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July 29, 2003 - The House Appropriations Committee approved legislation that would restore full funding of $9.75 million for EPA's Science to Achieve Results (STAR) graduate fellowships in FY 2004 (H.R. 2861; H. Rpt. 108-235). The Administration's FY 2004 budget request would have cut funding for the STAR graduate fellowship program by 50 percent from $9.75 million in FY 2003 to $4.875 million in FY 2004.
Last year, the Administration's FY 2003 budget request proposed cutting all funding for EPA's STAR graduate fellowship program. The National Council for Science and the Environment led a campaign that generated thousands of letters, faxes, emails, and phone calls asking Congress to restore funding for STAR fellowships in FY 2003. Congress eventually restored full funding for the program, but EPA had already cancelled the competition for new fellowships by the time Congress completed action on the appropriations bill. NCSE is working to restore full funding for the program again in FY 2004.
STAR is the only federal fellowship program designed exclusively for students pursing advanced degrees in environmental sciences. From 1995 to 2001, EPA funded over 800 STAR fellows at 168 colleges and universities. The STAR fellowship program is highly competitive, with only 7 percent of applicants being awarded fellowships.
EPA Office of Environmental Education. Legislation approved by the House Appropriations Committee would also restore full funding of $9.16 million for EPA's Environmental Education programs in FY 2004. The Administration's budget request proposed zero funding for these programs in FY 2004. The goal of the Office of Environmental Education is "to ensure that environmental education is a recognized and appropriately utilized tool for protecting human health and the environment."
Looking Ahead. Funding for EPA programs will not be finalized until the FY 2004 appropriations bill is passed by the full House and Senate, reconciled by a conference committee, approved in identical form by both chambers, and signed into law by the President. The appropriations bill is currently pending consideration by the full House of Representatives. Companion legislation has not yet been introduced in the Senate.
The complete text of the appropriations bill (H.R. 2861) and the accompanying committee report (H. Rpt. 108-235) are available online at http://thomas.loc.gov/. For further information, please contact Dr. Craig Schiffries (E-mail: schiffries@NCSEonline.org) or Dan Braden (E-mail: dbraden@NCSEonline.org).
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