Posted on 08/15/2002 4:17:15 AM PDT by Molly Pitcher
Good morning everyone!
An article posted overnight reminds me that the 2002 elections are not far away.
Here in ATRW land we're paying attention to the N.J. Senate race, and the Maryland Gov. race.
Next Tuesday, there are more primaries, and we can expect more and more polls.
Yippee!! NOT!
And the 2002 Summer Vacation Season winds down.
Chairman, have a perfectly wonderful vacation, and return to us rested and recharged!
On a bright note .. little kathy's road to indispensable destiny seems to have hit a speed bump ... HA!
bevlar ... I think it was our lysie who posted that funny graphic ...
Contact: Alan Caldwell
IAFC Director of Government Relations
(703) 273-0911 ext. 309
President Sends Congress A Budgetary Message...
$150 Million Additional FIRE Act Funding Lost In All or Nothing Package
Tuesday, August 13, 2002, Fairfax, VA....Today, President Bush said that he would not approve a $5.1 billion "contingent emergency" appropriation. A large number of funding categories were contained in this $5.1 billion package including $150 million for the Assistance to Firefighters (FIRE Act) grant program.
This $5.1 billion "contingent emergency" spending package is part of the $28.9 billion federal Fiscal Year 2002 supplemental appropriation that the president signed into law earlier this month (the Fiscal Year 2002 runs from Oct. 1, 2001 to Sept. 30, 2002).
The reason the president did not approve this $5.1 billion package is that the disputed funds are tied up in a bundle into which Congress lumped together funds for 84 projects, requiring that Bush spend all the money or none of it. About $1 billion of the disputed funds is for projects Bush supports. The remaining $4.1 billion is for congressional priorities he has not endorsed and, in some cases, opposes.
The disputed funds' all-or-nothing structure hits Bush on issues he feels passionately about: presidential prerogatives, which he has sought to guard and expand; congressional spending not requested by the administration, which he has vowed to curtail; and the White House's own record-setting wartime budget.
Without the approval of the president for this unusual "contingent emergency" appropriations category, the entire $5.1 billion funding cannot be recovered. There is no reconsideration.
Listed below are comments which we hope are helpful in understanding the current status of the FIRE Act and related programs.
The FIRE Act is currently authorized to $900 million through FY2004. An authorization is not money; it sets out the parameters of a program. Only appropriations fund programs.
In FY2001, the FIRE Act was funded at $100 million. All of these funds have been distributed by FEMA.
In FY2002, two laws have been signed that appropriate $150 million plus an additional $210 million for a total appropriation of $360 million for FY2002. FEMA is on track to have all of this funding out to grant recipients by the end of December 2002. That's it for FY2002.
The Senate Appropriations Committee has reported to the Senate floor its version of the FY2003 VA, HUD, and Independent Agencies appropriations bill which funds FEMA. The bill contains $900 million for the FIRE Act, the maximum authorized by law. The bill will be voted on by the Senate in September.
To date, the House Appropriations Committee has not taken action. IAFC is lobbying for the House to match the Senate amount. It will take both houses of Congress to confer and agree to a single bill and the president to sign it into law before any funds become a reality for FY2003. This will not likely occur until October.
It may be necessary for the fire service to weigh in with Congress on this issue after it returns on September 4th; the IAFC will keep you advised. Once an appropriation to fund the FIRE Act has been signed into law, FEMA will develop and publish in the Federal Register the rules for the FY2003 program as it has for the past two years.
On a related issue, Congress is in the process of considering the $3.5 billion request by the administration for its first responder initiative which is a "through the states" program. The IAFC has testified before Congress on several occasions this year seeking to keep the Assistance to Firefighters program separate. The IAFC wants to ensure that FIRE Act funds go directly to local fire departments. To this point, the Senate Appropriations Committee has heeded our message by approving the $900 million and in doing so kept the FIRE Act program intact. The IAFC supports the $3.5 billion first responder initiative while at the same time stressing the need to keep the FIRE Act grant program in its current format. We will strive to keep these two programs separate throughout the appropriations process.
Holding ... 'tis funny you should ask ... I've so many 'maters, I don't know what to do with them ... I mentioned this to the vet's assistant yesterday when I made an appointment for today to have them groomed ... and she sounded so ... envious ... that I brought nearly a bushel in for her ...
She exchanged grooming charges for the 'maters!!!
*Sparkles* is back to *sparklin'* ... though I keep watching him closely ... thank you for asking ... I've had fun reading about your Panda ... and your husband's adoring behavior towards same. Puts a *grin* on my mug.
illstillbe - Out in the car just now, I saw a "mobil dog grooming unit".
Are we into convenience and pet care or what??
UO42 due in Cleveland next week to raise money for DemRat Hagen! - Running against Rep. Gov. Daft....for all you non-Buckeyes....
Poor Service
Narrow, uncomfortable seats
Food that even hogs won't eat
Intrusive, degrading and INEFFECTIVE security
Impossible airport parking
Long lines (check-in, security, gates, and baggage claim)
Rude Employees
and at the very bottom of the list - 9-11
I might add that I have to fly from Alaska to the east coast and back several times a year. If I lived in the lower 48, I would probably drive any trip of less than 5 hours!
lysander, I have read one idea which seems to fit and perhaps explain some of what you commented on: The decline in standards of behavior which accelerated with the 60s has taken the biggest toll on the lower income families.
Drug use, illegitimate children, run-away fathers...poorer families can ill afford these situations. They just add an extra burden, and down it goes from there...
Middle-class and higher people have more of a margin....
sl - How are things in TEXAS??
Well ... I get to see McAwful, as Rivendell calls him ... and teddy ... and ethel ...
I have just reread my comments to Holding ... and it surely seems as though I had my tomatoes groomed and not my pups ... well, there you have it.
I really do not think grass should make noise when you walk on it ... we NEED RAIN!
Just how many baggage handlers have you walloped so far?!
I've a trip to Chicago coming up ... and I will be driving ...
I just got turned down for my fire act grant for this year. Not a big loss as I expected it, so many applications and so little money. Kind of like the lottery.
I really feel that funding of fire and rescue services should be a LOCAL issue anyway, federal funding has a lot of strings attached and imposes restrictions that are not always appropriate for all situations. Communities should have the freedom to be able to choose their level of protection that they desire.
I am in a bad way ... for that picture brought tears to my eyes ... maybe it's just knowing how thoughtful the person who posted it is. *grins*
Who says someone who is Constitutionally constipated ... a name I claim proudly ... though I am sure that was not the intent ... can't have a softer side?!
I have enjoyed thinking about a wee still lurking in her stocking feet ... *smile*
Illstillbe, Mr. HOB calls Panda "a bundle of pure joy" - all 1 lb. of her! She was 9 weeks old on Tuesday. My groomer finally made a fuss over Panda after she got over the teary-eyed shock of Brandi's loss. It was really very sweet, in a way.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.