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Forwarded from the NINCH list.
Judy
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From: INTERNET:[log in to unmask], INTERNET:[log in to unmask]
To: Multiple recipients of list, INTERNET:[log in to unmask]
Date: 7/16/97 10:36 AM
RE: NCC Washington Update, Vol 3, #30, July 15, 1997 (fwd)
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NINCH ANNOUNCEMENT
July 16, 1997
The following NCC Update contains a succinct summary of current
Congressional movements on the Endowments, National Archives and NHPRC.
The news includes:
** Last Friday's 328:96 defeat in the House of the Chabot Amendment to
eliminate the NEH;
** Last Friday's 271:155 defeat in the House of the Ehlers Amendment for
replacing the NEA with a system of block grants to states. The House
Interior Appropriations Bill now includes no money for the NEA.
** Announcement that the Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee will
meet this Friday July 18 to markup its appropriations bill, which will
include the budgets for the NEH, NEA, the Smithsonian, historic
preservation programs, and the National Park Service.
** Senate Appropriations Committee recommendations in its appropriations
bill for the budgets of the Nationa Archives and NHPRC
David Green
*******************************************************************************
NCC Washington Update, vol. 3, # 30 , July 15, 1997
by Page Putnam Miller, Director of the National Coordinating
Committee for the Promotion of History <[log in to unmask]>
1. House Defeats By Large Majority Amendment to Eliminate Funding for NEH
2. Senate Appropriations Committee Endorses Subcommittee
Recommendations for the National Archives and NHPRC
3. House Defeats Ehlers Amendment on $80 million in Block Grants
To States for Arts Funding
4. Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee to Markup Budgets for NEH,
NEA, and Other Cultural and Historic Preservation Programs On July 18
1. House Defeats By Large Majority Amendment to Eliminate Funding for NEH
-- On Friday, July 11 the House debated an amendment introduced by
Representative Steve Chabot (R-OH) to eliminate funding in FY 98 for NEH.
On Tuesday, July 15 at 8 pm, in a roll call vote the House defeated the
Chabot Amendment by a vote of 328 against with only 96 voting to eliminate
NEH funding. There were 92 Republicans who joined the Democrats in
defeating this amendment.
Representative Ronald Dellums (D-CA) summed up the debate by saying that
while he opposed the amendment, he felt that Chabot had done the House a
service in allowing so many colleagues an opportunity to give eloquent
testimony about the valuable work of NEH. In the debate which last over
an hour, twenty-two members, including four Republicans, spoke in
opposition to the amendment stressing the many and varied contributions of
NEH. Only three members supported the amendment to eliminate funding for
NEH.
The twenty-two members who spoke in opposition to the Chabot amendment
which called for the elimination of funding for NEH were as follows,
listed in the order in which they spoke: Yates (D-IL), Vento (D-MN),
Fowler (R-FLA); Boswell (D-IOWA), Bereuter (R- NEB); Baldacci (D-Maine),
Castle (R-Del), Capps (D-CA), Johnson (R-CT), Gejdenson (D-CT), Obey
(D-WI) Nadler (D-NY), Strickland (D-OH), Moran (D-VA), Pelosi (D-CA),
Dellums (D-CA), Meek (D-FL), Engel (D-NY), Jackson-Lee (D-TX), Davis
(D-IL), Mink (D-Hawaii), Sawyer (D-OH). The three members supporting the
amendment were: Chabot (R-OH), Kingston (R-GA), and Cunningham (R-CA).
Chabot rooted his case for the elimination of NEH in the argument that NEH
benefits a small cultural bureaucracy. He stated that money should not be
taken out of the pockets of hard working Americans for junkets for
academic elites. The supporters of NEH responded by noting the many ways
in which the ordinary folks of America, not the academic elite, benefit
from the programs of NEH. The supporters of NEH highlighted the value of
specific programs such as the summer institutes for teachers, documentary
films, and many humanities councils programs that bring humanities
programs to rural areas. The twenty-two supporters stressed the that NEH
fosters creativity, teachers us as a nation who we are and what we might
become, engages the public in life long learning, builds a sense of
community, preserves America's history, enhances the soul of America,
excels at creating a public-private partnership, nurtures critical
thinking skills, and educates citizens about our democratic heritage.
2. Senate Appropriations Committee Endorses Subcommittee Recommendations
for the National Archives and NHPRC -- The Senate Appropriations Committee
met on July 15 and endorsed the recommendations of the Senate Treasury,
Postal Service, and General Government Appropriations Subcommittee for
the budgets for FY 98 for the agencies under its jurisdiction. The Senate
Appropriations Committee s markup of its appropriations bill includes $5
million for the National Historical Publications and Records Commission
(NHPRC) grants program, this is a 25% increase above the President's
request of $4 million. The NHPRC's grants program is currently funded at
$5 million. The markup also includes $207.939 million for the FY 98
operating budget for the National Archives. The Archives operating budget
is currently $196.963 million and the President had recommended $ 206.47
million. In a separate line item, the markup designates $10.65 million
for the repairs and alterations of the National Archives buildings, which
include the Presidential Libraries. This was an increase over the
President's request of $6.65 million.
3. House Defeats Ehlers Amendment on $80 million in Block Grants To
States for Arts Funding -- On July 10 the House in a very close 217 to 216
procedural vote decided to allow no votes on the National Endowment for
the Arts (NEA) and to permit only the Ehlers amendment on arts funding to
come before the House. Representative Vernon J. Ehlers (R-Mich) amendment
called for an appropriation of $80 million in block grants to states in
FY'98 for arts funding with 60% going directly to local school boards for
art education projects and 40% going to the state arts commissions.
Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-GA) was behind the development of this amendment
and its intent was to dismantle the national program of NEA while allowing
some federal funding for arts through block grants. Although the
procedural vote -- that allowed the Ehlers' amendment to be brought to
the floor -- passed by a very close vote, the Ehlers amendment when it
came to the floor for a vote on July 11 failed by a significant majority
with 271 voting in opposition and only 155 supporting it. The House
Interior Appropriations Bill includes no money for NEA and provides no
block funding for the arts.
4. Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee to Markup Budgets for NEH,
NEA, and Other Cultural and Historic Preservation Programs On July 18 --
On Friday, July 18, at 10 am the Senate Interior Subcommittee will meet to
markup its appropriations bill, which involves determining the budgets
for all agencies and programs under its jurisdiction. This includes the
NEH, NEA, the Smithsonian, historic preservation programs, and the
National Park Service. Members of this committee are: Slade Gorton (R-WA)
Chairman <[log in to unmask]>, Ted Stevens (R-Alaska)
<[log in to unmask]>, Thad Cochran (R-Miss)
<[log in to unmask]>, Pete Domenici (R-NM)
[log in to unmask]>, Conrad Burns (R-MT)
[log in to unmask]> , Robert Bennett (R-UT)
<[log in to unmask]>, Gregg (R-NH) <[log in to unmask]>, Ben
Nighthorse Campbell (R-CO), Robert Byrd (D-WV) Ranking Minority, Patrick
Leahy (D-VT) <[log in to unmask]>, Dale Bumpers (D-ARK)
<[log in to unmask]>, Ernest Hollings (D-SC)
<[log in to unmask]> , Harry Reid (D-NV)
<[log in to unmask]>, Barbara Boxer (D-CA)
<[log in to unmask]>, and Byron Dorgan (D-ND)
<[log in to unmask]>
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
NCC invites you to redistribute the NCC Washington Updates.
A complete backfile of these reports is maintained by H-Net.
See World Wide Web: http://h-net.msu.edu/~ncc/
* * * * * ** * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
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