[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 194 (Thursday, December 7, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H14204-H14205]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM

  (Mr. FAZIO of California asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute.)
  Mr. FAZIO of California. Mr. Speaker, I ask for this time for the 
purpose of yielding to the distinguished majority leader, the gentleman 
from Texas [Mr. Armey], to announce the schedule for the next week and 
the remainder of this season.
  Mr. ARMEY. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
  Mr. FAZIO of California. I am more than happy to yield to the 
gentleman from Texas.
  Mr. ARMEY. Mr. Speaker, this vote marks the end of the legislative 
business for the week. On Monday, December 11, the House will meet in 
pro forma session. There will be no legislation business that day.
  On Tuesday, December 12, the House will meet at 10 o'clock a.m. and 
recess immediately to receive Prime Minister Peres of Israel in a joint 
meeting of the House and the Senate.
  Mr. Speaker, the House will reconvene at 1 p.m. for morning hour and 
2:30 p.m. for legislative business. We will first consider two bills on 
the Corrections Day Calendar: H.R. 1787, a bill to repeal the saccharin 
notice requirement; and H.R. 325, the communter option bill.
  After consideration of the correction of corrections day bills, we 
will take up a number of bills under suspension of the rules. I will 
not read through the bills now, but a list will be distributed to 
Members' offices. We will then turn to H.R. 2621, legislation 
concerning disinvestment of Federal trust funds.
  Members should be advised that we do not expect recorded votes until 
5 o'clock p.m. on Tuesday, December 12.
  For Wednesday and the balance of the week, we expect to consider the 
following bills, all of which will be subject to rules: H.R. 2666, the 
Foreign Operations Appropriations Act for fiscal year 1996; the 
conference report for H.R. 1977, the Interior Appropriations Act for 
fiscal year 1996; the conference report for H.R. 2546, the District of 
Columbia Appropriations Act for fiscal year 1996; the conference report 
for S. 1026, the Department of Defense authorization bill; H.R. 1020, 
the Integrated Nuclear Spent Fuel Management Act; the conference report 
for S. 652, the Telecommunications Competition and Deregulation Act of 
1995; and, H.R. 1745, the Utah Public Lands Management Act of 1995.

  Also, it is possible that legislation pertaining to the deployment of 
troops in Bonsia would be considered next week.
  As Members know, the continuing resolution expires Friday, December 
15. I am hopeful that progress will be made in ongoing budget 
negotiations that would result in legislation that will balance the 
budget in 7 years; permanently increase the public debt limit; and, 
fund those areas of government for which appropriations bills have not 
yet been approved.
  However, given these unusual circumstances, it is impossible to 
inform Members with any accuracy when the House will adjourn next week.
  Mr. FAZIO of California. Mr. Speaker, I would yield to the gentleman 
further to inquire if it is possible to give the Members any more 
certainty when the Bosnia resolution would be considered. I know that 
every Member would want to be present for that debate and that vote.
  Mr. ARMEY. Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman would again yield, I thank 
the gentleman for his inquiry. Mr. Speaker, I am sorry I cannot be more 
precise. I know that that would not happen on Tuesday. It could not 
happen before Wednesday, I am sure, out of consideration for the 
Members. Other than that, I really cannot give the gentleman any more 
precise information.
  Mr. FAZIO of California. Mr. Speaker, Wednesday and Thursday are the 
most likely dates?
  Mr. ARMEY. Most likely.
  Mr. FAZIO of California. Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman would respond 
further, I know that we have a need for a third CR. Everybody is aware 
of the fact that it seems we have six appropriation bills that have not 
yet made it to the President for signature or veto.
  Mr. Speaker, could the gentleman give us some understanding as to 
when it will be possible to extend this CR to a time when all of us 
could conclude it would be realistic, many assuming it might be 
sometime in mid-January?
  Mr. ARMEY. Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman would yield.
  Mr. FAZIO of California. Mr. Speaker, I am more than happy to yield 
on that.
  Mr. ARMEY. Mr. Speaker, the gentleman is aware that even today, after 
informing the press, the President's negotiations team is going to 
present to the budget negotiation meetings their recommendation for a 
7-year balanced budget with OMB scoring. We would obviously want to 
give that all the consideration it is due.
  Of course, seeing that the President is moving in the direction of a 
7-year balanced budget, we remain hopeful and optimistic that during 
the course of this weekend and next week that we will come to a 
conclusion of these budget negotiations. At that time, of course, as we 
have racked up the work, we will address the question and the need for 
a continuing resolution to handle that discretionary spending for bills 
not yet approved by the President.
  Mr. FAZIO of California. Mr. Speaker, I realize that the general 
budget debate is going to continue for a while, and there are many, 
many issues in disagreement, but the fundamental need to keep the 
government functioning now is, I think, something that grows more 
important to more Members as we get closer to the holidays.
  I have heard from both sides of the aisle, and on the other side of 
the Capitol as well, that there is no stomach for sending Federal 
employees on another unnecessary furlough around the holidays, when we 
are not going to be able to resolve the fundamental budget issue 
anyway.

  Mr. Speaker, is there any hope that we could have at least a short-
term extension of the CR to allow the Republican majority to catch up 
with the schedule on the appropriation bills?
  Mr. ARMEY. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the gentleman's inquiry. Mr. 
Speaker, I would join my colleague from California in regretting the 
President's earlier decision to shut down the Government and 
unnecessarily furlough workers. I can only assure the gentleman from 
California we will present the President with an opportunity to 
maintain continuing operation of the Federal Government and to avoid 
that.
  Mr. Speaker, I am sure the gentleman from California would join me in 
hoping that given that opportunity that the President will most 
certainly be presented with, that he would opt this time to not shut 
down the Government as he did last time.
  Mr. FAZIO of California. Mr. Speaker, reclaiming my time, there is 
certainly no question, when we have not sent six of the appropriations 
bills to him by the December 7 date, well beyond the normal October 1 
fiscal year date, it is kind of difficult to blame the President.

[[Page H 14205]]

  Mr. Speaker, let me conclude by asking this: Many of us will be 
traveling back to our districts for the Christmas holidays. Given the 
complexity of airline reservations as we get close to the holidays, the 
difficulty in rescheduling, is there any way the gentleman could give 
the Members any kind of certainty as to what time we would be allowed, 
assuming we do not have a resolution of this budget impasse, to return 
to our districts, to our families, so that we would not once again be 
in the position of having canceled flights and an inability to get new 
accommodations for travel?
  Mr. ARMEY. Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman would again yield, I too 
share the gentleman's concern about the spending bills not yet 
completed, particularly Health and Human Services, the biggest 
discretionary spending bill of all, which is, as the gentleman knows, 
being held up by a Democrat minority filibuster in the other body. 
Perhaps we could get that broken out.
  But frankly, Mr. Speaker, until we can get more serious discussions 
about the budget in the budget conference with the President and his 
team, it is very hard for me to predict what will be the outcome, 
having even yet to this point, today, recognizing of course that the 
press has been briefed, but I, as a member of that conference, have not 
yet seen a serious proposal from the White House. So, as we await that 
kind of work, we will continue to be hopeful that some of us may be 
home for Christmas.
  Mr. FAZIO of California. Mr. Speaker, I think at this point, having 
exhausted any potential questions and certainly not having received any 
answers, I would be more than happy to yield back my time.

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