The Bush Administration's FY2004 budget request, released February 3, 2003, budgetedEnergy and Water Development Programs at $26.95 billion. The FY2003 ConsolidatedAppropriations Resolution ( H.J.Res. 2 , P.L. 108-7 ) and the Emergency WartimeSupplemental Appropriations Act, 2003 ( P.L. 108-11 ) funded these programs at $26.20 billion. OnJuly 15 the House Appropriations Committee reported a bill ( H.R. 2754 ) containingFY2004 appropriations of $27.08 billion, and the House passed the bill with the same funding onJuly 18. The Senate passed a $27.38 billion version of H.R. 2754 on September 16. The conference committee on the bill approved $27.33 billion on November 5, 2003 ( H.Rept.108-357 ), and both the House and the Senate agreed to the conference report on November 18. Thebill was signed December 1. On November 25 House and Senate conferees reported out H.R. 2673 , the omnibus Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2004 ( H.Rept. 108-401 ),which included seven of the 13 regularappropriations bills not yet passed. Although Energy and Water Development was not one of thoseincluded in the omnibus bill, several provisions affected Energy and Water programs. The Houseapproved the conference report on H.R. 2673 on December 8, and the Senate on January22, 2004. The President signed the bill January 23 ( P.L. 108-199 ). Table 1. Status of Energy and Water DevelopmentAppropriations, FY2004 The Energy and Water Development bill includes funding for civil worksprojects of the Army Corps of Engineers, the Department of the Interior's Bureau ofReclamation (BOR), most of the Department of Energy (DOE), and a number ofindependent agencies, including the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and theAppalachian Regional Commission (ARC). The Bush Administration's request was$26.946 billion for these programs for FY2004, compared with $26.198 billionappropriated for FY2003. The House Appropriations Committee recommended$27.080 billion for FY2004 ( H.R. 2754 ), and the bill passed the Housewith that amount on July 18. The Senate bill, S. 1424 , reported out bythe Senate Appropriations Committee on July 17, contained funding of $27.378billion, and the Senate incorporated that bill in its version of H.R. 2754 with a number of noncontroversial amendments on September 16. The final bill,signed into law December 1, contained $27.328 billion. Although Energy and Water Development is not one of the seven regular appropriations bills included in H.R. 2673 ( P.L. 108-199 ), the omnibusConsolidated Appropriations Act, 2004, several provisions in that measure affectedEnergy and Water programs, including a 0.59% rescission for all non-defenseprograms. Except where specifically noted, the dollar amounts cited in this report donot reflect provisions included in P.L. 100-199 . For the Corps of Engineers in FY2004, the Administration requested $4.19 billion, almost 10% ($445 million) less than the amount originally appropriated forFY2003. The Administration's request focused funding on construction projects thatcould be completed in FY2004 and eight projects considered priorities by theAdministration, including the Florida Everglades. The House bill included $4.482billion, the Senate Appropriations Committee bill recommended $4.427 billion. Thisfunding was increased to $4.491 billion on the Senate floor. P.L. 108-137 provided$4.571 billion for the Corps. In the end, only one of the Administration's eightproject received the full amount requested; the other priority projects all received lessthan requested. The Administration asked for $891 million for FY2004 for the Department of the Interior programs included in the Energy and Water Development bill -- theBureau of Reclamation and the Central Utah Project. This would have been adecrease of $41 million from the FY2003 funding level. The House bill contained$916 million, the Senate bill $956 million, and the final bill $917 million. The FY2004 request for DOE programs in the bill was $21.689 billion, about $1.32 billion more than the previous year. The major activities in the DOE budget areenergy research and development, general science, environmental cleanup, andnuclear weapons programs. The House bill funded these programs at $21.542billion, and the Senate bill at $21.674 billion. The final bill includes $21.570 billion. (Funding of DOE's programs for fossil fuels, energy efficiency, and energy statisticsis included in the Interior and Related Agencies appropriations bill ( P.L. 108-108 ).The FY2004 net appropriations for these programs was $1.7 billion.) The request for funding the independent agencies in Title IV of the bill was $148 million, compared with $207 million in FY2003. The House bill contained$138 million for FY2004, the Senate bill $230 million. The final bill provides $229million. Table 2 includes budget totals for energy and water development appropriations enacted for FY1997 to FY2003 and the Administration's request for FY2004. Table 2. Energy and Water Development Appropriations, FY1997 to FY2004 (budget authority in billions of current dollars) a a These figures represent current dollars, exclude permanent budget authorities, andreflect rescissions. Tables 3-10 provide budget details for Title I (Corps of Engineers), Title II (Department of the Interior), Title III (Department of Energy), and Title IV(independent agencies) for FY2003-FY2004. The President's request for FY2004 for the civil works program of the U.S.Army Corps of Engineers was $4.19 billion, a decrease of $445 million from theoriginally enacted appropriation for FY2003. P.L. 108-137 provided totalappropriations for the Corps of $4.57 billion. The final amount represents anincrease in construction funding from the House and Senate versions of the bill. Theconference committee requested removing all funding for the Flood Control andCoastal Emergencies account in H.R. 2754 because the depleted accountwas recently replenished with $60 million through the Legislative BranchAppropriations Act for FY2004, P.L. 108-83 . The omnibus FY2004 ConsolidatedAppropriations bill, H.R. 2673 ( P.L. 108-199 ), includes severalprovisions related to the Army Corps, most notably $14 million in additionalappropriations for the Corps' construction account. Table 3. Energy and Water Development Appropriations Title I: Corps of Engineers ($ millions) a Includes $39 million appropriated in Emergency Wartime SupplementalAppropriations Act, 2003, P. L. 108-11. b "Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial Action Program" c Includes $60 million of appropriations provided in the Legislative BranchAppropriations for FY2004, Title III, Chapter 2 of P.L. 108-83 , enacted onSeptember 30, 2003. The President's budget request for FY2004 limited funding for the planning and design of new projects; however, it fully fund all projects whose construction couldbe completed in FY2004, and provided substantial funding for eight projectsconsidered by the Administration to be priorities. The Administration's budget wouldhave provided some support for 140 other projects, but construction would haveproceeded more slowly than originally planned by the Corps because these projectswould not have been fully funded. (1) TheAdministration's request includes fundingto complete design of 22 proposed projects, while deferring work on all other designefforts. P.L. 108-137 provided less than the requested amount for seven of the eightpriority projects. The final legislation spread the construction appropriations acrossa broader set of construction activities than the President's request. The President's request would have provided no funds for studies and "environmental infrastructure" projects in the following non-traditional missionareas: wastewater treatment, irrigation water supply, and municipal and industrialwater supply treatment and distribution. By not seeking funding for these activities,the Administration was reinforcing its interest in focusing available federal fundingon navigation, flood control, storm damage reduction, and ecosystem restorationprojects. The final legislation provided funding for several environmentalinfrastructure projects. The Administration's $70 million request for the Flood Control and Coastal Emergencies account was significantly higher than the FY2003 appropriation of $15million and the FY2003 request for $20 million. The actual expenditure for activitiesunder this account in previous years has averaged $70 million, with much of thefunding being provided through supplemental appropriations. This account financesresponse and recovery activities for flood and storm events, preparedness for theseevents, and the Corps' support of the Federal Emergency Management Agency(FEMA) through the Federal Response Plan. Because this is an emergencymanagement program, annual costs vary significantly based on actual events and/orchanging missions. P.L. 108-137 contained no funding for this account; theconference report language ( H.Rept. 108-357 ) cited the recent replenishment of thedepleted account with $60 million through P.L. 108-83 as the reason. TheConference report also directed the Secretary of the Army to consider changes to themanagement of the account and to report to the Appropriations Committees of theHouse and Senate within 180 days of enactment. Funding Level. Funding for the Corps' civil works program has often been a contentious issue between theAdministration and Congress, with final appropriations typically providing morefunding than requested, regardless of which political party controls the White Houseand Congress.