[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 93 (Friday, June 27, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6669-S6670]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                SCHEDULE

  Mr. ROTH. Mr. President, for the information of all Senators, this 
morning the Senate will resume consideration of S. 949, the Tax Relief 
Act of 1997, and begin another lengthy series of rollcall votes. As 
previously ordered, the series of stacked rollcall votes will begin on 
or in relation to the Nickles amendment, followed by the Gramm 
amendment and the Kerry amendment. Following the disposition of the 
aforementioned stacked votes, the Senate will proceed to a vote on a 
number of process amendments under the control of Senator Domenici. 
After those amendments have been disposed of, Senators will have the 
right to offer an amendment to the bill, with 2 minutes of debate 
equally divided on the proposed amendment.
  However, it is hoped, and I would like to emphasize, that Members 
will refrain from offering amendments so that the Senate may complete 
action on this bill at a reasonable time.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Thomas). The Senator from New York.
  Mr. MOYNIHAN. Can I simply endorse my revered chairman's judgment? We 
have had a good debate. We have a good bill, a bipartisan bill. The 
prospects of any serious change are not large. The prospect of any 
serious attention to new proposals are not great--not today. The Senate 
is a continuing body and we will continue to discuss matters, but today 
is the time for closing out this legislation so we can go to conference 
and send a bill to the President.
  Mr. ROTH. What is the order of business?
  Mr. KENNEDY. Will the Senator yield for a question?
  Mr. ROTH. I yield.
  Mr. KENNEDY. After the process amendment, there may be an amendment 
offered on the Republican side. We are prepared to move ahead to get on 
the list; would that be agreeable? Can I ask consent, after the 
sequencing, there may be an amendment on the Republican side and we 
could have consideration?
  Mr. ROTH. I say to the distinguished Senator from Massachusetts, we 
have you on the list for three separate amendments.
  Mr. KENNEDY. Just one amendment.
  Mr. MOYNIHAN. That is the spirit.
  Mr. ROTH. I say to the distinguished Senator and to my colleague, 
Senator Moynihan, that we have a list of both Republican and Democrat 
amendments. They are set in a particular order. We do intend to go from 
one side to the other side.

[[Page S6670]]

  Mr. MOYNIHAN. May I just ask in terms of who appears and asks for 
recognition, the first three pending amendments are, in fact, stacked?
  Mr. ROTH. That is correct.
  Mr. MOYNIHAN. The rest are just amendments that may be offered.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, the amendment of the 
Senator from Massachusetts will follow the process.
  Mr. McCAIN. Reserving the right to object, I ask a question of the 
Senator from Delaware. Will there be a unanimous-consent agreement 
propounded of some list of priority of these amendments so that the 
Senators will know when their amendment will be considered?
  Mr. ROTH. I say to my distinguished friend from Arizona we could set 
such a list. I thought at the beginning we would move informally, but 
as time proceeds we will try to set a list.
  Mr. McCAIN. Further reserving the right to object, we all know, as 
the day wears on, there will be increasing pressures because of the 
departure as articulated by my friend from Nevada last night, so it is 
of some interest as to which priority, after the initial amendments 
that were agreed to last night, will be considered.
  I ask both the Democrat leader and the managers, both managers of the 
bill, if we could have some predictability associated with that.
  I remove my objection.
  Mr. COVERDELL. Mr. President, reserving the right to object, these 
amendments have been around for some time, and I would think there 
would have already been a sequence of priorities. This proposal ought 
not to be muscling around here.
  Mr. ROTH. I say to the distinguished Senator we do have a sequence of 
amendments and we intend to go down the sequence of amendments from 
Democrat to Republican.

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