madam chairman , i yield myself such time as i may consume . 
madam chairman , the gentlewoman is obviously speaking seriously about the arts and humanities . 
certainly we support both and have done so generously in this bill . 
the american public supports arts now by over $ 9 billion . 
the government 's support is a very minimal part of that $ 9 billion . 
in fact , this increase would be an even smaller part of that $ 9 billion , and so it would be hardly noticeable inside the total support of the arts . 
what we are having to sacrifice , though , is to reduce funding for the administration of the department of the interior by $ 8 million and administration of the forest service by $ 7 million . 
this will cost some 200 staff positions in the department of the interior and forest service . 
they are responsible for 634 acres in the united states . 
this is a primary obligation we have . 
it is not supported by $ 9 billion of public support . 
it is primarily supported with the funding that this committee has the duty to appropriate . 
that is why we are trying to do our primary job by maintaining the levels that we did and to find a balance to show our support for the arts and do the mandated portion that we must do for the department of the interior and the forest service . 
members can count on us to continue to support the arts , to watch the oversight of our committees , and this bill strikes a fair balance between the needs of the arts and our responsibility to land management and indian programs . 
i ask members to join me in opposition to this amendment . 
madam chairman , i reserve the balance of my time . 
