Stimulus bill should help parks, but by how much?

An economic stimulus plan being debated in the Senate this week could mean funds for the Park Service, but just how much remains to be seen.

The House earlier this month passed an economic stimulus bill that would have provided about $2 billion for various Park Service funds, including about $1.7 billion for pre-approved construction projects, like Glacier’s Going-to-the-Sun Road.

A Senate version of the bill provides about half that amount. All told, the Senate version — as it stands now — would include about $802 billion for the Park Service, with about $589 million for construction and $180 million specifically for roads. Though now an amendment is emerging that would boost those funds.

Congressman Denny Rehberg, along with all the House Republicans, voted against the House version of the stimulus package.

“Hoping that Montanans would see a multi-million dollar payday and celebrate their good fortune, House Democrats circulated spreadsheets listing how much money each state would receive in their “so-called” stimulus package,” Rehberg said Monday in a prepared release. “Unfortunately, what those documents failed to include was the substantial cost that Montanans will incur. Our share of the debt for this bill — roughly $2.6 billion — is much, much more than the benefit Montanans are getting.”

 The Senate was expected to begin debate on the bill Tuesday. Both Sens. Max Baucus and Jon Tester are showing support for a Senate version.

In the Senate version, with just preliminary figures available, the bill pumps about $687 million into a host of projects and programs, from schools to highways to water systems.

It also offers a host of tax cuts to individuals and businesses.

“Working families will get a financial boost, small businesses will finally catch a break, and the whole country will reap the benefits of a growing green energy sector, revitalized schools and higher-quality health care,” Baucus said. “This bill has been carefully crafted to produce meaningful improvements to our economy in the short term, and to improve America’s fiscal strength and stability for the future.”

“When we invest in our highways, water systems, energy infrastructure and schools, we invest in our future,” Tester said. “We still have work to do to get to the final version of the bill in the Senate. But in the end, it will rebuild our economy from the ground up by creating jobs and rebuilding our critical long-term infrastructure.”