[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 18 (Tuesday, February 2, 1999)]
[House]
[Page H279]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           BIENNIAL BUDGET AND CONCEALED WEAPONS RECIPROCITY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Stearns) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to announce the introduction 
of what I consider to be two significant bills for the American people 
regarding the budget process here in Congress, and allowing law abiding 
citizens to carry concealed weapons outside of their home States.
  The first bill I will be introducing is a companion bill to what has 
already been introduced by Senator Domenici to establish a biennial 
budget happening every two years and a biennial appropriation process. 
The Biennial Budgeting and Appropriations Act would fundamentally 
change how Washington and the Congress operates. It would be a change 
for the better in dealing with the Nation's fiscal matters. This bill 
would establish a two-year budget process and appropriations process 
for Congress.
  The fundamental importance of this bill is that it removes politics 
from the budget process. The first session of Congress would be 
dedicated to passing a budget and the 13 appropriations bills. 
Establishing this method would free the Congress from the nastiest 
budget and appropriations fights during national election years.
  I was greatly dismayed last year watching the outcome of the budget 
negotiations between the congressional leadership and the White House, 
where both sides agreed to spend as much of the budget surplus as they 
could. The administration was able to use, once again, the threat of a 
government shutdown in order to extract billions of dollars in extra 
spending for political gain. The American taxpayer deserves to be 
better treated than last year's cop-out on sticking to our budget 
priorities. I voted against that monster budget last year.
  The second congressional session could then be dedicated for 
authorizing bills which are greatly needed and which are greatly 
bypassed, in our day and age, for general government oversight and for 
other important legislative priorities.
  In addition, the second session would be used for any true, necessary 
emergency spending bills which would have to be dealt with in the 
appropriate spring months of an election year to avoid political 
manipulation. Since 1950, Congress has only twice met the fiscal year 
deadline for completion of all 13 individual appropriations bills. In 
the 22-year history of the Budget Act, Congress has met the statutory 
deadline to complete a budget resolution just three times.
  A biennial budget would at least reduce the rushed atmosphere of 
budgeting and appropriating during an election process. In addition, 
Senator Domenici asked 50 Federal agencies about a biennial budget. 
Thirty-seven agencies supported the idea, and not one Federal agency 
opposed it. These agencies responded that this process would actually 
save the Federal Government money, because it would reduce the burden 
on their operations of having to annually seek budget authority and 
appropriations.
  Senator Domenici introduced a similar bipartisan bill in the last 
Congress and enjoyed cosponsorship of 36 U.S. Senators, including 
Minority Leader Daschle, Senators Feingold, Moynihan, Breaux and other 
Republican Senators, including McCain, Nickles, and Roth. The current 
bill already has 26 Senate cosponsors, and it appears that it will sail 
through the Senate. Therefore, I urge my colleagues that have interest 
in this matter to work together and to consider this proposal and to be 
a cosponsor.
  The second bill, Mr. Speaker, I will be introducing is my concealed 
weapons reciprocity bill that I had introduced in the 105th Congress, 
which was cosponsored by 75 Members of the House. My bill would allow 
the citizens of every State the right to carry a concealed weapon 
across State lines into any State or Territory of our Nation. My bill 
creates a national standard for the carrying of certain concealed 
firearms by nonresidents of those States.
  Every citizen, in order to carry a concealed firearm across State 
lines, would have to be properly licensed for carrying a concealed 
weapon in their home State and would have to obey the concealed weapons 
laws of the State they are entering. If the State they are entering 
does not have a concealed weapons law, the national standard provisions 
in this legislation would dictate the rules in which a concealed weapon 
would have to be maintained. For instance, the national standard 
disallows the carrying of a concealed weapon in a school, police 
station or a bar serving alcoholic beverages.
  Mr. Speaker, in addition, my legislation exempts qualified former and 
current law enforcement officers from State laws prohibiting the 
carrying of concealed handguns.
  Mr. Speaker, again, these two pieces of legislation are very 
important. If Members of the House are interested in cosponsoring 
either of these bills, I urge that they contact my office.

                          ____________________