THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release June 18, 1996

STATEMENT BY THE PRESS SECRETARY

The President asked the Congress today for $12 million in supplemental appropriations for the Department of the Treasury's Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) to intensify Federal efforts to investigate acts of arson against African-American churches.

This request for the ATF for the current year -- fiscal 1996 -- would fund additional staff, equipment, and other expenses related to the investigation. To raise the $12 million, the President asked the Congress to transfer funds from other Treasury Department accounts. At the same time, the Department of Justice will use its existing authority to allocate an additional $9.5 million of its 1996 funds to investigate these acts of arson.

The Administration will work with the Congress to provide continued necessary funding for these activities in fiscal 1997.

WILLIAM J. CLINTON

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