Monday, December 6, 1999
Volume 35, Issue 48; ISSN: 0511-4187
Statement on signing consolidated appropriations legislation for fiscal year
2000
William J Clinton
� November 29,1999
� I have signed into law H.R. 3194, the Consolidated Appropriations
Act for FY 2000. 1 am pleased that my Administration and the
Congress were able to reach agreement on the first budget of the
21st Century-producing a hard-won ,ictory for the American People.
� This legislation makes progress on several important fronts. It
puts education first, honoring our commitment to hire 100,000
qualified teachers to lower class size in the early grades and
doubling the funds for after school and summer school programs.
� It makes America a safer place. The bill provides an acceptable
funding level for my 21st Century Policing Initiative, which builds
on the success of the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS)
program. To date, the COPS program has funded more than 100,000
additional police officers for our streets. This bill funds the
first increment of the 21st Century Policing initiative, which will
place an additional 30,000 to 50,000 police officers on the street
over the next 5 years, while expanding the concept of community
policing to include community prosecution and law enforcement
technology assistance. I appreciate the Congress' efforts to forge a
bipartisan commitment to the program, which will build upon our
successful efforts to reduce crime in our communities.
� The bill strengthens our effort to preserve natural areas and
protect our environment by its support of my Lands Legacy
Initiative. I am very pleased that the bill does not include most of
the environmental riders that would have put special interests above
the national interest.
� This budget agreement also strengthens America's leadership role in
the world by paying our dues and arrears to the U.N.; by meeting our
commitments to the Middle East peace process; by making critical
investments in debt relief for the poorest countries, by enhancing
the security of our overseas personnel; by providing for new,
critical peacekeeping missions; and by funding efforts to safeguard
nuclear weapons in Russia.
� Labor/Health and Human Serviced Education Bill
� Specifically, I am pleased that the legislation provides $1.3
billion for the second installment of my plan to help reduce class
size in the early grades. The Republican proposal did not guarantee
funding for the teachers hired last year and would have instead
allowed Class Size dollars to be used for virtually any activity,
including vouchers. The final budget agreement supports the over
29,000 teachers hired last year plus an additional 2,500 teachers.
� The bill appropriately includes several other high priority
education initiatives. One million students will continue to be
served by the Reading Excellence Initiative and 375,000 more
students than last year will have access to 21st Century Community
Learning Centers. By providing $145 million for Public Charter
Schools, approximately 650 more schools than last year will receive
startup funding..
� I commend the Congress for providing increases to several programs
in my Hispanic Education Agenda that address the disproportionately
low educational achievement and high dropout rates of Latino and
limited English proficient students. The Hispanic Education Agenda
includes programs such as Title I Grants to Local Education Agencies
(LEAs), Adult Education, Bilingual Education, the High School
Equivalency and College Assistance Migrant Programs (HEP/ CAMP),
Hispanic-serving Institutions, and support services to promote the
graduation of low-income college students (TRIO).
� I am disappointed, however, that this legislation does not provide
any of the funding that I specifically requested for Troops to
Teachers. This lack of funding jeopardizes this program, which would
have provided 3,000 new teachers in high-need subject areas and
school districts.
� I am pleased that the bill funds most of my major proposals for job
training, worker protection programs, and grants for working with
developing countries to establish core labor standards. For example,
$1.6 billion is included for dislocated worker assistance, enabling
the program to provide training and re-employmentservices to
858,500 dislocated workers. Since 1993, my Administration has
succeeded in tripling funding for, and participation in, programs
that help dislocated workers return to work.
� As authorized in the bipartisan Workforce Investment Act of 1998,
the Congress has provided $140 million to expand services to job
seekers at One-Stop centers.
� I am pleased that the bill provides the funds I requested for major
youth job training programs. Specifically, the bill includes the
$250 million I requested for Youth Opportunity Grants to finance the
second year of the 5-year competitive grants that provide education,
training, and support services to 58,000 youth in Empowerment Zones
and Enterprise Communities. In addition, the bill provides the $1
billion for Youth Activities Formula Grants to provide training and
summer employment opportunities to an estimated 577,700 youth. Also
it includes $55 million for the final year of Federal funding for
the School-to-Work initiative. The bill provides $1.4 billion for
the job Corps program, including financing for enhanced follow-up
services for graduates, completion of a four-center expansion
initiated in FY 1998, and construction of Head Start child care
facilities on five job Corps campuses.
� The bill provides $83 million, or 8 percent above the FY 1999
enacted level, for labor law enforcement agencies, funding key
initiatives to ensure workplace safety, address domestic child labor
abuses, encourage equal pay, assist in complying with pension law,
and promote family leave.
� I am especially pleased that this legislation includes critically
needed changes to the Welfare-to-Work program's eligibility
requirements. We have worked closely with the Congress to ensure
these changes were enacted this year. By simplifying eligibility,
this legislation will allow the Welfare-to-Work program, within
existing resources, to serve more effectively long-term welfare
recipients and noncustodial parents of low-income children. The bill
also establishes an alternative penalty that is tough, but fair, for
States that have not implemented certain child support enforcement
requirements.
� This legislation fully funds my request for Head Start, adding up
to 44,000 new slots for low-income children and continuing on the
path to serve one million children by FY 2002.
� Unfortunately, the bill reduces the Social Services Block Grant by
$134 million below the FY 1999 level, undermining programs serving
our most vulnerable families.
� The bill includes historic investments in biomedical research,
mental health, pediatric training, and a number of other critically
important public health initiatives. It also makes an essential
downpayment on my Safety Net proposal, which is designed to provide
financial and technical support to those providing a
disproportionate amount of care to the uninsured. Lastly, it
provides payment restorations to hospitals, nursing homes, and other
providers serving the 39 million elderly and disabled beneficiaries.
� It also provides a $34.5 billion investment in health programs,
11.7 percent above the FY 1999 enacted level, including an historic
increase of $2.3 billion for the National Institutes of Health.
These new initiatives will strengthen the public health
infrastructure, provide critical prevention and treatment services
to individuals with mental illness, and invest in pediatric training
programs. Specifically, the bill provides $40 million to support
graduate medical education at freestanding children's hospitals,
which play an essential role in the education of the Nation's
pediatricians; $67 million above the FY 1999 funding level for the
Mental Health Block Grant, a 23 percent increase over FY 1999 and
the largest increase ever; $30 million for health education,
prevention, and treatment services to address health disparities
among minority populations; and an additional $62 million over FY
1999 funding levels to provide critical immunizations to children
nationwide. The $239 million for the Title X Family Planning program
will enable family planning clinics to extend comprehensive
reproductive health care services to an additional 500,000 clients
who are neither Medicaid-eligible nor insured. In addition, the $25
million for the Health Care for the Uninsured Initiative will
support the development of integrated systems of care and address
service gaps within these systems.
� It provides $25 million, a full down payment on our proposed $1
billion investment to develop integrated systems of care for the
uninsured. It also dedicates an additional $15 million to identify
the best ways to deliver health care coverage to this population. I
am pleased that the bill includes a $73 million increase in funding
for HIV prevention activities to help stop the spread of this
disease; an increase of $183 million in the Ryan White CARE Act,
which helps provide primary care and support for those living with
HIV/AIDS; and an estimated $300 million in additional funds for
AIDS-related research at the NIH. The bill also includes $80 million
in funding to the Minority AIDS Initiative, which utilizes existing
programs to reach African-Americans, Latinos, and other racial and
ethnic minorities that are disproportionately impacted by HIV/AIDS,
as well as an additional $100 million to fight AIDS internationally.
Finally, the Administration helped protect local authority over HIV
prevention activities, successfully removing language from the
District of Columbia appropriations bill that would have tied the
hands of community health agencies in their ability to use needle
exchange programs as part of their overall HIV prevention strategy.
� The bill includes $264 million to expand HHS' bioterrorism
initiative. It provides $52 million for the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention's (CDC) national pharmaceutical stock pile
and $123 million for CDC to expand national, State, and local
epidemiologic, laboratory, and surveillance planning capacity, as
well as to conduct a vaccine study. The bill also fully funds my
request to expand the number of Metropolitan Medical Response
Systems that can respond to the health and medical consequences of a
chemical, biological, or nuclear incident, and to enhance smallpox
and anthrax vaccine research and development. I am particularly
pleased that the bill funds the creation of a new national
electronic disease surveillance system, which will also help detect
outbreaks and strengthen the public health delivery system.
� I commend the Congress for providing funding for my Nursing Home
Initiative, including resources for more rigorous inspections of
nursing facilities and improved Federal oversight of nursing home
quality, and for funding the 31-percent increase in Home-Delivered
Meals that I requested.
� Finally, the bill also includes the Balanced Budget Refinement Act
of 1999, which invests $16 billion over 5 years to address the
flawed policy and excessive payment reductions resulting from the
Balanced Budget Act of 1997. It lifts caps on therapy services,
increases payments for very sick nursing home patients, restores
teaching hospital funding, and eases the transition to the new
prospective payment system for hospital outpatients. It also
includes provisions to limit cost-sharing requirements for Medicare
beneficiaries and extends coverage of important immunosuppressive
drugs. Unfortunately, it includes provisions that are not
justifiable, such as a $4 billion payment increase to managed care
plans that are already overpaid according to most experts. This is
troubling because any excess payments from the Medicare trust fund
put the program at greater risk.
� Commerce/Justice/State Bill
� Regrettably, the bill does not contain a needed hate crimes
provision that was included in the Senate version of the bill. I
urge the Congress to pass legislation in a timely manner that would
strengthen the Federal Government's ability to combat hate crimes by
relaxing jurisdictional obstacles and by giving Federal prosecutors
the ability to prosecute hate crimes that are based on sexual
orientation, gender, or disability, along with those based on race,
color, religion, and national origin.
� I am pleased that we were able to secure additional funds for the
Legal Services Corporation. Adequate funding for legal services is
essential to ensuring that all citizens have access to the Nation's
justice system. Similarly, through negotiations with the Congress,
the funding level for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
(EEOC) was increased above the FY 1999 enacted level. The additional
funds will assist the EEOC in its continued progress in reducing the
backlog of employment discrimination cases.
� The bill funds my requested $13 million increase for the Department
of justice's Civil Rights Division. These funds will support law
enforcement actions related to hate crimes, the Americans with
Disabilities Act, and fair housing and lending.
� The legislation contains adequate funding for the decennial census,
and includes a compromise on language requiring the Census Bureau to
allocate funds among eight functions or frameworks. With the
decennial census approaching, I am confident that this language will
not inhibit the Census Bureau's ability to actually conduct the
census.
� The United States has recently entered into the U.S.-Canada Pacific
Salmon Agreement. The Agreement ends years of contention between the
U.S. and Canada regarding expired fishing harvest restrictions and
provides for improved fisheries management. I am pleased that
legislative riders that would have hindered implementation of this
important Agreement have been modified or removed from the bill. in
addition, additional funds have been provided for implementation of
the Agreement and for other salmon recovery efforts. These funds
will allow us to work cooperatively with our partnersCanada, a
number of western States, and Treaty Tribes-to implement the
Agreement and to restore Pacific coastal salmon runs.
� The bill does not provide additional requested funding to the
Department of justice for tobacco litigation, but does not preclude
the expenditure of funds for this purpose. We will identify existing
resources to pursue this important case. Smoking-related health
expenses cost taxpayers billions of dollars each year through
Medicare, veterans' and military health, and other Federal health
programs. The $20 million I requested is needed to represent the
interests of the taxpayers, who should not have to bear the
responsibility for these staggering costs.
� Critical funds were added to help our Nation's 24 million small
businesses. The bill now includes $16.5 million for my New Markets
Initiative to invest in targeted rural and urban areas. Also,
funding levels were increased for the Small Business
Administration's (SBA) operating expenses and disaster loan program.
These funds will enable the SBA to provide critical services,
including a fast and effective response to Hurricane Floyd.
� I regret that a provision is included that would amend the recently
enacted Treasury and General Government Appropriations Act, 2000,
that could limit the access of Federal government employees to
contraceptive coverage.
� Foreign Operations Bill and Other International Affairs
Appropriations and Authorizations
� I am pleased that we were able to reach bipartisan agreement with
the Congress on a level of funding for international affairs
programs that supports our continued engagement on key global
issues. Most notably, we were able to agree to meet our obligations
to the United Nations, which will allow us to keep our vote in the
General Assembly. We also obtained additional funding for
international peacekeeping efforts seeking to redress the
instability and suffering caused by conflicts in East Timor, Kosovo,
and Afri
� The bill includes my full request for the Wye River Agreement,
which will support our partners in the Middle East as they
accelerate their historic attempt to secure a permanent peace. We
gained bilateral funding for the new Cologne debt reduction
initiative, as well as agreement from the Congress to allow the
International Monetary Fund to use existing resources to finance its
portion of the initiative, allowing us to begin to lessen the
crushing debt burden that many of the world's poorest nations face
as they try to implement difficult economic and democratic reforms.
� unfortunately, the bill also includes a provision on international
family planning that I have strongly opposed throughout my
Administration. This is a one-time provision that imposes additional
restrictions on international family planning groups. However, I
insisted that the Congress allow for a Presidential waiver
pro-vision, which I have exercised today.
� I have instructed USAID to implement the new restrictions on family
planning money in such a way as to minimize to the extent possible
the impact on international family planning efforts and to respect
the rights of citizens to speak freely on issues of importance in
their countries, such as the rights of women to make their own
reproductive decisions. As I have stated before, I do not believe it
is appropriate to limit foreign NGOs' use of their own money, or
their ability to participate in the democratic process in their own
countries. Thus, I will oppose inclusion of this restriction in any
future apPropriations bill.
� The bill takes a step in the right direction in terms of paying our
dues and our debts to the United Nations and other international
organizations. The bill includes most of the funds requested for
U.N. arrears, as well as the United Nations Reform Act, which
authorizes payment of these arrears contingent upon certain U.N.
reforms. My Administration is committed to making sure that all of
our debts are paid, and, while doing so, pressing for reforms that
will make the U.N. more efficient and effective.
� International peacekeeping activities in this bill are funded at a
level of $500 million, $300 million above the level in the bill that
I vetoed. This additional funding is crucial and will support the
United States' response to emergent peacekeeping requirements in
Kosovo, Asia, and Africa. In each of these places, the United States
has worked with allies and friends to end conflicts that have
claimed countless innocent lives and thrown whole regions into
turmoil. This funding will help America do its part to make and keep
the peace in troubled regions.
� On a number of other critical foreign policy priorities, we were
able to achieve bipartisan agreements that will directly affect the
lives of Americans and others alike. We fully funded a new
initiative that will significantly expand our efforts to stem the
spread of HIV/ AIDS in Africa and elsewhere in the developing world.
We significantly increased funding for programs aimed at reducing
the threat of weapons of mass destruction in the former Soviet Union
and elsewhere. We agreed to a significant package of assistance to
Kosovo and Southeastern Europe that will help to solidify the
fragile peace that we and our NATO allies have secured. We initiated
new programs that will help to provide alternatives to the child
labor practices that are still too prevalent in much of the world. I
am particularly pleased the bill provides my full request for
embassy security to protect the men and women who serve our country
abroad.
� There are still important commitments and goals that were not
adequately addressed in this bill. I am disappointed that we did not
achieve all of the funding that we need to fully implement the
multilateral portion of the Cologne debt initiative, and that we
were not able to meet our commitments to provide multilateral
environmental assistance through the Global Environment Facility.
However, in total, this bill demonstrates that the bipartisan
consensus that America must remain engaged in global affairs, which
has guided our interaction with the rest of the world since the end
of the Second World War, is still very much alive and well, and I am
hopeful that it will continue to guide our foreign policy into the
21st Century.
� I continue to believe that various provisions prohibiting
implementation of the Kyoto Protocol in this bill are unnecessary,
as my Administration has no intent of implementing the Protocol
prior to ratification. Furthermore, I will consider activities that
meet our responsibilities under the ratified U.N. Framework
Convention on Climate Change to be consistent with this provision.
Finally, to the extent these provisions could be read to prevent the
United States from negotiating with foreign governments about
climate change, it would be inconsistent with my constitutional
authority. Accordingly, I will construe this provision as not
detracting from my authority to engage in the many activities, both
formal and informal, that constitute negotiations relating to
climate chane.
� This legislation includes a number of provisions in the various
Acts incorporated in it regarding the conduct of foreign affairs
that raise serious constitutional concerns. These provisions would
direct or burden my negotiations with foreign governments and
international organizations, as well as intrude on my ability to
maintain the confidentiality of sensitive diplomatic negotiations.
Similarly, some provisions would constrain my Commander in Chief
authority and the exercise of my exclusive authority to receive
ambassadors and to conduct diplomacy. Other provisions raise
concerns under the Appointments and Recommendation Clauses. My
Administration's objections to most of these and other provisions
have been made clear in previous statements of Administration policy
and other communications to the Congress. Wherever possible, I will
construe these provisions to be consistent with my constitutional
prerogatives and responsibilities and where such a construction is
not possible, I will treat them as not interfering with those
prerogatives and responsibilities.
� District Of Columbia Bill
� With respect to the District of Columbia bill, I am pleased that
the majority and minority in the Congress were able to come together
to pass a version that I can sign. While I continue to object to
remaining riders that violate the principles of home rule, some of
the highly objectionable provisions that would have intruded upon
local citizens' right to make decisions about local matters have
been modified from previous versions of the bill. My Administration
will continue to strenuously urge the Congress to keep such riders
out of the FY 2001 D.C. Appropriations Bill.
� I commend the Congress for providing the Federal funds I requested
for the District of Columbia. The bill includes essential funding
for District Courts and Corrections and the D.C. Offender
Supervision Agency and provides requested funds for a new tuition
assistance program for District of Columbia residents. The bill also
includes funding to promote the adoption of children in the
District's foster care system, to support the Children's National
Medical Center, to assist the Metropolitan Police Department in
eliminating open-air drug trafficking in the District, and for drug
testing and treatment, among other programs.
� Interior and Related Agencies Bill
� With respect to the Department of the Interior and Related Agencies
bill, I commend the Congress for agreeing on an acceptable
version-one that does not include most of the highly objectionable
provisions that would harm the environment and benefit special
interest groups by allowing the inappropriate use of national
forests and other public lands and resources.
� In particular, we have reached a fair compromise on millsite claims
under the 1872 Mining Law. Hardrock mining operations under existing
approved plans of operations, as well as applications for new mining
plans filed by the date of the Interior Solicitor's Opinion of
November 7, 1997, would go forward without the Department of the
Interior applying the five-acre-per-mining-claim millsite
limitation. The Department of the interior would impose this
limitation on plans for new hardrock mining operations filed after
November 7, 1997; it would also impose the limitation on amended
plans of operations filed after November 7, 1997, that add millsite
acreage.
� Our agreement also will allow final rules to take effect in the
near future that will provide a fair return to the taxpayers for the
development of Federal oil resources; and will ensure more effective
environmental protection in hardrock mining on Federal lands.
� This bill provides two-thirds of the funds I requested for my Lands
Legacy initiative and represents a significant improvement over
prior-year funding, allowing us to protect such irreplaceable
national treasures as the Baca Ranch in New Mexico, the Everglades
in Florida, wilderness lands in the California Desert, and Civil War
battlefield sites that are threatened by urban sprawl. There is also
adequate support given to the Clean Water Action Plan. I am
especially pleased with the additional funding for the Forest
Service and for abandoned mine lands reclamation, which would make
significant progress in addressing acid mine drainage and watershed
problems in the Appalachian region. I look forward to working with
the Congress next year to provide full and permanent funding for my
Lands Legacy proposal, including full Federal and State funding for
the Land and Water Conservation Fund.
� My Administration has also been able to secure additional funding
for energy conservation, the single largest component of my Climate
Change Technology Initiative, which will help us to form the
partnerships with industry that are vital to the development of a
new generation of ultra-efficient cars, more efficient and
affordable housing, and more efficient, less-polluting industrial
processes. This progress will help us to address the threat of
global warming economically and practically.
� I commend the Congress for the historic $157.2 million increase for
Indian health, which is only slightly below the $172 million
increase the Administration sought for the Indian Health Service.
This funding increase represents a continuing demonstration of the
Federal commitment to improve the health status of Native Americans
and Alaska natives. I also commend the Congress for the removal of
an objectionable rider that would have infringed on tribal
sovereignty, and for providing specific funding to accommodate new
contracts with tribes.
� Although I am disappointed that the Congress has failed to increase
funding for the National Endowment for the Arts for the eighth
straight year, I am pleased with the generally positive debate and
the first increase in 4 years in funding for the National Endowment
for the Humanities.
� The bill also contains language on the American Heritage Rivers
initiative. I believe that the congressional language is unnecessary
and unfortunate. I will direct the Departments funded by this bill,
within existing laws and authorities, to continue to support and
undertake community-oriented services or environmental projects on
rivers I have recognized as part of the initiative.
� By increasing critical funding for land conservation efforts and
removing harmful environmental provisions, the legislation
represents a step for-ward in efforts to protect the environment and
manage Federal lands and resources responsibly.
� Disaster Assistance
� I am pleased that the bill includes over $500 million in additional
funds for our Nation's farmers, ranchers, and rural communities to
help them recover from natural disasters, particularly this year's
hurricanes. These funds will help farmers clear their streams and
fields for next year's crop, just as the $2.5 billion in loans
provided in the bill will help them secure the financing they need
for planting. Vitally needed funds are included to help low-income
rural families and farm laborers repair and replace housing damaged
by Hurricane Floyd, and low-interest loans will be available to
repair and replace farm structures and equipment lost in the storm.
In addition, $186 million is included for additional crop loss
payments across the country, including areas in the East that
suffered through one of the worst droughts in memory. The bill also
provides funding to implement the mandatory livestock price
reporting authority included in the Agriculture Appropriations Act,
which will make the livestock market more transparent and
particularly help small producers get a fair price for their
livestock in the market.
� Authorization Bills/Other Issues
��The bill also includes a provision that would delay the Department
of Health and Human Services's Organ Procurement and Transplantation
Network Final Rule for a minimum of 42 days from the bill's
effective date. This Final Rule is in response to my
Administration's belief that the current organ allocation policies
by the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network are inequitable
because patients with similar severities of illness are treated
differently, depending on where they may live or at which transplant
center they may be listed.
� The Satellite Home Viewer Improvement Act-part of the Intellectual
Property and Communications Omnibus Reform Act of 1999-will increase
the ability of satellite companies to compete against cable
companies, and will result in more customer choice, lower prices,
and increased access to local news and information. This Act puts
the TV remote control back into consumers' hands and competition at
their fingertips. In addition, the patent reform legislation that
the Administration has fought for will help meet the needs of
America's inventors and entrepreneurs. It strengthens protection in
a number of Nways: it extends the term of a patent when there is an
administrative delay in the patent process; it requires the timely
domestic publication of patent applications that are also filed
abroad; and it reinvents the Patent and Trademark Office as a
performancebased organization to better serve America's
entrepreneurs and innovators.
� Unfortunately, the Congress did not fund my additional request to
protect the Nation's critical computer and information based
infrastructures from a growing threat of cyber attack from hostile
nations, terrorists, or criminals.
� In order that $68 million in interest accrued by the Abandoned Mine
Land Fund (to be transferred to the United Mine Workers of America
Combined Benefits Funddesignated by the Congress as an emergency
requirement) not be scored against the discretionary spending caps,
I hereby designate that amount as an emergency requirement pursuant
to section 251(b)(2)(A) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit
Control Act of 1985, as amended. I will shortly be designating other
funds in this legislation as emergency requirements.
� Finally, there are several provisions in the bill that purport to
require congressional approval before Executive Branch execution of
aspects of the bill. I will interpret such provisions to require
notification only, since any other interpretation would contradict
the Supreme Court ruling in INS vs. Chadha.
� William J. Clinton
� The White House November 29, 1999.
� NOTE: H.R. 3194, approved November 29, was assigned Public Law No.
106-113. This statement was released by the Office of the Press
Secretary on November 30.
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