WASHINGTON - Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton will make opening remarks to the annual meeting of the National Invasive Species Council on Friday, May 13, 2005. The council also will be addressed by Deputy Secretary Charles Conner, of the U.S. Department of Agriculture; and Deputy Assistant Secretary Tim Keeney, of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Department of Commerce.

The council meeting will be held at the Main Interior Building from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. in the Secretary's Conference Room, 5160. About 50 senior administrators from the member agencies of the National Invasive Species Council will participate. The event is open to the public and the media. Spokespersons for the council will be available for interviews following the meeting.

Among the major agenda items, the council will adopt national guidelines for ranking invasive species control projects; approve a Five Year Review of Executive Order 13112, which established the council; and discuss the FY 2007 Invasive Species Performance-Based Crosscut Budget.

The National Invasive Species Council is an inter-departmental group that helps to coordinate and ensure complementary, cost-efficient and effective federal activities regarding invasive species.

WHO: Interior Secretary Gale Norton: Deputy Secretary Charles Conner, USDA; Deputy Assistant Secretary Tim Keeney, NOAA
WHAT: National Invasive Species Council Annual Meeting
WHEN: May 13, 2005. 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.
WHERE: Room 5160, Interior Building, 1849 C Street NW, Washington, D.C.
MEDIA: Accredited media are welcome to attend.