Bill nixes hiring checks; Filipino vets, mouse safe

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By Stephen Dinan

Congress has removed the key check on making sure illegal immigrants aren't hired by firms getting money from the economic stimulus package, but left in nearly $200 million in spending for Filipino veterans of World War II.

The bill also sliced funding for parks below what either the House or Senate originally proposed, and left out $246 million that had been slated to help Hollywood produce movies. But negotiators put back in provisions that will allow money to go to museums, stadiums and parks - which critics said means the Las Vegas Mob Museum is again eligible for money.

Those are some of the contentious decisions Democrats made in writing a final compromise bill this week. Democrats rushed the bill through final votes in the House and Senate on Friday, denying lawmakers a chance to digest all the decisions before having to vote on the $787 billion package.

Of that $787 billion in spending and tax cuts, 74.2 percent will be disbursed during the next 18 months, just about accomplishing Mr. Obama's goal of spending 75 percent of the money in that time frame. The bill carves out about $211 billion, or 27 percent, for tax cuts.

Still in the bill is $230 million for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to be used for "operations, research and facilities," part of which House Republicans said they expect will be used for habitat restoration of the San Francisco Bay Area, including saving the salt marsh harvest mouse. The potential funding was first reported by The Washington Times.

Protecting the mouse has been a pet project of Democratic leaders, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco, though they did not earmark funds for the project in this bill.

But Republicans called around asking agencies what projects they would be likely to fund with stimulus money, and Republican staffers on the Appropriations Committee said NOAA officials identified the San Francisco Bay Area restoration project as one of its top priorities.

Defending the bill on the House floor, Rep. David R. Obey, Wisconsin Democrat and Appropriations Committee chairman, challenged the mouse funds claim, arguing that there's no specific reference to the mouse money in the bill and that it's just a potential project.

Mr. Obey, who was the chief spending negotiator for the House team during the reconciliation process with the Senate, disputed other charges by opponents.

"They tell us there is an earmark for high-speed rail. The fact is, there is not. All of the funding in that account is discretionary and will be awarded competitively and the decisions will be made entirely by the Department of Transportation. And the last time I looked, the new Cabinet secretary was a Republican," he said.