FY 2010 Senate Appropriations Bill - U.S. Geological Survey

Both the House and Senate Appropriations Committees have completed work on their versions of the FY 2010 Interior and Environment Appropriations Bill. This bill provides funding for the U.S. Geological Survey.

The House approved its version of this legislation, H.R. 2996, in late June. The report accompanying the Senate version of this bill, 111-38, is now available here .

Senate report language regarding the USGS is below, as well as recommended funding levels. FY 2010 figures are as compared to the FY 2009 appropriation.

Total USGS:

The FY 2009 USGS appropriation was $1,043.8 million.
The FY 2010 request is $1,097.8 million, an increase of $54.0 million or 5.2 percent.
The House Appropriations Committee Bill recommends $1,105.7 million, an increase of 5.9 percent or $61.9 million.
Senate appropriators recommended $1,104.3 million, an increase of 5.8 percent or $60.5 million.

There were no overarching policy recommendations for all of USGS in the Senate report.

There are eight components of the USGS budget:

Geographic Research, Investigations, and Remote Sensing:

The FY 2009 appropriation was $142.1 million.
The FY 2010 request is $143.9 million, an increase of $1.8 million or 1.3 percent.
The House Appropriations Bill recommends $145.6 million, an increase of 2.5 percent or $3.5 million.
Senate appropriators recommended $143.9 million, the Administration request.

The Senate report stated:

“In agreement with the request, the Committee has accepted the administration’s proposal to return the national geospatial program and funding of $68,001,000 to this activity from the enterprise information activity. Both the budget request and the Committee recommendation include a program increase above the current year enacted level of $300,000 for a biofuels initiative.”

Geological Hazards, Resources, and Processes:

The FY 2009 appropriation was $242.1 million.
The FY 2010 request is $247.0 million, an increase of $4.9 million or 2.0 percent.
The House Appropriations Bill recommends $248.2 million, an increase of 2.5 percent or $6.1 million.
Senate appropriators recommended $247.9 million, an increase of 2.4 percent or $5.8 million.

The Senate report stated:

“The Committee has included an amount of $250,000 to initiate and support a cooperative partnership between the University of Hawaii-Manoa and the USGS Hawaii Volcano Observatory. The agreement is intended to formalize the collaborative relationship that has been established between the two entities for monitoring, hazards assessments and other research in an area of highly active volcanoes. An amount of $650,000 has been included to continue the Nye County, Nevada minerals assessment project that was initiated last year. The budget request and the Committee’s recommendation include increases above the enacted level of $1,000,000 to expand extended continental shelf studies, and $1,475,000 for wind, solar, geothermal, and biofuels research.”

Water Resources Investigations:

The FY 2009 appropriation was $221.4 million.
The FY 2010 request is $227.9 million, an increase of $6.5 million or 2.9 percent.
The House Appropriations Bill recommends $229.7 million, an increase of 3.8 percent or $8.3 million.
Senate appropriators recommended $231.0 million, an increase of 4.3 percent or $9.6 million.

The Senate report stated:

“Additional funds are provided for the following: $900,000 to continue the San Diego, California Formation mapping project; $500,000 to continue United States-Mexico transboundary aquifer assessments; $400,000 to continue the Survey’s participation in the work of the Long-term Estuary Assessment Group, Louisiana; $346,000 above the $154,000 included in the budget proposal to provide a total of $500,000 for monitoring activities and toxic studies in the Lake Champlain Basin; $500,000 for a water resources assessment of Maryland’s Coastal Plain and Piedmont aquifer systems; and $500,000 to continue well monitoring and other water resources assessments in Hawaii. The budget request and the Committee’s recommendation include increases above the enacted level of $5,000,000 to enhance the National Streamgage Network, and $200,000 for research on the environmental effects of biofuels development.”

Biological Research:

The FY 2009 appropriation was $185.3 million.
The FY 2010 request is $199.3 million, an increase of $13.9 million or 7.5 percent.
The House Appropriations Bill recommends $202.5 million, an increase of 9.3 percent or $17.2 million.
Senate appropriators recommended $202.7 million, an increase of 9.4 percent or $17.4 million.

The Senate report stated:

“Changes to the budget request include programmatic increases of $750,000 for general genetics and genomic research, $600,000 for tropical ecosystems and watershed health research, and $750,000 for the National Biological Information Infrastructure [NBII]. The increase in funding for the NBII is intended to support work in the highest priority areas of invasive species, pollinators, and protected area information. The NBII has sustained a series of budget reductions in recent years, which the Committee has attempted to partially address with this increase. Other increases above the request include $1,000,000 to continue San Francisco, California Salt Ponds monitoring and research, and $350,000 for the development and testing of protocols for monitoring invasive species, including zebra mussels, in the Columbia River Basin in collaboration with Washington State University and its partners. The budget request and the Committee’s recommendation for biological research include the following increases above the current year enacted level: $4,200,000 for Arctic ecosystems research, $5,000,000 to provide additional support for U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service climate change activities, $1,025,000 to study the effects of renewable energy sources on ecosystems and wildlife populations, and $2,000,000 for the Cooperative Research Units.”

Enterprise Information:

The FY 2009 appropriation was $42.7 million.
The FY 2010 request is $46.0 million, an increase of 7.7 percent or $3.3 million.
The House Appropriations Bill recommends $46.0 million, as requested.
Senate appropriators recommended $45.0 million, an increase of 5.4 percent or $2.3 million.

The Senate report stated:

“The Committee has provided $1,000,000 for the 21st Century Youth Conservation Corps Initiative rather than the $2,000,000 included in the budget proposal. In agreement with the budget request, the Committee has transferred $68,001,000 from enterprise information to the geographic research, investigations and remote sensing activity where it is more appropriately housed.”

Global Change:

The FY 2009 appropriation was $40.6 million.
The FY 2010 request is $58.2 million, an increase of $17.6 million or 43.3 percent.
The House Appropriations Bill recommends $58.2 million, as requested.
Senate appropriators recommended $58.2 million, the Administration’s request.

The Senate report stated:

“Increases above the current year enacted level include $5,000,000 for climate change science, $5,000,000 for the National Climate Change and Wildlife Science Center, and $7,000,000 to expand carbon sequestration research.

“As part of its Global Climate Change agenda the committee encourages USGS to consider pursuing research on sensitive landscapes which can offer early indications that foreshadow additional evaluation needs associated with climate change impacts. In particular, additional monitoring and observation of aquifers such as those in the High Plains Grass Lands may be useful and provide early indications of climate change and its impact on rangelands, agricultural lands and vegetation.”

Science Support:

The FY 2009 appropriation was $67.4 million.
The FY 2010 request is $69.2 million, an increase of $1.8 million or 2.7 percent.
The House Appropriations Bill recommends $69.2 million, as requested.
Senate appropriators recommended $69.2 million, the Administration’s request.

There was no policy-related Senate report language.

Facilities:

The FY 2009 appropriation was $102.1 million.
The FY 2010 request is $106.4 million, an increase of $4.3 million or 4.2 percent.
The House Appropriations Bill recommends $106.4 million, as requested.
Senate appropriators recommended $106.4 million, the Administration’s request.

There was no policy-related Senate report language.