[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 43 (Thursday, March 18, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2929-S2932]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
EMERGENCY SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 1999
The Senate resumed consideration of the bill.
Amendment No. 114
(Purpose: To transfer funds from the environmental programs and
management account of the Environmental Protection Agency to the State
and tribal assistance grant account)
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I send to the desk an amendment which is
one of the relevant amendments listed by the majority leader. It is on
behalf of Senator Crapo, dealing with the transfer of funds from the
environmental programs and management account of the EPA to the State
and tribal assistant grant account. This has been cleared on both
sides, and I ask that it be considered.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The legislative clerk read as follows:
The Senator from Alaska (Mr. Stevens), for Mr. Crapo,
proposes an amendment numbered 114.
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the reading
of the amendment be dispensed with.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The amendment is as follows:
On page 58, between lines 15 and 16, insert the following:
SEC. 4. . WATER AND WASTEWATER INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECTS.
Of the amount appropriated under the heading
``environmental programs and management'' in title III of the
Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban
Development, and Independent Agencies Appropriations Act,
1999 (Public Law 105-276), $1,300,000 shall be transferred to
the State and tribal assistance grant account for a grant for
water and wastewater infrastructure projects in the State of
Idaho.
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the
amendment be agreed to.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The amendment (No. 114) was agreed to.
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote by which
the amendment was agreed to, and I move to lay that motion on the
table.
The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to remove from
the list Senator DeWine's amendment on steel and Senator Murray's
amendment on rural schools.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order
for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to send to the
desk and consider, en bloc, the following amendments:
A Kohl-Harkin-Durbin amendment to provide funding for conservation
technical assistance; a Bond-Durbin-Ashcroft-Grassley-Frist-Harkin
amendment for additional funding for section 32 assistance to
producers; a Byrd amendment to provide additional funding for rural
water infrastructure; a technical amendment of my own regarding the
provision of emergency assistance made available for fiscal year 1999;
a Feinstein-Boxer amendment to increase the emergency funds made
available for emergency grants to low-income migrant and seasonal
workers.
The last amendment deals with a $5 million increase which we believe
is offset with the current bill. The others are offset.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Amendments Nos. 115 through 119, En Bloc
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I send the amendments to the desk.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The legislative clerk read as follows:
The Senator from Alaska (Mr. Stevens) proposes amendments
numbered 115 through 119, en bloc.
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the reading
of the amendments be dispensed with.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The amendments are as follows:
AMENDMENT NO. 115
(Purpose: To provide funding for conservation technical assistance)
On page 37, line 9 strike ``$285,000,000'' and insert in
lieu thereof ``$313,000,000''.
At the appropriate place, insert the following:
``SEC. . Notwithstanding Section 11 of the Commodity
Credit Corporation Charter Act (15 U.S.C. 714i), an
additional $28,000,000 shall be provided through the
Commodity Credit Corporation in fiscal year 1999 for
technical assistance activities performed by an agency of the
Department of Agriculture in carrying out any conservation or
environmental program funded by the Commodity Credit
Corporation: Provided, That the entire amount shall be
available only to the extent an official budget request for
$28,000,000, that includes designation of the entire amount
of the request as emergency requirement as defined in the
Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, as
amended, is transmitted by the President to the Congress:
Provided further, That the entire amount is designated by
Congress as an emergency requirement pursuant to section
251(b)(2)(A) of such Act.''
Mr. KOHL. Mr. President, today, along with Senators Harkin and
Durbin, I introduce an amendment to add $28 million this fiscal year to
the Conservation Reserve Program CRP, run
[[Page S2930]]
by the Natural Resources Conservation Service, NRCS of USDA. The
amendment is fully offset and acceptable to Senator Cochran and my
colleagues on the other side of the aisle.
One of the benefits of my job is having an opportunity to travel many
of the highways and backroads of the State of Wisconsin. And, I like so
many other residents of my State, never tire of the landscape of
rolling hills, grazing dairy cows, and handsome farms. In the last few
years, dotted among these lovely farms, is a new sight--or, perhaps
more accurately, a sight so old that not many of us have had a chance
to experience it. There are patches of land where the native trees,
grasses and flowers are growing again; where white tail deer and
pheasant walk among wood violets and sugar maples the way they did 150
years ago. These pieces of land, restored to their original natural
beauty, are living museums--reminders to ourselves and our children of
the magnificence of Wisconsin's native landscape.
Much of this land restoration is due to the Conservation Reserve
Program, a federal program that, in effect, rents land from farmers and
restores it to its natural state. Wisconsin farmers have
enthusiastically embraced this effort enrolling 72,000 acres of land in
the CRP this year along. Altogether, the CRP has restored 600,000 acres
of land in Wisconsin.
Despite this program's great success--in Wisconsin and rural areas
across the country--a provision of the 1996 farm bill has inadvertently
put the CRP in jeopardy. Section 11 of the farm bill capped the
administrative costs that the USDA can pay out on any program. The
provision was an attempt to slow some over-enthusiastic compute
purchasing at the USDA. Unfortunately, it also capped the technical
assistance allowed under the CRP in a way that will make it illegal for
the CRP to identify or enroll new acres after May of this year. Our
amendment today, by adding $28 million for these necessary
administrative functions, will allow the CRP to continue its work.
Our offset today is from the food stamp reserve fund, and I want to
say a word about that. Every year, we put aside more money than we
anticipate we will need to cover our food stamps obligations. We do so
in order to make sure that that very vital anti-hunger program is
available even if demand increases because of an unexpected economic
downturn. As the year progresses without such a downturn, it is
appropriate and responsible budgeting to move some of those funds,
which will not be needed, into areas where there is pressing needs.
That said, we still must keep a reasonable balance in reserve for
food stamps, and in no way should this fund be viewed by others with
amendments as a piggy bank.
The CRP is an example of an environmental program that successfully
marries the interests of farmers, conservationists, and nature lovers.
It is voluntary, it is local in direction, it is effective. I am glad
we were able to agree to keep such a worthy program alive this year,
and I thank my colleagues who have helped clear this amendment.
AMENDMENT NO. 116
(Purpose: To appropriate additional funds to the fund maintained for
funds made available under section 32 of the Act of August 24, 1935,
and to authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to waive the limitation
on the amount of such funds that may be devoted during fiscal year 1999
to 1 agricultural commodity or product thereof, with an offset)
On page 2, between lines 20 and 21, insert the following:
funds for strengthening markets, income, and supply
(section 32)
For an additional amount for the fund maintained for funds
made available under section 32 of the Act of August 24, 1935
(7 U.S.C. 612c), $150,000,000: Provided, That the entire
amount shall be available only to the extent an official
budget request for $150,000,000, that includes designation of
the entire amount of the request as an emergency requirement
as defined in the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit
Control Act of 1985, as amended, is transmitted by the
President to Congress: Provided further, That the entire
amount is designated by Congress as an emergency requirement
under section 251(b)(2)(A) of such Act.
On page 7, between lines 8 and 9, insert the following:
GENERAL PROVISION, THIS CHAPTER
Sec. __. The Secretary of Agriculture may waive the
limitation established under the second sentence of the
second paragraph of section 32 of the Act of August 24, 1935
(7 U.S.C. 612c), on the amount of funds that may be devoted
during fiscal year 1999 to any 1 agricultural commodity or
product thereof.
On page 37, line 9, strike ``$285,000,000'' and insert
``$435,000,000''.
Mr. ASHCROFT. Mr. President, I rise today to join the senior senator
from Missouri, Senator Bond, in offering an amendment to help the
plight of the hog farmers in the state of Missouri. Hog farmers in our
home state, and across the nation, are experiencing a disaster outside
of their control, much like a flood, drought, or disease. It was
projected that 25 to 40 percent of Missouri's pork producers would lose
their family farms if we do not take immediate and substantial action.
That is why we have offered this amendment.
The statistics are devastating. Since June 1998, pork farmers
experienced a roughly 70 percent decline in pork prices, from $40 per
hundredweight to $9 per hundredweight. The 1998 average price was an
astounding 30 percent below the average price in 1932. In 1933, market
hogs brought $3.53 a hundredweight, which is $47.29 in today's dollars.
There was a $2.6 billion equity meltdown on hog farms across America,
and Economist Glen Grimes, at the University of Missouri, projects that
hog farmers will suffer another one billion loss in 1999.
Some hog farmers have told me that they would have been better off
financially if their hogs had simply been destroyed by a natural
disaster. At one point, the feed the hogs were eating was worth more
than the hogs themselves. And not long ago, consumers were paying more
for a canned ham than the 260-pound hog it came from.
To address this disaster on hog farms across America, the
Administration committed $50 million to their plight. While this amount
sends a message of support to hog farmers, it is inadequate in light of
the severity of the crisis to our family farms.
The Missouri Farm Bureau and the Missouri Pork Producers requested
our assistance, and we have responded. Today, Senator Bond and I are
offering this amendment, which makes $250 million available for farmers
struggling to survive the severe drop in pork prices. Under the
amendment, the U.S. Department of Agriculture would be provided with
$150 million new funds and would be given the authority to use another
$100 million, that the USDA already has, to help hog farmers.
The amendment sends a clear and resounding message of support to
Missouri's hog farmers. In my recent trips to Missouri, I met with
numerous hog farmers and was alarmed to hear them say that many of them
would have to sell the family farm if we do not act expediently. This
situation demands action, and I have taken immediate action at the
request of Missouri's family farmers.
It is the understanding of those of us that have offered this
amendment today that the majority of the funds available to the
Secretary of Agriculture will be used on behalf of our nation's pork
farmers. Last year, all of the major commodity groups received disaster
assistance, but the hog farmers received nothing.
In current law (Section 32 of the Act of August 24, 1935) the
Department of Agriculture has broad authority to re-establish farmers'
purchasing power by making payments, to encourage domestic consumption
by diverting surpluses to low-income groups, and to encourage the
export of farm products through producer payments or other means.
However, the amount devoted to any one commodity shall not exceed 25
percent of the Section 32 funds. Most recently, the USDA recently used
its Section 32 authority to make a $50 million direct cash payment to
pork producers.
Our amendment adds $150 million to the USDA Section 32 Fund, to be
used for hog farmers, and it waives the 25 percent cap on the USDA
Section 32 Fund for the remainder of fiscal year 1999. These funds
would be made available to help the current emergency situation in the
pork industry.
In addition to today's amendment, I would also like to mention some
of the initiatives that I have worked on with the Missouri Farm Bureau
and the Missouri Pork Producers in order to address the pork crisis:
[[Page S2931]]
Initiated a request, with Senator Bob Kerrey (D-NE), to U.S. Trade
Representative Charlene Barshefsky successfully urging her to add
European Union pork to the U.S. trade retaliation list against the EU's
unfair trade practices.
Requested that the U.S. Government buy excess hogs from farmers and
ship U.S. pork as emergency assistance to Central America.
Wrote to the Prime Minister of Canada urging him to resolve work
stoppage in the Ontario pork packers plant so that Canada can slaughter
its hogs instead of flooding our slaughter houses with Canadian hogs.
Wrote to the President and the Secretary of Agriculture requesting
that they use all their authority to ensure that no unfair competition
or antitrust practices exist in domestic pork markets. It concerns me
that farmer's prices for hogs at the farm gate have plummeted while
prices at the cash register have not dropped equally for the consumer.
Requested of the Administration an immediate moratorium on burdensome
new federal regulations affecting hog producers, and wrote to the
President to ease paperwork requirements placed on farmers and banks so
that the money can quickly get to those who need it.
Introduced a congressional resolution (S. Con. Res. 4) with Senator
Max Baucus which demands that South Korea end its unfair trade
practices and subsidies that hurt American pork producers. The
resolution also urges the U.S. Trade Representative, the Secretary of
Treasury, and the Secretary of Agriculture to take immediate action
against such harmful Korean subsidies.
amendment no. 117
(Purpose: To provide funding for rural water infrastructure)
On page 37, line 9 strike ``$313,000,000'' and insert in
lieu thereof ``$343,000,000''.
On page 5, after line 20 insert the following:
rural community advancement program
For an additional amount for the costs of direct loans and
grants of the rural utilities programs described in section
381E(d)(2) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act
(7 U.S.C. 2009f), as provided in 7 U.S.C. 1926(a) and 7
U.S.C. 1926C for distribution through the national reserve,
$30,000,000, of which $25,000,000 shall be for grants under
such program: Provided, That the entire amount shall be
available only to the extent an official budget request for
$30,000,000, that includes designation of the entire amount
of the request as an emergency requirement as defined in the
Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, as
amended, is transmitted by the President to the Congress:
Provided further, That the entire amount is designated by
Congress as an emergency requirement pursuant to section
251(b)(2)(A) of such Act.
amendment no. 118
At the appropriate place in the bill insert the following
new section:
Sec. . Notwithstanding any other provision of law, monies
available under section 763 of the Agriculture, Rural
Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related
Agencies Appropriations Act, 1999 shall be provided by the
Secretary of Agriculture directly to any state determined by
the Secretary of Agriculture to have been materially affected
by the commercial fishery failure or failures declared by the
Secretary of Commerce in September, 1998 under section 312(a)
of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management
Act. Such state shall disburse the funds to individuals with
family incomes below the federal poverty level who have been
adversely affected by the commercial fishery failure or
failures. Provided, That the entire amount shall be available
only to the extent an official budget request for such
amount, that includes designation of the entire amount of the
request as an emergency requirement as defined in the
Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985, as
amended, is transmitted by the President to Congress.
Provided further, That the entire amount is designated by
Congress as an emergency requirement under section
251(b)(2)(A) of such Act.
amendment no. 119
On page 2, line 11, strike $20,000,000 and insert
$25,000,000.
On page 2, line 13, strike $20,000,000 and insert
$25,000,000.
On page 37, line 9, increase the amount by $5,000,000.
Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, this amendment increases funding for
USDA's Emergency Grants to Assistance Low-Income Migrant and Seasonal
Farmworkers program by $5 million. The increase in funding is provided
to cover additional needs, including a possible increase in WIC
caseload as a result of the devastating citrus freeze which impacted
California last December.
I understand the amendment has been agreed to on both sides, and I
urge its adoption.
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask for the adoption of these
amendments en bloc.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, the amendments are agreed
to.
The amendments (Nos. 115 through 119) were agreed to.
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote by which
the amendments were agreed to, and I move to lay that motion on the
table.
The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
Mr. STEVENS. I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order
for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the
amendment entitled ``1998 Disaster'' for Senator Bond be deleted from
the list and that an amendment listed for Senator Ashcroft entitled
``Emergency Assistance to USDA'' be deleted.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. STEVENS. I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. STEVENS. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum
call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Amendment No. 120
(Purpose: To provide authority and appropriations for the Department of
State to carry out certain counterdrug research and development
activities)
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I send to the desk an amendment for
Senator DeWine and others to provide authority and funds for the
Department of State's counterdrug program. This amendment includes an
appropriate offset for the additional spending that is authorized.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The legislative clerk read as follows:
The Senator from Alaska [Mr. Stevens] for Mr. DeWINE, for
himself, Mr. Burns and Mr. Coverdell, proposes an amendment
numbered 120:
On page 24, between lines 2 and 3, insert the following:
DEPARTMENT OF STATE
International Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement
For an additional amount for ``International Narcotics
Control and Law Enforcement'', $23,000,000, for additional
counterdrug research and development activities: Provided,
That the entire amount is designated by the Congress as an
emergency requirement pursuant to section 251(b)(2)(A) of the
Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985:
Provided further, That such amount shall be available only to
the extent an official budget request that includes
designation of the entire amount of the request as an
emergency requirement as defined in such Act is transmitted
by the President to the Congress.
On page 27 increase the amount of the rescission on line 9
by $23,000,000.
On page 44, between lines 11 and 12, insert the following:
(b) Section 832(a) of the Western Hemisphere Drug
Elimination Act (Public Law 105-277) is amended--
(1) in the first sentence--
(A) by striking ``Secretary of Agriculture'' and inserting
``Secretary of State''; and
(B) by striking ``the Agricultural Research Service of the
Department of Agriculture'' and inserting ``the Department of
State'';
(2) in paragraph (5), by inserting ``(without regard to any
requirement in law relating to public notice or
competition)'' after ``to contract''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``Any record related to a contract entered into, or to an
activity funded, under this subsection shall be exempted from
disclosure as described in section 552(b)(3) of title 5,
United States Code.''.
Mr. STEVENS. I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. STEVENS. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum
call be rescinded.
[[Page S2932]]
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. STEVENS. I ask that we proceed with the amendment at the desk.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The question is on agreeing to the amendment.
The amendment (No. 120) was agreed to.
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote and I move
to lay that motion on the table.
The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
Mr. STEVENS. I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. STEVENS. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum
call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, earlier today we had an amendment that I
did not move to reconsider and I indicated I would move to reconsider
at a later time.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. That was amendment No. 80.
Mr. STEVENS. And the purpose?
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The legislative clerk read as follows:
To defer section 8 assistance for expiring contracts until
October 1, 1999.
Mr. STEVENS. That amendment was agreed to. I move to reconsider the
vote, and I ask unanimous consent that the motion to reconsider be laid
on the table.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
Mr. STEVENS. I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order
for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
____________________