Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet (D) yesterday said he was disappointed that House leaders had blocked funds in the Superstorm Sandy relief package from being used to restore watersheds damaged by last summer's wildfires.

The House Rules Committee on Monday rejected a bipartisan amendment from Colorado lawmakers to provide $125 million for an Agriculture Department program that could aid communities affected by last summer's High Park blaze near Fort Collins and Waldo Canyon fire in Colorado Springs.

The wildfires raised the threat of flash floods, road washouts and impaired drinking water, Bennet said.

"It is extremely disappointing to see the House of Representatives move forward with a bill that does not include critical resources Colorado needs to recover and protect its water supply -- resources that were included in the Senate bill that received bipartisan support," Bennet said in a statement yesterday. "While eastern states should have the resources they need to recover from the destruction of Hurricane Sandy, this summer, Coloradans also endured devastating disasters -- catastrophic wildfires in the midst of one of the worst droughts in decades."

The amendment proposed by Colorado Reps. Cory Gardner (R), Scott Tipton (R), Doug Lamborn (R), Ed Perlmutter (D) and Jared Polis (D) would have provided $125 million for the Emergency Watershed Protection program (EWP) for watershed restoration and infrastructure protection in areas where major disasters were declared.

Similar language was included in a Sandy relief package passed by the Senate at the end of the last Congress.

The second-degree amendment was offered to an amendment by Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-N.J.) that significantly boosts Superstorm Sandy aid and includes $180 million for EWP, but stipulated that it must be used in areas affected by the storm.

Many Republicans have argued that Sandy relief funds should be used only for areas directly affected by the October storm, and some have also argued the spending should be offset. The House passed a $50 billion Sandy relief bill yesterday (see related story).