Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas) recently said President Obama’s proposal to establish a climate resilience fund is an attempt to advance a climate-change agenda without scientific proof that extreme weather is related to climate change.
The president said the $1 billion climate resilience fund would be included in his budget proposal for fiscal year 2015. The funds would be used to help communities prepare for the effects of climate change and to support research and technological advancements.
Smith, the chairman of the House Science, Space and Technology Committee, said the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration found that climate change was not a significant part of recent droughts across the nation, and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change found that drought has become less frequent and severe.
“Drought is a serious problem that should not be used to justify a partisan agenda or a new billion-dollar climate change fund,” Smith said. “Over the last five years, the federal government has already spent $77 billion on climate change. And what do we have to show for that money?”
Congress recently approved a drought-monitoring program that has helped states, local governments and farmers monitor historical drought data and current conditions, Smith said, which helps mitigate the impact of drought.
“I look forward to a day when the weather is no longer used to gain political leverage,” Smith said.