[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 64 (Friday, May 20, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: May 20, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                          LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM

  (Mr. MICHEL asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. MICHEL. Mr. Speaker, I ask for this time that I might inquire of 
the distinguished majority whip, the program for next week.
  Mr. BONIOR. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
  Mr. MICHEL. I would be happy to yield to the gentleman from Michigan.
  Mr. BONIOR. I thank my friend, the Republican leader.
  The House will proceed as follows next week: We will meet at 10:30 
for morning hours on Monday, May 23. Then we will go into session at 
noon, at which time we will have 18 suspensions, of which I believe the 
minority leader has a copy. I will not read through all of the bills. 
There are 18 of them:
  H.R. 4425, fiscal year 1995 VA medical construction authorization.
  S. 1654, to make certain technical corrections.
  House Concurrent Resolution 176, to recognize and encourage the 
convening of a National Silver Haired Congress.
  H.R. 4429, to authorize the transfer of naval vessels to certain 
foreign countries.
  H.R. 4246, Panama Canal Commission Authorization Act for fiscal year 
1995.
  H.R. 3679, Junior Duck Stamp Conservation Program.
  H.R. 3982, Ocean Radioactive Dumping Ban Act.
  House Concurrent Resolution 238, authorizing the use of the Capitol 
grounds for the Greater Washington Soap Box Derby.
  H.R. 3840, the Sam B. Hall, Jr. Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse.
  H.R. 3724, the Brien McMahon Federal Building.
  H.R. 965, Child Safety Protection Act conference report.
  H.R. 3869, Minority Health Improvement Act of 1994.
  H.R. 3863, to designate the Medgar Wiley Evers Post Office.
  H.R. 3839, to designate the Roy M. Wheat Post Office.
  H.R. 3984, to designate the John Longo, Jr. Post Office.
  H.R. 4177, to designate the Candace White U.S. Post Office.
  H.R. 4190, to designate the Alvaro de Lugo U.S. Post Office.
  H.R. 4191, to designate the Audrey C. Ottley U.S. Post Office.
  H.R. 4301, to continue consideration of the National Defense 
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1995.
  Then we will have recorded votes on those suspensions postponed until 
the end of legislative business. We expect to not have any votes until 
5, according to my understanding. So that Members from the west coast 
would have the opportunity to arrive in time.
  We hope to go beyond that and do some work on the National Defense 
Authorization Act that we have been working on this morning and this 
afternoon.
  On Tuesday, May 24, Wednesday, May 25, and Thursday, May 26, we have 
the following schedule: 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday for morning business and 
then go in at noon on Tuesday.
  We will meet at 10 a.m. on Wednesday and Thursday to consider the 
following bills: Continue working on the National Defense Authorization 
Act for fiscal year 1995, on which we have been working for the last 
several days.
  We will then go to H.R. 4385, National Highway System Designation 
Act, subject to a rule. We also hope to consider the following 
appropriation bills: The military construction appropriation bill, 
subject to a rule; the foreign operations export financing and related 
programs appropriations, fiscal year 1995, subject to a rule; the 
legislative branch appropriations bill, fiscal 1995, subject to a rule. 
The other two, H.R. 811 and H.R. 518, H.R. 811 being the Independent 
Counsel Reauthorization Act conference report, subject to a rule, and 
then of course if we have time we will go to the H.R. 518, California 
Desert Protection Act.
  We will not meet on Friday, May 27, so that Members may return to 
their districts for the Memorial Day district work period.
  Mr. MICHEL. I thank the gentleman, and I would like to make the 
observation that the Independent Counsel Reauthorization Act is 
scheduled, but with no particular time. Could it be programmed for 
sometime in the week after we have had an opportunity to visit with the 
special counsel? The gentleman may recall a meeting we had with the 
Speaker and majority leader and the leadership on both sides in which 
the Speaker indicated that the majority leader and the minority leader, 
in company with the Speaker, would probably be meeting with the special 
counsel, Mr. Fiske, I gathered maybe Tuesday or Wednesday, the early 
part of this next week. Hopefully, it would be my preference that the 
consideration then of the extension of the Authorization Act be delayed 
until after we have had an opportunity to have that meeting.
  Mr. BONIOR. I do remember the meeting, and I do remember the 
discussion well, and I know those requests have been made or are 
attempting to be made to bring people together to discuss that. I would 
say to my colleague that I am sure we will consider his request. It 
seems reasonable. I know we will not proceed on this certainly before 
the Senate does it. I do not know--I think they do it first, if I am 
not mistaken.
  So I expect the timing can work out to the gentleman's satisfaction.
  Mr. MICHEL. I thank the gentleman.
  Then, since that will be a getaway week next week before the Memorial 
Day recess period, how late should we be telling our Members they ought 
to be meeting next week?
  Mr. BONIOR. Well, I think we ought to tell folks, for the week, that 
we are probably going to be meeting until 8 in the evening each night 
because we have a lot of work to do on the defense bill, especially. 
And if we want to get a jump start on our appropriation bills, the 
three that I mentioned, it is going to take a lot of time and a lot of 
work.
  On Thursday, obviously we would like to give Members the opportunity 
to catch their planes. So we will do the best we can. But we are still, 
frankly, thinking of 6 or 7 right at this point.
  Mr. MICHEL. I thank the gentleman. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the 
gentleman from New York.
  Mr. SOLOMON. I thank the Republican leader for yielding.
  The gentleman mentioned appropriation bills. We are going to be 
having the legislative and foreign operations bills, appropriation 
bills, probably coming before the Committee on Rules. But considering 
the complex issue of having to cut up the pie, so to speak, for the 
entire budget, the membership really ought to have adequate notice so 
that we will have time really to know what is in the 602(b) allocations 
process throughout the entire appropriation process. We want to be as 
helpful as we can. But I just hope that the gentleman would be able to 
assure us that if these are coming to the Committee on Rules or 
directly to the floor, that Members should be given adequate notice so 
that they will know what they are voting on.
  Mr. BONIOR. We will do the best we can. The fact that these three 
that are being announced today, I think people are aware that these are 
the first three out of the box and if they have amendments, we hope to 
be as generous as we can. If they bring them directly to the floor, of 
course anything that is germane can be offered. If we end up in the 
Rules Committee on any one of the three, we hope to be as inclusive as 
we can as we proceed with the appropriations process.
  Mr. SOLOMON. I thank the gentleman.
  Mr. DREIER. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
  Mr. MICHEL. I yield to the gentleman from California.
  Mr. DREIER. I thank the Republican leader.
  Mr. Speaker, I simply would like to inquire of my friend, again, as I 
asked of the chairman of the Committee on Rules yesterday: What can we 
anticipate on these appropriation bills coming forward, are any of them 
going to come directly to the floor?
  Mr. BONIOR. There will be some coming directly to the floor, and I 
suspect that others will go up to the Rules Committee. I believe it 
will vary on the rule and on the amount and flexibility we have in the 
Rules Committee, depending on the legislation.
  So we are going to try to be as inclusive as we can of Members' 
concerns. We are not about to close down our appropriation bills.
  Mr. DREIER. So that every attempt will be made then to ensure that we 
do conceivably move appropriation bills under the standards rules of 
the House.
  Mr. BONIOR. Of course.
  Mr. DREIER. I thank the gentleman, and I thank my friend for 
yielding.
  Mr. MICHEL. Mr. Speaker, I also would ask unanimous consent that in 
my remarks I be permitted to include a schedule of the dates or the 
days upon which amendments have to be filed to comport with what the 
Committee on Rules has more or less laid down as a guideline for us in 
the consideration of the measures next week. I think Members ought to 
be all aware that there are certain cutoff periods of time. So we will 
put that together unless the gentleman would prefer to have it included 
with his discourse here. Otherwise we will include it with our remarks 
so that the Members would know about it.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Illinois?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. MICHEL. I thank the Speaker, and I thank the majority whip.
  Mr. BONIOR. Mr. Speaker, I have just been advised by staff that the 
Rules Committee chairman did ask for amendments on foreign operations 
and legislative branch appropriations.
  Mr. MICHEL. If that is all included, I just wanted it for anybody 
reading the Record to know that there are terminal points by which they 
can submit those amendments. And if they have not gotten to it, they 
had better get cracking. If there is no other inquiry, I yield back the 
balance of my time.

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