Statement by U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein
- On the FY2001 Supplemental Appropriations Bill -
June 21, 2001

"The Senate Appropriations Committee today sent a $6.5 billion supplemental Appropriations Bill to the Senate Floor, which has good news and bad news for California. The bill also makes a $100 million payment toward the global fight against HIV/AIDS, which is an important down payment on what I believe needs to be a much greater U.S. and international commitment.

While the overall spending limit is in line with President Bush's request, there were several changes. Of particular interest to the people of California is an additional $300 million in funds to help low-income families pay their power bills. These emergency funds are critical to the people of California and elsewhere in our nation who struggle to pay for electricity and natural gas, whose prices have skyrocketed out of control this past year.

The bill also now includes an additional $161 million in Title I funds to provide supplemental educational services for low-income children, roughly $22 million of which is expected to go to California on the basis of an agreement that I worked out last year with other members of the Labor Health and Human Services Appropriations Subcommittee. I want to thank Senators Spector and Harkin for this agreement.

Additionally, in accord with President Bush's request, the bill includes $9 million for environmental remediation at McClellan Air Force Base. McClellan will officially close its doors on July 13. This will be the culmination of a difficult and controversial five- year process that has been marked by the loss of more than 25,000 jobs in the Sacramento region.

Before any meaningful re-use of the base can begin, plutonium and other radioactive materials must be removed from the site. The FY 02 requirement for environmental remediation at McClellan is $54 million. This $9 million for FY 01 is a good beginning, and I was pleased to include it in the Military Construction portion of the Supplemental bill.

The bad news in this legislation is that $20 million in emergency funds that had been sought by the Administration to help farmers in the Klamath Basin in Northern California and Southern Oregon was cut.

Both Senator Byrd, chairman of the Appropriations Committee, and Senator Kohl, chairman of the Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee, made a commitment to help on this issue. I welcome that commitment. However, unless I receive some assurance that our growers will receive the emergency assistance that they need, I have no alternative but to pursue all options available to me, including a Floor amendment.

The Klamath Basin is facing the worst drought in the Klamath River Project's 90-year history. Federal disaster declarations have been issued by the USDA for Modoc and Siskiyou Counties in California and Klamath County, Oregon. Economic losses to the farming communities have been estimated to be in excess of $220 million.

About 200,000 acres of farmland are irrigated in the Klamath River Basin. There are roughly 1,500 farming families in the Klamath Irrigation Project.

What little rainfall that has occurred this year must be first applied to mandatory Tribal Treaty obligations and then to minimize endangered fish species losses. This leaves literally no water for about 85% of the Klamath Project-dependent farmers.

Many of the farmers made a prudent decision not to plant crops for this growing season, knowing that their water supply would be seriously affected by the environmental needs of the Basin. Without a crop to lose these farmers were not eligible for these disaster loan programs.

Many of the crops grown by Klamath farmers have not been historically covered by crop insurance. Due to the additional economic hardship created by depressed commodity prices, many of these families have no economic reserves to draw upon to get them through this year.

The cumulative effect of these factors, combined with one of the worst droughts on record, has put these farmers in a desperate position surpassing other farming disasters.

Farmers were in part led to believe by the federal government that there was more water than actually available. Therefore, they should not bear the entire burden of failed planning by the Bureau of Reclamation. Unfortunately, no amount of words or promises can create more rain. The Federal government has an obligation to help the family farmers in the Klamath Basin that have been financially damaged by drought and the environmental needs of the Basin."

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