Pete Domenici

Mr. DOMENICI

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I urge adoption of this bill.

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, the Senate is now considering S. 2522, the foreign operations and export financing appropriations bill for fiscal year 2001. The Senate bill provides $13.4 billion in budget authority and $4.5 billion in new outlays to operate the programs of the Department of State, export and military assistance, bilateral and multilateral economic assistance, and related agencies for fiscal year 2001. When outlays from prior year budget authority and other completed actions are taken into account, the bill totals $13.4 billion in budget authority and $14.3 billion in outlays for fiscal year 2001. The subcommittee is below its section 302(b) allocation for budget authority and at its section 302(b) allocation for outlays. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that a table displaying the budget committee scoring of this bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. DOMENICI

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I hereby submit to the Senate the budget scorekeeping report prepared by the Congressional Budget Office under Section 308(b) and in aid of Section 311 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, as amended. This report meets the requirements for Senate scorekeeping of Section 5 of S. Con. Res. 32, the First Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for 1986. This report shows the effects of congressional action on the budget through June 19, 2000. The estimates of budget authority, outlays, and revenues are consistent with the technical and economic assumptions of the 2001 Concurrent Resolution on the Budget (H. Con. Res. 290), which replaced the 2000 Concurrent Resolution on the Budget (H. Con. Res. 68). The estimates show that current level spending is above the budget resolution by $2.3 billion in budget authority and by $6.8 billion in outlays. Current level is $28 million below the revenue floor in 2000. Since my last report, dated March 8, 2000, in addition to the changes in budget authority, outlays, and revenues from adopting H. Con. Res. 290, the Congress has cleared, and the President has signed, the Wendell H. Ford Aviation Investment and Reform Act for the 21st Century (P.L. 106- 181) and the Trade amd Development Act of 2000 (P.L. 106-200). The Congress has also cleared for the President's signature the Agricultural Risk Protection Act of 2000 (H.R. 2559). This action has changed the current level of budget authority, outlays, and revenues.

Mr. DOMENICI

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I rise today to offer legislation that would allow for the transfer of administrative jurisdiction over the Melrose Air Force Range in New Mexico and the Yakima Training Center in Washington to the appropriate Service in the Defense Department. Both of these affected areas are public domain lands under the Department of Interior. This legislation simply transfers authority from the Department of Interior to the Secretary of the Air Force in the case of the Melrose Range and to the Secretary of the Army in the case of the Yakima Training Center. Transfer and conversion of the lands to real property is proposed in lieu of the more customary withdrawal pursuant to the Act of February 28, 1958. The affected lands are multiple parcels of public domain lands within a large block of Military Service acquired real property. Enactment on this transfer would provide for simplified management of these lands by the respective Defense Department Service. Melrose Air Force Range in Roosevelt County, New Mexico, is comprised of six parcels of public land, totaling about 6,714 acres. Over 1,118 acres are utilized as bomb impact zone; the remainder is required as a safety buffer. The transfer is needed to provide the Air Force with complete control over land uses on the Range. This should serve to minimize potential safety concerns, liability of the United States, and land use conflicts that could interfere with the training mission. The lands have been used as part of the Range since 1957, under lease or other arrangement with the State of New Mexico which had ownership of the lands at the time. Expansion of the Range was authorized by Public Law 89-568, in September 1966. In 1970 and 1973, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) acquired the lands through a land exchange with the State. During this same period, a land acquisition program to enlarge the Range was being conducted by the Air Force through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The BLM exchange was undertaken in aid of that effort. In 1975, the U.S. Army Corps, on behalf of the Air Force, applied for withdrawal of the lands that the BLM had acquired. The lands that would be transferred through enactment of this legislation are an integral part of the Range, and continue to be suitable for training purposes. These lands will continue to be needed for Air Force training for the foreseeable future. The second installation affected by this legislation is the Yakima Training Center in Kittitas County, Washington. Congress authorized a 63,000 acre expansion of the existing Center by the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal years 1992 and 1993 and the Military Construction Appropriations Act of 1992. The lands to be transferred at the Center consist of 19 scattered small tracts of public lands totaling 6,649 acres within the expansion area. The remaining approximately 56,400 acres of real property within the expansion have already been acquired by the Army. There are an additional 3,090 acres of public domain mineral estate associated with the acquired land to be withdrawn from the general mining laws. In conclusion, Mr. President, this bill provides for the transfer of public domain lands to the Secretaries of the appropriate military service to complete the acquisitions at both installations as authorized by previous Acts of Congress. The consolidation of these lands as real property with the surrounding military acquired lands would provide a common management situation for the Military Service. This should serve to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of their range operations and natural resource management. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that a copy of the legislation be printed in the Record following my statement. There being no objection the bill was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:

Mr. DOMENICI

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I rise today to offer legislation that would allow for the transfer of administrative jurisdiction over the Melrose Air Force Range in New Mexico and the Yakima Training Center in Washington to the appropriate Service in the Defense Department. Both of these affected areas are public domain lands under the Department of Interior. This legislation simply transfers authority from the Department of Interior to the Secretary of the Air Force in the case of the Melrose Range and to the Secretary of the Army in the case of the Yakima Training Center. Transfer and conversion of the lands to real property is proposed in lieu of the more customary withdrawal pursuant to the Act of February 28, 1958. The affected lands are multiple parcels of public domain lands within a large block of Military Service acquired real property. Enactment on this transfer would provide for simplified management of these lands by the respective Defense Department Service. Melrose Air Force Range in Roosevelt County, New Mexico, is comprised of six parcels of public land, totaling about 6,714 acres. Over 1,118 acres are utilized as bomb impact zone; the remainder is required as a safety buffer. The transfer is needed to provide the Air Force with complete control over land uses on the Range. This should serve to minimize potential safety concerns, liability of the United States, and land use conflicts that could interfere with the training mission. The lands have been used as part of the Range since 1957, under lease or other arrangement with the State of New Mexico which had ownership of the lands at the time. Expansion of the Range was authorized by Public Law 89-568, in September 1966. In 1970 and 1973, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) acquired the lands through a land exchange with the State. During this same period, a land acquisition program to enlarge the Range was being conducted by the Air Force through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The BLM exchange was undertaken in aid of that effort. In 1975, the U.S. Army Corps, on behalf of the Air Force, applied for withdrawal of the lands that the BLM had acquired. The lands that would be transferred through enactment of this legislation are an integral part of the Range, and continue to be suitable for training purposes. These lands will continue to be needed for Air Force training for the foreseeable future. The second installation affected by this legislation is the Yakima Training Center in Kittitas County, Washington. Congress authorized a 63,000 acre expansion of the existing Center by the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal years 1992 and 1993 and the Military Construction Appropriations Act of 1992. The lands to be transferred at the Center consist of 19 scattered small tracts of public lands totaling 6,649 acres within the expansion area. The remaining approximately 56,400 acres of real property within the expansion have already been acquired by the Army. There are an additional 3,090 acres of public domain mineral estate associated with the acquired land to be withdrawn from the general mining laws. In conclusion, Mr. President, this bill provides for the transfer of public domain lands to the Secretaries of the appropriate military service to complete the acquisitions at both installations as authorized by previous Acts of Congress. The consolidation of these lands as real property with the surrounding military acquired lands would provide a common management situation for the Military Service. This should serve to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of their range operations and natural resource management. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that a copy of the legislation be printed in the Record following my statement. There being no objection the bill was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:

Mr. DOMENICI

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, section 314 of the Congressional Budget Act, as amended, requires the Chairman of the Senate Budget Committee to adjust the appropriate budgetary aggregates and the allocation for the Appropriations Committee to reflect amounts provided for continuing disability reviews (CDRs) and adoption assistance. I hereby submit revisions to the 2001 Senate Appropriations Committee allocations, pursuant to section 302 of the Congressional Budget Act, in the following amounts: [Dollars in millions] ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Budget authority Outlays ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Current Allocation: General purpose discretionary................... $541,095 $547,279 Highways........................................ ......... 26,920 Mass transit.................................... ......... 4,639 Mandatory....................................... 327,787 310,215

Mr. DOMENICI

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, this amendment is to provide $20 million to support rural air service to the Department of Transportation and Related Agencies Appropriations bill for fiscal year 2001. The Wendell H. Ford Aviation and Investment Reform Act of the 21st Century (AIR-21) included in Section 203 a provision to provide grants to attract and subsidize improved air carrier service to airports currently receiving inadequate service. The provision authorizes $20 million for grants of up to $500,000 to communities or community consortia which meet certain criteria for participation in the program. My amendment would provide discretionary authority to the Secretary of Transportation to implement this pilot program utilizing not more than $20 million in FY 2001 for this purpose. Mr. President, I want to emphasize how important this program is to my home State of New Mexico, particularly southeastern New Mexico where I have worked for years to bring rural air service to that part of the state. The communities of Roswell, Hobbs, Carlsbad, and Artesia have formed a consortium in anticipation of applying for federal funds under this program. The consortium has raised $200,000 in local funding and $200,000 in state funds, and can demonstrate that existing air service in that part of the state is insufficent and is accompanied by unreasonably higher fares. The southeastern New Mexico consortium is precisely the sort of applicant this grant program is intended to benefit. A similar consortium is being put together in northern New Mexico. I urge my colleagues to support this amendment to provide badly needed air service to rural areas in the country.

Mr. DOMENICI

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I rise in support of the Department of Transportation and Related agencies Appropriations bill for fiscal year 2001. I commend the distinguished chairman of the Appropriations Committee and the chairman of the Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee for bringing us a balanced bill within necessary budget constraints. The Senate-reported bill provides $15.3 billion in new budget authority (BA) and $19.2 billion in new outlays to fund the programs of the Department of Transportation, including federal-aid highways, mass transit, and aviation activities. When outlays from prior-year budget authority and other adjustments are taken into account, the bill totals $14.0 billion in BA and $48.0 billion in outlays. The Senate-reported bill is exactly at the subcommittee's 302(b) allocation for budget authority, and the bill is $310 million in outlays under the Subcommittee's 302(b) allocation. I thank the chairman for the consideration he gave to New Mexico's transportation priorities. Mr. President, I support the bill and urge its adoption. I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record spending comparisons of the Senate-reported bill.

Mr. DOMENICI

Mr. DOMENICI. Will the Senator yield?

Mr. DOMENICI. The Senator views this scene while driving down the streets?

Mr. DOMENICI. This is a chimney?

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I once again thank Senator Bingaman. Part of the time these discussions were taking place in New Mexico, I was not available to be there. As most people in New Mexico know, I have been there twice, but I missed one occasion when Senator Bingaman got to talk with the people. I thank him for that because he brought back a number of ideas. One of my staffers was present with him. Those ideas are incorporated in this legislation. In particular, let me repeat that the bill covers ``loss of property,'' and it says what that means; ``business losses,'' and it says what that means; ``financial losses,'' and it says what that means. Then a ``summary of the claims process'' and a summary of the remedies and a summary of appeal rights. The lead agency is going to be the Office of Cerro Grande Fire Claims within FEMA. James Lee Witt or his successor will oversee that office but has the discretionary authority to designate an independent claims manager to run the office, if he so desires. We are not creating anything new, it will be FEMA. But if he wants an independent claims manager, he has the latitude and authority to do that. There will be a separate account for the victims of the Cerro Grande fire that will be separate from the disaster assistance fund. Also, all of the money appropriated will be designated as an emergency. I want to thank the staff who worked on this legislation. In my office: Steve Bell, Denise Greenlaw Ramonas, Brian Benczkowski, James Fuller and Veronica Rodriguez. From Senator Bingaman's office, Trudy Vincent, Christine Landavazo, Sam Fowler and Bob Simon. I also want to thank Ann Bushmiller from the White House Counsel's office and Elizabeth Gore from the Office of Management and Budget. I ask unanimous consent that a letter from Jack Lew expressing the Administration's support be printed in the Record.

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, let me say from the very beginning of this discussion today, it has been a real pleasure to work with Senator Bingaman and his staff--and I hope that is mutual--on putting together a bill that we are going to introduce today. It is our best effort to put together a bill that permits the citizens of Los Alamos, the people who reside there, whose houses or personal property were damaged or destroyed, and businesses that existed, owned either by corporations or individuals--the damage they might have suffered. This is just a partial list. I will read the list before we leave the floor. This is an effort to compensate the Indian people for similar losses. Mr. President, since May 4, 2000, it is now known that the National Park Service started a forest fire, a so-called prescribed burn, at Bandelier National Monument in New Mexico. That was done during the height of the fire season and, regrettably, as everyone now knows, that fire, which was expected to be a controlled burn by the Park Service in Bandelier National Park, was not able to be controlled by those who were called in to control it. The fire went right down the mountainside, ended up burning down the forest and parts of the community of Los Alamos. The fire destroyed more than 425 residences. I am going to start from the beginning with just one photo. Senator Bingaman has others. He drove the streets while some of the fires were still cooling off. As I understand it, Senator Bingaman could see the remnants of steam and heat, and the residue of fires that had not yet totally burned out. This is just one picture of the old town site. That means there is a part of the area that was built up by the Federal Government years ago when Los Alamos was a closed off and secret community, at which the first atomic bomb was being built. All of the science was put in place up there, and it was totally a secret city. Years later, while I was a Senator--I have been here 28 years--we tore down the walls and sold those houses to individuals. This is the way the fire looked as a house burned adjoining the trees and forests that surround Los Alamos. It was actually much worse than that. But that is the best we can do in a photograph of this type. The fire started on May 4, and by May 5 it was a full-fledged wildfire devouring everything in its path. Ultimately, it devoured 48,000 acres of forest land and significant parts of the community where houses and businesses were owned by individuals. During the time this fire burned out of control, our Nation was celebrating the 50th anniversary of Smokey the Bear; that is, the date of his rescue from a raging forest fire in the Lincoln National Forest in NM. For 50 years, Smokey the Bear had cautioned Americans to be careful. Apparently, no one told the Park Service. The decision was made to start a forest fire. The basis was a miscalculation of the danger. The result was, believe it or not, about 25,000 people were evacuated; 405 families lost their residences or homes; two Indian pueblos lost land, livelihood, and sacred sites; and 48,000 acres were transformed from a lush forest into a charcoal garden covered in some places by 12 inches of ash. The cost thus far to taxpayers just to fight the fire is perhaps $10 million. We now have a couple of official reports. We have a 40-page report called ``Sierra Grande Prescribed Burn Investigative Report'' dated May 18, 2000. It can be summarized. Too little planning; too few followed procedures; too little caution; too little experience; too much dry underbrush; too much wind; too much advice unheeded; and too late arrival of the ``hotshot'' experts; and, it was too bad. It is more than too bad. It calls into question the policy with reference to prescribed burns. But that is an issue for another day. But I am hopeful that serious discussions are taking place as to how we should handle controlled burns in the future. We have a catastrophe. It is a catastrophe that it started in the first place. There is no doubt about that. It is a tragedy that it destroyed homes. There is no doubt about that. It is a disaster that fire disrupted businesses. It cost State and local governments millions of dollars. There is no disagreement about that. Imagine the horror of seeing your home reduced to ashes and the freakishness of owning a concrete staircase to nowhere and calling it your home as you come back to visit. The house is burned to the ground, and only cement steps remain. Imagine seeing your neighborhood reduced to a row of brick chimneys and concrete foundations. Consider the irony of a home burned to the ground while the wooden tree house stands unoccupied in the yard. Imagine the task of sifting through the ashes for any unincinerated remnants of your life. Think about the gawkers and the TV trucks driving through your neighborhood waiting to see if the first rains produce mudslides and/or floods. Imagine your life if you were they. You want to go back to work, to get the kids back into a routine, but your life is a series of back-to-back-meetings, dealing with appraisers, contractors, insurance, FEMA, SBA, and flood insurance. Everyone involved wishes that the fire could be unset, the match unlit, the decision unmade, but there is no way to undo the catastrophe. The Federal Government can't undo the damage, but it can provide prompt compensation. That is the objective of the legislation that Senator Bingaman and I are introducing today. We have worked closely with the administration, and I am pleased that they support this legislation. I am pleased to introduce legislation that starts the process of rebuilding lives. It provides an expedited settlement process for the victims of the fire. The first estimate of the cost that we are covering is an approximate number of $300 million. We will use $300 million as our approximate cost as we take this bill into conference on the MILCON bill and attempt to get it adopted in an expedited matter as part of that conference, along with the moneys needed to compensate the victims for their claims under this legislation. And there are moneys for other components of the fire under other federal programs--$134 million for the laboratory damage itself, which is a separate appropriations item. To accomplish the goal of compensating fire victims in the most efficient and fair way possible, this legislation establishes a compensation process through a separate Office of Cerro Grande Fire Claims at FEMA. It provides for full compensation for property losses and personal injuries sustained by the victims, including all individuals, regardless of their immigration status, small businesses, local governments, schools, Indian tribes, and any other entities injured as a result of the fire. Such compensation will include the replacement cost of homes, cars, and any other property lost or damaged in the fire, as well as lost wages, business losses, insurance deductibles, emergency staffing expenses, debris removal and other clean-up costs, and any other losses deemed appropriate by the Director of FEMA. To make sure that this is an expedited procedure, within 45 days of enactment, FEMA must promulgate rules governing the claims process. After the rules are in place, FEMA must publish in newspapers and other places in New Mexico, an easy-to-understand description of the claims process in English and Spanish, so that everyone will know their rights and where and how to file a claim. Once those rules are in place, victims will have 2 years to file their claims, and FEMA must pay those claims within 6 months of filing. During the adjudication of each claim, FEMA is authorized to make interim payments to victims so that those with the greatest need will not be forced to wait a long time before receiving some form of compensation from the government. This bill also will reimburse insurance companies for the costs they paid to help rebuild Los Alamos and the surrounding communities. Under this bill, insurance companies will be able to make subrogation claims against the government on behalf of themselves or their policyholders in same manner as any other victim of the fire. I want the victims to know that this bill requires that they will compensated before insurance companies. The intent is to encourage insurance companies to settle with their policyholders and then come to the government for compensation. That way, victims can get on with their lives as soon as possible, and insurance companies can get reimbursed through the claims process without the need to proceed under the cumbersome Federal Tort Claims Act. For victims whose insurance will not cover the complete replacement cost of their property loss or their personal injury, insurance companies should cover all that is required under their policies, and the government will make up the difference. Mr. President, I think that in this bill, we have developed a process which is fair, comprehensive, and efficient. Yet there will be some who believe, for whatever reasons, that they are not receiving what they are entitled from the government. For those individuals, this bill preserves their right to sue under the Tort Claims Act or to protest the final claims decision of FEMA. I hope that there will be few, if any, such lawsuits, but I believe we must maintain the rights of individuals to proceed to court if they are unhappy with their claims award. I think we have taken an excellent first step in proposing this claims legislation. There is no way one bill can address every issue which might arise in every circumstance. Many of the details will be determined by the Fire Claims Office. I want my constituents to know that I will do all I can to monitor the process as it moves forward to ensure that New Mexicans are treated fairly and in accordance with the intent of this law. All our citizens owe a tremendous gratitude to the workers at Los Alamos. We won the cold war because of their contributions. Today we enjoy our freedoms because of their dedication. We need their continued dedication to assure that those freedoms survive for our future generations. And they need our help to rebuild their lives and return to their vital missions. I hope my colleagues will support the Cerro Grande Fire Assistance Act. Citizens can choose not to take this claims approach provided for in this legislation, and they can go to the Federal courts under the Federal Tort Claims Act. If they do, they will get no compensation under this bill. That is their option. If they choose the option provided under this bill and they go through it to get money for their damages--let's just take an item, such as a house which Senator Bingaman and I discussed. If there is a dispute as to the value of that house, and they are supposed to get the value for the replacement cost--if there is a dispute, this bill provides an opportunity to use arbitration. We have limited attorney's fees in this bill to 10 percent. We don't think this is going to be a heavily litigated process. I repeat, if citizens want to make their claim under the Federal Tort Claims Act, this legislation does not preclude that, other than they have no right to claim anything under this bill. We owe tremendous gratitude to the workers of Los Alamos. We won the cold war because of their efforts and their predecessors in the various activities and scientific niches at this laboratory which has been run admirably by the University of California. Today, we enjoy some of our basic freedoms because in that cold war with the Soviet Union we had great people in this community and a couple of other communities, always staying ahead so people could be assured nuclear weapons would never be used against our people. That laboratory is having some trouble besides the fire. When it all finishes, we will still stand in awe at the fantastic brain trust that is assembled in the mountains of northern New Mexico. We have a sister institution in California, obviously, and an engineering institution in Albuquerque called Sandia National Laboratories. They are three labs that are tied together by scientific prowess and a commitment to serve America in her needs.

Mr. DOMENICI

Mr. DOMENICI. Will the Senator yield?

Mr. DOMENICI. The Senator views this scene while driving down the streets?

Mr. DOMENICI. This is a chimney?

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I once again thank Senator Bingaman. Part of the time these discussions were taking place in New Mexico, I was not available to be there. As most people in New Mexico know, I have been there twice, but I missed one occasion when Senator Bingaman got to talk with the people. I thank him for that because he brought back a number of ideas. One of my staffers was present with him. Those ideas are incorporated in this legislation. In particular, let me repeat that the bill covers ``loss of property,'' and it says what that means; ``business losses,'' and it says what that means; ``financial losses,'' and it says what that means. Then a ``summary of the claims process'' and a summary of the remedies and a summary of appeal rights. The lead agency is going to be the Office of Cerro Grande Fire Claims within FEMA. James Lee Witt or his successor will oversee that office but has the discretionary authority to designate an independent claims manager to run the office, if he so desires. We are not creating anything new, it will be FEMA. But if he wants an independent claims manager, he has the latitude and authority to do that. There will be a separate account for the victims of the Cerro Grande fire that will be separate from the disaster assistance fund. Also, all of the money appropriated will be designated as an emergency. I want to thank the staff who worked on this legislation. In my office: Steve Bell, Denise Greenlaw Ramonas, Brian Benczkowski, James Fuller and Veronica Rodriguez. From Senator Bingaman's office, Trudy Vincent, Christine Landavazo, Sam Fowler and Bob Simon. I also want to thank Ann Bushmiller from the White House Counsel's office and Elizabeth Gore from the Office of Management and Budget. I ask unanimous consent that a letter from Jack Lew expressing the Administration's support be printed in the Record.

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, let me say from the very beginning of this discussion today, it has been a real pleasure to work with Senator Bingaman and his staff--and I hope that is mutual--on putting together a bill that we are going to introduce today. It is our best effort to put together a bill that permits the citizens of Los Alamos, the people who reside there, whose houses or personal property were damaged or destroyed, and businesses that existed, owned either by corporations or individuals--the damage they might have suffered. This is just a partial list. I will read the list before we leave the floor. This is an effort to compensate the Indian people for similar losses. Mr. President, since May 4, 2000, it is now known that the National Park Service started a forest fire, a so-called prescribed burn, at Bandelier National Monument in New Mexico. That was done during the height of the fire season and, regrettably, as everyone now knows, that fire, which was expected to be a controlled burn by the Park Service in Bandelier National Park, was not able to be controlled by those who were called in to control it. The fire went right down the mountainside, ended up burning down the forest and parts of the community of Los Alamos. The fire destroyed more than 425 residences. I am going to start from the beginning with just one photo. Senator Bingaman has others. He drove the streets while some of the fires were still cooling off. As I understand it, Senator Bingaman could see the remnants of steam and heat, and the residue of fires that had not yet totally burned out. This is just one picture of the old town site. That means there is a part of the area that was built up by the Federal Government years ago when Los Alamos was a closed off and secret community, at which the first atomic bomb was being built. All of the science was put in place up there, and it was totally a secret city. Years later, while I was a Senator--I have been here 28 years--we tore down the walls and sold those houses to individuals. This is the way the fire looked as a house burned adjoining the trees and forests that surround Los Alamos. It was actually much worse than that. But that is the best we can do in a photograph of this type. The fire started on May 4, and by May 5 it was a full-fledged wildfire devouring everything in its path. Ultimately, it devoured 48,000 acres of forest land and significant parts of the community where houses and businesses were owned by individuals. During the time this fire burned out of control, our Nation was celebrating the 50th anniversary of Smokey the Bear; that is, the date of his rescue from a raging forest fire in the Lincoln National Forest in NM. For 50 years, Smokey the Bear had cautioned Americans to be careful. Apparently, no one told the Park Service. The decision was made to start a forest fire. The basis was a miscalculation of the danger. The result was, believe it or not, about 25,000 people were evacuated; 405 families lost their residences or homes; two Indian pueblos lost land, livelihood, and sacred sites; and 48,000 acres were transformed from a lush forest into a charcoal garden covered in some places by 12 inches of ash. The cost thus far to taxpayers just to fight the fire is perhaps $10 million. We now have a couple of official reports. We have a 40-page report called ``Sierra Grande Prescribed Burn Investigative Report'' dated May 18, 2000. It can be summarized. Too little planning; too few followed procedures; too little caution; too little experience; too much dry underbrush; too much wind; too much advice unheeded; and too late arrival of the ``hotshot'' experts; and, it was too bad. It is more than too bad. It calls into question the policy with reference to prescribed burns. But that is an issue for another day. But I am hopeful that serious discussions are taking place as to how we should handle controlled burns in the future. We have a catastrophe. It is a catastrophe that it started in the first place. There is no doubt about that. It is a tragedy that it destroyed homes. There is no doubt about that. It is a disaster that fire disrupted businesses. It cost State and local governments millions of dollars. There is no disagreement about that. Imagine the horror of seeing your home reduced to ashes and the freakishness of owning a concrete staircase to nowhere and calling it your home as you come back to visit. The house is burned to the ground, and only cement steps remain. Imagine seeing your neighborhood reduced to a row of brick chimneys and concrete foundations. Consider the irony of a home burned to the ground while the wooden tree house stands unoccupied in the yard. Imagine the task of sifting through the ashes for any unincinerated remnants of your life. Think about the gawkers and the TV trucks driving through your neighborhood waiting to see if the first rains produce mudslides and/or floods. Imagine your life if you were they. You want to go back to work, to get the kids back into a routine, but your life is a series of back-to-back-meetings, dealing with appraisers, contractors, insurance, FEMA, SBA, and flood insurance. Everyone involved wishes that the fire could be unset, the match unlit, the decision unmade, but there is no way to undo the catastrophe. The Federal Government can't undo the damage, but it can provide prompt compensation. That is the objective of the legislation that Senator Bingaman and I are introducing today. We have worked closely with the administration, and I am pleased that they support this legislation. I am pleased to introduce legislation that starts the process of rebuilding lives. It provides an expedited settlement process for the victims of the fire. The first estimate of the cost that we are covering is an approximate number of $300 million. We will use $300 million as our approximate cost as we take this bill into conference on the MILCON bill and attempt to get it adopted in an expedited matter as part of that conference, along with the moneys needed to compensate the victims for their claims under this legislation. And there are moneys for other components of the fire under other federal programs--$134 million for the laboratory damage itself, which is a separate appropriations item. To accomplish the goal of compensating fire victims in the most efficient and fair way possible, this legislation establishes a compensation process through a separate Office of Cerro Grande Fire Claims at FEMA. It provides for full compensation for property losses and personal injuries sustained by the victims, including all individuals, regardless of their immigration status, small businesses, local governments, schools, Indian tribes, and any other entities injured as a result of the fire. Such compensation will include the replacement cost of homes, cars, and any other property lost or damaged in the fire, as well as lost wages, business losses, insurance deductibles, emergency staffing expenses, debris removal and other clean-up costs, and any other losses deemed appropriate by the Director of FEMA. To make sure that this is an expedited procedure, within 45 days of enactment, FEMA must promulgate rules governing the claims process. After the rules are in place, FEMA must publish in newspapers and other places in New Mexico, an easy-to-understand description of the claims process in English and Spanish, so that everyone will know their rights and where and how to file a claim. Once those rules are in place, victims will have 2 years to file their claims, and FEMA must pay those claims within 6 months of filing. During the adjudication of each claim, FEMA is authorized to make interim payments to victims so that those with the greatest need will not be forced to wait a long time before receiving some form of compensation from the government. This bill also will reimburse insurance companies for the costs they paid to help rebuild Los Alamos and the surrounding communities. Under this bill, insurance companies will be able to make subrogation claims against the government on behalf of themselves or their policyholders in same manner as any other victim of the fire. I want the victims to know that this bill requires that they will compensated before insurance companies. The intent is to encourage insurance companies to settle with their policyholders and then come to the government for compensation. That way, victims can get on with their lives as soon as possible, and insurance companies can get reimbursed through the claims process without the need to proceed under the cumbersome Federal Tort Claims Act. For victims whose insurance will not cover the complete replacement cost of their property loss or their personal injury, insurance companies should cover all that is required under their policies, and the government will make up the difference. Mr. President, I think that in this bill, we have developed a process which is fair, comprehensive, and efficient. Yet there will be some who believe, for whatever reasons, that they are not receiving what they are entitled from the government. For those individuals, this bill preserves their right to sue under the Tort Claims Act or to protest the final claims decision of FEMA. I hope that there will be few, if any, such lawsuits, but I believe we must maintain the rights of individuals to proceed to court if they are unhappy with their claims award. I think we have taken an excellent first step in proposing this claims legislation. There is no way one bill can address every issue which might arise in every circumstance. Many of the details will be determined by the Fire Claims Office. I want my constituents to know that I will do all I can to monitor the process as it moves forward to ensure that New Mexicans are treated fairly and in accordance with the intent of this law. All our citizens owe a tremendous gratitude to the workers at Los Alamos. We won the cold war because of their contributions. Today we enjoy our freedoms because of their dedication. We need their continued dedication to assure that those freedoms survive for our future generations. And they need our help to rebuild their lives and return to their vital missions. I hope my colleagues will support the Cerro Grande Fire Assistance Act. Citizens can choose not to take this claims approach provided for in this legislation, and they can go to the Federal courts under the Federal Tort Claims Act. If they do, they will get no compensation under this bill. That is their option. If they choose the option provided under this bill and they go through it to get money for their damages--let's just take an item, such as a house which Senator Bingaman and I discussed. If there is a dispute as to the value of that house, and they are supposed to get the value for the replacement cost--if there is a dispute, this bill provides an opportunity to use arbitration. We have limited attorney's fees in this bill to 10 percent. We don't think this is going to be a heavily litigated process. I repeat, if citizens want to make their claim under the Federal Tort Claims Act, this legislation does not preclude that, other than they have no right to claim anything under this bill. We owe tremendous gratitude to the workers of Los Alamos. We won the cold war because of their efforts and their predecessors in the various activities and scientific niches at this laboratory which has been run admirably by the University of California. Today, we enjoy some of our basic freedoms because in that cold war with the Soviet Union we had great people in this community and a couple of other communities, always staying ahead so people could be assured nuclear weapons would never be used against our people. That laboratory is having some trouble besides the fire. When it all finishes, we will still stand in awe at the fantastic brain trust that is assembled in the mountains of northern New Mexico. We have a sister institution in California, obviously, and an engineering institution in Albuquerque called Sandia National Laboratories. They are three labs that are tied together by scientific prowess and a commitment to serve America in her needs.

Mr. DOMENICI

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. DOMENICI

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I rise in strong support of the bill before us today. I would like to sincerely thank Senators Stevens and Inouye for their strong leadership on the Defense Subcommittee. I also would like to recognize the diligence and professionalism of the staff on this Committee. Every year this Committee goes through the difficult exercise of trying to allocate sufficient funds to provide for our nation's defense. These decisions require balancing carefully between present and future, people and technologies. This year, despite the fact that this appropriations bill provides over $3.1 billion more than was in the President's budget request and $20 billion more than the FY 2000 appropriation, the decisions to fund the wide array of critical Defense priorities were just as difficult as in the past. Despite these challenges the Committee has put together a comprehensive bill that meets many of the most pressing needs of the National Defense and remains within the constraints of the budget authority and outlay limits established in the 302(b) allocation. I would like to briefly mention some of the most important aspects of our defense addressed in this spending package. The bill provides $287.6 billion in new spending authority for the Department of Defense for FY 2001. In parallel with the Defense Authorization, the bill funds a 3.7 percent pay raise, new increases in recruiting and retention benefits, strengthens our missile defense program, boosts the Army Transformation Initiative, and provides a long awaited pharmacy benefit for our military retirees. The bill also provides approximately $4.1 billion in the Overseas Contingency Operations Transfer Fund, almost double the funding provided in last year's bill. It is our hope that the Department of Defense will now have ample resources to conduct unforseen contingencies and protect the resources we provide in this bill for training and combat readiness. There is good news for the Research and Development appropriation. The Committee approved $39.6 billion, an increase of $1.74 billion over the budget request. The Ballistic Missile Defense Program alone received an additional $4.35 billion. These resources will help prevent erosion of the scientific and technological foundation of our armed forces. The Committee also provided for items that will ensure that New Mexico based defense installations and programs remain robust. I would like to briefly highlight some of the items that received funding in the appropriations bill. Of the increase in Operation and Maintenance funding provided by the committee an additional $5.1 million is included to maintain and upgrade the Theater Air Command and Control Simulation Facility. This is the largest warfighter-in-the-loop air defense simulation system in operation and proudly operated by the 58th Special Operations Wing at Kirtland Air Force Base. Another $8 million will upgrade the MH-53J helicopter simulator to include Interactive Defensive Avionics System/ Multi-Mission Advanced Tactical Terminal capability. Both of these projects will strengthen and support our Air Force's readiness and capabilities. American dominance relies heavily on our technological superiority. The Committee recognizes this and, therefore, supported substantial increases to Research and Development funding above the President's request. Of this, an additional $24.4 million will go to the High Energy Laser Systems Test Facility at White Sands Missile Range to support advanced weapons development and transformation initiatives for solid state laser technology. The Theater High Energy Laser anti- missile program, successfully tested last week at White Sands also received an additional $15 million. Finally, the Airborne Laser program's budget was fully restored with an increase of $92 million. ABL is the Air Force's flagship program in directed energy weapons systems. Keeping this missile defense potential on track is vital to our demonstration of the role lasers can play in future defense capabilities. The Committee also recognized the active and reserve Army's need for lighter, more mobile command and control vehicles. Therefore, the bill funds a $63 million increase to the Warfighter Information Network program to produce these communications shelters; Laguna Industries manufactures these shelters. The bill includes many other New Mexico defense activities. An additional $16 million will be provided for the Information Operations Warfare and Vulnerability Assessment work of the Army Research Laboratory at White Sands. The Committee also provided $10 million for the Magdalena Ridge Observatory and $5.3 million to combat the threat of terrorism with radio frequency weapons. With the help of my colleagues new technology has a strong foothold in New Mexico and I thank them for supporting us in our endeavors. There are more hurdles ahead of us but each step takes us closer to our ultimate goal of being a major source of support to the military technological transformation in the 21st century. I believe this bill demonstrates the balance required to best fund our armed forces. Again, I am pleased by the hard work of my colleagues on this Committee and express, once again, my admiration for the hard work of Chairman Stevens and Senator Inouye in achieving an appropriate spending package for our military men and women.

Mr. DOMENICI

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Mental Health Early Intervention, Treatment, and Prevention Act of 2000 with my friend Senator Kennedy. Today we do not even question whether mental illness is treatable. But, today we recoil in shock and disbelief at the consequences of individuals not being diagnosed or following their treatment plans. The results are tragedies we could have prevented. Just look at the tragic incidents at the Baptist Church in Dallas/ Fort Worth, the Jewish Day Care Center in Los Angeles, and the United States Capitol to see the common link: a severe mental illness. Or the fact that there are 30,000 suicides every year, including 2,000 children and adolescents. It was not too long ago that our nation decided we did not want to keep people chained in institutions. Simply put, it was inhumane to simply lock these individuals up without even using science to consider other alternatives. In fact, one of the first awards I received as a Senator was a Freedom Bell made from these very chains. Make no mistake, our nation still has these same individuals with mental illness, we just do not have a very good way to deal with these individuals. Many of these individuals formerly locked up are now our neighbors taking the proper medication to control their illness. However, our nation simply does not have an understanding of what happens when individuals stop taking their medications. I believe the American people are ready for a direct assault on their consciences about a comprehensive approach to prevent the tragic incidents mentioned. Many people just do not take notice because America is known for her freedom, but sadly many of these highly publicized incidents of mass violence all too often involve an individual with a mental illness. When these incidents occur, my wife and I watch with horror on television and we often turn to each other and say that person was a schizophrenic or that individual was a manic depressive. Sadly, society often does not want to take the extra step to help these individuals because they are either scared or simply do not know how to help. Unfortunately, there is no place that a community can take these individuals for help. The police can do very little and likewise for hospitals. I believe we must come together as a nation to find a community based solution so when someone sees an individual in obvious need of help they will know exactly what to do. Some of you may have seen the recent 4 part series of articles in the New York Times reviewing the cases of 100 rampage killers. Most notably the review found that 48 killers had some kind of formal diagnosis for a mental illness, often schizophrenia. Twenty-five of the killers had received a diagnosis of mental illness before committing their crimes. Fourteen of 24 individuals prescribed psychiatric drugs had stopped taking their medication prior to committing their crimes. In particular I would point to a couple of passages from the series: ``They give lots of warning and even tell people explicitly what they plan to do.'' . . . ``a closer look shows that these cases may have more to do with society's lack of knowledge of mental health issues . . . In case after case, family members, teachers and mental health professionals missed or dismissed signs of deterioration.'' It is for these reasons that I am so pleased that Senator Kennedy has joined me to introduce this comprehensive piece of legislation. The legislation attempts to prevent these incidents and the other tragic results of mental illness before they happen. The bill we are introducing today will provide for: A mental Illness Anti-Stigma and Suicide Prevention Campaign; Emergency Mental Health Centers to serve as the central receiving point in communities for families, friends, emergency medical personnel, and law enforcement to take an individual in need of emergency mental health services; Mental Health Awareness Training for Teachers and Medical Personnel to identify and respond to individuals with a mental illness; Mental Health Courts that will maintain separate dockets and handle only cases involving individuals with a mental illness; A Blue Ribbon Panel to make recommendations on issues relating to mental illness with a focus on the diagnosis and treatment of mental illness; and Increased Funding for Innovative Treatment and Research. I really believe we have a historic opportunity to become preventers of serious, serious acts of violence before they happen. Thank you very much and I look forward to working with Senator Kennedy and my colleagues on this legislative initiative. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that a copy of the bill and a summary of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I am pleased to join Senator Kyl today in introducing a bill to remove a major impediment to business development on the Navajo Nation. Our bill will accelerate the long and arduous process now in place for obtaining a business site lease on the Navajo Nation. For years I have heard case after case of large and small businesses waiting from two years to four years, and longer, for such a lease. Delays occur in both the tribal and the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) lease approval processes. This dual process exists as a direct result of the U.S. Government's trust responsibility for Indian reservation lands. In study after study for the past three decades, the tediously slow and cumbersome land leasing process on the Navajo Nation has been identified as a major obstacle to attracting new private business ventures. In our search for ways to encourage more private enterprise for Navajos, I encouraged and sponsored the Navajo Economic Summit in Tohatchi, New Mexico in 1987. Again, many of our key speakers from the business world reminded us that the Navajo Nation itself, and its protective federal agency, the BIA, needed to find a better way to make land available for private enterprises. Along another avenue of encouraging businesses to go to, or expand on the Navajo Nation, I cosponsored legislation by Senators Inouye and McCain that was incorporated into the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993. In Sections 13321 and 13322 of that Act, we were able to enact generous wage tax credits and accelerated depreciation for businesses that chose to locate or expand on America's Indian reservations. Despite the availability of a wage tax credit for every eligible Indian hired, many businesses still viewed the complexity of Indian courts and land allocation methods as comparable third world nations. Business has not flocked to the Navajo Nation, although many tribes around the country have taken advantage of this wage tax credit. Our incentives allow a direct credit off-taxes owed at the rate of 20 percent of the first $20,000 paid in wages and health insurance for every Indian hired. In addition, all investments from infrastructure to computers were given accelerated depreciation rates, about one-third faster than non-reservation investments. The Navajo Nation is our Nation's largest Indian reservation in both area and population. About 200,000 Navajos live on a reservation that straddles four States and is slightly larger than the entire state of West Virginia. Unfortunately, the poverty rate is high, unemployment hovers around 40 percent year after year, and private sector jobs are all too rare. Sadly, the time lag for obtaining a new land lease also remains painstakingly slow. I commend Navajo President Kelsey Begaye for his interest in encouraging a better system for making land available for businesses and other purposes. Although other incentives like access to State and Federal courts will still be needed, a faster land lease will go a long way to encourage more business activity. Our bill will establish a streamlined process for the Navajo Nation to lease trust lands without having to obtain the approval of the Interior for individual leases. The exception is exploration, development, or extraction of any mineral resources. These types of leases will still require Secretarial approval. The Secretary of Interior would be required to approve the regulations adopted by the Navajo Nation to implement this new leasing authority. Once approved, the Navajo Nation would have regulatory authority to finalize land leases that do not exceed 75 years. They will be able to do this without having to be second guessed by the BIA in a follow-up process that always adds months, and sometimes years, to the process. The trust obligation of the Secretary of Interior would remain in place. The Navajo Nation, would, in effect, be acting as an agent of the Secretary. By eliminating the need for Secretarial (BIA) review of its land leasing decisions, however, our legislation will allow a more efficient land leasing system to be put in place. I am confident that President Begaye's Administration will work hard to reduce the time the Navajo Nation itself now takes to issue a lease. Without the follow-up review by the BIA, the potential business applicant will be able to open up months sooner. Rather than getting caught in a blame game, a new lease applicant will be able to focus on a single process for obtaining a land lease, and the Navajo Nation will be the responsible party for delays. Again, I admire the courage of President Begaye's Administration for its willingness to accept this responsibility and to encourage more private sector business activity on the largest Indian reservation in our country. I believe this initiative will encourage the Navajo Nation to be more business friendly. I urge my colleagues to join us in allowing the Navajo Nation to fully accept the responsibility for creating a single track land leasing system in place of the dual system now required.

Mr. DOMENICI

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, section 216 of H. Con. Res. 290 (the FY2001 Budget Resolution) permits the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee to make adjustments to the allocation of budget authority and outlays to the Senate Committee on Agriculture, provided certain conditions are met. Pursuant to section 216, I hereby submit the following revisions to H. Con. Res. 290: ------------------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Current allocation to Senate Agriculture Committee Fiscal year: 2000 Budget Authority.............................. $10,843,000,000 2000 Outlays....................................... 7,940,000,000 2001 Budget Authority.............................. 14,254,000,000 2001 Outlays....................................... 10,542,000,000 2001-2005 Budget Authority......................... 61,372,000,000 2001-2005 Outlays.................................. 43,745,000,000 Adjustments Fiscal year: 2000 Budget Authority.............................. 5,500,000,000 2000 Outlays....................................... 5,500,000,000 2001 Budget Authority.............................. 1,639,000,000 2001 Outlays....................................... 1,493,000,000 2001-2005 Budget Authority......................... 1,608,000,000 2001-2005 Outlays.................................. 1,619,000,000 Revised allocation to Senate Agriculture Committee 2000 Budget Authority.............................. 16,343,000,000 2000 Outlays....................................... 13,440,000,000 2001 Budget Authority.............................. 15,893,000,000 2001 Outlays....................................... 12,035,000,000 2001-2005 Budget Authority......................... 62,980,000,000 2001-2005 Outlays.................................. 45,364,000,000 ------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mr. DOMENICI. I wonder if the distinguished manager will just yield for an observation? It will not take long.

Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I want to say hearty thanks to the U.S. Senate for passing the budget resolution that contemplated this issue and this problem and this solution. Normally, in years past on agriculture emergencies, we have waited until the end of the year and gotten into an enormous argument as to how much emergency relief is enough emergency relief. This year we decided, in the budget resolution, with the help of some experts and the committee, to decide that we would modify the resolution that applies to this year and provide $5.5 billion in this year's budget to be spent by the authorizing committee from a reserve fund set up by the Budget Committee and $1.6 billion for next year, all of which could be used for emergency purposes by the authorizing committee if they chose. They have chosen to follow that to the letter: $5.5 billion this year and $1.6 billion next year. We have provided in advance a pretty good package, as my colleagues have said, on emergency relief. I am not the expert. I am not here vouching for every item in the bill, but I am suggesting it is good to recognize that we had the foresight this time in advance to devise a prescription for the solution of what I think is most of the emergency relief that is going to be sought for farmers. There may be others in other bills. I thank everyone for living under that resolution and under that format. I thank the experts who told us this is a pretty good package, and we provided for it in advance. It turned out to be a pretty good dollar number that provides a rather substantial amount of relief. In addition, we have had budgeted for quite sometime money for crop insurance. It has been languishing until now. It is high time a solution to that has been tailored, and now they are together. There is $7.1 billion of emergency assistance, and it is prescribed by the budgets we have voted for heretofore. I commend those who have lived within those margins. I do hope the farmers of America understand that we have prescribed a very large package here, in addition to the regular appropriations bill that comes through, and we may have additional arguments on how much additional emergency money might be provided, if any. I do believe this is a good example of doing it right for a change. We did it right from the very start, and now we are seeing the fruits of some good thinking in advance to avoid conflict at the end of the year. Mr. President, while the spending in this conference report does not violate the budget, and again I congratulate the authors for following those spending guidelines, I must be honest in saying that some provisions in Title II of this conference report concern me. When the Budget Committee established the $7.1 billion funding to assist producers of program crops and specialty crops, I can assure you that at least this Senator did not envision some of the types of indirect assistance to producers this bill provides. Nonetheless the bulk of assistance will go directly to producers and provide some relief to those now suffering depressed farm incomes. Finally, it must be said, that once this $5.5 billion in Agriculture Marketing Transition Act, AMTA, payments are made this year, total Commodity Credit Corporation, CCC, outlays for FY 2000 may exceed $30 billion--a historic record level of spending. Just for the calendar year 2000, direct payments to producers will exceed $21.6 billion-- another record. It is also understood that when we return from the Memorial Day recess, the FY 2001 Agriculture Appropriations bill may be before the Senate, and it to may contain additional emergency spending for the current fiscal year. At a time when the U.S. Congress and the European Parliament are focused on agriculture trade issues, and the level of subsidies being provided on both sides of the Atlantic, I think it is important to take a step back and make sure we all understand what assistance is being provided in this bill to agriculture. I will support this conference agreement today. But I hope that another bill the Senate may consider after the recess--the PNTR China bill--will provide expanded markets for our agriculture sector and thereby lessen the need for future agriculture subsidies. Most farmers and ranchers I know want to and will produce for the market given a chance. They do not want and should not want to ``farm'' government subsidies.