Press Releases
February 6, 2006
Senator Conrad's Statement on President Bush's 2007 Budget
Washington - Senator Kent Conrad released this statement today following the release of President Bush's budget plan for Fiscal Year 2007, which will begin Oct. 1:
"The nation needed a new budget plan this year, a dramatic and bold acknowledgment from this administration that we need to put our fiscal house back in order. Instead, we got more of the same - more deficits, more debt, and more hiding of the true fiscal condition of the country.
"President Bush's new budget is nothing new. It represents the same reckless fiscal course the Bush administration has followed for the last five years. It explodes deficits, but then conceals them by providing only five years of numbers and leaving out large costs, like long-term Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) reform and realistic ongoing war costs. The result will be more debt passed on to our children. These aren't my values or those of the people I represent.
"We have seen this playbook before. Every year, the Bush administration talks about fiscal responsibility, but in the end, its policies dig us deeper into deficit and debt. It is results that matter, not talk. The results so far have been serious for our country and the ones who lose most are future generations. It is time to cut up the charge card and start paying our bills. And that will require real leadership from both Republicans and Democrats."
For North Dakota, the President's delivers mixed news:
Defense: The Defense Department would increase the number of new Predator Unmanned Aerial Vehicles acquired from nine to 26. This would help to ensure that Predator UAVs are quickly assigned to the North Dakota Air National Guard (to be based at Grand Forks AFB but flown from Fargo). However, the President is also seeking to cut 17 B-52s from Minot Air Force Base.
Military Construction: The budget provides $176.7 million in military construction funding for North Dakota, a record request level. This includes $5.5 million for a new Predator Operations Complex at Fargo's Hector Field, home of the North Dakota Air National Guard. The remaining military construction budget is slated for the completion of a long-term housing project at Minot Air Force Base.
Energy: The President calls for a 90 percent cut in the Clean Coal Power Initiative, a program that is important to North Dakota's lignite coal industry and for ensuring a source of safe, clean-burning energy. The President's budget also calls for a 29 percent cut in Rural Utilities Service loans to rural electric cooperatives; in the 2005 Fiscal Year, RUS gave $16.9 million to North Dakota for rural electric service.
Education: President Bush is seeking $2.1 billion in education cuts, including the total elimination of vocational education funding, which amounted to $4.6 million for North Dakota in the current fiscal year. The President is also seeking to continue his freeze on Pell Grants; North Dakota received $37 million in Pell grants in the current fiscal year. Finally, the President is seeking to eliminate the Safe and Drug-Free Schools program, a partner in fighting methamphetamine abuse; North Dakota received $1.7 million in Safe and Drug-Free funding this year.
Agriculture: The President is seeking policy changes, such as a 5 percent across-the-board cut in commodity programs and a 1.2 percent marketing fee on sugar producers, that would mean cuts of $1.1 billion in Fiscal Year 2007 and $5 billion over the next five years. The budget also calls for farmers and ranchers to pay $135 million in new user fees imposed by USDA.
Homeland Security: President Bush seeks to slash Homeland Security Grants to small states. Last year, North Dakota received $9.34 million in Fiscal Year 2005. Under the President's proposal, North Dakota would see a cut of about $6 million in its Homeland Security funding.
Water: The President seeks to cut several water projects in the state, including a $3.4 million cut in funding for the Garrison Diversion. The President's plan also cuts all funding for the Buford-Trenton Irrigation District, the Missouri River sedimentation project, and the rehabilitation of the Garrison Dam power plant.
Rural Health Care: The President is seeking a cut of $133 million, or 83 percent, from rural health programs. The President calls for completely eliminating the FLEX Program, which has provided more than $3 million to North Dakota's Critical Access Hospitals.
Indian Affairs: For the fifth straight year, the President is seeking to eliminate funding for United Tribes Technical College. Further, the budget does not include any funds for the Three Affiliated Tribes health facility from the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
Justice: The President's budget eliminates Byrne Justice Assistance Grants, which are used to combat methamphetamine abuse, and slashes funding for the COPS program. The most recent statistics available indicate that North Dakota received $730,000 in Byrne grants this year, and $8.9 million for COPS in Fiscal Year 2005.
Transportation: The Essential Air Service program, which underwrites passenger service to North Dakota's cities, is reduced by more than half under the President's plan. In the current fiscal year, Essential Air Service provided $110 million; the President is asking for $50 million. Further, he is seeking to cut Amtrak's funding from $1.3 billion this year to $900 million next year. This level of funding would likely mean long-distance routes like North Dakota's Empire Builder line would be eliminated.
Housing: The Administration is seeking a change to the Community Development Block Grant formula to cut allocations by 23 percent. Two years ago, the latest statistics available, North Dakota's CDBG allocation was approximately $5.6 million, and funded 40 projects.
Social Security: The President's budget proposes to eliminate the $255 Social Security lump-sum death benefit, which is paid to surviving spouses. Many low- and moderate-income seniors in North Dakota rely on this modest death benefit to help pay for burial services for their loved ones.
