Packard and Dornan Question Budget Items

Two members of Orange County’s all-Republican congressional delegation said Wednesday that they are skeptical about parts of the plan laid out in President Reagan’s proposed budget, and others said they still are scrutinizing the package.

Reps. Ron Packard (R-Carlsbad) and Robert K. Dornan (R-Garden Grove) expressed reservations about different parts of the budget outline.

Favors Clean Water Bill

Packard said he will vote for an $18-billion bill to clean up the nation’s rivers and lakes despite the President’s opposition to it. The measure was introduced Tuesday, the day after Reagan’s proposed budget was submitted to Congress.

Packard said he was “disappointed” with Reagan’s veto last November of the Clean Water Act and predicted that the measure will be approved quickly by Congress this session. He said the bill would finance efforts that he has supported to stop Tijuana River pollution south of San Diego, though it contains no major projects for his district.

“In general, I support a bigger commitment to our infrastructure, and clean water is high on people’s agendas,” Packard said.

Dornan, whose 38th District is Orange County’s most urban area, said: “What we’re putting under the microscope in our office is everything (in the Administration’s budget proposals) that has to do with housing.”

The Reagan Administration has proposed increased fees for Federal Housing Administration and Veterans Administration mortgage loans. Dornan aide Brian Bennett said that Dornan probably will oppose those hikes because his district is more dependent than others nearby on federally backed mortgages.

However, Dornan cautioned that he has not finally made up his mind and generally supports White House budget policies.

Six-term Rep. Robert E. Badham (R-Newport Beach) said the only item that has “jumped off the page” in his review of the budget outline is the proposed extension of a runway at the El Toro Marine Corps Air Station. Badham said he was happy that the Administration included the runway project because it puts military jets half a mile farther away from the site of a new hospital complex in Irvine.

Five-term Rep. William E. Dannemeyer (R-Fullerton) said he has not had a chance to pinpoint district-oriented items in the proposed budget and so far has focused on the federal debt. In a speech on the House floor Tuesday, Dannemeyer blamed Congress for spending $229 billion more than President Reagan requested in his past five proposed budgets, resulting in a $100-billion increase in the national debt.

Rep. Daniel E. Lungren (R-Long Beach), also in his fifth term, said he is trying to determine whether the Administration’s proposals to fund half of the immigration legalization reform program with applicants’ fees is feasible.

He said he believes that the nearly $1 billion proposed for assistance to local governments to offset the anticipated costs of serving more legalized residents is adequate.

Packard, a three-term Republican lawmaker, said he is concerned about the Administration’s plans to cut domestic spending on cities and counties because of his background as a former Carlsbad mayor and city councilman. But given the choice between resisting cuts in those programs and federal deficit reduction targets, Packard said, “I’d probably live with the program cuts.”

The congressmen said they have not studied the budget enough to be able to take firm positions on most proposals but they said they generally support the President’s fiscal objectives.