[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 19 (Monday, February 28, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[Congressional Record: February 28, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
SENATE USE OF DOUBLE-SIDED PAPER
Mr. LAUTENBERG. Mr. President, I rise to urge my colleagues to join
me in reducing the amount of paper generated in the U.S. Senate by
adopting a policy of using double-sided paper in their personal and
committee offices. By shrinking our use of paper, we can save the
taxpayer money and reduce our use of natural resources.
The United States generated 196 million tons of garbage in 1990. The
largest component of the municipal solid waste stream--52 million tons
in 1990--is paper and paperboard. We need to address our Nation's
mounting garbage problem by generating less garbage, particularly paper
waste.
The U.S. Congress has initiated some commendable measures to deal
with this problem. Among these are the recycling program that each
Senator's office participates in and the printing of the Congressional
Record on recycled paper generated by Garden State Paper in Garfield,
NJ. Yet, while these programs extend the life of the raw materials that
are used to manufacture products, the highest priority in the Nation's
waste management hierarchy is to prevent the generation of waste in the
first place.
Well over 1,000 hearings are held by Senate committees during each
congressional year. Invited witnesses--ranging from 1 to 20 at any
given hearing--are required to submit at least 50 and in some cases 200
copies of their written testimony, depending on individual committee
rules. I have personally seen statements that were longer than some
books I have read. And while lengthy testimony may sometimes be
necessary, submitting this testimony in a wasteful manner is
unjustifiable. Most written testimony is printed on only one side of
the paper and in a double-spaced format.
Senate staff are also responsible for generating large quantities of
paper. Few Senate offices are connected by the same computer system,
preventing staff from communicating via E-mail. Instead, most
correspondence between and often within Senate offices, including
informal memos, is conducted in writing.
A front page article in the Washington Post on November 14 cited the
president of the American Forest and Paper Association stating that
Washington is the paper capital of the world. In fact, the paper
industry estimates that offices in the area consumed so much copier
paper last year that if laid end to end, it would reach the Moon and
back nine times over.
The U.S. Senate must put an end to the practice of wasting paper. The
Office of the Secretary of the Senate estimates that nearly 42 million
sheets of copier-grade paper are used by the Senate during a calendar
year. Using double-sided rather than one-sided copies would reduce the
quantity of paper used in the conduct of Senate business by as much as
50 percent. According to the Congressional Research Service, this
practice alone could save over 1,700 trees annually. Urging witnesses
to submit testimony on double-sided paper could save even more trees.
In addition, using figures provided by the Secretary of the Senate, I
estimate that double-sided copying in Senate offices would save the
American taxpayer almost $100,000 a year just in copier paper
procurement costs. Moreover, while there occasionally are legitimate
reasons for using a double-spaced format--such as drafting
legislation--printing documents single-spaced as a general rule would
further reduce the quantity of paper needed to produce documents and
the expenditure for procuring copy paper.
Double-sided copying would not impose an unreasonable hardship or
inconvenience on the public. The technology to copy papers in duplex
format is readily available today, and the cost of copying documents in
duplex at commercial copy centers is less than or equal to the cost of
copying documents on one side only.
Three months ago, President Clinton issued an Executive order aimed
at using Government procurement to prevent and recycle waste. One
provision in this order requires every Government agency to encourage
that all documents printed internally be printed double-sided. I
commend the President on this initiative and call upon Congress to join
the executive branch and lead the Nation in instituting waste reduction
practices. I hope that my colleagues will join me in supporting this
meaningful initiative.
I had intended to offer a resolution to change the Senate rules to
encourage the use of double-sided paper in the Senate. After discussing
the matter with Senator Ford, chairman of the Rules Committee, I
decided not to introduce the resolution. Instead, Senator Ford agreed
to write to Senators urging that each Senator support the use of
single-spaced and double-sided paper for office communications. I want
to thank Senator Ford for his cooperation. I ask unanimous consent that
a copy of the letter I wrote to Senator Ford and the letter Senators
Ford and Stevens wrote to each Member be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
U.S. Senate,
Washington, DC, January 25, 1994.
Sen. Wendall H. Ford,
Chairman, Committee on Rules and Administration, Washington,
DC.
Dear Wendell: I have prepared a resolution which would
require committee witnesses to submit testimony in a double-
sided (duplex) and single-spaced format. As you know,
witnesses at Senate hearings must submit anywhere from fifty
to two hundred copies of their testimony, depending on
individual committees' rules. Additionally, the resolution
would require Senate staff, to the extent practicable, to
copy informal memos and other documents in this format. Such
a change in procedure would significantly reduce the amount
of paper that is used to conduct Senate business.
Paper and paperboard, taken collectively, is the largest
component of municipal solid waste in this country. And
Washington, in addition to being the Nation's capitol, is
also the paper capitol of the world. A recent front page
article in ``The Washington Post'' reported that if the paper
used in Washington last year was laid end to end, it would
reach the moon and back nine times over.
Our staff have discussed the resolution and I understand
that you are supportive of duplex, single-spaced copying as a
way to reduce paper waste. I understand that you will be
sending a letter to all Senators, strongly encouraging
committee chairs and Senators to adopt this policy in their
respective committees and offices. I will withhold
introducing my resolution with the hope that your appeal will
produce some tangible results.
I recently instituted such a policy in my personal office
and, while it necessitates some minor changes in daily
habits, my staff has been very receptive. I believe that
staff members in our colleagues' offices will be pleased with
this small but meaningful contribution that we are making
toward resolving our nation's solid waste management problem.
Sincerely,
Frank R. Lautenberg.
____
U.S. Senate, Committee on Rules and Administration,
Washington, DC, February 2, 1994.
Hon. Frank R. Lautenberg,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Frank: Thank you for your letter of January 25, 1994.
I am pleased to inform you that Senator Stevens and I have
written to all Senators, committee chairman, and ranking
members regarding this matter. Copies of these letters are
enclosed.
We hope there will be a reduction in the use of paper as a
result of this communication.
Sincerely,
Wendell H. Ford,
Chairman.
____
U.S. Senate, Committee on Rules and Administration,
Washington, DC, February 2, 1994.
Hon. ------ ------,
U.S. Senate,
Washington, DC.
Dear ------ ------: Reduction of paper and printing costs
continue to be a major initiative of the Rules Committee.
Senator Lautenberg suggested an amendment to the Standing
Rules of the Senate that would require paper conservation
practices. While we object to incorporating such detail into
the Standing Rules, we do support this principle.
We therefore urge each Member, to the extent practicable,
to use a single-spaced and double-sided (duplex) format for
office communications. Use of this format will decrease costs
to the taxpayers by reducing waste disposal and printing
costs.
We appreciate your consideration of this proposal.
Sincerely,
Ted Stevens,
Ranking Member.
Wendell H. Ford,
Chairman.
____
U.S. Senate, Committee on Rules and Administration,
Washington, DC, February 2, 1994.
Hon. ------ ------,
Chairman, Committee on ------ ------, U.S. Senate,
Washington, DC.
Dear ------ ------: Reduction of paper and printing costs
continue to be a major initiative of the Rules Committee.
Senator Lautenberg suggested an amendment to the Standing
Rules of the Senate that would require paper conservation
practices. While we object to incorporating such detail into
the Standing Rules, we do support this principle.
We therefore urge each Committee to adopt a rule to require
that all written statements submitted to the Committee be
single-spaced and double-sided (duplex) and that transcripts
of testimony be single-spaced. Use of this format will
decrease costs to the taxpayers by reducing waste disposal
and printing costs.
We appreciate your consideration of this proposal.
Sincerely,
Ted Stevens,
Ranking Member.
Wendell H. Ford,
Chairman.
____________________