[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 101 (Wednesday, July 10, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Page S7626]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           ORDER OF PROCEDURE

  Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, we have now completed the process that was 
laboriously worked out to take up and consider the small business tax 
relief package, the House-passed package that included minimum wage and 
some tax considerations. Then we added to it the Finance Committee's 
work and the managers' bill. We completed that whole process yesterday, 
and we have now taken up and considered amendments to the TEAM Act. We 
have passed the TEAM Act.
  In connection with all of that, earlier, we had caught up in that 
maze the taxpayers bill of rights II. I tried yesterday to clear that 
for unanimous consent because I believe there is overwhelming support 
for the taxpayers bill of rights bill. I know one of the principal 
architects of that legislation is Senator Pryor from Arkansas. But 
there was objection heard to it because I understood maybe there were 
amendments that were being considered to be offered to that bill. I 
understand now that maybe that is not true. I know that Senator Pryor, 
Senator Ford, and I think maybe Senator Grassley, and others, are 
working to see if we can get agreement on that. That is something that 
we clearly should do to give the American people some further rights 
with regard to how they are dealt with by the Internal Revenue Service. 
That is something we should do, and it is long overdue. But there was 
objection.
  Now, today, also caught up in the small business tax relief, minimum 
wage, TEAM Act, and gas tax act was another matter commonly referred to 
as the White House Travel Office. So I wish to seek unanimous consent 
that we could get that legislation taken up and acted on because, once 
again, it is clearly something that involves equity for the people 
involved. I thought that once we got all these other issues dealt with, 
this would be something we could move.
  So I am going to continue to try to move bills that are pending 
before the Senate. Some have been pending for a long time. It is my 
intent to try to clear for a unanimous consent agreement the bill 
dealing with the Gaming Commission, which is not something I am 
particularly excited about, but there is a lot of interest in it, 
again, on this side from Senator Lugar and Senator Coats of Indiana. I 
know that Senator Simon is interested in that. My intent is to try to 
get it up and have it considered and deal with it, vote it up or down, 
but stop holding things up.
  I am trying to develop a pattern here of moving legislation, 
certainly legislation that is not controversial, such as the taxpayers 
bill of rights, the White House Travel Office, and the Gaming 
Commission--although that could get to be controversial. If I find out 
that there will be a lot of amendments beyond what were agreed to in 
the committee, after consultation with the Democratic leader, we might 
decide not to bring that up if we are going to have protracted debate 
on that. We have work we need to do, such as the Department of Defense 
appropriations bill. The two managers are here and are ready to go. We 
need to get on with that. If we are going to have objections, then I 
guess we will not be able to proceed.

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