Washington, D.C. -- The U.S. House of Representatives has approved the House-Senate Conference Report on the 2010 Agriculture Appropriations bill, the final step for the $121.1 billion spending bill in the House.  Following a vote on the Conference Report by the Senate, the bill goes to the President to be signed.  Included in the legislation were a number of specific funding requests by Rep. Neil Abercrombie, including:

• $8.9 million for continued research and strategies to control invasive alien species that threaten Hawaii’s agricultural products and environment;
• $3.2 million into the development of pest eradication and control methods, including varroa mites and fruit flies;
• $4.3 million to develop high-density production systems to strengthen and expand commercial applications for the state’s aquaculture industry, particularly for finfish and shrimp.  

“These modest investments in the research and development of Hawaii’s home-grown foods and agricultural products, not only promote a growing industry for our state,” said Abercrombie, “but they help us move away from such heavy reliance on imported foods,” 

Abercrombie also requested $3 million to restore funds to pay for preclearance baggage inspections for interisland airline passengers connecting to Mainland U.S. flights. Without the funding for inspection, Neighbor Island passengers bound for the mainland would have been delayed, and cargo service disrupted.

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