U.S. Department of the Interior

Stimulus spending favors rural counties

bniolet — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 07:29:28 -0400

North Carolina's stimulus checkbook shows that rural counties have benefited more than urban counties on a per-person basis, with Wake and other populous counties getting less than an average share.

Federal funds allocated through June 30 under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act add up to $328 for every state resident, Bruce Siceloff and Steve Harrison report. The per-person share falls to $284 in Wake County and $252 in Durham County.

One urban county doing very well so far is Cumberland County, home to Fayetteville and Fort Bragg. The Department of Defense has poured money into the Army base, pushing Cumberland's per-person total to $816.

Many of the stimulus dollars are distributed by existing state formulas that favor rural over urban counties, and money is going to programs that focus on certain parts of the state.

"The Department of the Interior is spending money in the mountains and in the coasts," said Dempsey Benton, who oversees stimulus spending in the state. "That's not going to help the Mecklenburgs and the Guilfords."

Benton heads the N.C. Office of Economic Recovery and Investment, which recently released a county-by-county breakdown of stimulus funding. North Carolina has been allocated $3.2 billion through June 30 and has spent $1.3 billion.

Shuler sought $82m in earmarks

ryanteaguebeckwith — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 11:46:11 -0400

U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler is seeking $81.5 million in earmarks.

The Waynesville Democrat released his list of 79 requested appropriations for the federal budget on his Web site.

The largest request is for $6 million for Swain County as part of the U.S. Department of Interior's payments over not building the North Shore Road. The smallest is $125,000 for the Macon County Sheriff's Office to build a firing range.

Other notable earmarks:

* Fund the National Textile Center at N.C. State University, $3.5 million.

* Build a water treatment plant in McDowell County, $3.5 million.

* Run a youth program through the N.C. National Guard, $1.7 million.

* Fund biology and chemistry programs at UNC-Asheville, $1 million.

Group: Bring Chambers back

ryanteaguebeckwith — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 13:58:48 -0500

An environmental and government watchdog advocacy group wants President-elect Barack Obama to bring back Teresa Chambers, the former Durham police chief who later tangled with the Department of Interior as its U.S. Parks police chief.

Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, known as PEER, released a nominee wishlist of people it recommends for the Obama administration, Barb Barrett reports.

Chambers was fired from her post as chief of the U.S. Parks after complaining about low staffing levels to the Washington Post. She is tried to re-gain her job with PEER’s support, but she has not yet been successful.

Here's what the group recommended in a release today:

Teresa Chambers as Chief of the U.S. Park Police. Just days after giving an interview with the Washington Post, revealing low staffing levels, Chief Teresa Chambers was ordered to surrender her badge, weapon and ID and was relieved of her duties. In what has become the prime example of the Bush administration's suppression of information, Chambers was ultimately removed from the Chief position. She recently won an appeal of that action before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Chambers is presently serving as Chief of Police for Riverdale Park, a town in Prince George's County, Maryland.

Oil drilling could start off Virginia

ryanteaguebeckwith — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 08:43:49 -0500

The federal government made its first move Thursday toward drilling off Virginia.

The U.S. Department of the Interior issued a call for public comments as it begins considering the environmental effects of offshore drilling.

That would be the first step toward opening 2.9 million acres of waters to leasing in 2011.

The move will be closely followed in North Carolina, where the Outer Banks is just southwest of the area being considered.

"In some ways, North Carolina is the next place after Virginia that ... the federal government would like to go," said Michael Gravitz of Environment America, a coalition of state environmental organizations. "Virginia is the first chink in the Atlantic Coast armor."

U.S. Sen. Richard Burr supports offshore drilling, and Sen.-elect Kay Hagan has backed a compromise bill that would have allowed for some drilling. Gov.-elect Beverly Perdue has said she will appoint a panel of experts to look into the issue. (N&O)

No cost yet for '05 royalty relief

ryanteaguebeckwith — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 16:28:35 -0400

A royalty relief provision from 2005 has not cost the federal government anything so far.

A recent TV ad attacked U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole for voting for the Energy Policy Act of 2005, which included a provision to allow oil companies to avoid paying royalties for deep-water drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.

As noted previously, the ad's citation of a "$7 billion" cost estimate for that bill was inaccurate, as the editorial it quoted was referring to royalty relief given in the late 1990s.

But today, the U.S. Department of the Interior told Dome that the royalty relief provisions in the 2005 bill have not cost anything so far because unlike the earlier measures they included price thresholds that kicked in when oil prices rise.

The threshold for 2008 will be around $37 a barrel, but oil is currently selling for around $112.

Walter Cruickshank, the deputy director of the Minerals Management Service, said that the 2005 royalty relief will not really affect the federal budget or oil companies.

"As a practical matter, (it will cost) probably nothing," he said.

What is the Manteo Project?

ryanteaguebeckwith — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 17:25:27 -0400

Answer:

A potential area for oil drilling off the Outer Banks.

In 1981, three oil companies — Mobil Corp., Marathon and Amerada Hess Corp. — began leasing an area about 45 miles off Cape Hatteras called the Manteo Exploration Unit.

In 1989, the companies turned a draft plan for oil exploration into the U.S. Department of the Interior. Though federal officials said the plan would not harm the coast, environmentalists and residents objected.

In August of 1990, Congress passed the Outer Banks Protection Act, which barred the Interior department from issuing any new offshore drilling leases just before Mobil sank its first exploratory well.

The moratorium was later extended along the entire East Coast to 2012.

The companies sued, arguing that the government had essentially changed the rules in the middle of the permitting process.

In 2000, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed, ruling 8-1 that the federal government Mobil and Marathon $156 million in permitting fees.

There are currently no active leases off the Atlantic coast.

More angling for votes

ryanteaguebeckwith — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 10:30:00 -0400

A Congressman is also angling for the sportsman vote.

In a guest column in The Leland Tribune, U.S. Rep. Mike McIntyre notes that October is the start of hunting and fishing season.

As a member of the Congressional Sportsmen's Caucus, he notes that outdoor activities get Americans "off their couches and into the fresh air," reinforce conservation efforts and contribute more than $250 billion to the national economy, directly and indirectly.

Outdoor activities reinforce values of respect and environmental stewardship that help build strong communities, families, and characters.

McIntyre does mention some legislation, however. He notes that he voted for the U.S. Department of the Interior budget for 2008, which will provide $451 million for wildlife refuges.

The bill passed the House on a 272-155 vote in June.