I did receive both a phonecall and a letter from Jim Inhofe concerning the proposed NOAA budget cuts I wrote about a few weeks ago. Round one is over.
Below is Inhofe’s response:
“Thank you for writing me regarding funding for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). As your Senator, I appreciate knowing your views.
As you know, Senator Hutchison offered an amendment (S.A. 2666) to the FY 2010 Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations Act (H.R. 2847) which would provide $172 million for the State Criminal Alien Assistance Program by removing $172 million in funding for NOAA. You will be pleased to know that during debate on H.R. 2847, S.A. 2666 was never considered and not included in the final text of the bill. H.R. 2847 passed the Senate by a vote of 71 to 28 and included $4.773 billion for NOAA. The legislation now moves to conference where House and Senate conferees will work out differences between the two versions of the bill. When conference is completed, Congress will vote on final passage of the bill.
Again, thank you for your comments. Please do not hesitate to contact me in the future.
Sincerely,
James M. Inhofe
United States Senator”