Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations

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Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies:

FY2015 Appropriations

-name redactedSpecialist in Natural Resources Policy

January 27, 2015

Congressional Research Service

7-....

www.crs.gov

R43617

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations

Summary

The Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies appropriations bill includes funding for most of

the Department of the Interior (DOI) and for agencies within other departments—including the

Forest Service within the Department of Agriculture and the Indian Health Service within the

Department of Health and Human Services. It also provides funding for the Environmental

Protection Agency (EPA), arts and cultural agencies, and numerous other entities.

For FY2015, the President requested $30.69 billion for the approximately 30 agencies and entities

typically funded in the annual Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies appropriations law.

The President’s request would have been an increase of $570.9 million (1.9%) over the total

FY2014 enacted appropriations of $30.12 billion.

On July 23, 2014, the House Appropriations Committee reported H.R. 5171, the Department of

the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2015, containing $30.28

billion for FY2015. The measure included $470.0 million in additional fire suppression funding

for the Forest Service. On August 1, 2014, the chairman of the Senate Appropriations

Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies released a draft measure and

accompanying explanatory statement recommending $30.71 billion in total appropriations. The

draft included $1.19 billion in emergency appropriations for Wildland Fire Management of DOI

and the Forest Service. Neither measure saw subsequent legislative action.

Regular appropriations for FY2015 were not enacted prior to the start of the fiscal year on

October 1, 2015. Accordingly, continuing appropriations were temporarily provided under

continuing appropriations laws (originally P.L. 113-164). Agencies generally received funding at

the FY2014 level minus an across-the-board reduction of 0.0554%, under the authority and

conditions provided for FY2014.

On December 16, 2014, regular, full-year appropriations were enacted for Interior, Environment,

and Related Agencies as part of P.L. 113-235, the Consolidated and Further Continuing

Appropriations Act, 2015. The law included total appropriations of $30.48 billion for these

agencies, primarily in Division F. For DOI agencies in Title I of the bill, appropriations were

$11.09 billion, including $372.0 million for the Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program. This

was 36.4% of the total enacted. For the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), appropriations

were $8.14 billion, or 26.7% of the total. For agencies and other entities in Title III of the bill, the

total was $11.25 billion, or 36.9% of the total.

Appropriations enacted for Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies over the prior five fiscal

years (FY2010-FY2014) peaked in FY2010 at $32.32 billion. Relative to FY2010, the FY2015

enacted appropriations decreased by $1.84 billion (-5.7%). However, the FY2015 appropriations

were higher than the appropriations enacted for each of the other fiscal years during the five-year

period. They were $358.0 million (1.2%) higher than the most recent (FY2014) appropriations.

Congressional Research Service

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations

Contents

Introduction...................................................................................................................................... 1

FY2015 Appropriations ................................................................................................................... 2

Components of the FY2015 President’s Request ...................................................................... 2

FY2015 President’s Request Compared with FY2014 Enacted Appropriations ....................... 3

FY2015 House Committee-Reported Bill and Senate Interior Subcommittee Draft ................ 7

FY2015 Enacted Appropriations ............................................................................................... 9

Five-Year History........................................................................................................................... 12

Figures

Figure 1. Components of the President’s FY2015 Request for Interior, Environment, and

Related Agencies .......................................................................................................................... 4

Figure 2. Appropriations for Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies:

FY2015 Enacted Appropriations Compared with Prior Year Enacted Appropriations and

FY2015 Recommended Appropriations ..................................................................................... 14

Tables

Table 1. Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations Requested

by the President Compared with FY2014 Enacted Appropriations .............................................. 5

Table 2. Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Enacted, FY2015

Recommended, and FY2014 Enacted Appropriations................................................................ 10

Table 3. Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Enacted Appropriations

Compared with Prior Year Enacted Appropriations and FY2015 Recommended

Appropriations ............................................................................................................................ 13

Contacts

Author Contact Information........................................................................................................... 14

Key Policy Staff ............................................................................................................................. 14

Congressional Research Service

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations

Introduction

The annual Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies appropriations bill1 includes funding for

agencies and programs in three separate federal departments as well as numerous related

agencies. The bill typically contains three primary titles. Title I provides funding for most

Department of the Interior (DOI) agencies,2 many of which manage land and other natural

resource or regulatory programs. Title II contains appropriations for the Environmental Protection

Agency (EPA). Title III funds agencies in other departments, such as the Forest Service in the

Department of Agriculture and the Indian Health Service in the Department of Health and Human

Services; arts and cultural agencies, such as the Smithsonian Institution; and various other

entities. Title III of the bill is referred to as “Related Agencies.”

Neither the House nor the Senate passed regular FY2015 appropriations for Interior,

Environment, and Related Agencies before the start of the fiscal year on October 1, 2015. Before

that date, the House Appropriations Committee had reported H.R. 5171, the Department of the

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2015, containing FY2015

appropriations,3 and the chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior,

Environment, and Related Agencies had released a draft measure and accompanying explanatory

statement.4 Neither measure had subsequent legislative action.

Because regular FY2015 appropriations were not enacted prior to October 1, 2015, continuing

appropriations were temporarily provided after that date. Under the Continuing Appropriations

Resolution, 2015 (CR),5 agencies generally received funding at the FY2014 level6 minus an

across-the-board reduction of 0.0554%. Funding was generally provided under the authority and

conditions, and to the same extent and manner, as in FY2014. Further, funding could not be used

to initiate or resume projects or activities for which funding or authority was not provided for

FY2014. The CR provided appropriations through December 11, 2014; two subsequent laws

extended continuing funding through December 17, 2014.7

Hereinafter this bill is sometimes referred to as the Interior bill.

The exceptions are the Bureau of Reclamation and the Central Utah Project, which receive appropriations through

Energy and Water Development Appropriations laws. For information on FY2015 appropriations for these entities, see

CRS Report R43567, Energy and Water Development: FY2015 Appropriations, coordinated by (name redacted).

H.R. 5171 was reported by the House Appropriations Committee on July 23, 2014 (H.Rept. 113-551).

The draft bill text and accompanying explanatory statement were released on August 1, 2014. The draft bill text is on

the website of the Senate Committee on Appropriations at http://www.appropriations.senate.gov/sites/default/files/

INTERIORFY15bill.pdf. The explanatory statement is on the website of the Senate Committee on Appropriations at

http://www.appropriations.senate.gov/sites/default/files/INTFY15Report.pdfhttp://www.appropriations.senate.gov/

news/fy14-interior-explanatory-statement. Amounts in this report for the Senate Interior Subcommittee are taken from

the table in this draft explanatory statement. Hereinafter the chairman’s draft is primarily referred to as the Senate

Interior Subcommittee draft.

P.L. 113-164.

This was the level in Division G of P.L. 113-76.

P.L. 113-202 extended continuing appropriations through December 13, 2014, and P.L. 113-203 provided a further

extension through December 17, 2014.

Congressional Research Service

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations

On December 16, 2014, regular FY2015 appropriations were enacted for Interior, Environment,

and Related Agencies as part of P.L. 113-235.8 The law included total appropriations of $30.48

billion for these agencies, primarily in Division F.9

This report provides a brief overview of FY2015 appropriations levels. It first addresses the

appropriations requested by the President for FY2015 for agencies in the bill and compares the

requested appropriations with FY2014 enacted appropriations. It next discusses the FY2015

appropriations contained in H.R. 5171 as reported by the House Appropriations Committee and

the appropriations recommended in the Senate Interior Subcommittee draft. It then summarizes

the components of the FY2015 enacted appropriations and compares the FY2015 enacted level

with funding enacted for the prior five years (FY2010-FY2014) and recommended for FY2015.10

Appropriations are complex. For example, the budget requests for some agencies are large,

numbering several hundred pages and containing numerous funding, programmatic, and

legislative changes for congressional consideration. Further, appropriations laws provide funds

for numerous accounts, activities, and subactivities, and the accompanying explanatory

statements provide additional directives and other important information. This report does not

provide account- and subaccount-level information. Further, it does not discuss agency highlights

under the President’s request, the House committee-reported bill, the Senate Interior

Subcommittee draft, or the FY2015 appropriations law, such as increases, decreases, budgetary

reorganizations, and legislative changes. For information on FY2015 appropriations for a

particular agency, or for individual accounts, programs, or activities administered by a particular

agency, contact the key policy staff identified at the end of this report.

FY2015 Appropriations

Components of the FY2015 President’s Request

For FY2015, the President requested $30.69 billion11 for the approximately 30 agencies and

entities typically funded in the annual Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies appropriations

law. For the 10 major DOI agencies12 in Title I of the bill, the request was $10.86 billion, or

35.4% of the total requested. For EPA, funded by Title II of the bill, the request was $7.89 billion,

or 25.7% of the total. For about 20 agencies and other entities typically funded in Title III of the

bill, the request was $11.94 billion, or 38.9% of the total.

The title of the law is the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015.

In addition to the appropriations in Division F, $372.0 million for the Payments in Lieu of Taxes program was

provided in the general provisions of the law. The total of $30.48 billion includes this funding.

The FY2015 appropriations requested by the President, reported by the House Appropriations Committee, and

recommended by the Senate Interior Subcommittee are sometimes referred to in this report collectively as the FY2015

recommended levels.

The total requested by the Administration included a proposed $1.19 billion disaster relief cap adjustment to the

discretionary spending limits in law. Of the total proposed adjustment, $240.4 million was for Department of the

Interior (DOI) Wildland Fire Management and $954.0 million was for Forest Service Wildland Fire Management. The

FY2015 enacted appropriations did not include the disaster relief cap adjustment. For information on the President’s

request for DOI and Forest Service wildfire suppression, including the President’s proposal to fund suppression in part

by creating a new cap adjustment to statutory discretionary spending limits, see CRS Report R43077, Wildfire

Management: Federal Funding and Related Statistics, by (name redacted).

“Agencies” is used to encompass eight DOI agencies as well as DOI Departmental Offices and DOI DepartmentWide Programs.

Congressional Research Service

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations

Appropriations for agencies vary widely for a number of reasons relating to the number, breadth,

and complexity of agency responsibilities; alternative sources of funding (e.g., mandatory

appropriations); and Administration and congressional priorities, among other factors. Thus,

although the President’s FY2015 request covered approximately 30 agencies, funding for a small

subset of these agencies accounted for most of the total. For example, the appropriations for three

agencies—EPA, Forest Service, and Indian Health Service—were about three-fifths (59.4%) of

the total requested. Further, more than three-quarters (76.3%) of the request was for these three

agencies and two others—National Park Service and Bureau of Indian Affairs.

For DOI agencies, the requests ranged from $72.4 million for the Bureau of Ocean Energy

Management to $2.61 billion for the National Park Service. The requests for 6 of the 10 agencies

exceeded $1 billion. Nearly half (47.7%) of the $10.86 billion requested for DOI agencies was for

two agencies—the National Park Service and Bureau of Indian Affairs.

For Related Agencies in Title III, the requested funding levels showed even more variation. The

President did not seek funding for one agency that received FY2014 appropriations (National

Capital Arts and Cultural Affairs), and the President sought amounts ranging from $2.5 million

for the Commission of Fine Arts to $5.71 billion for the Forest Service. Other than the Forest

Service, the Indian Health Service would have been the only other agency to receive more than

$4 billion under the President’s proposal. The next-largest request was for the Smithsonian

Institution, at $850.9 million. By contrast, 14 agencies would have received less than $80 million

each, including 7 with appropriations of less than $10 million each.

Figure 1 identifies the share of the President’s request for each of the three titles of the Interior

bill. It also depicts the portion of funding requested for particular agencies. Table 1 contains the

amount requested by the President for FY2015 for each agency in the Interior bill, the FY2014

enacted appropriations, and the percentage change from FY2014 as compared with the

President’s request for FY2015.

FY2015 President’s Request Compared with FY2014

Enacted Appropriations

The President’s request of $30.69 billion for FY2015 would have been an increase of $570.9

million (1.9%) over the total FY2014 enacted appropriations of $30.12 billion. For FY2014, most

of the $30.12 billion was provided in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2014.13 However,

$628.5 million of the total was included in the Continuing Appropriations Act, 2014.14

P.L. 113-76, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2014, was enacted on January 17, 2014. Division G of the law

contained appropriations for Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies.

P.L. 113-46, the Continuing Appropriations Act, 2014, was enacted on October 17, 2013. Section 136 of Division A

contained $600.0 million for the Forest Service for Wildland Fire Management. Section 135 of Division A contained

$36.0 million for DOI for Wildland Fire Management. Of the DOI appropriations, $7.5 million of unobligated balances

was rescinded by P.L. 113-76, resulting in $28.5 million for DOI. Under P.L. 113-46, the funds were to be used for

“urgent wildland fire suppression,” under certain terms and conditions.

Congressional Research Service

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations

Figure 1. Components of the President’s FY2015 Request for Interior, Environment,

and Related Agencies

($ in thousands)

Source: Prepared by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) with data from the House Appropriations

Committee.

Notes: Percentages do not add to 100% due to rounding. Agencies with titles shown in orange are in the

Department of the Interior, Title I of the bill. The Environmental Protection Agency, shown in green, is Title II of

the bill. Agencies with titles shown in blue are Related Agencies, Title III of the bill.

The overall increase proposed for FY2015 was the result of various increases and decreases

sought for different agencies/entities. For instance, under the President’s proposal, the total for all

DOI agencies would have increased by $381.3 million (3.6%), funding for EPA would have

decreased by $310.0 million (-3.8%), and the total for all Related Agencies in Title III would have

increased by $500.5 million (4.4%).

With regard to DOI, for 7 of the 10 agencies the President proposed increases above FY2014. The

increases varied in dollar amount and percentage of appropriations, with the lowest dollar

increase of $2.4 million (3.1%) for the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement and the

highest of $182.2 million (19.5%) for Department-Wide Programs. Most of the increase under

Department-Wide Programs was for Wildland Fire Management. For the other three DOI

agencies, the President sought decreases varying from $5.3 million (-3.5%) for the Office of

Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement to $10.4 million (-1.7%) for Departmental Offices.

The President’s proposed overall decrease for EPA was largely due to a $529.8 million reduction

(-15.0%) for the State and Tribal Assistance Grants (STAG) account. Most of the proposed

decrease in the STAG account was attributed to a combined reduction below the FY2014 enacted

funding for grants that provide financial assistance to states to help capitalize Clean Water and

Drinking Water State Revolving Funds (SRFs). Respectively, these funds finance local

Congressional Research Service

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations

wastewater and drinking water infrastructure projects.15 The STAG account also includes funds

for other grants used by states and tribes. The President sought overall increases for all other EPA

accounts above the FY2014 enacted levels.16 The $113.0 million (4.3%) increase for the

Environmental Programs and Management (EPM) account was the largest overall dollar increase

among the EPA accounts. The EPM account funds a broad array of activities supporting EPA’s

development and enforcement of pollution control regulations and standards, technical assistance,

and administrative and operational expenses.

The President’s overall increase proposed for Title III agencies reflected various increases and

decreases. Half of the agencies would have received higher funding under the request, but the

three largest agencies would have received the largest dollar increases. Specifically, the President

sought an additional $227.6 million (4.2%) for the Forest Service, $199.7 million (4.5%) for the

Indian Health Service, and $45.9 million (5.7%) for the Smithsonian Institution. The increase for

the Forest Service would have been primarily for suppressing wildland fires and for the National

Forest System account. The Indian Health Service would have received additional funds for many

programs and activities, including clinical services and contract support costs. The increase for

the Smithsonian would have been for the National Museum of African American History and

Culture, outreach, facilities services, and revitalization of facilities, among other purposes. For

several other agencies funded in Title III, the President sought level funding. For instance, the

National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities would each

have been funded at the FY2014 level of $146.0 million. Still other Title III agencies would have

received varying reductions in funding, with funding eliminated for National Capital Arts and

Cultural Affairs.17

Table 1. Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations

Requested by the President Compared with FY2014 Enacted Appropriations

($ in thousands)

Bureau or Agency

FY2014

Enacted

Approps.

FY2015

Requested

Approps.

% Change

from

FY2014

Enacted to

FY2015

Requested

Title I: Department of the Interior

Bureau of Land Management

1,106,501

1,099,738

-0.6%

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

1,427,367

1,476,202

3.4%

National Park Service

2,561,519

2,614,599

2.1%

U.S. Geological Survey

1,032,000

1,073,268

4.0%

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

69,000

72,422

5.0%

Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement

78,644

81,046

3.1%

See CRS Report 96-647, Water Infrastructure Financing: History of EPA Appropriations, by (name redacted). For

information on EPA appropriations generally, contact (name redacted) at /redacted/@crs.loc.gov.

However, within these accounts the FY2015 request included both increases and decreases (including some proposed

eliminations) for individual programs and activities.

FY2014 appropriations were $2.0 million.

Congressional Research Service

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations

FY2015

Requested

Approps.

% Change

from

FY2014

Enacted to

FY2015

Requested

150,112

144,805

-3.5%

Bureau of Indian Affairs

2,531,273

2,564,890

1.3%

Departmental Offices

622,749

612,393

-1.7%

Office of the Secretary

264,000

265,272

0.5%

Insular Affairs

102,441

92,245

-10.0%

Office of the Solicitor

65,800

Office of Inspector General

50,831

50,047

-1.5%

Office of Special Trustee for American Indians

139,677

139,029

-0.5%

934,343

1,116,493

19.5%

861,482

1,034,409

20.1%

Central Hazardous Materials Fund

9,598

10,010

4.3%

Natural Resource Damage Assessment Fund

6,263

7,767

24.0%

Working Capital Fund

Bureau or Agency

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation

and Enforcement

Department-Wide Programs

Wildland Fire Management

FY2014

Enacted

Approps.

57,000

64,307

12.8%

Subtotal, Title I: Department of the Interiora

10,474,508

10,855,856

3.6%

Subtotal, Title II: Environmental Protection

Agencyb

8,200,000

7,890,020

-3.8%

Forest Service

5,479,611

5,707,208

4.2%

Indian Health Service

4,434,515

4,634,177

4.5%

National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

77,349

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry

74,691

Council on Environmental Quality and Office of

Environmental Quality

3,000

3,009

0.3%

Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board

11,000

12,253

11.4%

Office of Navajo and Hopi Indian Relocation

7,341

8,499

15.8%

Institute of American Indian and Alaska Native

Culture and Arts Development

9,369

11,469

22.4%

Smithsonian Institution

805,000

850,900

5.7%

National Gallery of Art

133,000

140,000

5.3%

John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

34,398

32,800

-4.6%

Woodrow Wilson International Center for

Scholars

10,500

9,975

-5.0%

National Endowment for the Arts

146,021

National Endowment for the Humanities

146,021

2,396

2,524

5.3%

Title III: Related Agencies

Commission of Fine Arts

Congressional Research Service

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations

Bureau or Agency

FY2014

Enacted

Approps.

FY2015

Requested

Approps.

% Change

from

FY2014

Enacted to

FY2015

Requested

National Capital Arts and Cultural Affairs

2,000

-100.0%

Advisory Council on Historic Preservation

6,531

6,204

-5.0%

National Capital Planning Commission

8,084

7,948

-1.7%

U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum

52,385

Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission

1,000

21,300c

2,030%

Subtotal, Title III: Related Agencies

11,444,212

11,944,733

4.4%

Total: Interior, Environment, and Related

Agenciesd

30,119,720

30,690,609

1.9%

Source: Prepared by CRS with data from the House Appropriations Committee.

The FY2014 amount reflects a state royalty administrative cost deduction of $39.0 million not shown in the

column amounts above.

For additional information on appropriations for the Environmental Protection Agency for FY2015, see CRS

Report R43709, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA): FY2015 Appropriations, by (name redacted).

The President’s request consisted of $2.0 million for salaries and expenses and $19.0 million for

construction of the memorial. By contrast, FY2014 appropriations provided funding only for salaries and

expenses.

The FY2014 appropriations figure reflects appropriations of $30.16 billion, including $1.0 million for

stewardship contracting not shown in the column amounts above, and rescissions of $35.5 million. It also

reflects $628.5 million for Wildland Fire Management under P.L. 113-46 (including a rescission in P.L. 11376). The FY2015 request reflects appropriations of $29.53 billion, a proposed disaster relief cap adjustment

of $1.19 billion, and rescissions of $36.4 million.

FY2015 House Committee-Reported Bill and Senate Interior

Subcommittee Draft

H.R. 5171, as reported by the House Appropriations Committee on July 23, 2014, contained a

total of $30.28 billion for Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies for FY2015. The total

included $470.0 million in additional suppression funding for the Forest Service. These funds

were intended to address a projected shortfall in fire suppression appropriations for FY2014,

according to the House Appropriations Committee.18 The draft bill released on August 1, 2014, by

the chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and Related

Agencies recommended $30.71 billion. The total included $1.19 billion in emergency

appropriations for Wildland Fire Management activities of DOI and the Forest Service.19 No

House Committee on Appropriations, Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies

Appropriations Bill, 2015, H.Rept. 113-551 to accompany H.R. 5171, pp. 4, 181.

Specifically, the Senate Interior Subcommittee draft contained emergency appropriations of $240.4 million for DOI

Wildland Fire Management and $954.0 million for Forest Service Wildland Fire Management. For additional

information on the proposal for Wildland Fire Management in the Senate Interior Subcommittee draft, see pp. 3-4 of

the draft explanatory statement at http://www.appropriations.senate.gov/sites/default/files/INTFY15Report.pdf.

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Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations

further legislative action occurred on either the House bill or the Senate Interior Subcommittee

draft.

The Senate Interior Subcommittee draft total was $424.0 million (1.4%) more than the $30.28

billion in the House committee-reported bill, as shown in Table 2. With regard to the 10 DOI

agencies, the Senate Interior Subcommittee draft contained higher funding than the House

committee-reported bill for five agencies, the versions were equal for two agencies, and the

House committee-reported bill had higher funding for three agencies. Overall, the $11.05 billion

total appropriations figure for DOI agencies in the House committee-reported bill was $219.9

million (2.0%) higher than the $10.83 billion in the Senate Interior Subcommittee draft. This was

primarily because it included $442.0 million for the Payments in Lieu of Taxes program, which

compensates counties and local governments for nontaxable lands within their jurisdictions.20 The

Senate Interior Subcommittee draft did not include funding for this program.

The $8.18 billion recommended by the Senate Interior Subcommittee for EPA was $699.3 million

(9.3%) more than the $7.48 billion in the House committee-reported bill. The versions proposed

different levels of appropriations for all EPA accounts. The largest dollar difference was for the

STAG account, primarily from higher levels in the Senate Interior Subcommittee draft for both

the Clean Water and Drinking Water SRFs.

For all Related Agencies in Title III, the House committee-reported bill included $11.75 billion,

$55.5 million (0.5%) more than the $11.69 billion included in the draft of the Senate Interior

Subcommittee. However, the House committee-reported bill contained higher funding for only

one agency—the Indian Health Service—for programs including clinical services and Indian

health professions. For all other Related Agencies, the funding recommendations were equal in

the two versions or higher in the Senate Interior Subcommittee draft.

Relative to the FY2014 total appropriations of $30.12 billion for Interior, Environment, and

Related Agencies, both the FY2015 House committee-reported bill and the Senate Interior

Subcommittee draft contained higher appropriations. Specifically, the House committee version

included an increase of $162.0 million (0.5%) over FY2014 and the Senate Interior

Subcommittee would have provided an increase of $586.0 million (1.9%).

Within the House committee’s proposed overall increase over FY2014 were varying rates of

increase or decrease for agencies in the bill. Among the proposed increases were the following:

$416.3 million (66.8%) for DOI Departmental Offices, $207.9 million (4.7%) for the Indian

Health Service, $113.7 million (4.5%) for the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and $85.7 million (1.6%)

for the Forest Service. The increase in DOI Departmental Offices was largely because of the

inclusion of appropriations for the Payments in Lieu of Taxes program. The largest decrease

proposed by the House committee was for EPA—$717.3 million (-8.7%) less than the FY2014

level. The overall proposed decrease for EPA was primarily due to reductions in the STAG

account for the Clean Water and Drinking Water SRFs.

House Committee on Appropriations, Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies

Appropriations Bill, 2015, H.Rept. 113-551 to accompany H.R. 5171, pp. 4, 164. H.R. 5171 sought to extend

mandatory funding for the Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) program for an additional year, through FY2015. For an

overview of the program, including current funding issues, see CRS Report RL31392, PILT (Payments in Lieu of

Taxes): Somewhat Simplified, by (name redacted).

Congressional Research Service

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations

Under the Senate Interior Subcommittee draft, most agencies in the bill would have received

increases over FY2014. Among the proposed increases were the following: $175.9 million

(18.8%) for Department-Wide Programs, $111.2 million (2.5%) for the Indian Health Service,

$100.5 million (1.8%) for the Forest Service, and $71.2 million (2.8%) for the National Park

Service. The increase under Department-Wide Programs was primarily for DOI Wildland Fire

Management.

FY2015 Enacted Appropriations

Agencies received widely varying amounts of the $30.48 billion appropriated for FY2015. For

DOI agencies in Title I of the bill, appropriations were $11.09 billion, including $372.0 million

for the Payments in Lieu of Taxes program.21 This figure was 36.4% of the total enacted. For

EPA, appropriations were $8.14 billion, or 26.7% of the total. For agencies and other entities in

Title III of the bill, appropriations were $11.25 billion, or 36.9% of the total.

Moreover, FY2015 appropriations were concentrated on a handful of agencies. Three agencies—

the EPA, Forest Service, and Indian Health Service—received nearly three-fifths (58.5%) of the

enacted appropriations. Together with the National Park Service and Bureau of Indian Affairs,

these five agencies received more than three-quarters (75.6%) of the total FY2015 appropriations.

For DOI agencies, appropriations ranged from $72.4 million for the Bureau of Ocean Energy

Management to $2.61 billion for the National Park Service. Appropriations for 5 of the 10 DOI

agencies were more than $1 billion. The National Park Service and Bureau of Indian Affairs

($2.60 billion) together accounted for nearly half (47.0%) of the $11.09 billion enacted for DOI

agencies.

Funding enacted for the 20 Related Agencies in Title III had a wider range, from $1.0 million for

the Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission to $5.06 billion for the Forest Service. The

second-largest appropriations figure was for the Indian Health Service, with $4.64 billion, and the

next-largest was less than $1 billion—$819.5 million for the Smithsonian Institution. By contrast,

eight agencies had appropriations of less than $10 million each.

The FY2015 appropriations total was a $358.0 million increase (1.2%) over the FY2014 enacted

appropriations of $30.12 billion. Appropriations for all DOI agencies increased by $616.4 million

(5.9%), in part because of the inclusion of $372.0 million for the Payments in Lieu of Taxes

program. This program was not funded in the FY2014 Interior appropriations law but rather was

funded through mandatory appropriations. In addition, most DOI agencies received additional

funding. The Bureau of Indian Affairs and National Park Service received among the largest

dollar increases. An increase of $70.2 million (2.8%) for the Bureau of Indian Affairs was

included for several activities and programs, among them tribal government, human services,

education, and construction of educational facilities. An additional $53.1 million (2.1%) for the

National Park Service was provided in anticipation of increased visitation for the agency’s

centennial in 2016. The additional funding was targeted to visitor services, park protection,

facility operations and maintenance, and a matching grant program.

Additional funding for the program was provided in P.L. 113-291, the Carl Levin and Howard P. “Buck” McKeon

National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2015.

Congressional Research Service

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations

The FY2015 appropriations for EPA decreased by $60.1 million (-0.7%) from the FY2014 level.

Contributing to the overall decrease was a $40.0 million rescission. Some accounts also

decreased, but others increased or remained at the FY2014 level.

FY2015 appropriations for all Related Agencies decreased by $197.3 million (-1.7%) from the

FY2014 level, in large part due to a reduction of $423.4 million (-7.7%) for the Forest Service.

Funding for the agency’s Wildland Fire Management account fell by $440.9 million (-14.3%),

whereas other Forest Service accounts increased by a total of $17.6 million (0.7%). Only two

other Title III agencies also received decreases. Eleven agencies received the same level of

appropriations as provided for FY2014, and six agency budgets grew by varying amounts. The

Indian Health Service received the largest dollar increase—$207.9 million (4.7%). Additional

funds were provided for many programs and activities, including hospital and health clinics,

purchased/referred care, and contract support costs.

Table 2 compares the FY2015 enacted appropriations for Interior, Environment, and Related

Agencies with appropriations enacted for FY2014 and recommended for FY2015. Data column

one shows the enacted appropriations for FY2014. Data column two presents the President’s

request for FY2015 appropriations. Data column three provides the levels of appropriations

reported by the House Appropriations Committee in H.R. 5171. Data column four contains the

recommendation of the chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior,

Environment, and Related Agencies. Data column five shows the FY2015 enacted appropriations.

Table 2. Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Enacted, FY2015

Recommended, and FY2014 Enacted Appropriations

($ in thousands)

Bureau or Agency

FY2014

Enacted

Approps.

FY2015

Requested

Approps.

FY2015

House

Committee

Reported

FY2015

Senate

Interior

Subcom.

FY2015

Enacted

Approps.

Title I: Department of the Interior

Bureau of Land Management

1,106,501

1,099,738

1,093,159

1,112,558

1,120,235

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

1,427,367

1,476,202

1,398,270

1,450,765

1,439,764

National Park Service

2,561,519

2,614,599

2,573,466

2,632,718

2,614,599

U.S. Geological Survey

1,032,000

1,073,268

1,035,718

1,046,037

1,045,000

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

69,000

72,422

Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement

78,644

81,046

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation

and Enforcement

150,112

144,805

149,112

144,805

150,112

Bureau of Indian Affairs

2,531,273

2,564,890

2,644,966

2,559,548

2,601,498

Departmental Offices

622,749

612,393

1,039,041

623,420

994,580

264,000

265,272

255,736

265,272

265,263

442,000

372,000a

Insular Affairs

102,441

92,245

88,794

103,272

102,441

Office of the Solicitor

65,800

64,024

65,800

Office of Inspector General

50,831

50,047

49,458

50,047

Office of Special Trustee for American Indians

139,677

139,029

Office of the Secretary

Payments in Lieu of Taxes

Congressional Research Service

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations

FY2015

Requested

Approps.

FY2015

House

Committee

Reported

FY2015

Senate

Interior

Subcom.

FY2015

Enacted

Approps.

934,343

1,116,493

966,257

1,110,286

971,656

861,482

1,034,409

896,779

1,034,409

896,779

Central Hazardous Materials Fund

9,598

10,010

9,598

10,010

Natural Resource Damage Assessment Fund

6,263

7,767

6,094

7,767

Working Capital Fund

57,000

64,307

53,786

58,100

57,100

Subtotal, Title I: Department of the

Interiorb

10,474,508

10,855,856

11,053,457

10,833,605

11,090,912

Subtotal, Title II: Environmental Protection

Agencyc

8,200,000

7,890,020

7,482,747

8,182,077

8,139,887

Forest Service

5,479,611

5,707,208

5,565,308

5,580,105

5,056,246

Indian Health Service

4,434,515

4,634,177

4,642,381

4,545,749

4,642,381

National Institute of Environmental Health

Sciences

77,349

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry

74,691

Council on Environmental Quality and Office of

Environmental Quality

3,000

3,009

3,000

3,009

3,000

Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board

11,000

12,253

11,000

Office of Navajo and Hopi Indian Relocation

7,341

8,499

7,143

7,879

7,341

Institute of American Indian and Alaska Native

Culture and Arts Development

9,369

11,469

9,469

Smithsonian Institution

805,000

850,900

813,297

825,443

819,541

National Gallery of Art

133,000

140,000

137,000

140,000

138,500

John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

34,398

32,800

Woodrow Wilson International Center for

Scholars

10,500

9,975

10,500

National Endowment for the Arts

146,021

150,000

146,021

National Endowment for the Humanities

146,021

150,000

146,021

Commission of Fine Arts

2,396

2,524

National Capital Arts and Cultural Affairs

2,000

1,000

2,000

Advisory Council on Historic Preservation

6,531

6,204

National Capital Planning Commission

8,084

7,948

U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum

52,385

Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commissiond

1,000

21,300

1,000

Subtotal, Title III: Related Agencies

11,444,212

11,944,733

11,745,516

11,690,055

11,246,921

Total: Interior, Environment, and Related

Agenciese

30,119,720

30,690,609

30,281,720

30,705,737

30,477,720

Bureau or Agency

Department-Wide Programs

Wildland Fire Management

FY2014

Enacted

Approps.

Title III: Related Agencies

Source: Prepared by CRS with data from the House and Senate Appropriations Committees.

Congressional Research Service

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations

Notes:

Appropriations for the Payments in Lieu of Taxes program were provided in Section 11 of the general

provisions of P.L. 113-235. This table reflects these appropriations under DOI Departmental Offices.

However, the law does not specify the appropriations to this account but states only that the funds are

available to the Secretary of the Interior.

The FY2014 amount reflects a state royalty administrative cost deduction of $39.0 million not shown in the

column amounts above.

For additional information on appropriations for the Environmental Protection Agency for FY2015, see CRS

Report R43709, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA): FY2015 Appropriations, by (name redacted).

Only the President’s request included funding for construction of the memorial (in addition to salaries and

expenses). The House committee-reported bill did not include funding for FY2015. The FY2014 enacted

appropriations, FY2015 Senate Interior Subcommittee draft, and FY2015 enacted appropriations contained

funding only for salaries and expenses.

The FY2014 appropriations figure reflects appropriations of $30.16 billion, including $1.0 million for

stewardship contracting not shown in the column amounts above, and rescissions of $35.5 million. It also

of $1.19 billion, and rescissions of $36.4 million. The FY2015 House committee-reported figure reflects

appropriations of $30.36 billion and rescissions of $75.0 million. The FY2015 Senate Interior Subcommittee

figure reflects appropriations of $29.57 billion, emergency appropriations of $1.19 billion, and rescissions of

$61.0 million. The FY2015 appropriations figure reflects appropriations in P.L. 113-235 of $30.17 billion in

Division F and $372.0 million in Section 11 of the general provisions. It also reflects rescissions of $68.0

million.

Five-Year History

Appropriations enacted for Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies over the prior five fiscal

years (FY2010-FY2014) peaked in FY2010 at $32.32 billion. Relative to FY2010, FY2015

enacted appropriations decreased by $1.84 billion (-5.7%).22 The overall decline can be attributed

primarily to reduced appropriations for EPA, which fell $2.15 billion (-20.9%). The

appropriations for DOI agencies and Related Agencies have increased since FY2010—by $43.7

million (0.4%) for DOI and $277.1 million (2.5%) for Related Agencies.

With the exception of FY2010, FY2015 appropriations were higher than the appropriations

enacted for each of the fiscal years during the five-year period. For instance, relative to FY2011

total appropriations of $29.61 billion, the FY2015 level was an increase of $867.0 million (2.9%).

Most recently, the FY2015 appropriations level was $358.0 million (1.2%) higher than the

FY2014 appropriations level. FY2015 appropriations also were higher than the FY2015

appropriations in H.R. 5171 as reported by the House Appropriations Committee (by $196.0

million, 0.6%). However, FY2015 enacted appropriations were lower than requested by the

President for FY2015 (by $212.9 million, -0.7%) and recommended in the Senate Interior

Subcommittee draft (by $228.0 million, -0.7%).

Table 3 shows total appropriations enacted for FY2010 through FY2015 for Interior,

Environment, and Related Agencies and the appropriations for each title of the bill. It also shows

the FY2015 appropriations requested by the President, reported by the House Appropriations

Committee, and recommended by the Senate Interior Subcommittee.

This comparison and others in this section are shown in current dollars. Using constant dollar comparisons would

result in different dollar amounts and percentages.

Congressional Research Service

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations

Table 3. Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Enacted

Appropriations Compared with Prior Year Enacted Appropriations and FY2015

Recommended Appropriations

($ in thousands)

Bureau or

Agency

FY2010

Enacted

Approps.

FY2011

Enacted

Approps.

FY2012

Enacted

Approps.

FY2013

Enacted

Approps.

FY2014

Enacted

Approps.

FY2015

Requested

Approps.

FY2015

House

Comm.

Reported

FY2015

Senate

Interior

Subcom.

FY2015

Enacted

Approps.

Subtotal: Title I:

Department of the

Interior

11,047,210

10,627,530

10,299,776

10,692,346

10,474,508

10,855,856

11,053,457

10,833,605

11,090,912

Subtotal: Title II:

Environmental

Protection Agency

10,291,864

8,682,117

8,449,385

8,478,443

8,200,000

7,890,020

7,482,747

8,182,077

8,139,887

Subtotal: Title III:

Related Agencies

10,969,844

10,299,035

10,479,159

10,517,427

11,444,212

11,944,733

11,745,516

11,690,055

11,246,921

Total: Interior,

Environment, and

Related Agenciesa

32,319,918

29,610,682

29,228,320

29,688,216

30,119,720

30,690,609

30,281,720

30,705,737

30,477,720

Source: Prepared by CRS with data from the House and Senate Appropriations Committees.

Notes: All amounts shown in current dollars.

Amounts generally do not reflect scorekeeping adjustments. The FY2010 total reflects appropriations of

$32.39 billion and rescissions of $100.8 million. The FY2011 total reflects appropriations of $30.44 billion

and rescissions of $825.6 million. The FY2012 total reflects appropriations of $29.39 billion and rescissions

of $166.0 million. FY2013 amounts reflect the President’s sequester order of March 1, 2013, and an acrossthe-board rescission of 0.2% under P.L. 113-6. The FY2013 appropriations figure reflects $28.32 in full-year

appropriations in P.L. 113-6 and reimbursements for fire transfer in P.L. 112-175, $1.37 billion in

supplemental appropriations for disaster relief for various agencies and programs in P.L. 113-2, and

reductions under the President’s sequester order. The total FY2014 appropriations figure reflects

appropriations of $30.16 billion, including $1.0 million for stewardship contracting not shown in the column

amounts above, and rescissions of $35.5 million. It also reflects $628.5 million for Wildland Fire

Management under P.L. 113-46 (including a rescission in P.L. 113-76). The FY2015 request reflects

appropriations of $29.53 billion, a proposed disaster relief cap adjustment of $1.19 billion, and rescissions of

$36.4 million. The FY2015 House committee-reported figure reflects appropriations of $30.36 billion and

rescissions of $75.0 million. The FY2015 Senate Interior Subcommittee figure reflects appropriations of

$29.57 billion, emergency appropriations of $1.19 billion, and rescissions of $61.0 million. The FY2015

appropriations figure reflects appropriations in P.L. 113-235 of $30.17 billion in Division F and $372.0

million in Section 11 of the general provisions. It also reflects rescissions of $68.0 million.

Figure 2 depicts appropriations enacted for Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies for

FY2015 compared with appropriations enacted for five prior fiscal years (FY2010 to FY2014)

and recommended for FY2015.

Congressional Research Service

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations

Figure 2. Appropriations for Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies:

FY2015 Enacted Appropriations Compared with Prior Year Enacted Appropriations

and FY2015 Recommended Appropriations

Source: Prepared by CRS with data from the House and Senate Appropriations Committees.

Note: All amounts shown in current dollars.

Author Contact Information

(name redacted)

Specialist in Natural Resources Policy

/redacted/@crs.loc.gov, 7-....

Key Policy Staff

Area of Expertise

Name

Coordinator

(name redacted)

Bureau of Indian Affairs, coordinator

(name redacted)

Bureau of Indian Education

(name redacted)

Bureau of Land Management

(name redacted)

Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

(name redacted)

7-....

-redacted-@crs.loc.gov

Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement

(name redacted)

7-....

-redacted-@crs.loc.gov

Environmental Protection Agency

(name redacted)

7-....

-redacted-@crs.loc.gov

Fish and Wildlife Service

(name redacted)

Congressional Research Service

Phone

7-....

-redacted-@crs.loc.gov

7-....

-redacted-@crs.loc.gov

7-....

-redacted-@crs.loc.gov

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies: FY2015 Appropriations

Area of Expertise

Name

Forest Service

(name redacted)

Indian Health Service

(name redacted)

Land and Water Conservation Fund

(name redacted)

Office of Insular Affairs

(name redacted)

Office of Natural Resources Revenue

(name

Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and

Enforcement

(name redacted)

7-....

-redacted-@crs.loc.gov

National Endowment for the Arts and National

Endowment for the Humanities

(name redacted)

7-....

-redacted-@crs.loc.gov

National Park Service

(name redacted)

7-....

-redacted-@crs.loc.gov

Smithsonian Institution

(name redacted)

7-....

-redacted-@crs.loc.gov

U.S. Geological Survey

(name redacted)

7-....

-redacted-@crs.loc.gov

Wildland Fire Management

(name redacted)

Congressional Research Service

Phone

7-....

-redacted-@crs.loc.gov

7-....

redacted)

-redacted-@crs.loc.gov

7-....

-redacted-@crs.loc.gov

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