Does anyone know if LIHEAP remained in the Defense bill ?

[karynnj]

I know it came up in the press conference but that was hours before the vote. Someone was asking on one of the main forums - as LIHEAP was partially Kerry's (at one time) I hope linking is ok.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=104&topic_id=5663684&mesg_id=5663845

[ProSense]

1. I believe it did remain in.

Sen. Snowe mentioned low-income heating aid in the defense bill as part of the reason she voted for cloture, even though she didn't approve of the ANWR attachment.

[Inuca]

2. Wasn't there...

...some kind of linkage between the two? Not sure, but I caught part of Stevens final (finally!) speech last night, and he was talking about all the wonderful things that will no longer happen because the bad, bad boys & girls (and how he is going to visit their daddies and mommies nd tell on them) in the Senate voted against ANWR.

[ProSense]

3. Yeah! But it's all game.

Katrina funding and low income heating provisions in the defense bill were to be supported by ANWR. So I think the provisions are there, but Stevens is claiming the funds will not be there. I could be wrong, if the provisions were contingent on ANWR, which depends on the wording.

But as Kerry said in the press conference yesterday, if any revenues are to come from ANWR, big if, that income would take years or even a decade to materialize.

Do the Republicans really believe that aid for those two provisions can be tied to ANWR revenues? No.

[Inuca]

4. Yes, I remember Kerry's...

...comments about ANWR providing funds for Katrina, etc. being nothing but a number game on paper.

[TayTay]

5. LIHEAP Passed. $4.1 Billion was approved yesterday

Senate approves $4.1 billion in home heating subsidies for this winter
By ANDREW MIGA
Associated Press Writer

Source: AP Alert - Political
Date: December 22, 2005

WASHINGTON_The Senate on Wednesday approved more than $4.1 billion in federal aid to help low-income families meet expected record heating bills this winter.

As part of a separate budget measure, the Senate also approved $1 billion to help low-income families heat their homes next winter.

“Record high heating prices could wipe out many families in the Northeast this winter,” said Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I. “We must act now to increase federal assistance for heating programs.”

The $4.1 billion for aid this winter was divided between two bills:

_$2.1 billion for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program as part of a spending bill funding programs in the Labor, Health and Human Services and Education departments through next September.

_$2 billion as part of a $453 billion Pentagon bill that had been stalled over objections to a provision opening a wildlife refuge in Alaska to oil drilling. The House, scheduled to reconvene Thursday afternoon, has to vote on the bill again after the Senate stripped the drilling language out of it.

[karynnj]

6. Thanks - I couldn't find anything in the Times or elsewhere

The person on the GD-P thread had made a serious point. I wanted to stop it before it grew. Both by saying it was Kerry's and Reed's to begin with, so Kerry did care (his face when he talked about the consequences showed he was deeply troubled by the idea of people not having heat.) and to say that at least in the afternoon the Democrats said it was still there.

I'll put the information over in GD-P, thanks again

[ProSense]

7. Thanks for posting this Tay; clears up the confusion. n/t