[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 82 (Friday, June 24, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: June 24, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                          LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM

  (Mr. DREIER asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. DREIER. Mr. Speaker, I take this opportunity to address the House 
for 1 minute so that I might inquire of my very dear friend and Rules 
Committee colleague, the majority whip, the program for next week and 
our plans as we begin to head toward the July 4 district work period.
  I yield to the gentleman from Michigan [Mr. Bonior].
  Mr. BONIOR. I thank my friend for yielding. I will read the schedule 
for next week.
  We will meet at noon on Monday, after a restful and happy weekend. We 
will have suspensions, 11 of them, as follows:
  S. 1458, General Aviation Revitalization Act;
  H.R. 2238, Federal Acquisition Improvement Act;
  H.R. 4635, to extend the Export Administration Act of 1979 until 
August 20, 1994;
  H.R. 4595, Marian Oldham Post Office;
  H.R. 4596, John L. Lawler, Jr., Post Office;
  H.R. 4400, Postal Inspection Service and Inspector General Act;
  H.R. 2559, to designate a Federal building located in Kansas City, 
MO, as the ``Richard Bolling Federal Building;
  H.R. 3567, the John F. Kennedy Center Act Amendments of 1994;
  H.R. 4576, to designate a Federal building in Washington, DC, as the 
``Jamie L. Whitten Federal Building'';
  H.R. 4577, to designate a Federal building and U.S. courthouse in 
Bowling Green, KY, as the ``William H. Natcher Federal Building''; and
  S. 832, to designate the plaza on the Federal Triangle Property in 
Washington, DC, as the ``Woodrow Wilson Plaza.''
  We expect to conclude debate on those somewhere in the neighborhood 
of 2 to 3 o'clock. If votes are asked on any of the 11, we will roll 
them until Tuesday.
  At approximately 2 or 3 o'clock, whenever we get there, we will 
recommence the Commerce-Justice-State appropriations bill and complete 
that, successfully, and then we will move on to the Labor, HHS, and 
Education appropriation bill for fiscal year 1995.
  On Tuesday, Members should expect we will be working late every day 
next week, with hopefully a reasonable hour on Thursday. But we want to 
complete all 13 appropriation bills before the recess.
  Tuesday, June 28, and Wednesday, June 29, and Thursday, June 30, the 
House will meet at 10:30 in the morning on Tuesday for morning hour, 
and then on Wednesday and Thursday we will meet at 10 a.m. There will 
be on suspension two bills, H.R. 3626, the Antitrust Reform Act, and 
H.R. 3636, the National Communications Competition and Information 
Infrastructure Act.
  Then we plan to move, if we are at that point, having finished the 
Labor, HHS, and Education appropriations bill, we plan to move to the 
VA, HUD, and independent agencies bill, subject to a rule, and, of 
course, then to finish the others, the District of Columbia 
appropriations bill, and the Defense appropriation bill. In addition to 
that, Expedited Rescissions Act of 1994, subject to a rule, the 
California Desert Protection Act could continue, and there is some 
discussion of the Anti-redlining and Insurance Disclosure Act, subject 
to a rule, also being part of the week.
  That is what we intend to do.
  Mr. DREIER. If I could reclaim my time and ask my friend a couple of 
questions, for starters, will we not be holding the morning hour on 
Monday? Am I correct in assuming that, that the House will convene at 
noon, but without having gone through a morning hour on Monday?
  Mr. BONIOR. That is my information.
  Mr. DREIER. The schedule now calls for Tuesday evening our Oxford 
style debate on trade and human rights. I was wondering if that is 
still scheduled, as the plan calls for us to go late each night?
  Mr. BONIOR. Well, given what we have before us and the schedule that 
I read, I really think that we have to have further discussions with 
the minority on that. It seems to me it would be very difficult to fit 
that in. Before that decision is finally made, we obviously want to 
consult with the minority on that.
  Mr. DREIER. I would be happy to yield to my friend, the gentleman 
from Maryland [Mr. Hoyer].
  Mr. HOYER. I thank the gentleman for yielding. I have had discussions 
with the gentleman from Pennsylvania [Mr. Walker], and as the 
distinguished majority whip has said, because of the schedule and 
because of the fact we do not want the debates to start, say, at 10 or 
11 o'clock at night, it is a problem.
  Mr. DREIER. Which would be prime time for California, I should say.
  Mr. HOYER. I do not want to debate the gentleman's definition of 
prime time, of course. But notwithstanding that, in discussing it with 
the gentleman from Pennsylvania [Mr. Walker] and others, I think we 
believe we will probably put it over until after we come back. The 
majority whip is correct that that is under consideration. But I think 
that will be the result.
  Mr. DREIER. Also, that provides an opportunity for the two of us to 
hone our arguments in advance of that debate and keep us busy over the 
break.
  I would like to further inquire of my friend from Michigan, as we 
look at the Expedited Rescissions Act of 1994, what kind of rule can we 
anticipate on that Expedited Rescissions Act?
  Mr. BONIOR. Well, I do not know. I cannot tell my colleagues. The 
Committee on Rules will have to hear it. As you know, we have upstairs 
in the Committee on Rules, as members of that committee, original 
jurisdiction on that bill. Of course, we also have the ability to set 
the procedures by way of the rule. And that, I do not know what we will 
do. It will depend upon the will of the majority of the committee.
  Mr. DREIER. Let me also inquire, if I might, the second suspension on 
the list, the Federal Acquisition Improvement Act, I understand there 
are a number of members of the Committee on Armed Services who are 
still making an attempt to work that issue out. Is that in fact going 
to be the number two item on the suspension calendar?
  Mr. BONIOR. We understand there are still discussions ongoing between 
the ranking member and its chairman, and, of course, as always, if the 
committee asks us to pull that, we will pull it.

  Mr. DREIER. I would also like to ask, as I look at the schedule, it 
states that the votes on the suspensions on Monday will take place at 
the end of debate on that. You have said that we would have those votes 
postponed until Tuesday.
  Mr. BONIOR. The latter is correct. I will restate that for my friend. 
The suspensions, the votes if ordered, will be taken on Tuesday, and 
not at the end of the day on Monday.
  Mr. DREIER. So on Monday we can anticipate beginning sometime after 3 
o'clock?
  Mr. BONIOR. We expect these 11 suspensions will run their total out 
at probably 2 to 3 o'clock. Then we will get into the amendment 
process. Of course, we do not know how long the debate will take on the 
first amendment. Three o'clock I think is probably a safe hour for 
Members to plan on.
  Mr. DREIER. I have been told by some of my fellow California 
colleagues that we most likely will not see the California Desert 
Protection Act coming up next week. Is there any indication as to that?
  Mr. BONIOR. As you can tell from the heavy schedule that I have 
outlined, it is going to be very difficult to get all this work and get 
back to California desert. But the Committee on Appropriations and its 
members and its leadership and its chairman are moving with good speed, 
and we may just finish early enough that we might want to consider that 
important environmental bill.
  Mr. DREIER. Now, while we are planning to work late each night next 
week, what time could we anticipate completing our work on Thursday? A 
number of my colleagues on this side have been asking.
  Mr. BONIOR. People should not count on an early finish on Thursday. 
It would be nice, that would be our goal, that is what we will aim for 
so people can travel for the 4th of July recess period. But we will 
stay, as of right now, to finish the important appropriation work, and 
that may take us late into the evening.
  Mr. DREIER. Just one final question. We have discussed this issue 
before, but as we all know, in a bipartisan way, we spent calendar year 
1993 and until the Joint Committee on the Organization of the Congress 
and successfully marked up H.R. 3801 just before Thanksgiving and our 
adjournment of the first session of the 103d Congress. There have been 
plans for the reform package, H.R. 3801, to come to the floor on four 
or five different occasions, and I was wondering if my friend might 
give us any indication as to when we might have the measure, with the 
generous rule intact, so that the full House can take up the package 
that was worked on so diligently by Members of our joint committee?
  Mr. BONIOR. Well, the description that my colleague has just given 
with respect to how it will reach the floor will obviously be altered 
by what type of rule we provide and where we go with the package in its 
aggregate or individually. Those decisions have not been made yet. We 
hope to get something to the floor by the August recess, as I told the 
gentleman when we discussed this last week in this very same exercise.

                              {time}  1350

  Mr. DREIER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman.

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