27 



We read some budget language in the agricultural appropriations 

 committee that was very satisfying so it is not in Congress. It is 

 in the ability of Bonneville to forecast revenues far enough ahead 

 in order for us to do some long-term budget process and when Bon- 

 neville gets in a financial squeeze like any other agency they start 

 pulling down. 



And we caught them in a declining revenue situation when we 

 were increasing fish and wildlife budget so if you remember about 

 a year ago there was a little flap and looking back now it was min- 

 uscule, it was about $5 million that Bonneville had cut out of a fish 

 and wildlife budget of about $80 million. 



And there was a big flap about it and candidly Congress told us 

 to back off and that is the approximate amount of money that is 

 not now being funded. 



Mr. Dicks. Don, do you have any suggestions? 



Mr. Bevan. Well, Mr. Dicks, I think Congress can certainly have 

 a role in seeing that we start to move ahead expeditiously with re- 

 covery. That is not something that Congress writes into law but let 

 me use an example of something I think was very well done by the 

 Power Council back in the 1980's when Senator Evans was chair- 

 man of the Power Council. 



They put together this idea of a water budget and they put to- 

 gether an excellent plan to evaluate that. This was in the early 

 1980's. We haven't done that yet. I think that your oversight in 

 what kind of science needs to be done, what needs to be done with 

 regard to a regional getting together on moving ahead; that is a po- 

 litical question, not a scientific question. 



I guess I feel as a scientist, what we have tried to do here in the 

 plan is not going to succeed unless there is a political will in the 

 region to accomplish that and you, ladies and gentlemen, have the 

 ability along with the Northwest Power Planning Council, and we 

 think in our plan they have a great place to try to bring this politi- 

 cal consensus together. 



Let us stop fighting about how best to do it, let us get on with 

 it and try to as carefully as we can, lay out what our differences 

 are and then go find out why we have those differences and that 

 is where science can take a part. 



Mr. Dicks. Rollie, if you could just tell me where you think the 

 funding gaps are. I mean you got the ESA responsibiUty and they 

 are trying to make you guys the salmon czar. We have spent a lot 

 of money on the timber recovery issue but what about the salmon 

 issue and where is the plan, where is the strategy, where is the 

 beef as Walter Mondale used to say? Where is the beef here? 



Mr. SCHMITTEN. In this case, where are the fish? 



Mr. Dicks. Yes. I am talking about the resources to save the fish. 



Mr. SCHMITTEN. Yes. Let me indicate my Agency has really 

 played a catch-up role. Think back only three years ago we were 

 never at the table with the Forest Service, we were never at the 

 table with the Bureau, only until the President brought forward 

 the Forest Plan have we been a full participant and at the table 

 representing fish needs. 



And to do that, to play catch-up and to really be an activist in 

 the ESA game, we have had to come forward with Congress' help; 

 we are hiring 29 people. We want to get ahead of ESA, we want 



