[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 33 (Tuesday, March 22, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[Congressional Record: March 22, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
PROVIDING AMOUNTS FOR EXPENSES OF INVESTIGATIONS AND STUDIES BY CERTAIN
STANDING COMMITTEES
Mr. FROST. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on House
Administration, I offer a privileged resolution (H. Res. 369) providing
amounts from the contingent fund of the House for the expenses of
investigations and studies by certain committees of the House in the
session of the 2d 103d Congress, and I ask for its immediate
consideration.
The Clerk read the resolution, as follows:
H. Res. 369
Resolved, That there shall be paid out of the contingent
fund of the House in accordance with this primary expense
resolution not more than the amount specified in section 2
for investigations and studies by each committee named in
such section, including expenses--
(1) in the case of a committee named in section 3, for
procurement of consultant services under section 202(i) of
the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946; and
(2) in the case of a committee named in section 4, for
provision of assistance for members of professional staff in
obtaining specialized training under section 202(j) of such
Act.
Sec. 2. The committees and amounts referred to in the first
section are: Committee on Agriculture, $2,257,937; Committee
on Armed Services, $2,669,197; Committee on Banking, Finance
and Urban Affairs, $4,188,650; Committee on the District of
Columbia, $342,035; Committee on Education and Labor,
$4,238,064; Committee on Energy and Commerce, $6,608,907;
Committee on Foreign Affairs, $4,145,214; Committee on
Government Operations, $3,282,875; Committee on House
Administration, $1,994,288; Permanent Select Committee on
Intelligence, $104,500; Committee on the Judiciary,
$2,734,853; Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries,
$2,395,679; Committee on Natural Resources, $2,243,095;
Committee on Post Office and Civil Service, $1,889,736;
Committee on Public Works and Transportation, $3,170,666;
Committee on Rules, $722,479; Committee on Science, Space,
and Technology, $2,959,438; Committee on Small Business,
$1,073,000; Committee on Standards of Official Conduct,
$100,000; Committee on Veterans' Affairs, $827,034; and
Committee on Ways and Means, $5,070,000.
Sec. 3. (a) Of the amounts provided for in section 2, each
committee named in subsection (b) may use not more than the
amount specified in such subsection for consultant services
under paragraph (1) of the first section.
(b) The committees and amounts referred to in subsection
(a) are: Committee on Agriculture, $12,000; Committee on
Armed Services, $40,000; Committee on the District of
Columbia, $8,000; Committee on Education and Labor, $100,000;
Committee on Energy and Commerce, $25,000; Committee on
Government Operations, $10,000; Committee on House
Administration, $225,000; Committee on Natural Resources,
$2,500; Committee on Post Office and Civil Service, $60,000;
Committee on Public Works and Transportation, $50,000;
Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, $25,000;
Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, $45,000;
Committee on Veterans' Affairs, $18,750; Committee on Ways
and Means, $10,000.
Sec. 4. (a) Of the amounts provided for in section 2, each
committee named in subsection (b) may use not more than the
amount specified in such subsection for specialized training
under paragraph (2) of the first section.
(b) The committees and amounts referred to in subsection
(a) are: Committee on Agriculture, $2,000; Committee on Armed
Services, $8,000; Committee on the District of Columbia,
$1,000; Committee on Education and Labor, $10,000; Committee
on Government Operations, $2,000; Committee on House
Administration, $20,000; Permanent Select Committee on
Intelligence, $5,000; Committee on the Judiciary, $5,000;
Committee on Natural Resources, $100; Committee on Public
Works and Transportation, $30,000; Committee on Rules,
$2,500; Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, $19,032;
Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, $1,000; and
Committee on Veterans' Affairs, $1,500.
Sec. 5. In addition to any other activity referred to in
this resolution, the Committee on House Administration, using
funds from the amount specified with respect to that
Committee in section 2--
(1) shall, through House Information Systems, develop,
operate, maintain, and improve computer and information
services for the House, including direct computer and
information systems support for Members, committees,
administrative offices, and other governmental entitles, and
shall conduct necessary investigations and studies of such
services;
(2) is authorized to oversee any reimbursement for services
described in paragraph (1) and any expenditure of amounts so
reimbursed; and
(3) is authorized to provide for professional development
programs, office and personnel management consultation
services, and periodic publication of handbooks, guides,
bulletins, and other items necessary for the House.
Sec. 6. Payments under this resolution shall be made on
vouchers authorized by the committee involved, signed by the
chairman of such committee, and approved by the Committee on
House Administration.
Sec. 7. Amounts shall be available under this resolution
for investigations and studies carried out during the period
beginning at noon on January 3, 1994, and ending immediately
before noon on January 3, 1995.
Sec. 8. Amounts made available under this resolution shall
be expended in accordance with regulations prescribed by the
Committee on House Administration.
Mr. FROST (during the reading). Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent
that the resolution be considered as read and printed in the Record.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. de la Garza). Is there objection to the
request of the gentleman from Texas?
There was no objection.
committee amendment in the nature of a substitute
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will report the amendment in the
nature of a substitute.
The Clerk read as follows:
Strike out all after the resolving clause and insert the
following:
That there shall be paid out of the contingent fund of the
House in accordance with this primary expense resolution not
more than the amount specified in section 2 for
investigations and studies by each committee named in such
section, including expenses--
(1) in the case of a committee named in section 3, for
procurement of consultant services under section 202(i) of
the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946; and
(2) in the case of a committee named in section 4, for
provision of assistance for members of professional staff in
obtaining specialized training under section 202(j) of such
Act.
Sec. 2. The committees and amounts referred to in the first
section are: Committee on Agriculture, $2,190,199; Committee
on Armed Services, $2,500,427; Committee on Banking, Finance
and Urban Affairs, $3,953,784; Committee on the District of
Columbia, $328,354; Committee on Education and Labor,
$3,955,526; Committee on Energy and Commerce, $6,349,077;
Committee on Foreign Affairs, $3,800,113; Committee on
Government Operations, $3,184,389; Committee on House
Administration, $1,902,621; Permanent Select Committee on
Intelligence, $104,500; Committee on the Judiciary,
$2,465,860; Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries,
$2,229,175; Committee on Post Office and Civil Service,
$1,871,039; Committee on Public Works and Transportation,
$2,922,324; Committee on Rules, $708,029; Committee on
Science, Space, and Technology, $2,870,655; Committee on
Small Business, $1,002,250; Committee on Standards of
Official Conduct, $90,000; Committee on Veterans' Affairs,
$746,402; and Committee on Ways and Means, $4,826,844.
Sec. 3. (a) Of the amounts provided for in section 2, each
committee named in subsection (b) may use not more than the
amount specified in such subsection for consultant services
under paragraph (1) of the first section.
(b) The committees and amounts referred to in subsection
(a) are: Committee on Agriculture, $12,000; Committee on
Armed Services, $40,000; Committee on the District of
Columbia, $8.000; Committee on Education and Labor, $100,000;
Committee on Energy and Commerce, $25,000; Committee on
Government Operations, $10,000; Committee on House
Administration, $225,000; Committee on Natural Resources,
$2,500; Committee on Post Office and Civil Service, $60,000;
Committee on Public Works and Transportation, $50,000;
Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, $25,000;
Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, $45,000;
Committee on Veterans' Affairs, $18,750; and Committee on
Ways and Means, $10,000.
Sec. 4. (a) Of the amounts provided for in section 2, each
committee named in subsection (b) may use not more than the
amount specified in such subsection for specialized training
under paragraph (2) of the first section.
(b) The committees and amounts referred to in subsection
(a) are: Committee on Agriculture, $2,000; Committee on Armed
Services, $8,000; Committee on the District of Columbia,
$1,000; Committee on Education and Labor, $10,000; Committee
on Government Operations, $2,000; Committee on House
Administration, $20,000; Permanent Select Committee on
Intelligence, $5,000; Committee on the Judiciary, $5,000;
Committee on Natural Resources, $100; Committee on Public
Works and Transportation, $30,000; Committee on Rules,
$2,500; Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, $19,032;
Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, $1,000; and
Committee on Veterans' Affairs, $1,500.
Sec. 5. In addition to any other activity referred to in
this resolution, the Committee on House Administration, using
funds from the amount specified with respect to that
Committee in section 2--
(1) shall, through House Information Systems, develop,
operate, maintain, and improve computer and information
services for the House, including direct computer and
information systems support for Members, committees,
administrative offices, and other governmental entities, and
shall conduct necessary investigation and studies of such
services;
(2) is authorized to oversee any reimbursement for services
described in paragraph (1) and any expenditure of amounts so
reimbursed; and
(3) is authorized to provide for professional development
programs, office and personnel management consultation
services, and periodic publication of handbooks, guides,
bulletins, and other items necessary for the House.
Sec. 6. Payments under this resolution shall be made on
vouchers authorized by the committee involved, signed by the
chairman of such committee, and approved by the Committee on
House Administration.
Sec. 7. Amounts shall be available under this resolution
for investigations and studies carried out during the period
beginning at noon January 3, 1994, and ending immediately
before noon on January 3, 1995.
Sec. 8. Amounts made available under this resolution shall
be expended in accordance with regulations prescribed by the
Committee on House Administration.
Sec. 9. The Committee on House Administration shall have
authority to make adjustments in amounts for investigations
and studies under section 2, if necessary to comply with an
order of the President issued under section 254 of the
Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 or
to conform to any reduction in appropriations for the
purposes of such section 2.
Mr. FROST (during the reading). Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent
that the committee amendment in the nature of a substitute be
considered as read and printed in the Record.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Texas?
There was no objection.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Texas [Mr. Frost] is
recognized for 1 hour.
{time} 1620
Mr. FROST. Mr. Speaker, for the purposes of debate only, I yield the
customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from Kansas [Mr. Roberts], the
ranking minority member of the Subcommittee on Accounts of the
Committee on House Administration, pending which I yield myself such
time as I may consume, with the understanding that any additional time
which I may yield will be subject to the specific limitation, for
debate purposes only.
Mr. Speaker, before explaining this amendment, I wish to thank all of
the Members of the subcommittee on accounts for their hard work in
considering each committee's budget request. Attendance at each session
was excellent. In particular, I wish to thank the gentleman from
Washington, [Al Swift] who is retiring after 15 years of dedicated
service on the committee. Finally, I wish to thank all of the chairmen
and ranking minority members from the respective committees and their
staffs. Their cooperation enabled us to evaluate all budget requests in
a through and timely manner.
The committee amendment in the nature of a substitute incorporates
all of the subcommittee's determinations on each original primary
expense resolution from the customary 20 standing committees and the
permanent select committee on intelligence for the 2d session of the
103d Congress. It does not include the Committees on Appropriations and
Budget. The proposed amendment was adopted by the subcommittee at its
markup on March 8 by a rollcall vote of 8 to 5, after completion of
hearings on each individual resolution. The amendment was subsequently
adopted without change by the full committee on March 9, by a vote of
12 to 7.
This year the subcommittee had the very difficult task of continuing
the process of reducing the cost of Government. When we commenced the
hearings, I stated that the subcommittee had two major
responsibilities. First, we had to ensure that the committees of the
House had adequate funds to discharge their legislative and oversight
responsibilities. Second, we had to make certain that the authorization
of committee funds was fiscally responsible in an climate of declining
resources. In my judgement, we have discharged both of these
responsibilities in a manner which attempts to be reasonable and fair.
Regarding the subcommittee's work product, the amendment provides a
total authorization which represents a 5-percent reduction from 1993's
level. The total authorization for 1993 was $52,774,866. This amount
represents the sum of funds authorized by House Resolution 107, the
omnibus primary expense resolution for 1993, and funds authorized
pursuant to House rule XI, clause 5(f) to continue the four defunct
select committees for 3 months of 1993. Both of these amounts were
charged to the applicable fiscal year 1993 appropriations line item,
for standing committees, special and select. Therefore it is reasonable
to include both of these amounts in the 1993 baseline as part of the
total authorized amount.
As was the case in 1993, funds saved from entities which have not
been reauthorized were not redistributed to other committees.
Instead they were set aside as genuine savings. In addition, further
reductions were achieved, from every remaining committee under our
jurisdiction. This was done in keeping with the commitment of the House
Democratic leadership to cut the cost of Congress.
For the purpose of comparing the 1994 funding level with the funding
level for 1993, we have utilized the previously mentioned 1993
authorization as the baseline. The total amount recommended by the
committee amendment for 1994 is $50,128,299. This amount is $2,646,637
below the total authorization of $52,774,866 for 1993. Therefore, the
recommended amount for 1994 represents a 5.01-percent reduction from
the 1993 authorized level.
Furthermore, the committees under our jurisdiction were frozen in
1992, cut by 5 percent in the aggregate in 1993, and we propose an
additional 5-percent reduction for 1994. It is difficult to see how
anyone could argue that we have not actually cut the cost of Congress
in very real terms.
The subcommittee's amendment cuts every committee in a manner which
attempts to be rational and fair. We applied such relevant criteria as
each committee's jurisdictional responsibilities, projected 1994
workload, and historical funding patterns to determine the level of
cuts. However, we rejected the single criterion which was suggested by
our minority colleagues, that is, that reductions should be tied to a
committee's alleged treatment or mistreatment of its minority members.
This single predetermined standard seems to be driven by the
Republican leadership. Most of the ranking minority members who
appeared before the Accounts Subcommittee indicated that they were
satisfied with their treatment by their respective chairmen. Yet I
doubt that we will get a single Republican vote in support of these
genuine cost reductions. The minority leadership has adopted the
position that we should reduce overall funding for the committees
further, while increasing the minority portion of the remainder to at
least 33 percent on all committees. We have to ask ourselves if this is
a genuine effort at cost reduction or an attempt to gain partisan
advantage.
The subcommittee also resisted attempts to gridlock the process by
focusing on matters which are clearly beyond our control. I am
referring to funds provided in appropriations for the so-called
statutory account and the operation of the Committees on Appropriations
and Budget. The consideration of these matters by the Accounts
Subcommittee would require changes to House rules and statutory law.
These proposals were considered and rejected by the final report of the
House Members of the Joint Committee on the Reorganization of Congress.
It is my opinion that the historical rationale for the distinction
between these accounts should be maintained. In any event, as I stated
previously, these matters are beyond our control.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to take a few minutes to expose the
persistent myth that the legislative branch is continually getting
larger and more expensive.
Since 1979, appropriations for the entire legislative branch have
actually declined by 1.7 percent after adjusting for inflation [AFI].
In contrast, funding for the executive branch has increased by 30
percent [AFI] during this time period.
As the first chart shows, during the Reagan-Bush years civilian
executive branch employment grew at an alarming rate--from 2.8 million
in 1981 to a high point of over 3.06 million in 1987. This increase
under Republican administrations, represented the addition of
approximately 250,000 workers to the Federal pay roll. Therefore, I ask
you, which party should be labeled ``The Big Government Spenders''? It
is no wonder President Clinton wants to reduce the executive branch by
a quarter million workers. He inherited a lot of left-over fat to trim.
This same chart shows, in contrast, that both the legislative branch in
general, and the House and Senate in particular, remained static in
terms of employees from 1981 to 1993. Committee investigative
employees, have actually decreased by 2.47 percent, from 1,013 in 1983,
to 988 as of January of 1994.
Clearly the Democratic controlled legislative branch has done a
better job of curtailing expenses and staff, than the Republican
controlled executive branch did when they had the White House.
The Founding Fathers envisioned the House of Representatives to be
the first branch of our National Government. Yet for fiscal year 1994,
the appropriations for the entire legislative branch totalled $2.3
billion. This might sound like a lot of money, but it amounts to less
than one-fifth of 1 percent of the overall Federal budget.
In terms of employment, the second chart shows that in 1993 there
were 2.9 million civilian executive branch employees to 37,000
legislative branch employees. In other words, in 1993 there were 79
civilian executive branch employees, for each legislative branch
employee. Frankly, in terms of cost, we are extremely small in
comparison to the executive branch. I ask my colleagues, how are we to
continue to effectively legislate and oversee the vast Federal
bureaucracy if we continue to cut the budget of Congress just for the
sake of cutting?
Concerning the investigative account, which is before you today, the
third chart shows that from a high point of approximately $60 million
in 1991 we have reduced this account steadily to our current proposal
of $50 million dollars contained in the committee amendment. The 1994
recommendation is actually $45 million in 1991 constant dollars.
Therefore, the resolution is a 24.6 percent reduction from 1991's
authorized level after adjustment for inflation.
Finally, I urge all Members to vote for the adoption of this
amendment, even though I think that it is fair to say that no one is
truly happy with it. Certainly committee chairmen do not like having
their budgets cut when they have increasing work loads. The minority is
not happy either; but they would have us fire Democrat staff and hire
Republican staff and claim that they are reducing spending.
Although no one is satisfied, I urge your support for this reasonable
proposal. Tough choices were made and no committee remained untouched;
but, we have clearly heard the call of our constituents and our
President to reduce the cost of Government.
{time} 1630
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. ROBERTS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
(Mr. ROBERTS asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. ROBERTS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to the amendment
offered by Chairman Frost.
I appreciate the comments of the Accounts Subcommittee Chairman
Martin Frost regarding the majority's proposed committee funding
resolution, our subcommittee hearings and the efforts of the minority.
First, I wish to thank all the members for their participation, in
particular Congresswoman Jennifer Dunn, Congressman John Boehner, and
Congressman Bill Thomas. I appreciate the professional manner in which
the majority, in particular Mr. Frost, has illustrated through our
hearings.
Throughout our subcommittee hearings, the minority focused on the
growth of committee spending, majority and minority staffing ratios and
the historical treatment of the minority. As well, the minority raised
issues outside the immediate scope of our committee funding resolution
regarding the need to reform the committee funding process and a
mandated 4-percent reduction in congressional staff. I know these
issues will not be settled today by this debate, but I believe they
should become bipartisan concerns and goals for our leadership to
resolve.
investigative funding/baseline
For the record, I believe it is important that we all share an
understanding of Congress' spending on House committees.
House Resolution 369 is not representative of the entire funding
provided committees for 1994. Rather, the resolution only illustrates
roughly 41 percent of committees entire spending--or an estimated $51
million of the more than $120 million that will be spent on House
committees in 1994. The other funding source, known as statutory
funding, is provided directly in the legislative branch appropriations
bill and does not have to be annually authorized in this resolution. In
addition, committees' investigative resources are provided on a
calendar year and statutory resources are provided on fiscal years--a
timetable that only confuses the best financial managers and making it
impossible to accurately determine a committee's resources.
The minority has developed an alternative to the current system (H.
Res. 383) to require annual authorization in an effort to increase
oversight and consistency in the committee funding process. I
anticipate this will be further discussed later in the debate.
Now, as to the baseline or if a cut is really a cut.
Chairman Frost has indicated that the majority views the baseline for
1994 to be equal to the House's 1993 committee authorization level.
In 1993, the House authorized $52,774,866 in investigative funding
for the 21 committees authorized in House Resolution 369, as well as 5
other committees that are no longer in existence, the Joint Committee
on the Organization of Congress and 4 select committees--Aging,
Children, Narcotics and Hunger.
The majority has calculated the past spending on these five now-
defunct committees as part of their 1994 baseline of $52,774,866, a
$1,492,475 exaggeration in the actual resources provided 1993 when
compared to 1994. Smoke and mirrors to claim a cut that is not a cut.
The minority recognizes that the majority resolution is providing
real reductions in committee spending for 1994 beyond the $1.5 million
cushion, but these reductions are not at the rate being claimed by the
majority. Overall, the majority reduction is a 2.3-percent cut, not the
5 percent that has been asserted.
MINORITY RATIOS
Further, it is important to understand the use and allocation of
resources. House rules provide that the chairmen of committees
determine the amount of investigative funding provided the minority.
The majority determines our minority funding, thus controlling the
ability of the minority to respond and develop alternative positions.
Such power has lead to long-term understandings and comity between the
majority and minority, but this has not been the case on many
committees and in some committees the minority has been denied a fair
share of the resources.
In response to this concern, an alternative position has been
developed that the minority should be provided at least one-third of
the investigative funds provided a committee. This figure is in line
with the current Senate understanding and previous House votes have
supported this guaranteed allocation formula. However, today the
minority continues to receive only 21.5 percent of
investigative resources. Only 4 of 21 committees provide a figure at or
above the 33 percent goal.
Five years ago, Tony Coelho and Newt Gingrich were part of the House
Administration Committee membership that developed a longterm
understanding and agreement on the future investigative funding. The
Coelho-Gingrich agreement recognized that minority one-third goal and
stated that we would work to reach the one-third goal over the next
several years through attrition and increased funding. In 1989, the
minority received 16.5 percent of investigative staff compared to the
1994 level of 21.5 percent.
Yes, Mr. Speaker, progress has been made. But, it has been slow. It
is estimated that it would be the year 2010 before the one-third goal
would be achieved at this rate. This situation only continues to
frustrate the minority and we again urge the Democratic leadership to
act in helping to resolve this matter. Support a one-third guarantee
for the minority.
minority alternative committee funding amendment
Under the direction of the Republican leadership, a Republican
alternative to Mr. Frost's proposal was offered to reduce committee's
investigative funding by 7.9 percent or $4,051,387--this cut is equal
to a 4 percent reduction in entire committee funding--the combination
of investigative and statutory funding.
The Republican alternative was developed after considering the
mandated reductions agreed upon during debate on the fiscal 1994
Legislative Branch Appropriations Act and its accompanying House
report. The act requires a 4 percent staff reduction in the House of
Representatives by September 30, 1995. The majority has failed to
recognize this requirement with their proposal and we now face
uncertainty in how, where and when additional staff cuts will be
achieved.
Specifically, the minority alternative provides a 2.5 percent across-
the-board reduction for all committees. The remaining impact to achieve
a total 7.9 percent reduction is distributed among committees based
upon historical staff ratios between the majority and minority, in an
effort to reward committees with ratios closet to the one-third
minority goal.
The minority alternative was offered a an amendment in the nature of
a substitute at both the subcommittee and full committee meetings. Both
times this measure failed on a party-line vote.
I intend to offer this same proposal as a motion to recommit and
solicit my colleagues support.
conclusion
Mr. Speaker, during these days of deficit spending and budget
cutting, we believe Congress should not be an exception. The House of
Representatives has seen considerable staff increases in both committee
and administrative offices. It is only fair to see these areas reduce
spending to assist in achieving responsible reductions in Federal
spending.
In addition, the minority is not making an unreasonable request of
the majority to terminate staff in order to provide additional slots
for minority positions. In fact this goal has been met on several
committees through attrition and total committee reductions. Instead,
the minority is only trying to highlight a longterm difficulty between
the majority and minority. The minority is asking for a commitment that
progress will be made in this area.
I appreciate having the opportunity to work with my colleagues on
this resolution.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. FROST. Mr. Speaker, for purposes of debate only, I yield 2
minutes to the gentleman from North Carolina [Mr. Rose], the chairman
of the Committee on House Administration.
{time} 1640
Mr. ROSE. Mr. Speaker, as chairman of the Committee on House
Administration, and as an ex-officio member of the Subcommittee on
Accounts, I would like to congratulate the gentleman from Texas--
Chairman Martin Frost--for the excellent work he did in producing this
1994 committee funding resolution.
At a time when we have been directed by our leadership to continue
the task of reducing the cost of Congress, the Accounts Subcommittee's
final recommendation achieves that objective. It is based upon real
reductions, and it cuts every committee.
The aggregate decrease for committees, under the resolution before
you today, is 5 percent below 1993's authorized level.
These reductions were accomplished in a rational manner, taking into
consideration such factors as jurisdiction, oversight responsibilities,
and projected workload for 1994.
Every Member who votes for this resolution, can honestly say that his
or her vote reduced the size and operating cost of the House.
I would remind my colleagues that, of the committees which come under
this resolution, aggregate spending was frozen in 1992. The following
year, in 1993, the House cut that aggregate by five percent. This
resolution continues the process by cutting another 5 percent.
I urge my colleagues, on both sides of the aisle, to recognize the
need for rational--and measured--steps in the downsizing of Government.
This resolution recognizes that need, and provides that balance.
I thank the gentleman for yielding me the time.
Mr. ROBERTS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the distinguished
gentleman from Ohio [Mr. Boehner], an extremely important member of the
subcommittee and a gentleman who has pressed for reform in the way we
can better control our overall committee funding resources.
Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me this
time.
Mr. Speaker and my colleagues, I come to the floor today to oppose
the committee funding resolution as presented by the majority.
As the gentleman from Kansas [Mr. Roberts] has pointed out, what is
portrayed as a 5-percent cut really in fact is a 2-percent cut, and we
can quibble over the amounts.
But let us all be honest. There was $996,000 included in the baseline
from select committees that had been eliminated before last year's
resolution came to the floor. We have also included in the baseline
some half-million dollars that was spent for the Joint Committee for
the Reorganization of Congress, which went out of existence. So to
include $1.5 million in the baseline that was never intended to be
there this year anyway, I think, stretches the truth just a bit.
So the fact is it is a 2-percent cut. It is a step in the right
direction, but, oh, so modest of a step in the right direction.
The second point that I would make is the point that the gentleman
from Kansas [Mr. Roberts] pointed out, and that is this committee
resolution deals with 41 percent of the total committee finances. Total
committee funding this year will be $129,927,000, in round numbers,
$130 million. The $50 million requested is only 41 percent of those
resources.
The gentleman from Kansas [Mr. Roberts] did a very good job in
pointing out that this process ought to be controlled. These funds,
these 41 percent, are on a calendar-year basis. The 38 percent are on a
fiscal-year basis. And yet after all of the chairmen and the ranking
members have come before the committee to justify why they should get
the amounts that they requested, the Committee on Appropriations never
came before our committee, nor did the Committee on the Budget, which
brings me to my third point, which is the amount of money that is spent
on committees.
We have got some very large committees in the Congress, the Committee
on Energy and Commerce that spends about $9.6 million, and we have got
the Committee on Ways and Means that spends about $7.9 million, Foreign
Affairs almost $7 million, and the Committee on Appropriations is also
a large committee.
But it costs $21.2 million dollars to fund the Committee on
Appropriations.
Now I would suggest that because they do not have to go through this
committee funding process, it makes it very easy for them to put the
amount of money that they want directly into the legislative
appropriations bill and never having to come before the committee to
justify their budget. The other point I would make is that last year
during the legislative appropriation debate, the Congress voted to cut
our staffs by 4 percent. The Congress voted. It was not a proposal from
this side or that side. The Congress decided we are going to cut 4
percent of our staff.
We are still groping how we are going to do that. In that request
last summer, in that vote, the report language says, and I quote,
The Director of Non-Legislative and Financial Services, a
de facto budget officer, shall prepare a plan for achieving
the necessary reductions. This plan should be developed in
consultation with and with the approval of the bipartisan
leadership consisting of the Speaker, majority leader, and
the minority leader and the Committee on House Administration
and the House Committee on Appropriations.
Now, I will bring to the Chamber's attention the fact that our
chairman, the gentleman from North Carolina [Mr. Rose], of the
Committee on House Administration, brought forth a proposal that was
voted on in committee several weeks ago, never having been shared with
the minority, never having consulted the minority leader, and you want
to talk about a sham for cutting 4 percent of our staff, look what we
are going to do.
We are going to contract out the House restaurant system and take the
188 employees who work for us, and we are going to shift them to the
outside contractor. We are really cutting staff, I can see. We are also
going to count them as part of our 4-percent reduction.
Now, I would say to my colleagues that this is not what we committed
to when we cast our vote to reduce our staff by 5 percent, and the fact
is that we ought to take our time. We ought to bite the bullet and
carry out these reductions.
So the Republican Members today are going to offer a 7.9-percent cut
in the investigative funds, the 41 percent of the budget, to try to
achieve the 4-percent overall reduction.
I feel bad that we have got to ask the 25 standing committees who
have taken a hit last year and who are going to take a hit this year,
that we are going to ask them to bear the whole brunt of this. This
process does not allow us to cut the Committee on Appropriations or the
Committee on the Budget.
So the fact is, support the Republican alternative today.
Mr. FROST. Mr. Speaker, for purposes of debate only, I yield 3
minutes to the gentleman from California [Mr. Mineta], the
distinguished chairman of the Committee on Public Works and
Transportation.
(Mr. MINETA asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. MINETA. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of House Resolution 369,
the committees' funding resolution for 1994. I do want to thank and
commend the chairman of the Committee on House Administration, Mr.
Rose, the chairman of the Subcommittee on Accounts, Mr. Frost, the
distinguished members of the committee and their staff for their
diligence and hard work in bringing forward this resolution today.
Striking a happy balance with committee budgets is a difficult and
thankless job.
Mr. Speaker, I will vote for this resolution--not enthusiastically--
but I will vote for it, not because I support the degree of budget
cutting we are into now, or even because budget cutting is the
politically correct thing to do. I am deeply concerned that if this
resolution does not pass, the cuts to committees will be larger, and we
will have succeeded in making a disastrous predicament even worse.
Historically, the work of the Congress increases in direct proportion
to the enormity of the challenges facing this Nation. Getting more work
done with less is quickly becoming one of the greatest of our
challenges.
The Committee on Public Works and Transportation, for example, is the
largest authorizing committee in Congress, and we have a heavy
legislative schedule this session: the Clean Water Act, enactment of
the National Highway System, an airport and airway reauthorization
bill, and the Water Resources Development Act, just to name a few. Yet,
as chair of that committee, I am reduced to operating a major
congressional committee by scavenging for used equipment, borrowing
staff from agencies and outside organizations, and using volunteer
interns. We have eliminated practically all of our travel budget,
seriously hampering our oversight operations. My staff works long
hours, and I can't even pass along a cost-of-living allowance, much
less a merit increase.
I can tell you as a committee Chair, there are countless challenges
and frustrations in my job, but few more exasperating than trying to
stretch and make do with resources that long ago passed their day. In
our committee, we are having to accept that it will be nearly
impossible to handle our full agenda on our present budget. Each
successive cut just makes our predicament more desperate.
The Constitution provides that we are a co-equal branch of
Government. Yet, the 1994 appropriation for the legislative branch is
less than one-fifth of 1 percent of the entire Federal budget--one-
fifth of 1 percent. I cannot imagine that would even be visible on a
pie chart. As we continue to chop away at our one-fifth of 1 percent
share, what are we doing to our Government's system of checks and
balances?
Matching executive branch cost-cutting targets is going to be
extremely difficult because the legislative branch has not grown as
fast. In trying to keep up with their pace, I fear we will find that
while the executive branch is streamlining, we in the legislative
branch are self-destructing. Clearly, we are saving money. But at what
cost? We are progressively undermining our ability to make in-depth,
informed legislative judgments and to vigorously pursue our oversight
responsibilities.
In my view, we have to take a serious look at what we are doing to
this institution. It is time to rethink the size of budget cuts in the
legislative branch. In answering to the American people, I would much
rather defend funding we truly need, than try to explain that our job
did not get done for lack of resources.
There is no doubt we have to pass this resolution, and we should.
While it does not go as far as I had hoped in providing the support we
need, it does represent a good-faith effort under very difficult
circumstances. Accordingly, I will vote for this resolution and urge my
colleagues to do the same.
{time} 1650
Mr. ROBERTS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentlewoman from
Washington [Ms. Dunn], who has made a most valuable contribution to our
subcommittee's efforts.
Ms. DUNN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman very much for yielding
this time to me.
First I want to thank the ranking members of our committee, the
gentleman from Kansas [Mr. Roberts] and the gentleman from California
[Mr. Thomas] for their leadership, and I also appreciate the manner in
which Chairman Frost conducted the subcommittee hearings.
We had a good series of hearings and discussions held in our
subcommittee, and I believe that this drove the final decision on
funding in the right direction, in the direction of cutting the
committee funding.
First, let me say that I am pleased that my Democrat colleagues on
the Committee on House Administration now support cutting overall
committee funding. Personally, I wanted more cuts. In fact, my freshman
Republican colleagues have called for more dramatic cuts; last year 25
percent, and this year it was 10 percent.
This call for dramatic cuts is in direct response to the directive of
our constituents for more responsible government.
Thus I suppose that the big question is how much should the cut be?
According to the Republican baseline, House Resolution 369, passed on a
party-line vote, results in a reduction to committee funding by 2.3
percent, a minor cut but still a cut.
The Republican baseline adds up the funds received by the 20 standing
committees and the permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. It is
fairly simple. We have said here are the remaining committees, what do
they need to effectively function? Here is my concern, Mr. Speaker,
with the argument put forth by my Democratic colleagues on the
committee: They use a baseline that adds in the amounts funded last
year for the four select committees and the Joint Committee on the
Organization of Congress. Why is that a problem? Let me give you an
idea.
As a result of the efforts of the freshman Republican class, the
select committees were killed last year, and as a member of the Joint
Committee on the Organization of Congress, I can tell everyone that it
too is defunct at this point, dead, kaput, finished, over.
In fact, it was created with a explicit 1-year lifespan so it sun
setted on 31 December, 1993. Yet the Democrats have added those five
dead and buried committees into their baseline before they made their
cut. That is why I am amazed that my Democratic colleagues are claiming
that they are proposing a 5-percent cut. They are not.
What the majority is proposing is a 2.3-percent reduction in total
committee funding and of this 2.3-percent cut, I say be proud of it; it
is a minor cut, but it is a cut and it is a start in the right
direction.
It is not as much as I wanted, but the majority should be somewhat
commended for their efforts.
Mr. Speaker, by claiming a much larger percentage reduction, in
reality they are again reinforcing the image in the public minds that
Congress just will not level with people. So once again we are
strengthening the hands of those who say the Congress is a den of the
disingenuous. This is especially ironic when we see the budget of the
Joint Committee on the Organization of Congress, since one of its
primary missions was to improve public understanding of the Congress,
yet here we are using 1993 budget numbers to inflate and create a bogus
baseline and thereby confuse the public rather than increase public
understanding.
Mr. Speaker, the taxpayers of America want to know why a cut is not a
cut; why increases sometimes are called cuts; but why these misleading
baselines are used to make the public think that bold action is being
taken when plainly it is not.
We have many honorable men and women in this body, Mr. Speaker, yet
we do a disservice to each and every one of them when we try to shave
the issues. For the good of the institution and for the sake of
clarity, let us be candid. Republicans want a 7.9-percent cut in
committee funding, and Democrats want a 2.3-percent reduction. Fair
enough, Mr. Speaker, let us state the facts, vote the issues, and then
take it to the American people.
Mr. ROBERTS. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. FROST. Mr. Speaker, for purposes of debate only, I yield 2
minutes to the gentlewoman from Connecticut [Mrs. Kennelly], a member
of the subcommittee.
(Mrs. KENNELLY asked and was given permission to revise and extend
her remarks.)
Mrs. KENNELLY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding this
time to me.
Mr. Speaker, I want to commend the chairman of the Accounts
Subcommittee, the gentleman from Texas [Mr. Frost], for the way he has
managed the course on which we have embarked--which is a gradual and
rational reduction in committee funding as part of an overall effort to
streamline the congressional branch of Government.
Last year, as we have heard, committee funding was cut by 5 percent,
and again this year the Accounts Subcommittee presents the House with
another 5-percent reduction overall. Some committees were cut more than
others for a variety of reasons including their 1994 projected
workload, but the important point is that no committee escaped the
knife--all committees were cut. I do not believe these cuts are
painless. Rather, I believe they will have some negative effect on the
ability of committees to function and will require some adjustment by
the chairmen and ranking minority members of the committees. That is
why I do not support any deeper cuts and hope the House would
overwhelmingly reject any such suggestion.
Finally, Mr. Speaker, I would simply like to note for the record that
in 1987 the subcommittee began to suggest to the committees over which
it has jurisdiction that there was need to improve the number of women
in top jobs within the committee structures. Since that time, the
number of women staff directors has risen from zero to seven, and the
number of women counsels, staff directors, and staff within 75 percent
of the pay cap has increased by 25 percent. This is a good trend, and I
think we will improve in the future.
Mr. Speaker, I strongly support this resolution and oppose the motion
to recommit.
Mr. ROBERTS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from
Florida [Mr. Mica], who is not a member of the subcommittee but who
made a valuable contribution during our hearing process.
Mr. MICA. I thank the gentleman from yielding this time to me.
Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to address the House on
this issue.
I am here really to speak about unfairness in this resolution and
also unfairness in this process. If we could take just a minute, I
would like to tell you I am a member of the Committee on Government
Operations. The House Government Operations Committee is one of the
oldest committees in this Congress. In fact, in the history of the
Congress it dates back to 1814 and it broke off from the Committee on
Ways and Means. In 1814 our predecessors and Founders had the wisdom to
see that we should have oversight and investigations of how the
taxpayers' money is spent and how Government is operated here. That is
the important task of the House Government Operations Committee. It is
different from almost any other committee, maybe, with the exception of
the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, dealing with ethics.
Let me say that the unfairness that we see is demonstrated purely by
the facts and statistics.
Look at the distribution of the investigative staff for the
Government Operations Committee. The minority has 14 percent, the
majority has 58 percent. As far as the dollars--and I am not here
asking for a penny more in dollars or a penny more in staff for this
committee--I am saying what is unfair is the distribution.
{time} 1700
The expenditures:
The Republicans will get $594,000; the Democrats, $2.1 million, and
then just look at the graphic illustration. Nine minority staff
investigators, and that is only because I have raised Cain on this
issue from the first day we came here, and now we have 52 in the
majority.
Is that the proper distribution of staff and taxpayer funds?
And what is most important is this is really a question of the
integrity of this process. It is not just a question of fairness. We
are dealing with a committee that deals with the investigation and
oversight of the executive branch of government.
Is this fair?
This actually again deals with the integrity of the process. The
minority does not have the tools, the staff or the financing to conduct
a fair oversight, to conduct fair investigations and to participate in
the process in a fair and equitable manner.
What is even more disconcerting to me today is that the other party
controls the White House, the executive branch, all the legislative
branches, and here we are responsible for investigations in oversight.
Not only is the minority being cut off from staff now, we have seen a
very dangerous precedent with the Whitewater investigations. We are
also being cut off from information.
So, my colleagues, I talk today about a question not only about
fairness, but a question of integrity of the very process where the
Committee on House Administration is not funded under this resolution.
It is unfair, and I ask my colleagues to vote against it, and I ask my
colleagues to join me in bringing fairness and integrity to this
process.
Mr. FROST. Mr. Speaker, for purposes of debate only, I yield 4
minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Washington [Mr. Swift] who
has served valiantly on this subcommittee for many years.
(Mr. SWIFT asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. SWIFT. Mr. Speaker, I want to commend the gentleman from Texas
[Mr. Frost] as well as the gentleman from Kansas [Mr. Roberts]. I think
of them as the chairman and ranking member on the thankless task force
which is the Subcommittee on Accounts.
Mr. Speaker, as my colleagues know, there is a game that children
play, probably been playing it since Og came out of a cave and hit
something with a rock. I call it the ``My daddy can beat up your
daddy'' king of game, and it sometimes is played this way, although one
could use a whole bunch of different ways of playing it, but sometimes
one kid will say, ``My daddy makes a million dollars,'' and the other
kid will say, ``My daddy makes $2 million,'' to which the response is,
``My daddy makes $5 million,'' to which, of course, the response is,
``My daddy makes $10 million.''
Then, Mr. Speaker, someone always finds the capper, the one that wins
the debate: ``My daddy makes a million dollars more than whatever your
daddy makes.''
No response; somebody loses.
Mr. Speaker, as my colleagues know, we play that game here in this
institution, only it goes more like this:
What if we cut that appropriation 5 percent?
No, I want more.
What if we cut it 7\1/2\ percent?
No, I want to cut it more.
What if we cut it 10 percent?
Then, Mr. Speaker, if they are real candid, they will say, ``No, you
don't understand. No matter what you want to cut, I want to cut it
more.''
That is the game that we are playing here, Mr. Speaker, but in this
particular instance they are bringing new meaning to the word more
because not only do they want to cut more, but they also want to spend
more on themselves.
I say to my colleagues, That's a great game if you can get away with
it, and I do not blame anybody for trying that.
Here we have a proposal before us which has a 5-percent cut below the
spending that the House had in the last Congress, and every single
committee of this House participates and has its share of that cut. But
what they say is that they want to cut more and spend more, and how do
they do that? They cut the Democrats more, and they spend more on the
Republicans, and if I could get away with that, I think we might try
that over here sometime. It is a bait and switch kind of game. They do
not use the same argument to rationalize the two actions they are
taking. For cutting the Democrats, Mr. Speaker, they use the standard
reduce government spending argument. To justify their increases they
use a different argument, namely an argument that we need more in order
to do the job.
That is great. I admire the audacity. But I urge all of my colleagues
to vote for the real, no-gains, everybody-contributes, cut in
congressional spending, and that measure is the majority proposal. Vote
against the motion to recommit, and vote for the committee proposal.
Mr. ROBERTS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to pay at this pint in the debate a tribute
to my friend and colleague, the gentleman from Washington [Mr. Swift]
who is not running for reelection and who has a long record of service
to the Committee on House Administration and to this Congress. It is
tough duty being on the Committee on House Administration. He referred
to the job I have and the job that the gentleman from Texas [Mr. Frost]
has as a thankless task. I have known Mr. Swift on a personal
friendship basis and on a working colleague basis for 12 of the 14
years I have been here and working on the Committee on House
Administration. I want to wish him well.
Mr. Speaker, the gentleman from Washington [Mr. Swift] is usually in
good spirits. Reform sometimes is in the eyes of the beholder, and
there are occasions when we have had strong differences of opinion as
to what is a cut, what is the baseline, what is an appropriate figure
for the minority, is the minority truly saying, ``We will cut, but,
yes, we would like some more for our side,'' and that is certainly
true, but we can do it in a different way, or, as has been said in the
gentleman's profession: There is another side to the story.
Mr. Speaker, I had meant to give the gentleman from Washington [Mr.
Swift] a happy pill before we started this debate in the hopes that we
could achieve the continued bipartisan dialog that we have always
enjoyed, and he has not really tossed a lemon into this debate because
between us both we have always been able to make lemonade out of a
lemon.
Now, Mr. Speaker, having said that and wishing him well----
Mr. SWIFT. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. ROBERTS. I yield to the gentleman from Washington.
Mr. SWIFT. Mr. Speaker, I would simply point out that the gentleman
from Kansas [Mr. Roberts] and I happen to park our cars next to each
other, and, as tough as it sometimes gets on the Committee on House
Administration, neither of us has ever come back and found a dent
kicked in the side of our car. It says something, I think about our
character.
Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Kansas [Mr. Roberts].
Mr. ROBERTS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Washington [Mr.
Swift] for his observation, and I have been very careful to look in the
rear view mirror when I want to reverse the course of the majority in
this Congress.
Let me quote from a study conducted by two gentlemen that are
preeminent in their profession, Thomas Mann and Norman Ornstein ``A
Second Report of the Renewing Congress Project,'' where they say:
But the recommendations of the Joint Committee in this area
are too limited in particular, we believe that the House must
address the issue of inequity in staff resources by
guaranteeing the minority party one-third of the
investigative staff on committees, just like the rules that
now guarantees the minority one-third of the statutory staff.
The majority party in Congress has unique responsibilities,
including administrative ones, but there is no good reason to
deny a reasonable share of the institution's resources to the
minority.
That is all we are asking. Part of what we are is what they allow us
to be, and we have moved from 16 to 21 percent, but it is going to take
us to the year 2010 before we get adequate resources at least to the
level it was agreed to 5 years ago. That is why we are upset. That is
why we have a little blood pressure about this.
Now in relation to the so-called cuts where there are no cuts, since
1984 to date we have increased per year in committee funding, with the
exception of some committees who have had freezes, and I am privileged
to serve on one, but the average increase the last 10 years: 4.71
percent. The total, that is a 55-percent increase total.
{time} 1710
Now, it is true that the majority party has a 2.3-percent decrease in
funding. It is not 5 percent. Oh, it is 5 percent if you add in the
select committees that you have already cut, and it is 5 percent if you
add in the Joint Committee on the Organization of the Congress. This is
not really cutting off our nose to save our face. You missed the nose.
It is 2.3 percent.
Having said that, let me point out the longstanding increases since
1947. That goes back a long ways.
The committee investigative funding authorizations have gone up 6,458
percent. Members' clerk-hire authorizations, 5,767 percent; legislative
branch, 3,625 percent. Yes, I am saying thousand. U.S. per capita
income, 1,401 percent; House committee staff employment, 1,133 percent
up; the Consumer Price Index, only 533 percent; Members' clerk-hire
employment, 398 percent.
I think you can see over the long term the Congress has really not
been suffering too much in regard to adequate funding.
So during these days of deficit spending and budget cutting, we
obviously believe on our side that Congress should not be an exception.
As I have indicated, the House has seen considerable staff increases in
both committees and in administrative offices. I believe it is only
fair to see these areas really reduce spending to assist in achieving
responsible reductions in Federal spending.
I do not think the minority is making an unreasonable request of the
majority to reduce staff in order to provide additional slots for the
minority position. The gentleman from Florida [Mr. Mica] has the unique
notion that the staffing should reflect the actual ratio of Democrats
and Republicans in the House. What could be more fair than that?
Instead, the minority has only tried to highlight a long-term
difficulty between the majority and the minority, and the minority is
asking for a commitment that real progress will be made in this area.
In fact, this goal has been met by several ways, not asking the
majority to cut back, but through attrition. In some cases on
committees that I know of, they have made joint efforts to reduce, and,
in so doing, raised the minority ratio. So it is not only that we ask
the Democrats to cut to simply increase the Republican staff.
At this juncture, Mr. Speaker, I want to again thank the
distinguished chairman of the subcommittee. I appreciate having the
opportunity to work with my colleagues on this resolution. I am going
to reserve the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. de la Garza). The gentleman from Kansas
[Mr. Roberts] has 3 minutes remaining, and the gentleman from Texas
[Mr. Frost] has 9 minutes remaining.
Mr. FROST. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the
gentleman from California [Mr. Fazio].
(Mr. FAZIO asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. FAZIO. Mr. Speaker, I rise to congratulate the chairman of the
Subcommittee on Accounts on the fine work that he has done.
Mr. Speaker, the funding resolution we are considering today provides
authorizations to expend funds appropriated by the House for the
investigative activities of 21 standing committees of the House.
The resolution provides $50.1 million for the investigations and
studies during 1994 of those 21 committees, excluding Appropriations
and the Budget Committees.
The Appropriations Committee also has an investigative budget. For
our surveys and investigations staff we have appropriated $6.4 million
for the salaries and expenses in fiscal year 1994 for the
investigations and studies conducted by the Appropriations Committee.
In calendar 1993, 67 staff years of activity produced 38 reports and 76
supplemental memorandums.
Those funds were provided as authorized by law, in the fiscal year
1994 Legislative Branch Appropriations Act.
The funds were contained in a single line item in the appropriations
bill and were subject to the will of the House when we considered that
bill last June.
The bill also contained $389,000 for similar activities of the Budget
Committee.
So there is a comparable procedure to what we are doing today for the
other committees. The difference is that the Appropriations and Budget
Committees investigative funds are separated out--and are therefore
more vulnerable to amendments.
I think any criticism of this procedure is unfounded. The process is
straightforward. There is not additional protection given to our
investigative funding.
If the minority wants to reduce the funding for the so-called rule XI
committee employees--the professional staffs of each standing
committee--including Appropriations and Budget--they can do so by
offering an amendment on the legislative appropriations bill. The
salary funds for those employees are carried in one line item in that
bill. If you want to reduce that budget, do it on the actual funding
bill--legislative appropriations.
Mr. DINGELL. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 369, the
committee funding resolution for 1994. I want to thank and commend the
chairman of the Subcommittee on Accounts, Mr. Frost, and all the
members of the subcommittee and the full House Administration Committee
for the fairness and courtesy with which we have been treated in this
process.
This resolution represents a responsible approach to the matter of
committee funding. While it imposes discipline, it will also allow our
committees sufficient resources to fulfill their responsibilities to
the full membership of the House. Some of the more important measures
to be considered by the 103d Congress fall within the jurisdiction of
the Committee on Energy and Commerce, foremost among them health care
reform. We are also working on reform of our telecommunications
regulatory system, as well as reauthorization of Superfund and the
Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.
This resolution wisely and prudently acknowledges the need for fiscal
responsibility with the American public's demand that we complete our
work, and I urge my colleagues to support the resolution.
Mr. BARRETT of Nebraska. Madam Speaker, I rise in opposition to the
committee funding resolution. Funding resolutions used to be worked out
with compromise and trust. However, these two qualities have
deteriorated more and more with the passage of time.
After 3 years on this committee, my frustration with the committee
grows. The partisan gamesmanship that pervades the committee has
created an atmosphere of inefficient government. Our constituents
deserve better. When Republicans drafted their proposal for committee
funding they did so with the intent of meeting several goals. First, we
wanted to remain committed to providing adequate investigative funding,
while also substantially reducing the spending by the committees.
Second, we wanted to meet the House's overall target of a 4-percent
reduction in staff positions by fiscal year 1995.
This goal would have been much easier to achieve with the Republican
alternative than with House Resolution 369, because the funding
reductions in this resolution are not serious enough to mandate any
further staff reductions.
Third, Republicans had requested funding amounts for the committees
to reflect a fair allocation for the minority, by allocating one-third
of committee funds to the minority party. In the end, as is the case
most of the time with this committee, the decisions were made along
party lines.
At our last committee meeting, this frustration came to a head. A
committee resolution that concerned the contracting out of the House
restaurants contained a provision I had dealt with as a member of the
bipartisan Administrative Oversight Subcommittee. This provision was
taken out of the bipartisan structure and installed in a resolution at
the partisan level and rammed down on the minority. This was a complete
breech of trust as to how the Administrative Oversight Subcommittee
works and functions.
I had been under the impression that, in the wake of the House
scandals of the past, this bipartisan committee was created to deal
with nonlegislative and financial issues in a fair and impartial
manner.
What is the purpose of even having this bipartisan subcommittee if
every issue that the majority can't pass at the subcommittee level goes
to the full committee and passes along a party-line vote?
While I do not expect the minority party to get equal treatment with
respect to the majority, I do think that we deserve a fair treatment.
Asking for fair treatment is not an unreasonable request.
But today, we are presented with a funding resolution that makes
minimal reductions in committee spending. The resolution also
diminishes the bipartisan goal, to allocate one-third of investigative
funds to the minority party.
Madam Speaker, the whole process of committee funding is in need of
reform. This resolution only authorizes 41 percent of total committee
funding. The other 59 percent is directly appropriated with no review
by the authorizing committee.
I urge my colleagues to vote against this measure and send it back to
the committee where comity and bipartisanship can perhaps begin anew.
Mr. ROBERTS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I
yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. FROST. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time, and I
move the previous question on the committee amendment in the nature of
a substitute and the resolution.
The previous question was ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the committee amendment
in the nature of a substitute.
The committee amendment in the nature of a substitute amendment was
agreed to.
motion to recommit offered by Mr. Roberts
Mr. ROBERTS. Mr. Speaker, I offer a motion to recommit.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is the gentleman opposed to the resolution?
Mr. ROBERTS. Mr. Speaker, I am, in its present form.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will report the motion to
recommit.
The Clerk read as follows:
H. Res. 369. Motion To Recommit
Mr. Roberts moves to recommit the resolution H. Res. 369 to
the Committee on House Administration with instructions to
promptly report back to the House a resolution identical to
the text of H. Res. 369 as amended by the House, except for
the following: Strike Section 2 and insert in lieu thereof
the following:
Section 2. ``The committee and amounts referred to in the
first section are:
Committee on Agriculture, $2,201,489.00, 33% of such
amount, or such greater percent as may be agreed to by the
Chairman and Ranking Minority Member, to be paid at the
direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Committee on Armed Services, $2,462,542.00, 33% of such
amount, or such greater percent as may be agreed to by the
Chairman and Ranking Minority Member, to be paid at the
direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Committee on Banking, Finance and Urban Affairs,
$3,864,598.00, 33% of such amount, or such greater percent as
may be agreed to by the Chairman and Ranking Minority Member,
to be paid at the direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Committee on District of Columbia, $333,484.00, 33% of such
amount, or such greater percent as may be agreed to by the
Chairman and Ranking Minority Member, to be paid at the
direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Committee on Education and Labor, $3,798,387.00, 33% of
such amount, or such greater percent as may be agreed to by
the Chairman and Ranking Minority Member, to be paid at the
direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Committee on Energy and Commerce, $5,677,655.00, 33% of
such amount, or such greater percent as may be agreed to by
the Chairman and Ranking Minority Member, to be paid at the
direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Committee on Foreign Affairs, $3,627,960.00, 33% of such
amount, or such greater percent as may be agreed to by the
Chairman and Ranking Minority Member, to be paid at the
direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Committee on Government Operations, $2,899,495.00, 33% of
such amount, or such greater percent as may be agreed to by
the Chairman and Ranking Minority Member, to be paid at the
direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Committee on House Administration, $1,755,956.00, 33% of
such amount, or such greater percent as may be agreed to by
the Chairman and Ranking Minority Member, to be paid at the
direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, $104,500.00,
33% of such amount, or such greater percent as may be agreed
to by the Chairman and Ranking Minority Member, to be paid at
the direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Committee on the Judiciary, $2,154,583.00, 33% of such
amount, or such greater percent as may be agreed to by the
Chairman and Ranking Minority Member, to be paid at the
direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Committee on Merchant Marine and Fisheries, $2,154,439.00,
33% of such amount, or such greater percent as may be agreed
to by the Chairman and Ranking Minority Member, to be paid at
the direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Committee on Natural Resources, $1,973,273.00, 33% of such
amount, or such greater percent as may be agreed to by the
Chairman and Ranking Minority Member, to be paid at the
direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Committee on Post Office and Civil Service, $1,708,533.00,
33% of such amount, or such greater percent as may be agreed
to by the Chairman and Ranking Minority Member, to be paid at
the direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Committee on Public Works and Transportation,
$2,823,263.00, 33% of such amount, or such greater percent as
may be agreed to by the Chairman and Ranking Minority Member,
to be paid at the direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Committee on Rules, $622,242.00, 33% of such amount, or
such greater percent as may be agreed to by the Chairman and
Ranking Minority Member, to be paid at the direction of the
Ranking Minority Member.
Committee on Science, Space and Technology, $2,748,494.00,
33% of such amount, or such greater percent as may be agreed
to by the Chairman and Ranking Minority Member, to be paid at
the direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Committee on Small Business, $1,001,233.00, 33% of such
amount, or such greater percent as may be agreed to by the
Chairman and Ranking Minority Member, to be paid at the
direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, $97,500.00, 33%
of such amount, or such greater percent as may be agreed to
by the Chairman and Ranking Minority Member, to be paid at
the direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Committee on Veteran's Affairs, $715,203.00, 33% of such
amount, or such greater percent as may be agreed to by the
Chairman and Ranking Minority Member, to be paid at the
direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Committee on Ways and Means, $4,507,185.00, 33% of such
amount, or such greater percent as may be agreed to by the
Chairman and Ranking Minority Member, to be paid at the
direction of the Ranking Minority Member.
Mr. ROBERTS (during the reading). Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous
consent that the motion be considered as read and printed in the
Record.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Kansas?
There was no objection.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Without objection, the previous question is
ordered on the motion to recommit.
There was no objection.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion to recommit.
The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that
the noes appeared to have it.
Mr. ROBERTS. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a
quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not
present.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Evidently a quorum is not present.
The Sergeant at Arms will notify absent Members.
The Chair announces that under the appropriate rule, if necessary, he
will reduce the vote on final passage to 5 minutes.
The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--yeas 172,
nays 251, not voting 10, as follows.
[Roll No. 79]
YEAS--172
Allard
Archer
Armey
Bachus (AL)
Baker (CA)
Baker (LA)
Ballenger
Barrett (NE)
Bartlett
Barton
Bateman
Bentley
Bereuter
Bilirakis
Bliley
Blute
Boehlert
Boehner
Bonilla
Bunning
Burton
Buyer
Callahan
Calvert
Camp
Canady
Castle
Clinger
Coble
Collins (GA)
Combest
Cox
Crane
Crapo
Cunningham
DeLay
Diaz-Balart
Dickey
Doolittle
Dornan
Dreier
Duncan
Dunn
Ehlers
Emerson
Everett
Ewing
Fawell
Fields (TX)
Fish
Fowler
Franks (CT)
Franks (NJ)
Gallegly
Gekas
Gilchrest
Gilman
Gingrich
Goodlatte
Goodling
Goss
Grams
Greenwood
Gunderson
Hancock
Hansen
Harman
Hastert
Hefley
Hobson
Hoekstra
Hoke
Horn
Houghton
Huffington
Hunter
Hutchinson
Hyde
Inglis
Inhofe
Istook
Jacobs
Johnson (CT)
Johnson, Sam
Kasich
Kim
King
Kingston
Klug
Knollenberg
Kolbe
Kyl
Lazio
Leach
Levy
Lewis (CA)
Lewis (FL)
Lightfoot
Linder
Livingston
Machtley
Manzullo
McCandless
McCollum
McCrery
McDade
McHugh
McInnis
McKeon
McMillan
Meyers
Mica
Michel
Miller (FL)
Molinari
Moorhead
Morella
Myers
Nussle
Oxley
Packard
Paxon
Petri
Pombo
Porter
Portman
Pryce (OH)
Quinn
Ramstad
Ravenel
Regula
Ridge
Roberts
Rogers
Rohrabacher
Ros-Lehtinen
Roth
Roukema
Royce
Santorum
Saxton
Schaefer
Schiff
Sensenbrenner
Shaw
Shays
Shuster
Skeen
Smith (MI)
Smith (NJ)
Smith (OR)
Smith (TX)
Snowe
Solomon
Spence
Stearns
Stump
Talent
Taylor (NC)
Thomas (CA)
Thomas (WY)
Torkildsen
Upton
Vucanovich
Walker
Walsh
Weldon
Wolf
Young (AK)
Young (FL)
Zeliff
Zimmer
NAYS--251
Abercrombie
Ackerman
Andrews (ME)
Andrews (NJ)
Andrews (TX)
Applegate
Bacchus (FL)
Baesler
Barca
Barcia
Barlow
Barrett (WI)
Becerra
Beilenson
Berman
Bevill
Bilbray
Bishop
Blackwell
Bonior
Borski
Boucher
Brewster
Brooks
Browder
Brown (CA)
Brown (FL)
Brown (OH)
Bryant
Byrne
Cantwell
Cardin
Carr
Chapman
Clayton
Clement
Clyburn
Coleman
Collins (IL)
Collins (MI)
Condit
Conyers
Cooper
Coppersmith
Costello
Coyne
Cramer
Danner
Darden
de la Garza
Deal
DeFazio
DeLauro
Dellums
Derrick
Deutsch
Dicks
Dingell
Dixon
Dooley
Durbin
Edwards (CA)
Edwards (TX)
Engel
English
Eshoo
Evans
Farr
Fazio
Fields (LA)
Filner
Fingerhut
Flake
Foglietta
Ford (MI)
Ford (TN)
Frank (MA)
Frost
Furse
Gejdenson
Gephardt
Geren
Gibbons
Glickman
Gonzalez
Gordon
Green
Gutierrez
Hall (OH)
Hall (TX)
Hamburg
Hamilton
Hayes
Hefner
Hilliard
Hinchey
Hoagland
Hochbrueckner
Holden
Hoyer
Hughes
Hutto
Inslee
Jefferson
Johnson (GA)
Johnson (SD)
Johnson, E. B.
Johnston
Kanjorski
Kaptur
Kennedy
Kennelly
Kildee
Kleczka
Klein
Klink
Kopetski
Kreidler
LaFalce
Lambert
Lancaster
Lantos
LaRocco
Laughlin
Lehman
Levin
Lewis (GA)
Lipinski
Lloyd
Long
Lowey
Mann
Manton
Margolies-Mezvinsky
Markey
Martinez
Matsui
Mazzoli
McCloskey
McCurdy
McDermott
McHale
McKinney
McNulty
Meehan
Meek
Menendez
Mfume
Miller (CA)
Mineta
Minge
Mink
Moakley
Mollohan
Montgomery
Moran
Murphy
Murtha
Nadler
Neal (MA)
Neal (NC)
Oberstar
Obey
Olver
Ortiz
Orton
Owens
Pallone
Parker
Pastor
Payne (NJ)
Payne (VA)
Pelosi
Penny
Peterson (FL)
Peterson (MN)
Pickett
Pickle
Pomeroy
Poshard
Price (NC)
Rahall
Rangel
Reed
Reynolds
Richardson
Roemer
Rose
Rostenkowski
Rowland
Roybal-Allard
Rush
Sabo
Sanders
Sangmeister
Sarpalius
Sawyer
Schenk
Schroeder
Schumer
Scott
Serrano
Sharp
Shepherd
Sisisky
Skaggs
Skelton
Slattery
Slaughter
Smith (IA)
Spratt
Stark
Stenholm
Stokes
Strickland
Studds
Stupak
Swett
Swift
Synar
Tanner
Tauzin
Taylor (MS)
Tejeda
Thompson
Thornton
Thurman
Torres
Torricelli
Towns
Traficant
Tucker
Unsoeld
Valentine
Velazquez
Vento
Visclosky
Volkmer
Washington
Waters
Watt
Waxman
Wheat
Whitten
Williams
Wilson
Wise
Woolsey
Wyden
Wynn
Yates
NOT VOTING--10
Clay
Gallo
Gillmor
Grandy
Hastings
Herger
Maloney
Natcher
Quillen
Sundquist
{time} 1737
The Clerk announced the following pair:
On this vote:
Mr. Quillen for, with Mrs. Maloney against.
Mr. GEPHARDT and Mr. BROWDER changed their vote from ``yea'' to
``nay.''
Mr. SAM JOHNSON of Texas changed his vote from ``nay'' to ``yea.''
So the motion to recommit was rejected.
The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. (Mr. de la Garza). The question is on the
resolution, as amended.
The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that
the ayes appeared to have it.
recorded vote
Mr. ROBERTS. Mr. Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.
A recorded vote was ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. This will be a 5-minute vote.
The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--ayes 250,
noes 172, not voting 11, as follows:
[Roll No. 80]
AYES--250
Abercrombie
Ackerman
Andrews (ME)
Andrews (NJ)
Andrews (TX)
Applegate
Bacchus (FL)
Baesler
Barca
Barcia
Barlow
Barrett (WI)
Becerra
Beilenson
Berman
Bevill
Bilbray
Bishop
Blackwell
Bonior
Borski
Boucher
Brewster
Brooks
Browder
Brown (CA)
Brown (FL)
Brown (OH)
Bryant
Byrne
Cantwell
Cardin
Carr
Chapman
Clayton
Clement
Clyburn
Coleman
Collins (IL)
Collins (MI)
Condit
Conyers
Cooper
Coppersmith
Costello
Coyne
Cramer
Danner
Darden
de la Garza
Deal
DeFazio
DeLauro
Dellums
Derrick
Deutsch
Dicks
Dingell
Dixon
Dooley
Durbin
Edwards (CA)
Edwards (TX)
Engel
English
Eshoo
Evans
Farr
Fazio
Fields (LA)
Filner
Fingerhut
Flake
Foglietta
Ford (MI)
Ford (TN)
Frank (MA)
Frost
Furse
Gejdenson
Gephardt
Geren
Gibbons
Glickman
Gonzalez
Gordon
Green
Hall (TX)
Hamburg
Hamilton
Hayes
Hefner
Hilliard
Hinchey
Hoagland
Hochbrueckner
Holden
Hoyer
Hughes
Hutto
Inslee
Jefferson
Johnson (GA)
Johnson (SD)
Johnson, E. B.
Johnston
Kanjorski
Kaptur
Kennedy
Kennelly
Kildee
Kleczka
Klein
Klink
Kopetski
Kreidler
LaFalce
Lambert
Lancaster
Lantos
LaRocco
Laughlin
Lehman
Levin
Lewis (GA)
Lipinski
Lloyd
Long
Lowey
Mann
Manton
Margolies-Mezvinsky
Markey
Martinez
Matsui
Mazzoli
McCandless
McCloskey
McCurdy
McDermott
McHale
McKinney
McNulty
Meehan
Meek
Menendez
Mfume
Miller (CA)
Mineta
Minge
Mink
Moakley
Mollohan
Montgomery
Moran
Murphy
Murtha
Nadler
Neal (MA)
Neal (NC)
Oberstar
Obey
Olver
Ortiz
Orton
Owens
Pallone
Parker
Pastor
Payne (NJ)
Payne (VA)
Pelosi
Penny
Peterson (FL)
Peterson (MN)
Pickett
Pickle
Pomeroy
Poshard
Price (NC)
Rahall
Rangel
Reed
Reynolds
Richardson
Roemer
Rose
Rostenkowski
Rowland
Roybal-Allard
Rush
Sabo
Sanders
Sangmeister
Sarpalius
Sawyer
Schenk
Schroeder
Schumer
Scott
Serrano
Sharp
Shepherd
Sisisky
Skaggs
Skelton
Slattery
Slaughter
Smith (IA)
Spratt
Stark
Stenholm
Stokes
Strickland
Studds
Stupak
Swett
Swift
Synar
Tanner
Tauzin
Taylor (MS)
Tejeda
Thompson
Thornton
Thurman
Torres
Torricelli
Towns
Traficant
Tucker
Unsoeld
Valentine
Velazquez
Vento
Visclosky
Volkmer
Washington
Watt
Waxman
Wheat
Whitten
Williams
Wilson
Wise
Woolsey
Wyden
Wynn
Yates
Young (AK)
NOES--172
Allard
Archer
Armey
Bachus (AL)
Baker (CA)
Baker (LA)
Ballenger
Barrett (NE)
Bartlett
Barton
Bateman
Bentley
Bereuter
Bilirakis
Bliley
Blute
Boehlert
Boehner
Bonilla
Bunning
Burton
Buyer
Callahan
Calvert
Camp
Canady
Castle
Clinger
Coble
Collins (GA)
Combest
Cox
Crane
Crapo
Cunningham
DeLay
Diaz-Balart
Dickey
Doolittle
Dornan
Dreier
Duncan
Dunn
Ehlers
Emerson
Everett
Ewing
Fawell
Fields (TX)
Fish
Fowler
Franks (CT)
Franks (NJ)
Gallegly
Gekas
Gilchrest
Gilman
Gingrich
Goodlatte
Goodling
Goss
Grams
Greenwood
Gunderson
Gutierrez
Hall (OH)
Hancock
Hansen
Harman
Hastert
Hefley
Hobson
Hoekstra
Hoke
Horn
Houghton
Huffington
Hunter
Hutchinson
Hyde
Inglis
Inhofe
Istook
Jacobs
Johnson (CT)
Johnson, Sam
Kasich
Kim
King
Kingston
Klug
Knollenberg
Kolbe
Kyl
Lazio
Leach
Levy
Lewis (CA)
Lewis (FL)
Lightfoot
Linder
Livingston
Machtley
Manzullo
McCollum
McCrery
McDade
McHugh
McInnis
McKeon
McMillan
Meyers
Mica
Michel
Miller (FL)
Molinari
Moorhead
Morella
Myers
Nussle
Oxley
Packard
Paxon
Petri
Pombo
Porter
Portman
Pryce (OH)
Quinn
Ramstad
Ravenel
Regula
Ridge
Roberts
Rogers
Rohrabacher
Ros-Lehtinen
Roth
Roukema
Royce
Santorum
Saxton
Schaefer
Schiff
Sensenbrenner
Shaw
Shays
Shuster
Skeen
Smith (MI)
Smith (NJ)
Smith (OR)
Smith (TX)
Snowe
Solomon
Spence
Stearns
Stump
Talent
Taylor (NC)
Thomas (CA)
Thomas (WY)
Torkildsen
Upton
Vucanovich
Walker
Walsh
Weldon
Wolf
Young (FL)
Zeliff
Zimmer
NOT VOTING--11
Clay
Gallo
Gillmor
Grandy
Hastings
Herger
Maloney
Natcher
Quillen
Sundquist
Waters
{time} 1745
Mr. LEWIS of California changed his vote from ``aye'' to ``no.''
So the resolution, as amended was agreed to.
The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
____________________