VOTE NO ON AMENDMENT #2 to SUPPLEMENTAL
Amendment #2 Allows Interior Dept. to Divert Money Away from Border Patrol to Buy Up Private Land
Democrats attach “extortion” provision to Troop Funding Bill

Dear Colleague,

Amendment #2 of the FY 2010 Supplemental Appropriations bill contains a provision allowing the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to transfer funds to the Department of the Interior (DOI) in the form of environmental mitigation payments demanded in return for allowing the U.S. Border Patrol to simply do its jobs and secure the border on federal lands.

This provision would make a permanent change in law and allows an unlimited amount of funds to be diverted from the Homeland Security Department and Border Patrol to the Interior Department.  Even more egregious is the fact that the provision expressly allows the Interior Department to use the diverted funds to buy millions of dollars of private land – which will only exacerbate the border security problems that our nation is confronting.

For these reasons we urge you to vote against Amendment #2 to the Supplemental Appropriations bill.

Remember, the Supplemental bill is supposed to provide money for American troops fighting overseas. 

We have a crisis situation on our southern border where drug smugglers, criminals and human traffickers have taken advantage of the security gaps on our federally-owned public lands and we should not be diverting money away from national security programs.

Stop the Interior Department from extorting money from the Border Patrol and vote against Amendment #2.

Sincerely,

/s
Rob Bishop
Ranking Member
Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands

/s
Doc Hastings
Ranking Member
Committee on Natural Resources

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