June 22, 1970
Page 20819
Mr. MUSKIE. Mr. President, I am pleased to support the amendment under consideration to add $200,000 to the supplemental appropriation for the Council on Environmental Quality and the Office of Environmental Quality.
As the author of the act creating the Office and as a supporter of the act creating the Council, I know the necessity of these additional funds. The intent of the Congress in creating both the Office and the Council was to provide a viable organization to guide our efforts to improve the quality of the environment. One of the first and most important tasks facing the Office and the Council is the assessment of data presently available that indicate the state of our environment.
All the efforts of the Council and the Office for the next several years depend on this assessment.
The birth of an important new organization is no time to subject it to financial malnutrition. This is a small but important step in the preservation and enhancement of our natural resources.
I urge Senators to support the amendment.