-------------------
WNS Funding
-------------------
Dear NSS Members,
Victory! Just Friday, Congress approved $1.9 million in funding for increased
research and monitoring for White Nose Syndrome. The money is part of the
Interior Appropriations bill, which has now gone to the President for his
signature. We did it! Thanks to all of you who contacted your Senators and
Representatives.
This action is highly unusual and remarkable. You may recall that the House
version of the bill passed months ago with no new funding for WNS. The Senate
passed it's bill with only $500,000, and only for "increased monitoring." In
most conference committees, the two sides split the difference, or trade away
their position for something unrelated.
In this case, the number on the table was nearly quadrupled. They listened.
They listened to lots of people across the country who beat the drum. That kind
of sustained effort is what it takes to make a difference, and it worked.
This $1.9 million is for Federal Fiscal Year 2010, which began October 1. It is
in addition to the $800,000 recently awarded by the USFWS for research projects.
Representatives Madeleine Bordallo (Guam) and Raul Grijalva (Arizona) are to be
commended for holding their Joint House subcommittee hearing and bringing WNS
to the attention of Congress. Sen. Frank Lautenberg (New Jersey)championed this
in the Senate, and Senator Patrick Leahy (Vermont) used his position on the
conference committee to close the deal. But their work was made much easier by
all the contacts you and many others made to your Representatives and Senators,
especially the conference committee members in recent days.
As Senator Leahy said, "It hasn't been hard to convince people that this is
catastrophic.It's not just about one case in Vermont. It's going to be a
national problem. We've all got a stake in this thing."
Sen. Lautenberg told us, "Everyone who wrote and called helped pave the way for
this.This funding is a smart investment in critical research and an encouraging
commitment from Congress in our fight against WNS.”
The NSS and its members played a leading role in this effort, but many other
organizations concerned about bats, caves, and the environment collaborated.
Thank you all for your help.
Peter Youngbaer
NSS WNS Liaison
_______________________________________________
NMCAVER mailing list
[email protected]
http://caver.net/mailman/listinfo/nmcaver_caver.net
