Board Metting 01/23/2007

• Board Meeting Date: 1/23/2007
• Description: CWCB Director's Report
• Board Meetings - Doc Type: Memo

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HR 2720 - Salt Cedar and Russian Olive Control Demonstration Act Passed: This recently passed
legislation requires federal agencies to identify the extent of the infestation, potential methods of control
and eradication, and establishes a grant program for demonstration projects that remove salt cedar and
Russian olive. The legislation authorizes $20 million for FY 2006 and up to $15 million in succeeding
years through 2010.

Secretary Kempthorne Announces Resignation of Kathleen Clarke: On Dec 28, Secretary of the
Interior Dirk Kempthorne announced the resignation of Bureau of Land Management Director Kathleen
Clarke, who is returning to her home state of Utah to rejoin her family.

Kempthorne commended Clarke for her strong leadership since she became director in January 2002,
successfully enhancing recreational opportunities on BLM lands while at the same time expediting
environmentally sensitive domestic energy production on federal lands.

Clarke was sworn in January 2, 2002 and became the first woman to serve as BLM director. Prior to that,
she served as executive director of the Utah Department of Natural Resources.

Reclamation Commissioner Announces Selection of Director of Administration: On Dec 13,
Reclamation Commissioner Bob Johnson announced Darryl Beckmann has been selected as the Director
of Administration.

As Director of Administration, Beckmann will serve as a key advisor to Commissioner Johnson and
Deputy Commissioner, Policy, Administration, and Budget Larry Todd and other senior officials. He will
be responsible for a variety of issues, initiatives, and policies relating to financial management, supply
and property management, office services, diversity and human resources management, civil rights and
equal opportunity, and acquisition services.

Since 2002, Beckmann has served as the Deputy Regional Director for the Upper Colorado Region in Salt
Lake City, Utah where he developed and executed integrated programs to help the Upper Colorado
Region manage the diverse resources they oversee.

Beckmann began his career with Reclamation as a Budget Analyst in 1976 in Reclamation's Mid-Pacific
Region in Sacramento, Calif. In 1983, he transferred to Reclamation's Pacific Northwest Region where he
became the Budget Officer in 1987 and then became the Regional Finance Manager in 1995. He served in
that position until he became the Regional Manager, Resource and Technical Services in 1997.
Beckmann is a graduate of California State University, Sacramento where he obtained a Bachelor of
Science Degree in Business Administration.

Final Action Deferred on HR 5386: The House passed a $25.9 billion fiscal 2007 Interior-Environment
spending bill, and Senate appropriators approved a $26.1 billion version. But lawmakers deferred final
action on the bill until the 1 10th Congress. Programs covered by the bill were funded through Feb. 15~-
2007, under a stopgap spending bill signed Dec. 9 (PL 109-383).

The annual bill funds the Interior Department, the EPA, the U.S. Forest Service and related agencies.
Lawmakers in both chambers complained that the fiscal 2007 measure was woefully short of funding for
longstanding programs - such as loans to state and local governments to upgrade aging sewer systems
and wastewater treatment projects - as well as for new initiatives, including some authorized under the
2005 Energy Policy Act (PL 109-58).

Dorgan Wiu Oversee Energy and Water Spending: Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., has become chairman
of a subcommittee that oversees spending on federal energy and water projects, when Congress convened
in January.

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