1.6 billion budget cut
By Bob Berwyn
SUMMIT COUNTY — Nobody would argue that the U.S. federal budget needs to be trimmed, but there’s plenty of debate about just how to go about doing that.
The new Republican House leadership is flexing its political muscle in the budget process, proposing a continuing resolution that would trim $74 billion in government spending, including a $38 million cut in U.S. Forest Service funding. The cuts reflect a political agenda, driven by an anti-environmental, pro-oil and coal ideology. The numbers tell the story:
For example, the continuing resolution would cut $1 billion in high-speed rail funding, $899 million from energy efficiency and renewable energy programs, but only $18 million from clean coal programs.
In their continuing attack on science, Republicans propose to cut $1.6 billion from the EPA’s overall budget, and another $25 million from EPA’s funding for local (state) air quality management, and $48 million from EPA’s brownfields program.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which already claims it lacks funding to manage endangered species, would take $72 million hit, the National Park Service would lose $51 million and the Land and Water Conservation Fund would be cut by a whopping $348 million. See the full list after the break …
Here’s the full list of cuts, as compared to President Obama’s FY 2011 budget requests:
· Flood Control and Coastal Emergencies – $30M
· Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy – $899M
· Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability – $49M
· Nuclear Energy – $169M
· Fossil Energy Research – $31M
· Clean Coal Technology – $18M
· Strategic Petroleum Reserve – $15M
· Energy Information Administration – $34M
· Office of Science – $1.1B
· Power Marketing Administrations – $52M
· Department of Treasury – $268M
· Internal Revenue Service – $593M
· Treasury Forfeiture Fund - $338M
· GSA Federal Buildings Fund – $1.7B
· ONDCP - $69M
· International Trade Administration - $93M
· Economic Development Assistance - $16M
· Minority Business Development Agency – $2M
· National Institute of Standards and Technology – $186M
· NOAA – $336M
· National Drug Intelligence Center - $11M
· Law Enforcement Wireless Communications - $52M
· US Marshals Service – $10M
· FBI - $74M
· State and Local Law Enforcement Assistance - $256M
· Juvenile Justice – $2.3M
· COPS – $600M
· NASA -$379M
· NSF -$139M
· Legal Services Corporation -$75M
· EPA -$1.6B
· Food Safety and Inspection Services -$53M
· Farm Service Agency -$201M
· Agriculture Research -$246M
· Natural Resource Conservation Service -$46M
· Rural Development Programs -$237M
· WIC -$758M
· International Food Aid grants - $544M
· FDA -$220M
· Land and Water Conservation Fund – $348M
· National Archives and Record Service – $20M
· DOE Loan Guarantee Authority -$1.4B
· EPA ENERGY STAR -$7.4M
· EPA GHG Reporting Registry -$9M
· USGS -$27M
· EPA Cap and Trade Technical Assistance -$5M
· EPA State and Local Air Quality Management -$25M
· Fish and Wildlife Service -$72M
· Smithsonian -$7.3M
· National Park Service -$51M
· Clean Water State Revolving Fund -$700M
· Drinking Water State Revolving Fund -$250M
· EPA Brownfields -$48M
· Forest Service -$38M
· National Endowment for the Arts -$6M
· National Endowment for the Humanities -$6M
· Job Training Programs -$2B
· Community Health Centers -$1.3B
· Maternal and Child Health Block Grants -$210M
· Family Planning -$327M
· Poison Control Centers -$27M
· CDC -$755M
· NIH -$1B
· Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services -$96M
· LIHEAP Contingency fund -$400M
· Community Services Block Grant -$405M
· High Speed Rail -$1B
· FAA Next Gen -$234M
· Amtrak -$224M
· HUD Community Development Fund -$530M
Filed under: Colorado, federal government, US Forest Service Tagged: | Barack Obama, budget cuts, Clean Water State Revolving Fund, Congress, EPA budget cuts, federal budget, Forest Service budget, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Safe Drinking Water Act, Summit County News, United States Environmental Protection Agency
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all short sighted cuts. what about oil and corn and sugar subsidies, or the military budget. or how about taking the cap off of social security tax so people over $88k a year start to pay it. and then theres the bush tax for the weathy that was just extended. what so all these “spending” programs get us as far as an investment in the future.
Thanks for this list, Bob. The comment from d says it for me, too. This list is filled with short-sighted cuts. We all need oversight on our food supply. We all need oversight on our water supply. We all need to fund scientists. In addition to those and many others, we need to have people who have most benefitted from the American way of life contribute their fair share. People who make over $88k are taxed up to $88 like everyone else, but money they make over that salaray is Social Security tax free. And then the super-rich–those worth multimillions and billions who didn’t pay tax on salary over $88k–are getting the Bush tax breaks. Seems like a new definition for double-dipping. It’s just not very American. Thanks for the list. It will be quoted many times.
The fact is that we don’t have money to spend and many more areas were cut. I don’t see how attacking dem’s or rep’s is in anyone’s interest. Every area should just get cut 15%. Big government doesn’t work- obviously it hasn’t worked. You are obviously more concerned with your connection to support nature than to support the logic that you shouldn’t spend money if your credit cards are maxed out, your bank account is frozen, your 5th mortgage is foreclosing, and you seem to have this denial the it will all be ok, we should just keep spending more.