[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 31 (Thursday, March 19, 1998)]
[House]
[Page H1320]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM

  (Mr. ROEMER asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. ROEMER. Mr. Speaker, I rise to inquire of the majority leader or 
his designee about the schedule for next week for the House of 
Representatives.
  Mr. ARMEY. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
  Mr. ROEMER. I am delighted to yield to the majority leader.
  Mr. ARMEY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding to me.
  I am pleased to announce we have concluded legislative business for 
the week.
  The House will next meet on Monday, March 23rd, at 2 p.m. for a pro 
forma session. There will be no legislation considered and no votes on 
that day.
  On Tuesday, March 24, the House will meet at 12:30 p.m. for morning 
hour and 2:00 p.m. for legislative business. Members should note we do 
not expect any recorded votes before 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday.
  We will consider the following bills under suspension of the rules on 
Tuesday:
  H.R. 2843, the Aviation Medical Assistance Act of 1997; H.R. 3039, 
the Veterans Transitional Housing Opportunities Act of 1997; H.R. 3211, 
a Bill Regarding Eligibility Requirements for Burial in Arlington 
National Cemetery; H.R. 3213, a Bill to Clarify Enforcement of 
Veterans' Employment Rights; H.R. 3412, the Small Business Investment 
Company Technical Corrections Act of 1998; and H.R. 118, the Traffic 
Stops Statistics Act of 1997.
  The House will also take up a bill on the Corrections Day Calendar, 
H.R. 3096, a Bill Relating to Termination of Benefits for Convicted 
Persons.
  On Wednesday, March 25, and the balance of the week, the House will 
meet at 10 a.m. to consider the following legislation:
  H.R. 2578, a Bill to Extend the Visa Waiver Pilot Program; H.R. 2589, 
the Copyright Term Extension Act; H.R. 3310, the Small Business 
Paperwork Reduction Act Amendments of 1998; H.R. 2515, a Bill to 
Address the Declining Health of Forests; H.R. 3246, the Fairness for 
Small Business and Employees Act of 1998; and H.R. 3485, The Campaign 
Reform and Election Integrity Act of 1998.
  We also hope to bring up H.R. 1757, the State Department 
Reauthorization Bill, conference report.
  Mr. Speaker, we hope to conclude legislative business for the week by 
2 p.m. on Friday, March 27.
  Mr. Speaker, I would also like to discuss the schedule for the last 
week of March. As the schedule we distributed at the beginning of the 
year indicates, the House will meet on Monday, March 30th, through 
Wednesday April 1. We have a number of very important pieces of 
legislation for the week, including the supplemental appropriations 
bill and the BESTEA bill. Members should note it will be necessary to 
begin legislative business and votes at noon on Monday, March 30.
  On Wednesday, April 1, we will adjourn for the spring district work 
period, from which the House will return on Tuesday, April 21st.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman for yielding to me.
  Mr. ROEMER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the majority leader and would just 
inquire further of him for some clarification on the schedule.
  Does the gentleman expect us to be in late on Tuesday night, since we 
begin votes at 5 with six bills and one correction?
  Mr. ARMEY. If the gentleman will continue to yield, he is referring 
to Tuesday of next week?
  Mr. ROEMER. That is correct.
  Mr. ARMEY. No, I do not expect to be in late. We will probably take 
those votes at 5, and that will probably be the business for the 
evening.
  Mr. ROEMER. Does the gentleman from Texas expect any late votes next 
week?
  Mr. ARMEY. It is possible that Wednesday and Thursday could be late 
evenings.
  Mr. ROEMER. If the gentleman would continue to elucidate on the 
schedule, does he expect campaign finance reform to come to the floor 
next week or any time soon?
  Mr. ARMEY. I thank the gentleman for asking. Yes, as I noted, I 
expect it to be on the floor sometime next week.
  Mr. ROEMER. Can the gentleman be more specific as to a day?
  Mr. ARMEY. I would expect Wednesday or Thursday.
  Mr. ROEMER. Wednesday or Thursday.
  And would the majority leader tell the House as well about the State 
Department conference bill coming to the floor; when he expects that 
bill to come to the floor and what the vote tally might be?
  Mr. ARMEY. Again, I thank the gentleman for asking. We expect that 
bill to be on the floor sometime next week, and as soon as we have more 
definitive information, we will let the Members know.
  Mr. ROEMER. If the majority leader knows the answer to this question, 
on H.R. 3246, the bill dealing with the National Labor Relations Board, 
does he expect that bill to be coming before the House next week?
  Mr. ARMEY. Once again, I thank the gentleman for asking, and we would 
expect that bill on Thursday of next week.
  Mr. ROEMER. Thursday next week.
  Mr. Speaker, with that I do not have any further questions of the 
majority leader, other than to say that I think a lot of us have been 
seeing a lot of our families for the past couple of months, and we hope 
to continue to do that into the year. Does the majority leader expect 
us to have late nights with the appropriations bills coming up soon?
  Mr. ARMEY. Again, I thank the gentleman for his questions, and I do 
hope Members have had time to be with their families.
  Mr. ROEMER. The gentleman sounds like that time is over.
  Mr. ARMEY. Well, I think the week following next will be a rigorous 
and demanding week. It is a short week of only 3 days, and we will then 
have an opportunity to spend some time in our districts working and 
visiting with our families and celebrating Easter.
  We will then, as we come back, move fairly quickly into the 
appropriation season. And as the gentleman knows, appropriation season 
can be a season of the year when we do have more than a fair share of 
late evenings. And, of course, that is always regrettable, but the work 
must be done.
  Mr. ROEMER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the majority leader, and I want to 
say to him that I will continue to work with him and his office on 
these scheduling issues.

                          ____________________