On March 10, by a margin of 62 to 35, the U.S. Senate passed an omnibus appropriations bill, providing fiscal year 2009 (FY09) funding for the majority of federal government agencies. The House passed the bill on February 25 and President Obama signed it into law on March 11. Agencies had been operating under a continuing resolution since the start of the fiscal year last October, after Congress was unable to reach agreement on spending levels for 9 of the 12 appropriations bills. The final tally on the bill was over $410 billion ? money that is separate from the recently passed "economic stimulus" package, and provides increases to most natural resource-related agencies, reports the Wildlife Management Institute.

Overall, the appropriation for the Interior, Environment and Related Agencies accounts, which includes Department of the Interior agencies, the Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Forest Service ? is $27.6 billion, an increase of $1.3 billion from fiscal year 2008 (FY08). Besides those of the Forest Service, other key Department of Agriculture (USDA) conservation programs also received a boost. Of particular note, most Farm Bill conservation programs were not capped below their mandatory spending levels. Only the Farm Bill's Environmental Quality Incentives Program was capped at $1.067 billion.

The bill also included language that will make it easier for the Obama administration to overturn regulations affecting the Endangered Species Act that were finalized in the waning days of the previous administration (see ESA story in this issue).

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) received a total of $1.44 billion, an increase of more than $100 million from FY08 spending levels. The National Wildlife Refuge System was allocated $463 million for operations and maintenance ? a boost of nearly $30 million from the previous year. FWS also received $42.45 million for refuge land acquisition, a nearly $8 million increase from the previous level. Other key programs within the FWS budget also received moderate increases. These include $75 million for State and Tribal Wildlife Grants (up from $73.8 million in FY08), $42.6 million for the North American Wetlands Conservation Fund (up from $42 million in FY08), and $45.9 million for migratory birds (up from $40.4 million in FY08). Within Ecological Services, habitat conservation was provided more than $105 million. This includes $53 million for the Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program and $5.3 million for the National Wetlands Inventory. The Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund received $80 million, of which $10 million are for distribution through grants to states.

Other key agencies and programs within the Department of the Interior also received increased spending levels. The U.S. Geological Survey's Biological Research Division was appropriated $185.3 million (including $17 million for the Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units), an increase of nearly $5.5 million. The Bureau of Land Management will have an overall budget of $1.04 billion in 2009, of which $48.5 million are directed towards wildlife and fisheries and another $21.7 million specifically for threatened and endangered species. Land resource management programs within the agency, including forestry, range, soil, and water and air management, received $201 million. The BLM's land-acquisition program received a nearly $6 million boost, for a total of $14.8 million. Department-wide programs for wildland fire management were allocated $860 million, an overall reduction of $333 million from 2008.

The U.S. Forest Service's operating budget will be $4.75 billion for FY09, a $300 million increase over FY08 levels. Nearly half of the total ($2.13 billion) is earmarked for wildland fire management. Included in the agency's overall budget is $296.4 million for forest and rangeland research and $265.9 million for state and private forestry. The National Forest System was appropriated $1.5 billion, including $139.4 million for wildlife and fish habitat management. The bill also provided $482.4 million for capital improvement and maintenance and $49.8 million for land acquisition.

USDA's Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) received $853 million for conservation operations, a nearly $20 million increase from FY08. However, the bill's report language included a strong admonition to the agency for its financial accountability. NRCS had its first stand-alone audit in 2008, which resulted in a "disclaimer of opinion" on financial statements for FY08. That meant that the agency was unable to provide the necessary documentation the auditors needed to express an opinion on the state of NRCS accounts. The agency was allocated $10 million for Conservation Technical Assistance to improve the agency's program and financial management capabilities and, among other requirements and admonitions, was given 60 days to outline how the funds will be used to improve the agency's performance.

USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service will have an $877 million budget in FY09. This includes $17 million for Chronic Wasting Disease management and $60.6 million for avian influenza monitoring. In addition, Wildlife Services was appropriated $76 million, with an additional $18 million for methods development. (jas)