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The issues we are considering today are critical to the quality of 

 life and economic vitality that we enjoy in the Pacific Northwest. 

 Questions of salmon recovery, energy policy, and economic growth 

 are tied together in the question of Bonneville Power's long-term 

 future. 



I want to touch on three issues, first, the role of Bonneville in 

 the past, present, and future. As an agent of Government, BPA is 

 an agent of public policy. It exists to work toward certain policy 

 goals that serve the interests of the Pacific Northwest and North- 

 westerners. 



It has been this way always. The BPA is, today, a child of the 

 new deal. Whether we are developing renewable resources, promot- 

 ing energy conservation, helping fish and wildlife, or bringing elec- 

 tricity and irrigation to the rural west, BPA has always been a ve- 

 hicle to achieve the public policy goals of our constituents and of 

 our Nation. 



I believe this role, the role of the Federal agency, is appropriate 

 and should continue. I do not want to see BPA disadvantaged in 

 the markets. 



I do not want to see it sold in part or in whole, and I do not want 

 to see its flexibility to serve the region's multiple interests under- 

 mined. I want to see a Bonneville that is healthy for the long term, 

 and able to respond when our region needs help, which brings me 

 to salmon recovery. 



I know, Mr. Chairman, that we are here to discuss BPA finances, 

 so I will not get into any specific recovery issues; however, I think 

 it is important to point out that the hydrosystem issues are but one 

 part of the overall picture. 



I and other leaders from the region have been calling for a com- 

 prehensive recovery plan that addresses all aspects of the salmon 

 life cycle. That means addressing habitat, hatcheries, and harvest, 

 in addition to the hydro issues. 



The hydro issue tends to get most of the attention, and as we 

 move forward I hope everyone keeps in mind that we must not 

 waste action taken to address one phase of recovery by ignoring 

 others. 



Finally, a word about the administration's work to help bring the 

 Federal Government into the cost equation. We have worked very 

 hard with the White House to point out the complexity of this issue 

 in our region, and I think yesterday we made some real progress 

 in addressing the need to give BPA the flexibility it needs to re- 

 spond to the public's demands. 



However, I also wish to say that I recognize it is only an interim 

 solution. The interim use of section 4(h)(10)(c) buys us some time 

 to make a comprehensive look into BPA finances and figure out 

 how to keep it competitive for the long run, and hopefully, we have 

 always bought some time for the fish in the region as well. 



Mr. Chairman, I thank you very much for calling this hearing, 

 and I look forward to working with you and coming to some solu- 

 tions with this very important regional issue. Thank you. 



Senator Hatfield. Thank you, Senator Murray. 



Senator Burns. 



