Congressman Faleomavaega announced today that by a vote of 272-155 the House passed the FY 2008 Interior and Environment Appropriations bill which includes over $33 million for American Samoa.

“More than $23 million has been set aside for the operation of our local government and about $10 million has been included for critical infrastructure projects (CIPs),” Faleomavaega said.  “How the $10 million in CIPs gets spent will be determined during conference which will take place later.”    

“For now, I am pleased that the US House of Representatives continues to provide for the operations of our local government and to assist us with critical infrastructure projects.  I am also appreciative that Congressman Norm Dicks, Chairman of the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee, has agreed to work with me during conference on appropriating our CIP funds in a way that provides input from American Samoa’s elected and traditional leaders.”

“At this time, I commend Chairman Dicks and Ranking Member Todd Tiahrt for their leadership, and I also thank my colleagues in the House for passing a bill which for the first time in over a decade begins to provide for our Nation’s natural resource needs,” Faleomavaega concluded.