Budget Bill Stealthily Affects Environment and Energy.doc

Budget Bill Stealthily Affects Environment and Energy 预算案暗中影响环境和能源In last week’s pre-Christmas rush, the U.S. Congress slammed together the $1-trillion federal budget bill for 2015, just before funds ran out. But the bill wasn’t all about the money. Congress took advantage of the fiscal scramble to change rules about the environment and energy, which do not belong in appropriation bills. Normally such changes are encoded in what are called “laws,” and are debated out in the open. But the budget bill is a chance for Congress to slip in controversial rules—called riders—without much debate. If members object, the bill stalls, and the government shuts down—and no one wants to be blamed for that federal fiasco. So the riders gallop in. 上周圣诞节高峰前，美国国会为2015猛凑了1万亿美元联邦预算——恰在其资金用完之前。但该预算不仅涉及到钱。国会利用财政混乱趁机改变环境和能源争夺条例，而这不应归入拨款提案。通常这种条例变化应归入所谓的“法律”中，且应公开辩论。但预算案是国会暗中混入有争议条例的机会——即“搭便车”——略去诸多公开辩论直接作为。如果有成员反对，则提案拖延、政府关门——且人们不能因联邦的惨败而去责备谁。因此“搭便车”的行为盛行。 The Environmental Protection Agency got its budget, for instance, but with strings attached: although agriculture is a major source of atmospheric methane, the EPA now is prohibited from using its money to require farmers to report greenhouse gas emissions. And the agency cannot regulate farm ponds and irrigation ditches under the Clean Water Act. 比如，美国环境保护署虽然获得了预算，但却带有附加条件：尽管农业生产是大气中甲烷的主要来源，但环保署不得使用其预算资金要求农民报告温室气体的排放情况。且据《洁净水法案》，环保署还不能调节农用池塘和灌溉水道。 In another example, the Department of Agriculture must speed up permits for companies making genetically modified organisms. And the feds must loan money to firms to build coal-fired power plants overseas. That requirement reverses a previous ban. 再比如说，农业部门要加快给予转基因生物制造公司许可证。联邦政府必须给在海外建造燃煤发电工厂的公司。而这一要求有悖于先前的禁令。 These rules and others last through September 2015, when this budget bill runs out. And then, if history is any guide, this whole stealth legislation process starts all over again. 这些条例连同其它一些条例，将持续到2015年9月——此预算案到期。然后，如果政府以史为鉴，这一整个隐形立法过程又会。 In last week’s pre-Christmas rush, the U.S. Con