U.S. Senator Ken Salazar

Member of the Agriculture, Energy and Veterans Affairs Committees

 

2300 15th Street, Suite 450 Denver, CO 80202 | 702 Hart Senate Building, Washington, D.C. 20510

 

 

For Immediate Release

March 16, 2006

CONTACT:    Cody Wertz – Comm. Director

                        303-455-7600

Andrew Nannis  – Press Secretary

                        202-224-5852


 Sen. Salazar Continues Bipartisan Efforts on Homeland Security and Land and Water

Washington, D.C. – As the Senate continued deliberation of the FY 07 budget resolution today, United States Senator Ken Salazar offered amendments to improve Homeland Security and to increase funding for land and water grants.

Senator Salazar worked in a bipartisan fashion with Republican Senator John Warner (VA) and Democrat Carl Levin (MI) to offer an amendment to add $10 million to allow the U.S. Northern Command (NORTHCOM), the command that coordinates homeland defense, to fill its top unfunded priority: an interoperable communications program.

In times of disaster, like Hurricane Katrina or 9/11, integrating communications between active-duty military, National Guard Units and civilian first responders is critical. NORTHCOM’s interoperable communications program for homeland defense remains unfunded.

“These funds will provide for the most basic need: interoperable communications,” Salazar said. “An integrated communications system is necessary for effective Homeland Security. We need to ensure that our first responders have the tools they need to adequately serve as this Nation’s first line of defense against disaster.”

A $10M increase in FY07 funds for NORTHCOM would allow the Command to procure an interoperable mobile communications capability. NORTHCOM is headquartered in Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado.

Also today, Senator Salazar took a bipartisan approach and worked with Republican Senator Susan Collins (ME) and Democrat Jeff Bingaman (NM) to restore $100 million to the Land and Water Conservation Fund Stateside Grant Program (LWCF) which was eliminated in the Administration’s budget.

“We must ensure that the beauty of our Nation’s parks can be passed on to future generations,” Salazar said. “These funds will directly benefit local parks and recreation projects, providing economic stability to rural communities and continuing this country’s proud tradition of protecting the places that make it so special.”

The Land and Water Conservation Fund stateside grant program uses royalties from offshore oil and gas development to provide matching funds to states and local entities for parks and recreation projects. Since its inception, LWCF has underwritten the development of more than 40,000 state and local park and recreation projects in over 94% of America’s counties. Between FY 2001 and FY 2005, the President requested, and Congress appropriated, an average of over $100 million per year for the LWCF stateside grants program. The President, however, proposed eliminating the program in FY 2006 and FY 2007. Congress provided $30 million in funding for FY06.

Both of Salazar’s amendments are paid for by reducing administrative spending across the federal government.

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