Begich Responds to President's Plan to Reorganize Government

Statement

U.S. Sen. Mark Begich today released the following statement after President Obama announced an effort to reorganize and streamline government:

"I commend the President for an initiative that helps streamline government in the hopes of working more efficiently and saving money for taxpayers. It's what I did as mayor of Anchorage, and it can result in better service at less cost.

"With the current national debt and deficit, we need to make government leaner and smarter. But I have some serious concerns about some of the details, especially the proposed transfer of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to the Department of Interior.

"As producer of more than half of the nation's seafood, the proper management of our fisheries is vital to thousands of jobs in Alaska and to protecting this precious resource. I'm not sure burying NOAA in an already over-burdened Interior is a good idea.

"As Chair of the Oceans and Fisheries subcommittee I'll be asking tough questions as this proposal moves forward."

Source