[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 143 (Wednesday, October 20, 1999)]
[Daily Digest]
[Pages D1170-D1172]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

Committee Meetings
WORLD TRADE ORGANIZATION MINISTERIAL
Committee on Agriculture: Held a hearing to review the Administration's 
preparations for the 1999 World Trade Organization (WTO) Ministerial. 
Testimony was heard from Dan Glickman, Secretary of Agriculture; and 
Charlene Barshefsky, U.S. Trade Representative.
U.S. FORCES--THREAT POSED BY PROLIFERATION OF CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL 
WEAPONS
Committee on Armed Services, Subcommittee on Military Procurement and 
the Subcommittee on Military Research held a joint hearing on the 
threat to U.S. forces posed by the proliferation of chemical and 
biological weapons. Testimony was heard from Norman L. Rabkin, 
Director, National Security Preparedness Issues, GAO; the following 
officials of the Department of Defense: Rear Adm. Richard A. Mayo, USN, 
Vice Director, Medical Readiness, J-4, The Joint Staff; Rear Adm. James 
D. MacArthur, USN, Deputy Director, Strategy and Policy, J-5, The Joint 
Staff; and Hans Mark, Director, Defense Research and Engineering; and a 
public witness.
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY SECURITY ISSUES
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Military Procurement held 
a hearing on the Department of Energy security issues. Testimony was 
heard from the following officials of the Department of Energy: Glenn 
S. Podonsky, Director, Office of Independent Oversight and Performance 
Assurance; Gilbert G. Weigand, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Defense 
Strategic Computing and Simulation; and Gen. Eugene E. Habiger, USAF 
(ret.), Director, Office of Security and Emergency Operations; C. Paul 
Robinson, Director, Sandia National Laboratories; and Edward J. 
McCallum, former Director, Office of Safeguards and Security, 
Department of Defense.
RENTAL FAIRNESS ACT
Committee on Commerce: Subcommittee on Finance and Hazardous Materials 
held a hearing on H.R. 1954, Rental Fairness Act of 1999. Testimony was 
heard from public witnesses.
SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT AMENDMENTS
Committee on Commerce: Subcommittee on Health and Environment held a 
hearing on the Implementation

[[Page D1171]]

of the Safe Drinking Water Act Amendments of 1996. Testimony was heard 
from Peter F. Guerrero, Director, Environmental Protection Issues, GAO; 
the following officials of the EPA: Norine E. Noonan, Assistant 
Administrator, Research and Development; and Cynthia C. Dougherty, 
Director, Office of Ground Water and Drinking Water; and public 
witnesses.
NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION
Committee on Government Reform: Subcommittee on Government Management, 
Information, and Technology held a hearing on the National Archives and 
Records Administration. Testimony was heard from John W. Carlin, 
Archivist of the United States, National Archives and Records 
Administration; L. Nye Stevens, Director, Federal Management and 
Workforce Issues, GAO; and public witnesses.
COMBATING TERRORISM
Committee on Government Reform: Subcommittee on National Security, 
Veterans' Affairs and International Relations held a hearing on 
Combating Terrorism: Assessing the Threat. Testimony was heard from 
Henry L. Hinton, Jr., Assistant Comptroller General, National Security 
and International Affairs Division, GAO; and public witnesses.
INTERCOUNTRY ADOPTION
Committee on International Relations: Held a hearing on Intercountry 
Adoption: Implementation of the Hague Convention on Intercountry 
Adoption. Testimony was heard from Representative Bliley; Mary Ryan, 
Assistant Secretary, Consular Affairs, Department of State; Pat 
Montoya, Commissioner for Children, Youth, and Families, Department of 
Health and Human Services; and public witnesses.
REGIONAL SECURITY IN SOUTH ASIA
Committee on International Relations: Subcommittee on Asia and the 
Pacific held a hearing on Regional Security in South Asia. Testimony 
was heard from Karl F. Inderfurth, Assistant Secretary, South Asian 
Affairs, Department of State; Arona Butcher, Chief of Country and 
Regional Analysis Division, Office of Economics, U.S. International 
Trade Commission; and public witnesses.
OVERSIGHT
Committee on the Judiciary: Held an oversight hearing on Competitive 
Issues in Agriculture and the Food Marketing Industry. Testimony was 
heard from Representatives Thune, Minge and Pomeroy; Enrique Figueroa, 
Deputy Under Secretary, Marketing and Regulatory Programs, USDA; John 
Nannes, Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Antitrust Division, 
Department of Justice; Willard Tom, Deputy Director, Bureau of 
Competition, FTC; and public witnesses.
MISCELLANEOUS MEASURES
Committee on Resources: Ordered reported the following bills: H.R. 348, 
to authorize the construction of a monument to honor those who have 
served the Nation's civil defense and emergency management programs; S. 
416, amended, to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to convey the city 
of Sisters, Oregon, a certain parcel of land for use in connection with 
a sewage treatment facility; H.R. 1695, amended, to provide for the 
conveyance of certain Federal public lands in the Ivanpah Valley, 
Nevada, to Clark County, Nevada, for the development of an airport 
facility; H.R. 1725, Miwaleta Park Expansion Act; H.R. 2632, Dugger 
Mountain Wilderness Act of 1999; H.R. 2737, amended, to authorize the 
Secretary of the Interior to convey to the State of Illinois certain 
Federal land associated with the Lewis and Clark National Historic 
Trail to be used as an historic and interpretive site along the trail; 
H.R. 2889, to amend the Central Utah Project Completion Act to provide 
for acquisition of water and water rights for Central Utah Project 
purposes, completion of Central Utah project facilities, and 
implementation of water conservation measures; H.R. 3080, to amend the 
Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act to direct the 
Secretary of the Interior to establish the American Indian Education 
Foundation; and H.R. 3090, amended, to amend the Alaska Native Claims 
Settlement Act to restore certain lands to the Elim Native Corporation.
ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT FOR ALL ACT
Committee on Rules: Granted, by voice vote, a structured rule on H.R. 
2300, Academic Achievement for all Act (Straight A's Act), providing 
two hours of general debate equally divided and controlled by the 
chairman and ranking minority member of the Committee on Education and 
the Workforce. The rule makes in order the Committee on Education and 
the Workforce amendment in the nature of a substitute now printed in 
the bill as an original bill for the purpose of amendment, modified by 
the amendments printed in Part A of the report of the Committee on 
Rules accompanying the resolution. The rule waives clause 4 of rule XXI 
(prohibiting appropriations in legislative bills) against the amendment 
in the nature of a substitute, as modified. The rule makes in order 
only those amendments printed in Part B of the report of the Committee 
on Rules, which may be offered only in the order printed in the report, 
maybe 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

[[Page D1172]]

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 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.
CONFERENCE REPORT--INTERIOR AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS
Committee on Rules: Granted, by voice vote, a rule waiving all points 
of order against the conference report on H.R. 2466, Interior and 
Related Agencies Appropriations, 2000 and against its consideration. 
The rule provides that the conference report shall be considered as 
read. Testimony was heard from Representative Regula.
TURKEY, TAIWAN, AND MEXICO EARTHQUAKES: LESSONS LEARNED
Committee on Science: Subcommittee on Basic Research held a hearing on 
the Turkey, Taiwan and Mexico Earthquakes: Lessons Learned. Testimony 
was heard from Waverly Person, Director, National Earthquake 
Information Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior; 
and public witnesses.
COMPUTER SECURITY ENHANCEMENT ACT
Committee on Science: Subcommittee on Technology approved for full 
Committee action, as amended, H.R. 2413, Computer Security Enhancement 
Act of 1999.
STATE OF AIRLINE COMPETITION
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure: Subcommittee on 
Aviation held a hearing on the State of Airline Competition. Testimony 
was heard from public witnesses.
  Hearings continue tomorrow.

Joint Meetings
AUTHORIZATION--FAA
Conferees continued to resolve the differences between the Senate and 
House passed versions of H.R. 1000, to amend title 49, United States 
Code, to reauthorize programs of the Federal Aviation Administration, 
but did not complete action thereon, and recessed subject to call.