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BCP will help to ensure Colorado's good standing with FEMA and will help Colorado to receive its share of federal grant dollars in the future. . Colorado Foundation for Water Education: The Foundation Board recently met in Alamosa. Riparian Conference: The Colorado Riparian Association has announced its 16th annual conference. The conference will on mining impacts to riparian areas and mine reclamation. For more information visit http://www.coloradoriparian.org. Owens Appoints Castilian Deputy Chief Of Staff: On July 2 Governor Owens announced he had appointed Chris Castilian as Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy. Castilian graduated from California Lutheran University with degrees in political science and French. He also has a law degree from the University of Denver, where he specialized in natural resources and environmental law. He was director oflegislative affairs for Colorado Counties, Inc., from 1996 to 2001. While at Colorado Counties, he also helped formulate policy in the areas of agriculture, wildlife, rural affairs, land use and natural resources. Castilian currently is the director of the Colorado State Board of Land Commissioners. Castilian takes over the Governor's policy office from Rick O'Donnell, who was appointed the executive director of the Department of Regulatory Agencies earlier this year. The office is responsible for directing the Governor's legislative agenda and formulating long-term policy objectives. Owens' Request Granted For Drought Assistauce In Six Southeastern Counties: On July 28 U.S. Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman designated fifteen Colorado counties as drought disaster areas. Veneman designated Baca, Bent, Elbert, Kiowa, Lincoln and Prowers counties as primary disaster counties. Arapahoe, Cheyenne, Crowley, Douglas, EI Paso, Las Animas, Lincoln, Otero and Washington _ counties were also named disaster areas because they are contignous to the primary disaster counties. Under the drought disaster designation, farmers and ranchers are eligible for low interest loans from the Farm Service Agency to help them purchase supplemental feed for livestock or to help the farming operation deal with reduced agricultural income. Ranchers who are forced to sell all or a portion of their herds may also delay payment of capital gains on the forced sales for up to two years. The governor anticipates more counties will be named to the disaster assistance eligibility list as the sunnner progresses. Last year, every Colorado county was eligible for agricultural disaster aid. To qualify, a disaster must have resulted in the reduction of at least 30 percent of a county's pasture growth or crop harvest. Interim Committee to Study State Government Expenditures: This committee will meet and review the DNR's budget on Sept. 24. It is expected that DNR Executive Director Walcher will use the hearing to discuss the Core Mission Project you learned about in July and that we have been spending many hours working on. Thus far, the committee has issued no reports or proposed any legislation. Water Resources Review Committee: The Committee's next meeting is Sept. 24 in Denver. Since your meeting in July, the Committee has held a hearing on Sept. 9 where it discussed coal bed methane and groundwater issues, water conservation and commercial car washers, received an update on the activities on the Colorado Foundation for Water Education, learned about the City of Aurora's water supply and development programs, cooperative water projects in the Arkansas and Colorado River Basins, and the Upper Colorado River Project. _The Committee also took a bus tour around Colorado focusing on the Gunnison, Rio Grande and Arkansas River basins in late August. 9