Bingaman: Senate Approves Emergency Spending Bill

Press Release

Bill Boosts New Mexico's PILT Funding

U.S. Senator Jeff Bingaman today voted in favor of a Supplemental Appropriation Bill that provides funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and other domestic emergency assistance programs. The measure, which passed 51-47, also includes a provision Bingaman helped write that would bump up payments to New Mexico counties by millions of dollars over the next five years. It does so by expanding and extending the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act this year from about $2.3 million to about $20 million. It also fully funds the Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT) initiative, which compensates counties that have extensive federal land that cannot be a source of property taxes. "New Mexico counties have a lot to gain from this proposal. I will continue fighting to ensure that this proposal remains in the bill that will ultimately go to the president for signature," Bingaman said. Bingaman also reported that the bill contains a provision that would take a step toward preventing more than $100 million in Medicaid cuts to New Mexico. The Bush administration, through the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, is preparing to limit how states use their own Medicaid funding to pay public hospitals and healthcare providers for services rendered. Many believe aspects of the regulation exceed CMS' administrative authority. The regulation change could take effect in September, causing the University of New Mexico Hospital and other institutions to lose millions of dollars for the care they provide. An amendment made part of the spending bill blocks implementation of the proposed Medicaid regulation. "Our state cannot withstand huge cuts in Medicaid funding, so we must make every effort to stop the administration from enacting this regulation change," Bingaman said. The bill also includes $2 million for Agricultural flood damage in Doña Ana County through the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Environmental Conservation Program. Additionally, New Mexico stands to benefit from drought and storm assistance for 2005, 2006 and the first two months of 2007. The bill includes a total of $2.1 billion for nation-wide crop losses, $1.5 billion for livestock losses, and $95 million for dairy losses. While there are some good provisions in the bill for New Mexico, Bingaman pointed out that he is disappointed that a dairy subsidy program was extended at a cost over ten years of $2.4 billion. The program hurts New Mexico's dairies by directing most of the funding to states such as Wisconsin, New York, Pennsylvania and Minnesota. The House of Representatives and the Senate will iron out differences between their two versions of the bill before it is enacted.

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