[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 124 (Wednesday, September 22, 1999)]
[Daily Digest]
[Pages D1014-D1015]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                                      Wednesday, September 22, 1999

[[Page D1014]]

                              Daily Digest


HIGHLIGHTS

      Senate agreed to the conference report on National Defense 
      Authorization.
      House Committees ordered reported 13 sundry measures.


                                 Senate


Chamber Action
Routine Proceedings, pages S11189-S11275
Measures Introduced: Twelve bills were introduced, as follows: S. 1611-
1622.                                                       
  Page S11255
Measures Reported: Reports were made as follows:
  S. 383, to establish a national policy of basic consumer fair 
treatment for airline passengers, with an amendment in the nature of a 
substitute. (S. Rept. No. 106-162)                          
Page S11255
VA-HUD Appropriations: Committee on Appropriations was discharged from 
further consideration of H.R. 2684, making appropriations for the 
Departments of Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development, and 
for sundry independent agencies, commissions, corporations, and offices 
for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2000, and the Senate began 
consideration of the bill, after striking all after page 2, line 9 over 
to and including page 95, line 3, and inserting in lieu thereof the 
text of S. 1596, Senate companion measure, and taking action on the 
following amendments proposed thereto: 
                                  Pages S11201-29, S11232-37, S11244-51
Adopted:
  Bond (for Byrd) Amendment No. 1744, to provide an additional 
$600,000,000 for the Veterans Health Administration for medical care 
and to designate such amount as an emergency requirement. 
                                                Pages S11208-12, S11227
  Bond Amendment No. 1760, to strike certain provisions that amend the 
Fair Housing Act.                                           
Page S11225
  Mikulski (for Inouye) Amendment No. 1777, to provide that the amount 
made available for a special purpose grant under section 107 of the 
Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 to the County of Hawaii 
for the purpose of an environmental impact statement for the 
development of a water resource system in Kohala, Hawaii, may be used 
to fund certain water system improvements.                  
Page S11234
  Bond Amendment No. 1779, to clarify the prohibition on using Federal 
funds for lobbying or litigation activity.                  
Page S11244
  Bond (for Snowe) Amendment No. 1780, to express the Sense of the 
Senate that it should be the goal of the Department of Veterans Affairs 
to serve all veterans equitably at health care facilities in urban and 
rural areas.                                                
Page S11245
  Bond (for Fitzgerald/Durbin) Amendment No. 1785, to provide a period 
of time for consultation and evaluation of any realignment plan for the 
VISN 12 health care delivery system.                        
Page S11247
  DeWine Amendment No. 1782, to prohibit the use of funds by the 
National Aeronautics and Space Administration for the establishment at 
any field center of a research capability that would duplicate a 
research capability that exists at another field center. 
                                                        Pages S11247-48
  DeWine Amendment No. 1781, to prohibit the use of funds by the 
National Aeronautics and Space Administration for the transfer of 
research aircraft from Glenn Research Center, Ohio, to any other field 
center.                                                     
Page S11248
  Bond Amendment No. 1786, to provide for a General Accounting Office 
study on Federal Home Loan Bank capital.                    
Page S11249
Rejected:
  Smith (of NH) Amendment No. 1757, to provide an additional 
$209,500,000 for Medical Care for the Veterans Health Administration, 
an additional $5,000,000 for the Homeless Providers Grant and Per Diem 
(GPD) program, and an additional $10,000,000 for grants for 
construction of State extended care facilities for veterans, and to 
provide an offsetting reduction of $224,500,000 in amounts available 
for the AmeriCorps program. (By 61 yeas

[[Page D1015]]

to 38 nays (Vote No. 286), Senate tabled the amendment.) 
                                                Pages S11219-25, S11227
Withdrawn:
  Reed Amendment No. 1778, to increase funding for lead hazard control.
                                                        Pages S11236-37
  During consideration of this measure today, Senate also took the 
following action:
  By 36 yeas to 63 nays (Vote No. 285), three-fifths of those Senators 
duly chosen and sworn, not having voted in the affirmative, Senate 
rejected the motion to waive the Congressional Budget Act with respect 
to the consideration of Wellstone Amendment No. 1747, to increase the 
amount appropriated for the Veterans Health Administration of the 
Department of Veterans Affairs by $1,300,000,000. Subsequently, a point 
of order against the amendment pursuant to section 302(F) of the 
Congressional Budget Act was sustained, and the amendment thus fell. 
                                             Pages S11212-19, S11225-27
  A unanimous-consent agreement was reached providing for amendments to 
be proposed to the bill.                                    
Page S11249
  Senate will continue consideration of the bill on Thursday, September 
23, 1999.
National Defense Authorization--Conference Report: By 93 yeas to 5 
nays, 1 responding present (Vote No. 284), Senate agreed to the 
conference report on S. 1059, to authorize appropriations for fiscal 
year 2000 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for 
military construction, and for defense activities of the Department of 
Energy, and to prescribe personnel strengths for such fiscal year for 
the Armed Forces.                                   
  Pages S11189-S11201
Nominations Received: Senate received the following nominations:
  Gregory A. Baer, of Virginia, to be an Assistant Secretary of the 
Treasury.
  Mary Carlin Yates, of Washington, to be Ambassador to the Republic of 
Burundi.
  Joel A. Pisano, of New Jersey, to be United States District Judge for 
the District of New Jersey.
  James M. Lyons, of Colorado, to be United States Circuit Judge for 
the Tenth Circuit.
  Allen R. Snyder, of Maryland, to be United States Circuit Judge for 
the District of Columbia Circuit.
  1 Air Force nomination in the rank of general.            
Page S11275
Messages From the House                                     
  Page S11253
Measures Referred                                       
  Pages S11253-54
Measures Placed on Calendar                                 
  Page S11254
Communications:                                         
  Pages S11254-55
Petitions:                                                  
  Page S11255
Executive Reports of Committees:                            
  Page S11255
Statements on Introduced Bills:                         
  Pages S11255-67
Additional Cosponsors:                                  
  Pages S11267-68
Amendments Submitted:                                   
  Pages S11268-73
Authority for Committees:                                   
  Page S11273
Additional Statements:                                  
  Pages S11273-74
Record Votes: Three record votes were taken today. (Total--286) 
                                                Pages S11201, S11226-27
Recess: Senate convened at 9:30 a.m., and recessed at 7:04 p.m., until 
9:30 a.m., on Thursday, September 23, 1999. (For Senate's program, see 
the remarks of the Acting Majority Leader in today's Record on page 
S11274.)