THURSDAY, APRIL 18, 1985.

TESTIMONY OF MEMBERS OF CONGRESS

OFFICE OF SURFACE MINING

WITNESS

THE HONORABLE AUSTIN J. MURPHY, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA

Mr. YATES. Mr. Reporter, show the hearing as coming to order. This is the hearing on appropriations for fiscal year 1986, on the requests of Members of Congress, and our first witness this morning is the Honorable Austin Murphy of Pennsylvania.

Mr. Murphy, your statement may be made a part of the record at this point, and we will be very glad to hear what you have to say.

Mr. MURPHY. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. For the sake of brevity and knowing how busy you are, I would just like to submit my testimony to you, and tell you that it is in regards to the Rural Abandoned Mine Program in which the coal operators pay 25 and 35 cents per ton. It should go in to a special fund and be allocated. Under this administration it has not been totally allocated, and we are just asking that a fair share of it come back to the reclaiming of the Rural Abandoned Mines, most of which were mined in World War II, when there were no restrictions on land use. Mr. YATES. Thank you very much.

Mr. MURPHY. Thank you.

[The statement follows:]

STATEMENT OF THE

HONORABLE AUSTIN J. MURPHY

MR. CHAIRMAN, I GREATLY APPRECIATE THE OPPORTUNITY TO APPEAR BEFORE YOUR SUBCOMMITTEE THIS AFTERNOON TO ADDRESS THE FUNDING OF THE RURAL ABANDONED MINE PROGRAM.

I WISH TO THANK YOU MR. CHAIRMAN, AND THE MEMBERS OF THIS SUBCOMMITTEE, FOR THE SUPPORT YOU HAVE CONSISTENTLY GIVEN RAMP IN THE PAST. IT IS NO SECRET THAT THIS ADMINISTRATION HAS BEEN DETERMINED TO ABOLISH RAMP, FORCING MANY AREAS TO DO WITHOUT THE VALUABLE ASSISTANCE AND KNOWLEDGE OF THE SOIL CONSERVATION SERVICE AND ITS REGIONAL CONSERVATIONISTS IN ATTEMPTING TO RECLAIM ABANDONED MINE SITES.

AS YOU MAY KNOW, AS A MEMBER OF THE HOUSE COMMITTEE ON INTERIOR AND INSULAR AFFAIRS, AND AS A MEMBER OF THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE HOUSE AND STATE SENATE, I HAVE BEEN INVOLVED IN MINE RECLAMATION EFFORTS FOR ALMOST 30 YEARS. THE NEED FOR COMPREHENSIVE ACTION BY THE FEDERAL AND STATE GOVERNMENTS WAS OBVIOUS LONG BEFORE 1977. INCONSISTENT AND UNENFORCED REGULATIONS BY SOME STATES MADE PREVIOUS ATTEMPTS TO STEM THE PROBLEM FUTILE. IT WAS ESSENTIAL THAT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT ACT TO PROVIDE UNIFORM REGULATIONS TO PREVENT THE DESTRUCTION OF MILLIONS OF ACRES OF POTENTIAL STRIP-MINE LANDS AND TO ESTABLISH A SYSTEM OF RECLAIMING THE LARGE NUMBER OF ABANDONED MINE LANDS.

I AM PROUD OF MY PARTICIPATION IN THE DRAFTING AND ENACTMENT OF THE SURFACE MINING CONTROL AND RECLAMATION ACT IN 1977. THE FUNDS COLLECTED BY THE ACT HAVE ENABLED THE STATES AND THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO BEGIN THE LONG PROCESS OF RECLAIMING THE ABANDONED MINE SITES.

THE COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA HAS 27% OF THE TOTAL ABANDONED SITES IN THE UNITED STATES, AND MY CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT CONTAINS OVER 25,000 ACRES OF ABANDONED MINE LANDS, MORE THAN 10% OF THE ABANDONED ACREAGE IN THE COMMONWEALTH. ONE COUNTY IN OUR COLLEAGUE CONGRESSMAN MURTHA'S DISTRICT, INDIANA COUNTY, HAS

MORE THAN 40,000 ACRES OF ABANDONED MINES. IT HAS BEEN ESTIMATED THAT IT WILL

TAKE MORE THAN $15 BILLION TO RECLAIM ALL OF THE ABANDONED MINE SITES IN

PENNSYLVANIA.

SINCE 1978 THE ABANDONED MINE LAND FUND HAS ACCUMULATED APPROXIMATELY $1.6 BILLION DOLLARS, 20% OR $320 MILLION OF WHICH HAS BEEN AVAILABLE FOR TRANSFER TO THE SOIL CONSERVATION SERVICE FOR RAMP. HOWEVER, TO DATE ONLY $80 MILLION HAS BEEN APPROPRAITED FOR RAMP PROJECTS, ONE-FOURTH OF THE AVAILABLE FUNDS.

AS YOU ARE ALL AWARE, THE ACT STATES THAT UP TO 20% OF THE FUNDS COLLECTED ARE TO BE TRANSFERRED TO THE SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE FOR USE IN RECLAIMING RURAL SITES OF NOT MORE THAN L20 ACRES. IN MY CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT, AS IN THE MAJORITY OF THE NORTHEAST AND MIDWEST REGION, MOST SITES ARE SMALL AND COULD QUALIFY FOR RAMP STATUS.

IN SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA THE RURAL ABANDONED MINE PROGRAM HAS BEEN EXTREMELY SUCCESSFUL IN RESURRECTING MANY ABANDONED SITES WHICH THE STATE WAS NOT ABLE TO FUND. RAMP HAS BROUGHT TOGETHER LOCAL, STATE, AND FEDERAL OFFICIALS AS WELL AS PRIVATE GROUPS WHO HAVE WORKED TOGETHER TO CLEAN UP THESE AREAS. THE 80% FEDERAL SHARE IS INCENTIVE TO THESE PARTIES TO RAISE THE ADDITIONAL FUNDS NECESSARY TO RECLAIM THE SITES. THE RESULT IS THAT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IS ABLE TO BENEFIT FROM ADDITIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS AND IS THEREFORE ABLE TO RECLAIM MORE SCARRED LAND.

I BELIEVE THAT THE DESIRE OF THIS ADMINISTRATION TO PHASE OUT RAMP IS INCONSISTENT WITH THEIR STATED GOAL OF INVOLVING LOCAL GOVERNMENTS AND PRIVATE INDUSTRY IN SOLVING OUR NATION'S NEEDS. RAMP SUCCEEDS IN DOING JUST THAT. I RECENTLY ATTENDED GROUND-BREAKING CEREMONIES IN WASHINGTON COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA FOR SEVEN RAMP PROJECTS. THESE SITES WOULD NOT NOW BE IN THE PROCESS OF

RECLAMATION IF IT WERE NOT FOR RAMP FUNDS AND THE ASSISTANCE OF THE SOIL CONSERVATION SERVICE. BECAUSE OF RAMP FUNDS OVER 100 ACRES ARE BEING RECLAIMED, PEOPLE ARE BEING PUT BACK TO WORK, SOIL EROSION AND WATER CONTAMINATION ARE BEING PREVENTED, AND LAND IS BEING PRESERVED FOR FUTURE NEEDS.

ALTHOUGH RAP IS ENTITLED TO UP TO 20% OF THE REVENUE COLLECTED THROUGH
THE TONNAGE TAX ON COAL SINCE 1978 THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAS NEVER APPROPRIATED
MORE THAN 8.2%. IT IS NOT THAT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAS NOT HAD THE MONEY,
THERE HAS BEEN A BALANCE IN THE FUND EVERY YEAR. I COULD UNDERSTAND THE
ADMINISTRATION'S RELUCTANCE TO EXPEND THESE FUNDS IF THE FUNDS WERE COMING

FROM GENERAL REVENUES, BUT AS YOU ALL KNOW THE FUND IS COMPRISED SOLELY OF TAXES
ON COAL PRODUCTION AND CANNOT BE USED FOR ANY OTHER PURPOSE. THEREFORE REDUCATIONS
IN RAMP IN NO WAY REDUCE OUR IMMENSE DEFICIT PROBLEMS.

THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE IN PENNSYLVANIA IN MARCH 1985 WAS 8.4%. THE MOST
RECENT FIGURES FOR MY CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT ARE JANUARY 1985, AND THE RATE WAS
13.4%. FOUR OF THE FIVE COUNTIES IN MY DISTRICT HAD UNEMPLOYMENT RATES ABOVE
12%, WITH ONE COUNTY REGISTERING A RATE OF 17.7%. THE ECONOMIC UPSWING AND ROAD
TO PROSPERITY SO WIDELY REPORTED NATIONWIDE IS NOT EVIDENT IN SOUTHWESTERN
PENNSYLVANIA, NOR IN MOST OF THE NORTHEAST-MIDWEST REGION. THESE AREAS NEED TO
DEVELOP WAYS TO USE THE ABILITIES OF THESE IDLED INDIVIDUALS TO BENEFIT THEIR
COMMUNITIES AND THEMSELVES.

RAMP DOES JUST THAT.

THE PEOPLE OF SOUTHWESTERN PENNSYLVANIA DESPERATELY WANT TO GO BACK TO WORK. LIKE MOST AMERICANS THEY ARE VERY PROUD AND HARDWORKING INDIVIDUALS WHO WANT TO MAKE USE OF THEIR SKILLS AND PROVIDE FOR THEMSELVES AND THEIR FAMILIES. THE DEPRESSED CONDITION OF THE INDUSTRIES UPON WHICH MY AREA DEPENDS HAS RESULTED IN PERMANENT JOB LOSSES FOR MANY OF THESE PEOPLE. UNTIL NEWER INDUSTRIES CAN BEGIN TO MATURE AND ABSORB THESE PEOPLE THEY REMAIN NON-CONTRIBUTING MEMBERS OF OUR SOCIETY DEPENDENT UPON THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT FOR FINANCIAL SUPPORT.