[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 18 (Monday, January 30, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H879-H882]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                          PERSONAL EXPLANATION

  Mr. HASTERT. Mr. Chairman, because of a serious fire at my father's 
home in Illinois, I was unable to return to Washington earlier today 
and missed a series of votes. Had I been present I would have voted: 
Present on rollcall No. 56; ``yes'' on rollcall No. 57; ``yes'' on 
rollcall No. 58; ``no'' on rollcall No. 59; ``no'' on rollcall No. 60; 
``no'' on rollcall No. 61; ``no'' on Rollcall 62; ``no'' on rollcall 
No. 63; ``no'' on rollcall No. 64; ``no'' on rollcall No. 65; ``no'' on 
rollcall No. 66; ``no'' on rollcall No. 67; ``no'' on rollcall No. 68; 
``no'' on rollcall No. 69; ``no'' on rollcall No. 70; and ``no'' on 
rollcall No. 71.
  The CHAIRMAN. Are there further amendments to section 4?


             amendments offered by mr. fields of louisiana

  Mr. FIELDS of Louisiana. Mr. Chairman, I offer two amendments, 
numbered 151 and 152, which were printed in the Record, and I ask 
unanimous consent that they be considered en bloc.
  The CHAIRMAN. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from 
Louisiana?
  There was no objection.
  The CHAIRMAN. The Clerk will designate the amendments.
  The text of the amendments is as follows:

       Amendments offered by Mr. Fields of Louisiana: In section 
     4, strike ``or'' after the semicolon at the end of paragraph 
     (6), strike the period at the end of paragraph (7) and insert 
     ``; or'', and after paragraph (7) add the following new 
     paragraph:
       (8) establishes standards for the education or safety of 
     students in elementary or secondary public schools.
       In section 301, in the proposed section 422 of the 
     Congressional Budget Act of 1974, strike ``or'' after the 
     semicolon at the end of paragraph (6), strike the period at 
     the end of paragraph (7) and insert ``; or'', and after 
     paragraph (7) add the following new paragraph:
       ``(8) establishes standards for the education or safety of 
     students in elementary or secondary public schools.

  The CHAIRMAN. The gentleman from Louisiana [Mr. Fields] will be 
recognized for 5 minutes, and the gentleman from Pennsylvania [Mr. 
Clinger] will be recognized for 5 minutes in opposition.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Louisiana [Mr. Fields].
  Mr. FIELDS of Louisiana. Mr. Chairman, this amendment simply provides 
for an exemption to be made by any Federal statute or regulation which 
establishes standards or standards for safety for students in 
elementary and secondary education. Today I offer this amendment out of 
concern for many children in our country who walk into unsafe schools 
on a day-to-day basis. There are schools in this country that do not 
have the proper tools for writing, much less the proper conditions to 
ensure their safety. We need to work hard to bring the standard of 
safety in our educational system across the country, bring it up to par 
with the rest of the world. Today our students are falling behind. We 
must look within our system and find ways to improve our Nation as a 
whole. State by State, Mr. Chairman, we need to ensure that our 
children are receiving the best possible education, and the buildings 
in which they learn must be safe.
  Thousands of schools open each day, Mr. Chairman, without proper 
ventilation, without air conditioning during the heat of summer, 
without heat during the middle of winter. Thousands of schools, Mr. 
Chairman, open with leaking ceilings. Many of them have lead paint. 
Many schools in our Nation, Mr. Chairman and Members of the Congress, 
have asbestos. I urge that the Members of this body adopt this 
amendment because our schools are in bad, bad shape all across America. 
Our jails are in better condition than our schools.
  This is a good amendment. I commend it to the rest of the body, and I 
urge its adoption.
   [[Page H880]] Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. CLINGER. Mr. Chairman, let me, first of all, say I am sure I 
speak for all of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle in 
congratulating the gentleman from Louisiana [Mr. Fields] on the birth 
of his son.
  So, Mr. Chairman, it is with reluctance that I must rise with 
opposition to the gentleman's amendment, knowing, as I do, that he will 
have a son in school in not too many years, but again I have to say 
that this amendment, as most of the amendments we have seen before, 
really must not be exempt because it would not allow us to have the 
kind of cost adjustments, cost considerations, that we have.
  Mr. Chairman, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman 
from Mississippi [Mr. Parker].
  Mr. PARKER. Mr. Chairman, I hesitate to rise in opposition to the 
amendment offered by the gentleman from Louisiana [Mr. Fields], my good 
friend, and being one of the more diplomatic Members of the House of 
Representatives, I feel compelled to say that I have watched for a long 
time around this body when the Republicans were in the minority. I used 
to watch the Republicans bring forth amendments, and I could see the 
commercial coming out, and all of a sudden we see the same thing on the 
Democratic side, my side. I think that this type of situation in which 
we find ourselves hurts this body, and I think the American people look 
upon us, and they say, ``You are not doing what you should be doing.''
  I personally want a clean unfunded mandates bill. I think it is what 
we need, and I believe the American people have let us know that time 
and time again. Join with me in defeating this amendment.
  Mr. FIELDS of Louisiana. Mr. Chairman, I yield 2\1/2\ minutes to the 
distinguished gentleman from the State of Florida [Mr. Hastings].
  Mr. HASTINGS. Mr. Chairman, I would like to say to the distinguished 
gentleman from Pennsylvania that I, too, join him in congratulating the 
gentleman from Louisiana [Mr. Fields] for he and his wife having a son, 
but I would urge the gentleman from Pennsylvania to recognize, as 
another gentleman from Pennsylvania said, that what we need for his son 
is safe schools, and that is what this measure is about. To ask for 
regulations and standards for our children is not asking much.
  Unfunded mandates? The Republicans say the American people want us to 
pass this bill. I say, Cheer, if you will. The American people, the 
American people, can't possibly wan rat-infested schools, asbestos-
laden schools, leaky roofs, broken windows, drug-ridden schools, broken 
toilets, water fountains that don't work and scared children and 
teachers.
  When we voted to exempt the older Americans from discrimination, it 
was because we were afraid of their votes, and here we have a situation 
where we are asking to exempt children, and, as my colleagues know, 
they do not vote, so they find themselves in the position of not 
wanting to support it.
  Let me go a step further because somebody in this building needs to 
clear the air on this Contract With America. Let me tell my colleagues 
what elementary contract law says: Black's Dictionary says an agreement 
between two or more parties for the doing or not doing something 
specified is a contract.
  I say to my colleagues, the American people, whoever you all keep 
talking about, or the mandate that you claim that you got 20 percent of 
39 percent of, is not a mandate in the sense of what the American 
people want, and for my Democratic colleagues who have been about the 
business of being bipartisan, I commend you and respect you for your 
bipartisan efforts, but I remind you that it should be a two-way 
street.
  Let me tell my colleagues something: People, you have the votes in 
the House to pass the legislation that you want unilaterally, but don't 
you go around saying that my constituents signed on to your contract. 
They did not.
  And let me also make it clear, let me make it clear for everybody in 
here, that the Republicans do not know all of what the American people 
want, and the Democrats do not either.
  Mr. FIELDS of Louisiana. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my 
time.
  Mr. CLINGER. Mr. Chairman, I, too, yield back the balance of my time.
  The CHAIRMAN. The question is on the amendments offered by the 
gentleman from Louisiana [Mr. Fields].
  The question was taken; and the Chairman announced that the noes 
appeared to have it.


                             recorded vote

  Mr. FIELDS of Louisiana. Mr. Chairman, I demand a recorded vote.
  A recorded vote was ordered.
  The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were ayes 135, 
noes 282, not voting 17, as follows:

                             [Roll No. 72]

                               AYES--135

     Abercrombie
     Ackerman
     Barcia
     Becerra
     Beilenson
     Bentsen
     Berman
     Bishop
     Bonior
     Borski
     Brown (CA)
     Brown (FL)
     Bryant (TX)
     Cardin
     Clay
     Clayton
     Clement
     Clyburn
     Coleman
     Collins (IL)
     Collins (MI)
     Conyers
     Costello
     Coyne
     Danner
     DeFazio
     DeLauro
     Dellums
     Deutsch
     Dicks
     Dingell
     Dixon
     Doggett
     Doyle
     Durbin
     Engel
     Eshoo
     Evans
     Farr
     Fattah
     Fazio
     Fields (LA)
     Filner
     Flake
     Foglietta
     Ford
     Frank (MA)
     Frost
     Gejdenson
     Gephardt
     Gonzalez
     Green
     Gutierrez
     Hastings (FL)
     Hilliard
     Hinchey
     Holden
     Hoyer
     Jackson-Lee
     Jacobs
     Jefferson
     Johnston
     Kanjorski
     Kaptur
     Kennedy (MA)
     Kennedy (RI)
     Kennelly
     Kildee
     Klink
     LaFalce
     Lantos
     Lewis (GA)
     Lipinski
     Lofgren
     Lowey
     Luther
     Maloney
     Manton
     Markey
     Mascara
     Matsui
     McCarthy
     McDermott
     McKinney
     Meehan
     Meek
     Menendez
     Mfume
     Miller (CA)
     Mineta
     Mink
     Moakley
     Nadler
     Oberstar
     Olver
     Owens
     Pallone
     Pastor
     Payne (NJ)
     Pelosi
     Peterson (FL)
     Poshard
     Rangel
     Reed
     Reynolds
     Richardson
     Rivers
     Roybal-Allard
     Rush
     Sabo
     Sanders
     Sawyer
     Schroeder
     Scott
     Serrano
     Slaughter
     Stark
     Stokes
     Thompson
     Thornton
     Torres
     Torricelli
     Towns
     Traficant
     Tucker
     Velazquez
     Vento
     Volkmer
     Ward
     Waters
     Watt (NC)
     Waxman
     Woolsey
     Wyden
     Wynn

                               NOES--282

     Allard
     Andrews
     Archer
     Armey
     Bachus
     Baesler
     Baker (CA)
     Baker (LA)
     Baldacci
     Ballenger
     Barr
     Barrett (NE)
     Barrett (WI)
     Bartlett
     Barton
     Bass
     Bereuter
     Bevill
     Bilbray
     Bilirakis
     Bliley
     Blute
     Boehlert
     Boehner
     Bonilla
     Bono
     Boucher
     Brewster
     Browder
     Brown (OH)
     Brownback
     Bryant (TN)
     Bunn
     Bunning
     Burr
     Burton
     Buyer
     Callahan
     Calvert
     Camp
     Canady
     Castle
     Chabot
     Chambliss
     Chapman
     Chenoweth
     Christensen
     Chrysler
     Clinger
     Coble
     Coburn
     Collins (GA)
     Combest
     Condit
     Cooley
     Cramer
     Crane
     Crapo
     Cremeans
     Cubin
     Cunningham
     Davis
     de la Garza
     Deal
     DeLay
     Diaz-Balart
     Dickey
     Dooley
     Doolittle
     Dornan
     Dreier
     Duncan
     Dunn
     Edwards
     Ehlers
     Ehrlich
     Emerson
     English
     Ensign
     Everett
     Ewing
     Fawell
     Fields (TX)
     Flanagan
     Foley
     Forbes
     Fowler
     Fox
     Franks (CT)
     Franks (NJ)
     Frelinghuysen
     Frisa
     Funderburk
     Gallegly
     Ganske
     Gekas
     Geren
     Gilchrest
     Gillmor
     Gilman
     Goodlatte
     Goodling
     Gordon
     Goss
     Graham
     Greenwood
     Gunderson
     Gutknecht
     Hall (TX)
     Hamilton
     Hancock
     Hansen
     Harman
     Hastert
     Hastings (WA)
     Hayes
     Hayworth
     Hefley
     Heineman
     Herger
     Hilleary
     Hobson
     Hoekstra
     Hoke
     Horn
     Hostettler
     Houghton
     Hunter
     Hutchinson
     Hyde
     Inglis
     Istook
     Johnson (CT)
     Johnson (SD)
     Johnson, Sam
     Jones
     Kasich
     Kelly
     Kim
     King
     Kingston
     Kleczka
     Klug
     Knollenberg
     Kolbe
     LaHood
     Largent
     Latham
     LaTourette
     Laughlin
     Lazio
     Leach
     Levin
     Lewis (CA)
     Lewis (KY)
     Lightfoot
     Lincoln
     Linder
     Livingston
     LoBiondo
     Longley
     Lucas
     Manzullo
     Martini
     McCollum
     McCrery
     McDade
     McHale
     McHugh
     McInnis
     McIntosh
     McKeon
     McNulty
     Metcalf
     Meyers
     Mica
     Miller (FL)
     Minge
     Molinari
     Mollohan
     Moorhead
     Moran
     Morella
     Murtha
     Myers
     Myrick
     Nethercutt
     Neumann
     Ney
     Norwood
     Nussle
     Obey
     Ortiz
     Orton
     Oxley
     Packard
     Parker
     Paxon
     Payne (VA)
     Peterson (MN)
     Petri
     Pickett
     Pombo
     Pomeroy
     Porter
     Portman
     Pryce
     Quillen
     Quinn
     Radanovich
     Rahall
     Ramstad
     Regula
     Riggs
     Roemer
     Rogers
     Rohrabacher
     Ros-Lehtinen
     Roth
     Royce
     Salmon
     Sanford
     Saxton
     Scarborough
     Schaefer
     Schiff
     Schumer
     Seastrand
     [[Page H881]] Sensenbrenner
     Shadegg
     Shaw
     Shays
     Shuster
     Skaggs
     Skeen
     Skelton
     Smith (MI)
     Smith (NJ)
     Smith (TX)
     Smith (WA)
     Solomon
     Souder
     Spence
     Spratt
     Stearns
     Stenholm
     Stockman
     Stump
     Stupak
     Talent
     Tanner
     Tate
     Tauzin
     Taylor (MS)
     Taylor (NC)
     Tejeda
     Thomas
     Thornberry
     Thurman
     Tiahrt
     Torkildsen
     Upton
     Visclosky
     Vucanovich
     Waldholtz
     Walker
     Walsh
     Wamp
     Watts (OK)
     Weldon (FL)
     Weldon (PA)
     Weller
     White
     Whitfield
     Wicker
     Wilson
     Wise
     Wolf
     Young (AK)
     Young (FL)
     Zeliff
     Zimmer

                             NOT VOTING--17

     Bateman
     Cox
     Furse
     Gibbons
     Hall (OH)
     Hefner
     Johnson, E. B.
     Martinez
     Montgomery
     Neal
     Roberts
     Rose
     Roukema
     Sisisky
     Studds
     Williams
     Yates

                              {time}  0005

  So the amendments were rejected.
  The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
  The CHAIRMAN. Are there further amendments to section 4?
  The Clerk will designate title I.
  The text of title I is as follows:

              TITLE I--REVIEW OF UNFUNDED FEDERAL MANDATES

     SEC. 101. ESTABLISHMENT.

       There is established a commission which shall be known as 
     the ``Commission on Unfunded Federal Mandates'' (in this 
     title referred to as the ``Commission'').

     SEC. 102. REPORT ON UNFUNDED FEDERAL MANDATES BY THE 
                   COMMISSION.

       (a) In General.--The Commission shall in accordance with 
     this section--
       (1) Investigate and review the role of unfunded Federal 
     mandates in intergovernmental relations and their impact on 
     State, local, tribal, and Federal government objectives and 
     responsibilities; and
       (2) make recommendations to the President and the Congress 
     regarding--
       (A) allowing flexibility for State, local, and tribal 
     governments in complying with specific unfunded Federal 
     mandates for which terms of compliance are unnecessarily 
     rigid or complex;
       (B) reconciling any 2 or more unfunded Federal mandates 
     which impose contradictory or inconsistent requirements;
       (C) terminating unfunded Federal mandates which are 
     duplicative, obsolete, or lacking in practical utility;
       (D) suspending, on a temporary basis, unfunded Federal 
     mandates which are not vital to public health and safety and 
     which compound the fiscal difficulties of State, local, and 
     tribal governments, including recommendations for triggering 
     such suspension;
       (E) consolidating or simplifying unfunded Federal mandates, 
     or the planning or reporting requirements of such mandates, 
     in order to reduce duplication and facilitate compliance by 
     State, local, and tribal governments with those mandates; and
       (F) establishing common Federal definitions or standards to 
     be used by State, local, and tribal governments in complying 
     with unfunded Federal mandates that use different definitions 
     or standards for the same terms or principles.
       (3) Identification of relevant unfunded federal mandates.--
     Each recommendation under paragraph (2) shall, to
      the extent practicable, identify the specific unfunded 
     Federal mandates to which the recommendation applies.
       (b) Criteria.--
       (1) In general.--The Commission shall establish criteria 
     for making recommendations under subsection (a).
       (2) Issuance of proposed criteria.--The Commission shall 
     issue proposed criteria under this subsection not later than 
     60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and 
     thereafter provide a period of 30 days for submission by the 
     public of comments on the proposed criteria.
       (3) Final criteria.--Not later than 45 days after the date 
     of issuance of proposed criteria, the Commission shall--
       (A) consider comments on the proposed criteria received 
     under paragraph (2);
       (B) adopt and incorporate in final criteria any 
     recommendations submitted in those comments that the 
     Commission determines will aid the Commission in carrying out 
     its duties under this section; and
       (C) issue final criteria under this subsection.
       (c) Preliminary Report.--
       (1) In general.--Not later than 9 months after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, the Commission shall--
       (A) prepare and publish a preliminary report on its 
     activities under this title, including preliminary 
     recommendations pursuant to subsection (a);
       (B) publish in the Federal Register a notice of 
     availability of the preliminary report; and
       (C) provide copies of the preliminary report to the public 
     upon request.
       (2) Public hearings.--The Commission shall hold public 
     hearings on the preliminary recommendations contained in the 
     preliminary report of the Commission under this subsection.
       (d) Final Report.--Not later than 3 months after the date 
     of the publication of the preliminary report under section 
     (c), the Commission shall submit to the Congress, including 
     the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight of the House 
     of Representatives and the Committee on Government Affairs of 
     the Senate, and to the President a final report on the 
     findings, conclusions, and recommendations of the Commission 
     under this section.

     SEC. 103. MEMBERSHIP.

       (a) Number and Appointment.--The Commission shall be 
     composed of 9 members appointed from individuals who possess 
     extensive leadership experience in and knowledge of State, 
     local, and tribal governments and intergovernmental 
     relations, including State and local elected officials, as 
     follows:
       (1) 3 members appointed by the Speaker of the House of 
     Representatives, in consultation with the minority leader of 
     the House of Representatives.
       (2) 3 members appointed by the majority leader of the 
     Senate, in consultation with the minority leader of the 
     Senate.
       (3) 3 members appointed by the President.
       (b) Waiver of Limitation on Executive Schedule Positions.--
     Appointments may be made under this section without regard to 
     section 5311(b) of title 5, United States Code.
       (c) Terms.--
       (1) In general.--Each member of the Commission shall be 
     appointed for the life of the Commission.
       (2) Vacancies.--A vacancy in the Commission shall be filled 
     in the manner in which the original appointment was made.
       (d) Basic Pay.--
       (1) Rates of pay.--Members of the Commission shall serve 
     without pay.
       (2) Prohibition of compensation of federal employees.--
     Members of the Commission who are full-time officers or 
     employees of the United States may not receive additional 
     pay, allowances, or benefits by reason of their service on 
     the Commission.
       (e) Travel Expenses.--Each member of the Commission may 
     receive travel expenses, including per diem in lieu of 
     subsistence, in accordance with sections 5702 and 5703 of 
     title 5, United States Code.
       (f) Chairperson.--The President shall designate a member of 
     the Commission as Chairperson at the time of the appointment 
     of that member.
       (g) Meetings.--
       (1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), the Commission 
     shall meet at the call of the Chairperson or a majority of 
     its members.
       (2) First meeting.--The Commission shall convene its first 
     meeting by not later than 45 days after the date of the 
     completion of appointment of the members of the Commission.
       (3) Quorum.--A majority of members of the Commission shall 
     constitute a quorum but a lesser number may hold hearings.

     SEC. 104. DIRECTOR AND STAFF OF COMMISSION EXPERTS AND 
                   CONSULTANTS.

       (a) Director.--The Commission shall have a Director who 
     shall be appointed by the Commission. The Director shall be 
     paid at a level not to exceed the rate of basic pay payable 
     for level IV of the Executive Schedule.
       (b) Staff.--With the approval of the Commission, and 
     without regard to section 5311(b) of title 5, United States 
     Code, the Director may appoint and fix the pay of such staff 
     as is sufficient to enable the Commission to carry out its 
     duties.
       (c) Applicability of Certain Civil Service Laws.--The 
     Director and staff of the Commission may be appointed without 
     regard to the provisions of title 5, United States Code, 
     governing appointments in the competitive service, and may be 
     paid without regard to the provisions of chapter 51 and 
     subchapter III of chapter 53 of that title relating to 
     classification and General Schedule pay rates, except that an 
     individual so appointed may not receive pay in excess of the 
     annual rate payable under section 5376 of title 5, United 
     States Code.
       (d) Experts and Consultants.--The Commission may procure 
     temporary and intermittent services of experts or consultants 
     under section 3109(b) of title 5, United States Code.
       (e) Staff of Federal Agencies.--Upon request of the 
     Director, the head of any Federal department or agency may 
     detail, on a reimbursable basis, any of the personnel of that 
     department or
      agency to the Commission to assist it in carrying out its 
     duties under this title.

     SEC. 105. POWER OF COMMISSION.

       (a) Hearings and Sessions.--The Commission may, for the 
     purpose of carrying out this title, hold hearings, sit and 
     act at times and places, take testimony, and receive evidence 
     as the Commission considers appropriate.
       (b) Powers of Members and Agents.--Any member or agent of 
     the Commission may, if authorized by the Commission, take any 
     action which the Commission is authorized to take by this 
     section.
       (c) Obtaining Official Data.--The Commission may secure 
     directly from any department or agency of the United States 
     information necessary to enable it to carry out this title, 
     except information--
       (1) which is specifically exempted from disclosure by law; 
     or
       (2) which that department or agency determines will 
     disclose--
       (A) matters necessary to be kept secret in the interests of 
     national defense or the confidential conduct of the foreign 
     relations of the United States.
       [[Page H882]] (B) information relating to trade secrets or 
     financial or commercial information pertaining specifically 
     to a given person if the information has been obtained by the 
     Government on a confidential basis, other than through an 
     application by such person for a specific financial or other 
     benefit, and is required to be kept secret in order to 
     prevent undue injury to the competitive position of such 
     person; or
       (C) personnel or medical data or similar data the 
     disclosure of which would constitute a clearly unwarranted 
     invasion of personal privacy;

     unless the portions containing such matters, information, or 
     data have been excised.

     Upon request of the Chairperson of the Commission, the head 
     of that department or agency shall furnish that information 
     to the Commission.
       (d) Mails.--The Commission may use the United States mail 
     in the same manner and under the same conditions as other 
     departments and agencies of the United States.
       (e) Administrative Support Services.--Upon the request of 
     the Commission, the Administrator of General Services shall 
     provide to the Commission, on a reimbursable basis, the 
     administrative support services necessary for the Commission 
     to carry out its duties under this title.
       (f) Contract Authority.--The Commission may, subject to 
     appropriations, contract with and compensate government and 
     private agencies or persons for property and services used to 
     carry out its duties under this title.

     SEC. 106. TERMINATION.

       The Commission shall terminate 90 days after submitting its 
     final report pursuant to section 102(d).

     SEC. 107. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       There is authorized to be appropriated to the Commission 
     $1,000,000 to carry out this title.

     SEC. 108. DEFINITION.

       As used in this title, the term ``Federal mandate'' means 
     any provision in statute or regulation or any Federal court 
     ruling that imposes an enforceable duty upon States, local 
     governments, or tribal governments including a condition of 
     Federal assistance or a duty arising from participation in a 
     voluntary Federal program.

     SEC. 109. EFFECTIVE DATE.

       This title shall take effect 60 days after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act.
  Mr. POMBO. Mr. Chairman, I am pleased to see that the Unfunded 
Mandates Reform Act we are debating today is moving steadily toward 
passage in the House of Representatives. This measure, H.R. 5, is long 
overdue. For too many years, the Federal Government has been forcing 
regulations down the throats of State and local government officials 
without providing them with the necessary resources to pay for them.
  To give an idea of how outrageous this practice has become, the 
Environmental Protection Agency's own figures state that its rules and 
regulations cost this Nation $140 billion last year--that is 2.2 
percent of our entire gross domestic product. Let me remind my 
colleagues that this represents the cost of mandates from just one 
single agency of the Federal Government. The successful passage of H.R. 
5 will once-and-for-all end this outrageous, and arrogant, Federal 
Government practice.
  While I am disappointed that some in this House have tried to slow 
down the progress of H.R. 5, I am confident that the overwhelming 
bipartisan support it enjoys will enable us to make good on our promise 
with the American people. H.R. 5 is a top priority for those of us who 
have signed the Contract With America--and we intend to deliver.
  Mr. Chairman, we are not the only ones who have been eagerly waiting 
for this legislation. State and local officials around the country are 
so disgusted with the Federal Government's penchant for establishing 
new programs without paying for them, they established an official 
Unfunded Mandates Day to make their concerns felt here in Washington. 
They have done this because it is the simple fact that the burden of 
paying for unfunded mandates is minimizing the effectiveness of State 
and local governments to provide even the most basic local services. 
Let me make one thing clear--we have heard their voices, and are 
dedicated to making a real difference.
  What good do unfunded mandates serve if they require city officials 
to seriously consider buying and passing out bottled water to residents 
rather than comply with the strict Federal water testing requirements 
set forth in the Safe Drinking Water Act? How effective is requiring a 
city to spend over $250,000 over 3 years to remove petroleum-
contaminated soil so that an asphalt parking lot could be put on top of 
it--when asphalt is a petroleum-based product? Mandates like these 
serve no one--except the Federal bureaucrats, of course.
  Once again, Mr. Chairman, I would like to express my strong support 
for the Unfunded Mandate Reform Act and urge its passage in the House 
of Representatives as well as the other body. We owe the American 
people nothing less.
  Mr. McKeon. Mr. Chairman, legislative mandates made by the Federal 
Government have placed a significant financial burden on communities in 
California. The city of Los Angeles estimates that Federal mandates 
will cost approximately $2.2 billion over 5 years (1993-94 through 
1997-98). In recent years, many Federal mandates have been placed on 
cities like Los Angeles without Federal funding required for 
implementing and enforcing these mandates.
  Despite the attention to this issue, these Federal mandates have not 
subsided. The National Committee on Uniform Traffic Control Devices is 
currently in the process of recommending improvements in traffic-
control devices, including street signs, to the Federal Highway 
Administration. In its present form, the National Committee's proposal 
recommends new Federal guidelines that would require communities to:
  First, increase the size of the street sign lettering from 4 inches 
to 6 inches high; and second, modify street name signs to be reflective 
or illuminated.
  The proposed guidelines do not contain any provisions for cities to 
fund these changes.
  The city's department of transportation has reviewed this proposal 
and believes that the suggested requirements are extreme and 
unnecessary. The cost to change the more than 150,000 street name signs 
in the city would be approximately $10 to $15 million.
  Without financial assistance, the city of Los Angeles is not in a 
position to comply with the proposed new guidelines for street signs. 
Furthermore, in an urban area such as Los Angeles, many intersections 
are sufficiently illuminated and often feature additional identifying 
signs for drivers of motor vehicles.
  While this is one small example of a much larger problem, it is 
indicative of the costly Federal mandates imposed on local governments. 
With this in mind, I respectfully urge House Members to support H.R. 5, 
the Unfunded Mandate Reform Act of 1995.
  Mr. CLINGER. Mr. Chairman, I move that the Committee do now rise.
  The motion was agreed to.
  Accordingly, the Committee rose; and the Speaker pro tempore (Mr. 
Ehlers) having assumed the chair, Mr. Emerson, Chairman of the 
Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, reported that 
that Committee, having had under consideration the bill (H.R. 5) to 
curb the practice of imposing unfunded Federal mandates on States and 
local governments, to ensure that the Federal Government pays the costs 
incurred by those governments in complying with certain requirements 
under Federal statues and regulations, and to provide information on 
the cost of Federal mandates on the private sector, and for other 
purposes, had come to no resolution thereon.

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