$100 million less than FY07

The House and Senate passed the Omnibus bill on Wednesday.

It now has one more stop: the president for his review and signature.

Based on these projected numbers, the overall funding for the Laboratory appears to be approximately $100 million less than FY07.

“This is the range we were expecting,” Director George Miller said.

“While there are differences based on congressional priorities, this provides the clarity for us to move forward to meet our major program commitments and continue our workforce restructuring as planned.”

The one area with a major change in direction is that all funding for RRW was eliminated. Congress did add a new activity, an Advanced Certification Campaign, to address some of the issues raised by the JASONs in their review of RRW.

Miller also noted that Congress increased the funding for nuclear non-proliferation activities, which could provide an opportunity for growth.

“Once the funding bill is signed into law and NNSA provides specific site allocation, I will make a determination regarding a voluntary separation pack-age for our career workforce and FY08 raises,” Miller said.

“I expect to be able to do this after the first of the year. I want to thank all Lab employees for their patience during this lengthy continuing resolution and budget approval process.”