‘We’re Feeling Very Frustrated’: Chellie Pingree Presses Doug Burgum On Delays To Distributing Appropriated Funds

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During Tuesday’s House Appropriations Committee hearing, Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-ME) questioned Interior Secretary Doug Burgum about delays to appropriated funding distribution.

Transcript

00:00Ms. Pingree. Thank you very much Mr. Chair and let me just reiterate so you

00:07hear from you know both sides of the aisle and you've heard that we are in

00:12Representative McCollum has been a former chair as well and so we are very

00:16united on this tribal funding and I think that that hits a very sensitive

00:22spot on the schools and we I understand some of the concerns that you've been

00:25raised about duplication and a variety of other things about quality of schools

00:29but funding construction is an ongoing huge issue here I know I worked on a

00:35Passamaquoddy school from the time I got here to many many years trying to make

00:39sure that they got it across the finish line and it can take you know decades to

00:43get the funding for these schools and while as you've all noted there are

00:47tribes that have the resources to do amazing things in their own community

00:50many tribes you're just not in that position so I hope we can restore that

00:54funding level and certainly you'll hear from this committee that we're

00:57interested in that and I wanted to start with a question on it's following up a

01:02little bit on both what both my colleagues have mentioned on on how the

01:06funding gets spent and allocated so the continuing resolution for 2025 enacted more

01:12than two months ago was enacted more than two months ago now are eight months into

01:15the fiscal year and giving that timing it's just critical that the department

01:19quickly obligate the appropriated funding so my example on that is similar to what

01:24Mr. Cole was asking about but it's actually a different pot of money I'm

01:28hearing concerns from the Maine State Historic Preservation Office that they

01:31have not received the state-by-state apportionment nor has the Park Service

01:36issued a notice of funding opportunity so as a result in the state of Maine we're

01:41facing a potential layoff of the federally funded staff and Maine is not

01:45alone this manufactured in my mind funding crisis is being inflicted on all of our

01:50states for example 12 people have already been laid off in Ohio and that amounts

01:54to about a third of their staff in the state historic preservation office these

01:59offices have an integral role in the advancement of federal projects and

02:02holding back the funds that Congress appropriated for these office offices

02:06means delaying projects including the oil and gas sector so I did contact your

02:12office about this last week I'm expecting that you might have an update for me do

02:15you know the status of these funds I we're waiting on the apportionment to

02:21come but we're pushing hard on trying to get this out because it's as you say

02:25there's a we have every incentive our incentives are in line with yours to get

02:29these dollars out the door so I mean the chair asked you a question earlier

02:35about the 2026 budget and if we appropriate money that goes beyond what's in

02:40this skinny budget or what we see in the full budget will you spend the money you

02:43said it's the law the interior bow which is in the CR contains a provision that

02:48requires that amounts appropriated to the Department of Interior quote shall be

02:52available for obligation and expenditure not later than 60 days after the date of

02:57enactment of the act and as you said that's the law OMB is not a portion of the

03:02funding you just said that but we are past the 68 day done and I just want to

03:07know the role that you're taking are you pushing the OMB to appropriate your

03:11departments funding well I didn't bring a stack of mmm of communication that's

03:18gone back and forth but I would say that would represent that yeah we're

03:21pushing okay pushing is good so just from my perspective if if you don't get

03:31this funding then that is impoundment it is breaking the law and I think

03:37perhaps on both sides of the aisle we're feeling very frustrated this

03:40administration is not expeditiously appropriating what we funded I guess I

03:48would just have to say you know and I mentioned to you earlier there's a lot of

03:52frustration here and you know Congress has the power of the purse we meet in

03:58this committee and we do an incredible amount of work you know negotiating back

04:02and forth on both sides of the aisle to arrive at these numbers and to figure out

04:05what should be done and to have this administration just wantonly disregard

04:10what we have done and to worry about having to do that in the next 2026 budget

04:14I would ask you know what why do committees meet why do we do the work

04:18that we're doing if in fact we can't count on the OMB to do it is being done and I

04:23know there are layers here and I really appreciate saying that you've got a stack

04:27of communications because I fully believe you're doing that and I know you

04:30have a lot of executive experience so I am just encouraging you to put full force of

04:35pressure on it to not break the law and to do what's required to do thank you

04:40we'll do and as a governor I understand the importance of the state historical

04:45preservation offices and the tribal historical preservation offices so

04:49we're aligned in getting appropriated money to people so they can do their jobs

04:53great we will look forward to seeing that continue to happen I'll yield back there

04:58and I can ask my next question later thank you mr. chair

05:00mr. chair

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