December 4, 1969
Page 36950
Mr. MUSKIE. I should like to take a few moments to compliment the distinguished Senator from Louisiana (Mr. ELLENDER) chairman of the Public Works Subcommittee, for the culmination of his efforts to increase the appropriations for waste treatment works construction.
I know of his efforts, going back several months in the early days of this session, and I cannot recall a more effective piece of legislative work dedicated to a clear objective in the public interests since I came to the Senate.
We had been bogged down at the appropriations level in this field at $200 million for several years. There seemed little prospect, in light of budgetary restraints, that we would ever move above that level.
We have done so in this conference report.
I do not think we would have done so without the commitment and the outstanding leadership demonstrated by the distinguished Senator from Louisiana (Mr. ELLENDER).
I understand the difficulties in trying to preserve the full Senate figure in conference. The House approved $600 million. The effort to increase that to $1 billion over the House figure failed, I think, by a very narrow margin, which gave us some hope that the House conferees might agree to the full figure.
Nevertheless, I understand, from having participated in conferences myself and the need to compromise. We have compromised the figure sufficiently greater than the last appropriation to give the program the impetus it so badly needs.
So, once more -- and I have said this many times on the Senate floor -- I compliment the distinguished Senator from Louisiana, and the other Senators who represented the Senate point of view in conference.
This is a signal achievement of great importance in the fight against water pollution.
Mr. ELLENDER. Mr. President, I think I can speak for all the Senate conferees and say that we are grateful for the fine compliments the Senator from Maine has just directed to us. He has led in the fight to provide the authorizations for the program.
I may say, although we tried to get the House to increase the amount to $1 billion, as the Senator says, this is a matter of compromising differences. The whole bill was quite large -- almost $5 billion. We were over and above the budget by over $500 million. Additions were made for the pollution problem. Personally, I am sorry we did not retain the $1 billion, but I think that we did very well, nonetheless.
Mr. MUSKIE. Mr. President, I am sure that if the Senator from Louisiana can undertake to persuade the administration and the President as to the increasing urgency of this problem, of course, I would join the Senator in any way he thinks appropriate to undertake to do that. It is not a question of trying to put the President on the spot. Congress is giving thorough and deliberate thought to this problem. It has undertaken this commitment at this time. We would all like to see the commitment met. Thus, if we can persuade the administration to go along, I would be very happy to join in that effort.
Mr. ELLENDER. I appreciate that. I may say to my good friend from Maine that I am very hopeful of trying to get a group of Representatives and Senators to call on the President and explain this matter to him.
It is stated that we had a carryover. Of course, there can be a carryover on any amount provided for any project if the Bureau of the Budget will not release the money we provide here. That has been the case with the water pollution control program. I am sure that many States would have gone forward and provide the necessary legislative authorizations if only the Congress had provided enough money.
We have, I think, provided a sufficient amount that will encourage the States to proceed to obtain their share. As the Senator knows, at the end of 6 months after the allocation is made, a review is made of the amount each State spends. If any State does not spend its allocation, the money not spent by States receiving a certain amount is redistributed to other States. I am sure that if the second distribution is adequately made, enough funds are provided here to make certain there will be completion of many projects.
Mr. MUSKIE. The purpose is to get the States to move, the lagging States and those that have moved more swiftly. So what we have done this year will be building a momentum that needs to keep going.
Mr. ELLENDER. As the Senator knows, the budget estimates for this program have been very low. That is, the Budget has approved very low figures. This year, with an authorization of $1 billion, they provided only $204 million. That is no encouragement to the States to prepare to do this work, because individual allocations would be so small that they could not even make a good start. So, with this sum, it is my belief that if it is allocated according to the formula, which I know it will be, the States will know that they will be entitled the money that is not spent from the first allocation. It is my belief that it will act as a stimulant for the States to proceed to go along with this program, which I think is absolutely necessary. We certainly need more work on air and water pollution. I think this provision will stimulate it.
Mr. MUSKIE. I thank the Senator.