[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 129 (Wednesday, September 29, 1999)]
[Daily Digest]
[Pages D1056-D1059]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

Committee Meetings
DRUG CONTROL LAWS ENFORCEMENT
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on the District of Columbia 
held a hearing on Enforcement of Drug Control Laws. Testimony was heard 
from Delegate Norton; Barry McCaffrey, Director, Office of National 
Drug Control Policy; Brian Jordan, Assistant Chief, District of 
Columbia Metropolitan Police Department; Mary Lee Warren, Deputy 
Assistant, Attorney General; Wilma Lewis, U.S. Attorney, District of 
Columbia; and Keith B. Vines, Assistant District Attorney, San 
Francisco, State of California.
MISCELLANEOUS MEASURES
Committee on Commerce: Ordered reported, as amended, the following 
bills: H.R. 2884, to extend energy conservation programs under the 
Energy Policy and Conservation Act through fiscal year 2003; H.R. 2531, 
Nuclear Regulatory Commission Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2000; 
H.R. 1832, Muhammad Ali Boxing Reform Act; and H.R. 754, Made in 
America Information Act.

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LAND RECYCLING ACT
Committee on Commerce: Subcommittee on Finance and Hazardous Materials 
approved for full Committee action, as amended, H.R. 2580, Land 
Recycling Act.
OVERSIGHT--2000 CENSUS
Committee on Government Reform: Subcommittee on the Census held an 
oversight hearing on the 2000 Census: Evaluating the Local Update of 
Census Addresses Program. Testimony was heard from the following 
officials of the Bureau of the Census, Department of Commerce: Kenneth 
Prewitt, Director, John Thompson, Associate Director, Decennial Census; 
and Preston Jay Waite, Assistant to the Associate Director, Decennial 
Census; J. Christopher Mihm, Acting Associate Director, Federal 
Management and Workforce Issues, GAO; and public witnesses.
GSA--BUILDING ACQUISITION
Committee on Government Reform: Subcommittee on Government Management, 
Information, and Technology held a hearing on H.R. 2513, to direct the 
Administrator of General Services to acquire a building located in 
Terre Haute, Indiana. Testimony was heard from Representative Pease; 
the following officials of the GSA: James Whitlock, Assistant Regional 
Administrator for Public Building, Great Lakes Region (Region 5); and 
Gordon Creed, Deputy Assistant Commissioner for Property Disposal, 
Public Buildings Service; Edward J. Rynne, Jr., Real Estate Specialist, 
Asset Management Group, U.S. Postal Service; Jim Jenkins, Mayor, Terre 
Haute, State of Indiana; and a public witness.
ANTHRAX VACCINE PROGRAM IMPACT
Committee on Government Reform: Subcommittee on National Security, 
Veterans Affairs, and International Relations held a hearing on the 
Impact of the Anthrax Vaccine Program on Reserve and National Guard 
Units. Testimony was heard from the following officials of the 
Department of Defense: Charles Cragin, Acting Assistant Secretary, 
Reserve Affairs; Lt. Col. Thomas Heemstra, USAF, Air National Guard, 
State of Kentucky; Maj. Cheryl Hansen, USAF, Air Force Reserves; Capt. 
David A. Panzera, USAF and Tech Sgt. William Mangieri, USAF, both with 
the Air National Guard, State of New York.
TRANSATLANTIC TRADE AGENDA
Committee on International Relations: Subcommittee on International 
Economic Policy and Trade held a hearing on Transatlantic Trade Agenda: 
A Conflict or Cooperation? Testimony was heard from Charles Ludolph, 
Deputy Assistant Secretary, Europe, International Trade Administration, 
Department of Commerce; E. Bryan Samuel, Deputy Assistant Secretary, 
Trade Policy, Bureau of Economic and Business Affairs, Department of 
State; and public witnesses.
SELECTED REGIONAL ISSUES
Committee on International Relations: Subcommittee on Western 
Hemisphere held a hearing to receive an Update on Selected Regional 
Issues including the following: Colombia and U.S. Policy; Legislative 
Elections in Haiti and U.S. Troop Withdrawal; Status of Counter-Drug 
Forward Operating Locations; U.S.-Cuba Counter-Narcotics Cooperation 
Proposal; Chinese Influence in the Panama Canal; Political Events in 
Venezuela; and Status of U.S. Property Claims in Nicaragua. Testimony 
was heard from Peter F. Romero, Acting Assistant Secretary, Bureau of 
Western Hemisphere Affairs, Department of State.
SMALL BUSINESS LIABILITY REFORM ACT
Committee on the Judiciary: Held a hearing on H.R. 2366, Small Business 
Liability Reform Act of 1999. Testimony was heard from public 
witnesses.
REGULATORY FAIR WARNING ACT; OVERSIGHT--LEGAL SERVICES CORPORATION
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Commercial and 
Administrative Law approved for full Committee action, as amended, H.R. 
881, Regulatory Fair Warning Act of 1999.
  The Subcommittee also held an oversight hearing on the Legal Services 
Corporation. Testimony was heard from the following officials of the 
Legal Services Corporation: Edouard R. Quatrevaux, Inspector General; 
John McKay, President; and John N. Erlenborn, Vice Chair, Board of 
Director; Laurie E. Ekstrand, Director; Administration of Justice 
Issues, GAO; and public witnesses.
VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT; STALKING PREVENTION AND VICTIM PROTECTION 
ACT
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Crime held a hearing on the 
following bills: H.R. 1248, Violence Against Women Act of 1999; and 
H.R. 1869, Stalking Prevention and Victim Protection Act of 1999. 
Testimony was heard from Bonnie Campbell, Director, Violence Against 
Women Office, Department of Justice; Robert Fein, Forensic 
Psychologist, U.S. Secret Service, Department of the Treasury; and 
public witnesses.
OVERSIGHT--FEDERAL AID PROGRAMS ADMINISTERED BY FISH AND WILDLIFE 
SERVICE; SUBPOENA AUTHORITY
Committee on Resources: Continued oversight hearings on the Federal Aid 
Programs administrated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Part II). 
Testimony

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was heard from Barry Hill, Associate Director, Energy, Resources and 
Science, GAO; James Beers, Wildlife Biologist, Division of Federal Aid, 
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of the Interior; and a 
public witness.
  The Committee also approved a motion granting Chairman Young 
authority to issue such subpoenas as he may deem necessary in relation 
to an inquiry into the administration and execution of the Pittman-
Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act and the Dingell-Johnston Sport Fish 
Restoration Act and into the expenditure and maintenance of certain 
funds under these and other Acts administrated by the Fish and Wildlife 
Service of the U.S. Department of the Interior; including the authority 
to require by subpoena the testimony of Assistant Interior Secretary 
Donald J. Barry at a future hearing before the Committee, and the 
production of other materials related to the inquiry.
UNBORN VICTIMS OF VIOLENCE ACT
Committee on Rules: Granted, by voice vote, a structured rule, 
providing 2 hours of debate on H.R. 2436, Unborn Victims of Violence 
Act of 1999. The rule waives points of order against consideration of 
the bill for failure to comply with clause 3(b) of rule XIII (requiring 
the inclusion in the report of any record votes on a motion to report, 
or on any amendment to a bill reported from committee). The rule makes 
in order the Committee on the Judiciary amendment in the nature of a 
substitute now printed in the bill as an original bill for the purpose 
of amendment, which shall be considered as read. The rule makes in 
order only those amendments printed in the Rules Committee report 
accompanying the resolution. The rule provides that amendments made in 
order may be offered only in the order printed in the report, may be 
offered only by a Member designated in the report, shall be considered 
as read, shall be debatable for the time specified in the report 
equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, shall 
not be subject to amendment, and shall not be subject to a demand for a 
division of the question in the House or in the Committee of the Whole. 
The rule permits the Chairman of the Committee of the Whole to postpone 
votes during consideration of the bill, and to reduce voting time to 
five minutes on a postponed question if the vote follows a fifteen 
minute vote. Finally, the rule provides one motion to recommit with or 
without instructions. Testimony was heard from Representatives Canaday 
of Florida, Graham, Conyers, Watt of North Carolina, and Lofgren.
NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD AMENDMENTS ACT
Committee on Rules: Granted, by voice vote, an open rule providing l 
hour of debate on H.R. 2910, National Transportation Safety Board 
Amendments Act of 1999. The rule makes in order the Committee on 
Transportation and Infrastructure amendment in the nature of a 
substitute as an original bill for the purpose of amendment, modified 
by the amendment printed in the report of the Committee of Rules 
accompanying the resolution. The rule provides that the bill will be 
open for amendment by section. The rule authorizes the Chair to accord 
priority in recognition to Members who have pre-printed their 
amendments in the Congressional Record. The rule allows the Chairman of 
the Committee of the Whole to postpone votes during consideration of 
the bill, and to reduce voting time to five minutes on a postponed 
question if the vote follows a fifteen minute vote. Finally, the rule 
provides one motion to recommit with or without instructions. Testimony 
was heard from Chairman Shuster and Representative Lipinski.
NASA'S X-33 PROGRAM
Committee on Science: Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics held a 
hearing on NASA's X-33 Program. Testimony was heard from Gary Payton, 
Deputy Associate Administrator, Space Transportation Technology, Office 
of Aero-Space Technology, NASA; Allen Li, Associate Director, Defense 
Acquisition Issues, GAO; and a public witness.
``RE-GROW'' RURAL AMERICA
Committee on Small Business: Held a hearing on Helping Agricultural 
Producers ``Re-Grow'' Rural America. Testimony was heard from Dayton 
Watkins, Administrator, Rural Business-Cooperative Service, USDA; and 
public witnesses.
GROUND-WATER CONTAMINATION
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure: Subcommittee on Water 
Resources and Environment held a hearing on H.R. 910, to authorize the 
Secretary of the Army, acting through the Chief of Engineers and in 
coordination with other Federal agency heads, to participate in the 
funding and implementation of a balanced, long-term solution to the 
problems of ground-water contamination, water supply, and reliability 
affecting the San Gabriel ground-water basin in California, and the 
role of the Corps of Engineers in the Formerly Utilized Sites Remedial 
Action Program. Testimony was heard from Representatives Dreier and 
Napolitano; Brig. Gen. Hans A. Van Winkle, USA, Deputy Commander for 
Civil

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Works, Corps of Engineers, Department of the Army; and public 
witnesses.
TREASURY'S DEBT BUYBACK PROPOSAL
Committee on Ways and Means: Held a hearing on the Treasury's Debt 
Buyback Proposal. Testimony was heard from Lee Sachs, Assistant 
Secretary, Financial Markets, Department of the Treasury; Paul L. 
Posner, Director, Budget Issues, Accounting and Information Management 
Division, GAO; and public witnesses.
BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT BRIEFING
Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence: Met in executive session to 
hold a briefing on the National Intelligence Estimate on the Ballistic 
Missile Threat. The Committee was briefed by departmental officials.

Joint Meetings
BIOTECHNOLOGY
Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded hearings to explore the 
effects biotechnology has on our economy, standard of living, and 
everyday lives, after receiving testimony from Arthur D. Levinson and 
Steven Shak, both of Genentech, Inc., James Glassman, American 
Enterprise Institute, Robert Bunning, National Rehabilitation Hospital, 
and Carolyn Boyer-Fortier, all of Washington, D.C.; Arthur Ullian, Task 
Force on Science, Healthcare and the Economy, Henri Termeer, Genzyme 
Corporation, Peter Lynch, Fidelity Management and Research Company, 
Carl Rausch, Biopure Corporation, and Alan Sager, Boston University 
School of Public Health, all of Boston, Massachusetts; Hendrik A. 
Verfaillie, Monsanto Company, St. Louis, Missouri; Lewis E. Edelheit, 
General Electric Company, Schenectady, New York; Christine Cassel, Mt. 
Sinai Medical Center, Mt. Sinai, New York; Matthew Andresen, Island 
ECN, Inc., New York, New York; M. Kathy Behrens, National Venture 
Capital Association, Arlington, Virginia; Daniel Callahan, Hastings 
Center, Garrison, New York; John Kim Niparko, Johns Hopkins University 
School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland; Edward Fritzky, Immunex 
Corporation, Seattle, Washington; Ronald W. Dollens, Guidant 
Corporation, Santa Clara, California; George B. Rathmann, ICOS 
Corporation, Bothell, Washington; Larry Einhorn, Indiana University 
School of Medicine, Bloomington; Lance Armstrong, Austin, Texas; Julia 
Breyer-Lewis, Vanderbilt University, and Erin Fagan, both of Nashville, 
Tennessee; and Joan London, Adelphi, Maryland.
FINANCIAL SERVICES MODERNIZATION
Conferees continued to resolve the differences between the Senate and 
House passed versions of S. 900/H.R. 10, bills to enhance competition 
in the financial services industry by providing a prudential framework 
for the affiliation of banks, securities firms, and other financial 
service providers, but did not complete action thereon, and will meet 
again tomorrow.