WEDNESDAY, JULY 5, 2006 
FEMA AUTHORIZES FUNDING TO ASSIST WITH FIREFIGHTING EFFORTS IN NEVADA

On June 28, Governor Guinn (R-NV) announced that the Federal Management Agency (FEMA) authorized the use of federal funds to combat several wildfires burning throughout Northern Nevada. The Governor issued a proclamation two days prior, declaring a state of emergency for the Statute as a result of wildland fire activity in Elko, Carson City, Mound House, and Washoe County. The declaration provided the ability to obtain early access to federal assistance, assistance from other states, and access to the state's Disaster Relief Fund.

The authorization from FEMA allows funding to assist up to 75 percent of the state's eligible firefighting expenses. Eligible costs covered by the funding can include field camps, equipment use, repair, and replacement, tools, materials and supplies, and mobilization and demobilization activities.

HOUSE PASSES FY 2007 APPROPRIATIONS BILL FOR SCIENCE-STATE-JUSTICE-COMMERCE

On June 29, the House passed the FY 2007 Science-State-Justice-Commerce (H.R. 5672) Appropriations Bill, by a vote of 393-23. The bill provides $59.8 billion in discretionary spending and $60.2 billion in total for the departments of Commerce, Justice and State, and several independent agencies. This sum is approximately $2.6 billion more than appropriated in FY 2006 and close to $137 million more than President Bush had requested for FY 2007.

The most intense debate on the House floor centered on the Administration's effort to reduce or eliminate important grants for state and local law enforcement agencies. Members rejected the attempts and provided $22.1 billion for the U.S. Department of Justice.

Nevada specific earmarks include funding for the Partnership Carson City Anti-Meth Coalition to eradicate methamphetamine use throughout the community. The funding is provided through the Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS), Methamphetamine Enforcement and Clean-Up Grants account. Congressman Gibbons (R-NV) requested the funding that will create five task forces within the Anti-Meth Coalition: Law Enforcement ; Community Awareness ; Education/Prevention; Public Policy; and Treatment and Rehabilitation. Funding for the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges was also secured.

For more information on the Science-State-Justice Commerce appropriations bill, please visit: http://appropriations.house.gov

For more information on the Anti-Meth Coalition and Nevada specific funding, please visit: http://wwwc.house.gov/gibbons/display-pr.asp?id=1871

SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE APPROVES HOMELAND SECURITY SPENDING BILL

The Senate Appropriations Committee passed the FY 2007 Homeland Security spending bill on Thursday, June 29, two days after the subcommittee approved the bill. The committee approved $32.8 billion, $31.7 billion of which would be discretionary funds. This version, however, contains $350 million less than the House version (passed on June 6, 2007). Anticipating several amendments, floor debate is expected as early as Monday, July 10, 2006. Some highlights include:

•$745 million for Urban Area Security Initiative grants (FY 2006 level was $765 million);
•$210 million for port security grants (FY 2006 level was $175 million);
•$150 million for rail and transit security grants (same as FY 2006 level);
•$655 million for firefighter assistance grants, of which •$115 million is directed to the SAFER Act grants (same as FY 2006 level);
•$205 million for emergency management performance grants (FY 2006 level was $185 million);
•$150 million for the National Pre-Disaster Mitigation Fund (FY 2006 level was $50 million); and
•$1.6 billion for Disaster Relief (FY 2006 level was $1.7 billion).

The committee adopted a manager's amendment that includes a provision to delay (until June 1, 2009) implementation of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, which would require travelers to the United States from Canada, Mexico, and other nearby regions to have biometric travel cards.

COMMITTEE APPROVES ENERGY AND WATER SPENDING BILL

Last week, the Senate Appropriations Committee unanimously approved the FY 2007 Energy and Water Appropriations Bill. The measure sets total spending at $30.7 billion, which is slightly higher than the House-approved mark of $30 billion and $1.25 billion more than the Administration's budget request. The bill provides $24.7 billion for the Department of Energy, $5.13 billion for the Army Corps of Engineers, $1.06 billion for the Bureau of Reclamation, and $306.3 million for independent agencies.Highlights of specific funding levels include: $5.47 billion for Defense Environmental Cleanup; $310 million for non-defense environmental management; $494 million for nuclear waste disposal at the Yucca Mountain site; $2.29 billion for Energy Supply and Conservation activities, including $370.7 million for energy initiatives authorized in the Energy Policy Act of 2005; $49.5 million for the State Energy Program; $711 million for nuclear energy programs; and $644 million for fossil energy programs.

The bill also provides $10 million in startup funds for an interim nuclear waste storage program. The program authorizes the Department of Energy to work with states to find sites, either in individual states or in multi-state regions, where utilities can store spent nuclear fuel for up to 25 years. Currently, there is no estimated total cost for this program, but Senate appropriators intend to fund it through the Nuclear Waste Trust Fund.

Nevada projects include more than $97 million to preserve Lake Tahoe and Walker Lake; $88 million for the Desert Terminus Lake project for environmental efforts at Walker Lake, and $9.4 million for four ongoing projects to restore and preserve Lake Tahoe secured by Senator Harry Reid (D-NV).

HOUSE PASSES VETERANS COMPENSATION OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT ACT OF 2006

Last week, the House unanimously approved legislation, sponsored by Jeff Miller (R-FL) and coauthored by Congresswoman Shelley Berkley (D-NV) that increases benefit payments to veterans and their survivors through a cost of living adjustment, or COLA. The COLA bill would provide the same increase in benefits to service-disabled veterans and their survivors as is awarded to Social Security beneficiaries.

The legislation helps service-disabled veterans and survivors maintain the purchasing power of their federal benefits through an increase in benefits tied to the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Congresswoman Berkley is a member of the House Veterans Affairs Committee.

For further information, please refer to Congresswoman Berkley's June 26 press release: http://berkley.house.gov/legis/otr/
press_releases/2006/pr_2006_0627a.html

LEGISLATION INCLUDES FUNDING FOR VETERAN'S HOSPITAL

As part of the Veterans Affairs Authorization bills currently being crafted in the Senate, Senators Reid and Ensign announced $406 million for the veteran's hospital and medical center in Las Vegas. The funding will be for the facility; a 90-bed full-service hospital and 120--bed VA nursing home that will be built at Pecos and the 215th Beltway in North Las Vegas. Completion of the facility is set for 2009 or 2010.

For further information, please refer to Senator Ensign's June 22 press release: http://ensign.senate.gov/

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION RELEASES FEDERAL EDUCATION GRANT GUIDELINES
U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings clarified the eligibility of requirements for the Academic (AC) Grants and the National Science and Mathematics Access to Retain Talent (SMART) Grants and completed the process for reorganizing state plans. As a result, a qualified Pell Grant-eligible students can begin applying for new grants worth between $750 and $4,000. The grants are designed as incentives for students to take more challenging courses in high school and pursue degrees in high-demand areas such as science, math, technology, engineering, and critical foreign languages.

Congress adjourned last Friday for the July 4th recess.  They will convene on Monday, July 10.


SENATE PASSES WIA REAUTHORIZATION BILL

The Senate passed its Workforce Investment Act (WIA) reauthorization bill last week. Under Senate procedures, the House-passed bill (H.R. 27) was adopted, after striking and inserting the text of the Senate measure (S. 1021). The Senate WIA language was then attached as an amendment to the Democratic Republic of the Congo Relief, Security, and Democracy Promotion Act (S. 2125), and was passed by unanimous consent.

The next step is for members and staff to “pre-conference” the House and Senate bills to resolve two major issues: block grant provisions and faith-based provisions. If those two issues cannot be resolved, it would be unlikely that Congress could proceed with a formal conference.

The House bill combines WIA adult and dislocated worker funding streams with Wagner-Peyser Act funds to form a single adult funding stream. The Senate bill maintains the same funding streams under current law, but also gives states the option of choosing the optional WIA Employment and Training Coordination Program, which allows states (if they choose), to transfer up to 100 percent of two or more of the following programs: WIA Dislocated Workers, WIA Adult, Wagner-Peyser, WIA Youth, and Adult Education.

Additionally, the House bill includes language that exempts religious organizations from prohibition on discriminating in employment on the basis of religion; the Senate bill does not.

SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE APPROVES INTERIOR SPENDING BILL

Last week, the Senate Appropriations Committee unanimously approved the FY 2007 Interior and Related Agencies appropriations bill. Three amendments were accepted during the markup, including one providing $11 million for research and development of new technologies to remove arsenic from western water supplies. Another amendment would force energy companies to renegotiate offshore 1990s oil and gas leases that allow royalty waivers without price thresholds. The House last month voted to bar the Department of the Interior from using FY 2007 money to issue new leases to companies that already have leases lacking price thresholds.

The committee did not make changes to the funding levels reported by its Interior Subcommittee earlier this week, keeping total funding for EPA programs at $7.5 billion for FY 2007 - a cut of more than $96 million from current funding levels. This figure includes $687.5 billion for the Clean Water State Revolving Loan Fund (equal to the Administration's budget request but $200 million below the FY 2006 enacted level) and $841.5 million for the Drinking Water State Revolving Loan Fund (equal to the Administration's budget request and a slight increase over the FY 2006 enacted level).

Nevada specific earmarks secured by Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) total $2.35 million for the following projects: $1.25 million for the Nevada Biodiversity Research and Conservation Initiatives; $500,000 for the Lahontan Cutthroat Trout Restoration; $100,000 for the Wildlife Water Catchments; and $500,000 for the Ash Canyon Gateway.

For more information on Nevada projects, please visit: http://reid.senate.gov

SENATE COMMERCE COMMITTEE APPROVES TELECOMMUNICATIONS MEASURE
Before adjourning for the July 4th recess, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee approved an eleven-title telecommunications measure, reflective of many of the industry's long-standing legislative priorities. The committee approved several amendments including one by Senator John McCain (R-AZ) to impose a three-year moratorium on new "discriminatory" (wireless specific) state or local taxes on mobile services. The amendment passed 21-1. In addition, an amendment by Senator George Allen (R-VA) to make the moratorium on multiple and discriminatory Internet taxes permanent, passed by a vote of 19-3. The committee also declined to strike the bill's preemption of state regulator of wireless services or to add market-based video franchise build-out requirements to the bill. Other amendments adopted include one that would create an independent Office of Consumer Advocate at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and one that would improve the FCC's collection of data on broadband service deployment. A substitute amendment offered, which incorporated many of the defeated individual amendments, was rejected along party-line vote.

HHS RELEASES TANF REGULATIONS
Last week, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued new regulations for the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. The interim final rules reflect changes resulting from passage of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA). Several regulatory changes were made, including the limitation of activities states can count towards the work participation rate for the 12 categories of work. Specifically, the regulations restrict several activities from being allowed for community service, work experience, and vocational education training. The regulations also state that substance abuse and mental health treatment, as well as other rehabilitative services, may only count towards the work rate under the Job Search/Job Readiness category - which has a six-week time limit per client per year with no more than four weeks consecutively.

The regulations exclude certain child-only cases from the work rate consistent with recommendations made in the March 2006 NGA/American Public Human Services Association TANF recommendations. The child-only cases that were excluded are grandparents and other non-parental caretakers, undocumented immigrants and immigrants under the five year ban, parents caring for a disabled family member living in the home who does not attend school on a full-time basis, and at state option, parents receiving SSI benefits. The regulations also create new state requirements for documentation and verification of work hours.

Recent and archived Federal Grants Notifications are also available on our website. www.NevadaDC.org
The State of Nevada Washington Office is reachable by phone at (202) 624-5405.  Additional contact information is available on our website.  To be added to our mailing list, please contact update@nevadadc.org.