[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 148 (Wednesday, October 29, 1997)]
[House]
[Pages H9655-H9657]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    NUCLEAR WASTE POLICY ACT OF 1997

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Camp). The Chair is prepared to declare 
the House resolved into the Committee of the Whole for consideration of 
H.R. 1270.
  For what purpose does the gentleman from Nevada [Mr. Ensign] rise?


                    Unfunded Mandate Point of Order

  Mr. ENSIGN. Mr. Speaker, I rise to make a point of order under 
section 425 of the Budget Act on the basis that the provision beginning 
on page 56, line 15, imposes an unfunded intergovernmental mandate on 
State governments.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Nevada makes a point of 
order that the bill violates section

[[Page H9656]]

425(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
  In accordance with section 426(b)(2) of the Act, the gentleman must 
specify precise language in the bill on which he predicates his point 
of order. Having met the threshold burden to identify specific language 
in the bill, the gentleman from Nevada [Mr. Ensign] and a Member 
opposed, the gentleman from Colorado [Mr. Dan Schaefer], each will 
control 10 minutes of debate on the question of consideration under 
426(b)(4).
  Pursuant to section 426(b)(3) of the Act, after debate, the Chair 
will put the question of consideration, to wit: ``Will the bill H.R. 
1270 be considered?''
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Nevada [Mr. Ensign].
  Mr. ENSIGN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. 
The Congressional Budget Office states in its cost estimate of H.R. 
1270, dated September 25, 1997, that H.R. 1270 contains 
intergovernmental mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform 
Act of 1995, PL 104-4. CBO estimates that if this bill were enacted 
into law, the New York Power Authority, a publicly owned utility, would 
be required to pay $180 million in the year 2002. The Unfunded Mandates 
Reform Act set a threshold of $50 million for 1996, annually adjusted 
for inflation. Therefore, CBO estimates that these mandates would 
impose costs on State governments exceeding the threshold.
  Mr. Speaker, I demand a ruling by the Chair that sustains my point of 
order against H.R. 1270 because it clearly violates the Unfunded 
Mandates Reform Act that forbade unfunded mandates on State and local 
governments.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. DAN SCHAEFER of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time 
as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, section 403(a)(3) of H.R. 1270 provides 
for payment of outstanding onetime fees owed by 13 utilities by the end 
of the fiscal year 2002. This provision is not in my estimation an 
unfunded intergovernmental mandate because it relates only to the 
timing of these payments. The obligation to pay these fees was created 
15 years ago by the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, not by H.R. 1270.
  I do have a letter here dated October 27, 1997, from the New York 
Power Authority, and it simply says:
  Pursuant to the Nuclear Waste Policy Act of 1982, the Power Authority 
entered into a contract with the DOE for the disposal of spent nuclear 
fuel. We chose the option of paying the onetime disposal fee, and 
accumulated interest, for pre-1983 fuel at the time we first ship spent 
nuclear fuel to the DOE facility. Accordingly, we do not view this 
payment as an unfunded mandate, as long as DOE meets its obligation 
under H.R. 1270 to provide interim storage and disposal capacity.
  Mr. Speaker, I think that a point of order is not inclined to be 
there.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. ENSIGN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. 
Just very briefly, the Congressional Budget Office definitely stated 
that this bill violates the unfunded mandate law that was part of the 
Contract With America. The gentleman stated that the State of New York 
wishes to waive this, or at least the public utility. However, the 
State of Nevada does not wish to waive its unfunded mandate, and that 
is why we are asking for a vote on this. A lot of people in this House 
in the last Congress voted for the unfunded mandate law, and we are 
asking that those people be consistent on their vote.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to section 426(b)(3) of the 
Congressional Budget Act, the question is: Shall the bill, H.R. 1270, 
be considered?
  The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that 
the ayes appeared to have it.
  Mr. ENSIGN. Mr. Speaker, I object to the vote on the ground that a 
quorum is not present and make the point of order that a quorum is not 
present.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Evidently a quorum is not present.
  The Sergeant at Arms will notify absent Members.
  The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--yeas 312, 
nays 105, not voting 15, as follows:

                             [Roll No. 542]

                               YEAS--312

     Aderholt
     Allen
     Archer
     Armey
     Bachus
     Baker
     Baldacci
     Ballenger
     Barcia
     Barr
     Barrett (NE)
     Barrett (WI)
     Bartlett
     Barton
     Bass
     Bateman
     Bentsen
     Bereuter
     Berman
     Berry
     Bilbray
     Bilirakis
     Bishop
     Bliley
     Blunt
     Boehlert
     Boehner
     Bonilla
     Bonior
     Bono
     Borski
     Boswell
     Boucher
     Boyd
     Brady
     Brown (CA)
     Brown (FL)
     Brown (OH)
     Bunning
     Burr
     Burton
     Buyer
     Callahan
     Calvert
     Camp
     Canady
     Cannon
     Cardin
     Castle
     Chabot
     Chambliss
     Chenoweth
     Clayton
     Clement
     Clyburn
     Coble
     Collins
     Combest
     Condit
     Conyers
     Cook
     Costello
     Cox
     Coyne
     Cramer
     Crane
     Crapo
     Cunningham
     Danner
     Davis (FL)
     Davis (VA)
     Deal
     DeLay
     Deutsch
     Diaz-Balart
     Dickey
     Dicks
     Dingell
     Dixon
     Dooley
     Doolittle
     Doyle
     Dreier
     Duncan
     Dunn
     Edwards
     Ehlers
     Ehrlich
     Emerson
     Eshoo
     Etheridge
     Everett
     Ewing
     Farr
     Fattah
     Fawell
     Fazio
     Flake
     Foley
     Forbes
     Fowler
     Fox
     Frank (MA)
     Frelinghuysen
     Frost
     Gallegly
     Ganske
     Gejdenson
     Gilchrest
     Gillmor
     Gilman
     Goode
     Goodlatte
     Goodling
     Gordon
     Goss
     Graham
     Granger
     Green
     Greenwood
     Gutknecht
     Hall (OH)
     Hall (TX)
     Hamilton
     Hastert
     Hastings (WA)
     Hayworth
     Hefley
     Hefner
     Herger
     Hill
     Hilleary
     Hilliard
     Hobson
     Hoekstra
     Horn
     Hostettler
     Hoyer
     Hulshof
     Hunter
     Hutchinson
     Inglis
     Istook
     Jenkins
     John
     Johnson (CT)
     Johnson (WI)
     Johnson, E. B.
     Johnson, Sam
     Jones
     Kanjorski
     Kaptur
     Kasich
     Kennelly
     Kildee
     Kim
     Kind (WI)
     King (NY)
     Kleczka
     Klink
     Klug
     Knollenberg
     Kolbe
     LaHood
     Largent
     Latham
     LaTourette
     Lazio
     Leach
     Levin
     Lewis (KY)
     Linder
     Lipinski
     Livingston
     LoBiondo
     Lofgren
     Luther
     Manton
     Manzullo
     Mascara
     McCarthy (MO)
     McCarthy (NY)
     McCollum
     McCrery
     McDade
     McHugh
     McInnis
     McIntyre
     Menendez
     Metcalf
     Mica
     Miller (FL)
     Minge
     Mollohan
     Moran (KS)
     Moran (VA)
     Morella
     Murtha
     Myrick
     Neal
     Nethercutt
     Neumann
     Ney
     Northup
     Norwood
     Nussle
     Oberstar
     Obey
     Olver
     Ortiz
     Oxley
     Packard
     Pallone
     Pappas
     Parker
     Pastor
     Paxon
     Pease
     Peterson (MN)
     Peterson (PA)
     Petri
     Pickering
     Pickett
     Pitts
     Pomeroy
     Porter
     Portman
     Poshard
     Price (NC)
     Pryce (OH)
     Quinn
     Rahall
     Ramstad
     Redmond
     Regula
     Riggs
     Riley
     Rivers
     Rodriguez
     Rogan
     Rogers
     Rohrabacher
     Ros-Lehtinen
     Roukema
     Royce
     Rush
     Ryun
     Sabo
     Salmon
     Sandlin
     Sanford
     Sawyer
     Saxton
     Schaefer, Dan
     Schaffer, Bob
     Scott
     Sensenbrenner
     Sessions
     Shadegg
     Shaw
     Shays
     Shimkus
     Shuster
     Sisisky
     Skeen
     Skelton
     Smith (MI)
     Smith (NJ)
     Smith (OR)
     Smith (TX)
     Smith, Linda
     Snowbarger
     Snyder
     Solomon
     Spence
     Spratt
     Stabenow
     Stark
     Stearns
     Stenholm
     Strickland
     Stump
     Stupak
     Sununu
     Tanner
     Tauzin
     Taylor (MS)
     Taylor (NC)
     Thomas
     Thompson
     Thornberry
     Thune
     Thurman
     Tiahrt
     Towns
     Traficant
     Turner
     Upton
     Vento
     Visclosky
     Walsh
     Wamp
     Watkins
     Weldon (PA)
     Weller
     Wexler
     White
     Whitfield
     Wicker
     Wolf
     Wynn
     Young (FL)

                               NAYS--105

     Abercrombie
     Ackerman
     Andrews
     Baesler
     Becerra
     Blagojevich
     Blumenauer
     Bryant
     Campbell
     Carson
     Christensen
     Clay
     Coburn
     Cooksey
     Cummings
     Davis (IL)
     DeFazio
     DeGette
     Delahunt
     DeLauro
     Dellums
     Doggett
     Engel
     English
     Ensign
     Evans
     Filner
     Foglietta
     Ford
     Furse
     Gekas
     Gephardt
     Gibbons
     Gutierrez
     Hansen
     Harman
     Hastings (FL)
     Hinchey
     Holden
     Hooley
     Jackson (IL)
     Jackson-Lee (TX)
     Jefferson
     Kennedy (MA)
     Kennedy (RI)
     Kilpatrick
     Kingston
     Kucinich
     LaFalce
     Lampson
     Lantos
     Lewis (CA)
     Lewis (GA)
     Lowey
     Lucas
     Maloney (CT)
     Maloney (NY)
     Markey
     Martinez
     Matsui
     McDermott
     McGovern
     McHale
     McKeon
     McKinney
     McNulty
     Meehan
     Meek
     Millender-McDonald
     Miller (CA)
     Mink
     Moakley
     Nadler
     Owens
     Pascrell
     Paul
     Pelosi
     Pombo
     Radanovich
     Rangel
     Reyes
     Roemer
     Rothman
     Roybal-Allard
     Sanchez
     Sanders
     Scarborough
     Schumer
     Serrano
     Sherman
     Skaggs
     Slaughter
     Smith, Adam
     Souder
     Talent
     Tauscher
     Tierney
     Velazquez
     Waters
     Watt (NC)
     Watts (OK)
     Waxman
     Weygand
     Woolsey
     Young (AK)

[[Page H9657]]



                             NOT VOTING--15

     Cubin
     Franks (NJ)
     Gonzalez
     Hinojosa
     Houghton
     Hyde
     Kelly
     McIntosh
     Payne
     Schiff
     Stokes
     Torres
     Weldon (FL)
     Wise
     Yates

                              {time}  1646

  Messrs. DOGGETT, MEEHAN, SCHUMER, and MILLER of California changed 
their vote from ``yea'' to ``nay.''
  Messrs. BROWN of Ohio and FLAKE changed their vote from ``nay'' to 
``yea.''
  So the House agreed to consider H.R. 1270.
  The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table

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