[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 142 (Tuesday, October 4, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: October 4, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                          LEGISLATION PENDING

  Mr. LEAHY. Madam President, I am going to shortly put the Senate into 
a quorum. Before doing so, I will mention that there are a couple major 
pieces of legislation still pending--actually more than a couple, I 
should say, but certainly two in which I am most interested. One is the 
digital telephony bill.
  I am greatly, greatly concerned that at least a couple Members of the 
Senate have felt a necessity to hold up this bill--one, until this 
morning and, since then, yet another one. I am not sure why. I suspect 
it is a piece of legislation with a rollcall vote that would pass 
virtually unanimously. In all likelihood, it could go through on a 
voice vote.
  I mention it because I hope that nobody, for whatever personal reason 
they might have, or political reason, holds up this bill just for the 
sake of holding it up. If they want to vote against it, of course any 
Senator has that right. But this will allow the FBI and Federal law 
enforcement to follow the exact same laws we have today and same rules 
we have today, to be able to conduct wiretap in kidnaping cases, 
national security cases and others.
  I suggest to Senators if anybody does want to hold it up, I hope that 
at this time next year, neither they nor their constituents, nor 
anybody they know, is a kidnap victim or victim of a terrorist, and 
have somebody ask why nothing can be done, and be told because a law 
that had probably 99 percent support in the House and the Senate did 
not pass.
  On another matter, Madam President, which I am hoping that we will 
pass very soon--in the next day or so--the Department of Agriculture 
reorganization bill, basically the Leahy-Lugar bill that we passed 
twice in the U.S. Senate and has now been passed in the other body.
  I think that if Leahy-Lugar comes back here and passes yet again, it 
will be the third time. I see my friend from Indiana on the floor. That 
will be the third time our legislation will have passed, and I urge 
this body to do it. I think it will be the most significant 
reorganization of the Department of Agriculture, literally, in my 
lifetime. It will save the taxpayers billions of dollars and it is 
something that the Senator from Indiana and I have worked on in a 
bipartisan fashion now for more years probably than either he or I want 
to think about.
  With that, Madam President, I suggest the absence of a quorum. I 
withhold my request.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Indiana is recognized.
  Mr. LUGAR. Madam President, I join my distinguished chairman in 
commending the U.S. Department of Agriculture reorganization 
legislation, the administration that offered the bill, my chairman, and 
others who have been so vigorous in support of it.
  This clearly meets the challenge that the Nation has given to us; 
namely, is it possible that a bureaucracy can be reorganized, can be 
downsized, can be made more efficient.
  The U.S. Department of Agriculture bureaucracy is the fourth-largest 
in all of Government. It has a significant project to rationalize what 
people are doing in that Department. It is apparent that the Secretary 
will have the authority to reduce 43 agencies to 29, to reduce the 
number of employees by 8,500, to reduce the expenditures by several 
billions of dollars over the next 5 years alone with the reorganization 
of the field offices as well as the bureaucracy. I think it is an 
exciting moment for our Government, and we are delighted that this 
action could occur in this Congress in these final days.
  I thank the Chair. I yield the floor.
  Mr. BROWN addressed the Chair.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Colorado.

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