The Clinton-Gore Administration received a disappointing “D” in a report card issued last week by the Green Scissors Campaign, a national coalition of environmental, taxpayer, and deficit reduction advocates. The Clinton-Gore Administration 1998 Report Card is a follow-up to the Green Scissors '98 report released January 21 by the Campaign, which is led by Friends of the Earth, Taxpayers for Common Sense, and the U.S. Public Interest Research Group.

 

Grading the Administration’s recently proposed budget and their actions during the past year, the report card criticized the Administration for not working up to potential to cut the 71 wasteful and environmentally harmful programs targeted in Green Scissors ‘98.

 

Of the eight agencies and departments graded in the report, the Department of Energy (DOE) was the largest to receive a failing grade, due largely to their renewed support for nuclear energy programs. Recent initiatives to cut subsidies for mining, park concessionaires, and recreation helped put the Department of the Interior at the head of the class.

 

The Department of Transportation received a “D” grade for failing to target for elimination several proposed highway projects, including the $1 billion Corridor H “Road to Nowhere” highway in West Virginia, and other unnecessary highway plans.

 

While most agencies received mixed reviews from the Green Scissors Campaign, DOE was roundly criticized for its unwillingness to enact Green Scissors cuts. In addition, DOE has also proposed increased funding for coal and oil research and development which benefit the industries most responsible for greenhouse gas emissions, despite the Administration's stated commitment to reducing these emissions.

 

On the positive side, certain actions by the Interior Department and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are seen as proof that the Green Scissors Campaign can make a difference. Since the release of the larger report in January, the Army Corps has put the brakes on a controversial dam project on the Yuba River in California, and Secretary of Interior Bruce Babbitt has recommended a veto if Congress approves funding for the destructive Izembek Road in Alaska.

 

Copies of the report can be obtained from Friends of the Earth for $5 by calling (202) 783-7400 x239 and are available on the web .

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Road to Ruin Victory: ICC Demise

Last week Maryland Governor Paris Glendening agreed to terminate study of the billion dollar Inter County Connector (ICC). Targeted in the Road to Ruin report for the past two years, the embattled road project would have cost federal taxpayers $800 million and failed to reduce congestion on the Beltway, I-270, or many local intersections, according to the Maryland State Highway Administration.

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