 The United States Department of State stated, in a report issued in 2001, that the Polish minority had issued complaints with regard to its status in Lithuania, and that members of the Polish Parliament criticized the government of Lithuania over alleged discrimination against the Polish minority.In recent years, the Lithuanian government budgets 40,000 litas (~€10,000) for the needs of the Polish minority (out of the 2 million Eur budget of the Department of National Minorities).In 2006 Polish Foreign Minister Stefan Meller asserted that Polish educational institutions in Lithuania are severely underfunded.