[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 151 (Wednesday, October 21, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2296]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E2296]]
 REGARDING CORRECTION OF MATERIAL AFTER MANAGERS' STATEMENT ON S. 1260

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. ANNA G. ESHOO

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, October 21, 1998

  Ms. ESHOO. Mr. Speaker, last week on Tuesday, October 13, 1998, the 
House of Representatives passed the Conference Report of S. 1260, the 
Securities Litigation Uniform Standards Act. This legislation, 
previously passed by the other body, is expected to be signed by the 
President and closes a loophole in securities litigation by assuring 
that lawsuits involving nationally traded securities remain in federal 
courts where they have traditionally been heard. I'm proud to have been 
the lead Democratic co-sponsor of this legislation.
  During remarks by my colleagues on the floor regarding S. 1260 there 
was confusion as to what was included in the joint Managers' Statement 
signed by the Conferees. The confusion was caused by the fact that in 
the House version of the Conference Report (published by the House 
Commerce Committee in the Congressional Record) the final page of the 
Managers' Statement was omitted. This error ultimately led to a 
statement made by Commerce Committee Chairman Bliley during floor 
debate on the final passage of this legislation. He clarified that 
omission of this very important page was a clerical mistake.
  Another mistake was made in the printing of the October 13, 1998, 
Congressional Record of the final passage of the legislation. The 
extraneous remarks submitted by Chairman Bliley were erroneously placed 
directly following the Managers' Statement. These remarks were then 
printed in the same typeface as the conference report, giving the 
impression that the extraneous remarks were agreed to by the conferees 
who signed the final conference report.
  Mr. Speaker, let me state for the record, nothing could be further 
from the truth. This extraneous material, which should have been placed 
after the remarks of the distinguished Chairman, does not represent my 
view pertaining to whether recklessness satisfied the scienter 
requirement nor should it be regarded as the view of the Conferees. 
This was a contentious issue during the conference and during 
discussion of the bill on the floor. Every work of the Managers' 
Statement on this issue was negotiated. The reason for this is the 
Managers' Statement is the most authoritative statement related to the 
legislation. My colleague, Mr. Cox, an opponent of the language in the 
Managers' Statement conceded this point when in his colloquy with 
Chairman Bliley he referred to the earlier Managers' Statement in the 
1995 Securities Litigation Reform Act ``as the most authoritative 
construction of the 1995 Act.''
  Mr. Speaker, I highlighted this error because as courts and lawyers 
research the legislative intent of this Act and review our actions as 
recorded in the Congressional Record, I urge them to thoroughly read 
each reference to this legislation. It is essential that a bright line 
be drawn between what is included in the conference report, and those 
views which were specifically rejected by the Conferees of S. 1260.
  I'm pleased to report that the Government Printing Office has 
reprinted the October 13, 1998 Congressional Record and issued a 
corrected version. The Parliamentarian has corrected the Permanent 
Record of the House to reflect the true content of the Managers' 
Statement.

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