[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 148 (Wednesday, October 27, 1999)]
[Daily Digest]
[Pages D1209-D1210]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

Committee Meetings
SMALL WATERSHED REHABILITATION AMENDMENTS
Committee on Agriculture: Ordered reported, as amended, H.R. 728, Small 
Watershed Rehabilitation Amendments of 1999.
OVERSIGHT--NATIONAL FLOOD INSURANCE PROGRAM
Committee on Banking and Financial Services: Subcommittee on Housing 
and Community Opportunity held an oversight hearing on National Flood 
Insurance Program. Testimony was heard from Representatives Bereuter 
and Bentsen; James Lee Witt, Director, FEMA; Stan Czerwinski, Associate 
Director, Housing and Community Development Issues, Resources, 
Community, and Economic Development Division, GAO; and public 
witnesses.
ELECTRICITY COMPETITION AND RELIABILITY ACT
Committee on Commerce: Subcommittee on Energy and Power met and 
considered H.R. 2944, Electricity Competition and Reliability Act of 
1999.
U.S. POLICY TOWARD NORTH KOREA
Committee on International Relations: Concluded hearings on U.S. Policy 
Toward North Korea II: Misuse of U.S. Aid to North Korea. Testimony was 
heard from Representative Hall of Ohio; the following officials of the 
GAO: Benjamin Nelson, Director, International Relations and Trade 
Issues; and Gary L. Jones, Associate Director, Energy, Resources and 
Science Issues, Community and Economic Development Division; and public 
witnesses.
MISCELLANEOUS MEASURES
Committee on International Relations: Subcommittee on Asia and the 
Pacific approved for full Committee action the following measures: H. 
Res. 169, amended, expressing the sense of the House of Representatives 
with respect to democracy, free elections, and human rights in the Lao 
People's Democratic Republic; H. Con. Res. 200, amended, expressing the 
strong opposition of Congress to the military coup in Pakistan and 
calling for a civilian, democratically-elected government to be 
returned to power in Pakistan; and H. Con. Res. 211, Expressing the 
strong support of the Congress for the recently concluded elections in 
the Republic of India and urging the President to travel to India.
FEDERAL AGENCY COMPLIANCE ACT
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Commercial and 
Administrative Law held a hearing on H.R. 1924, Federal Agency 
Compliance Act. Testimony was heard from Senator Campbell; William 
Schultz, Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Civil Division, Department 
of Justice; Arthur J. Fried, General Counsel, SSA; and public 
witnesses.
MISCELLANEOUS MEASURES; LAND CONVEYANCE
Committee on Resources: Ordered reported the following measures: H. 
Con. Res. 189, amended, expressing the sense of the Congress regarding 
the wasteful and unsportsmanlike practice known as shark finning; H.R. 
1235, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to enter into 
contracts with the Solano County Water Agency, California, to use 
Solano Project facilities for impounding, storage, and carriage of 
nonproject water for domestic, municipal, industrial, and other 
beneficial purposes; H.R. 2541, amended, to adjust the boundaries of 
the Gulf Islands National Seashore to include Cat Island, Mississippi; 
H.R. 2879, to provide for the placement at the Lincoln Memorial of a 
plaque commemorating the speech of Martin Luther King, Jr., known as 
the ``I Have A Dream'' speech; H.R. 3063, to amend the National Leasing 
Act to increase the maximum acreage of Federal leases for sodium that 
may be held by an entity in any one State; H.R. 3077, amended, to amend 
the Act that authorized construction of the San Luis Unit of the 
Central Valley Project, California, to facilitate water transfers in 
the Central Valley Project; and H.R. 2818, to prohibit oil and gas 
drilling in Mosquito Creek Lake in Cortland, Ohio.
  The Committee also held a hearing on H.R. 2958, to provide for the 
continuation of higher education through the conveyance of certain 
public lands in the State of Alaska to the University of Alaska. 
Testimony was heard from Marilyn Heiman, Special Assistant to the 
Secretary for Alaska, Department of the Interior; and public witnesses.
EXPLORATION OF THE SEAS ACT
Committee on Resources: Subcommittee on Fisheries Conservation, 
Wildlife, and Oceans held a hearing on H.R. 2090, Exploration of the 
Seas Act. Testimony was heard from Representatives Greenwood and Farr; 
Sally Yozell, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Oceans and Atmosphere, NOAA, 
Department of Commerce; and public witnesses.
LEGISLATIVE PROCESS--IMPACT OF EXECUTIVE ORDERS
Committee on Rules: Subcommittee on Legislative and Budget Process held 
a hearing on ``The Impact of Executive Orders on the Legislative 
Process: Executive Lawmaking?'' Testimony was heard from Ray

[[Page D1210]]

Mosley, Director, Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and 
Records Administration; the following former officials of the 
Department of Justice: Douglas Cox, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney 
General, Office of Legal Counsel; Neil Kinkopf, Special Assistant, 
Office of Legal Counsel; and Tom Sargentich, Senior Attorney Adviser, 
Office of Legal Counsel; Robert Bedell, former Administrator, Office of 
Federal Procurement Policy, OMB; and William Olson, co-author research 
paper entitled ``Executive Orders and National Emergencies''.
CONFERENCE REPORT--DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA APPROPRIATIONS, 2000
Committee on Rules: Granted, by voice vote, a rule waiving all points 
of order against the conference report on H.R. 3064, District of 
Columbia Appropriations Act, 2000 and against its consideration. The 
rule provides that the conference report shall be debatable for two 
hours equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking 
minority member of the Committee on Appropriations. The rule provides 
that the conference report shall be considered as read. Testimony was 
heard from Representatives Istook and Porter.
SPACE TRANSPORTATION ARCHITECTURE STUDIES
Committee on Science, Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics held a 
hearing on Space Transportation Architecture Studies: The Future of 
Earth-to-Orbit Spaceflight. Testimony was heard from Daniel Mulville, 
Chief Engineer and Chairman Space Transportation Council, NASA; and 
public witnesses.
COMPETING IN THE NEW MILLENNIUM
Committee on Science: Subcommittee on Technology held a hearing on 
Competing in the New Millennium: Challenges Facing Small Biotechnology 
Firms. Testimony was heard from public witnesses.
HAZARDOUS LIQUID PIPELINE INCIDENT
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure: Subcommittee on Public 
Buildings, Hazardous Materials and Pipeline Transportation held a 
hearing on the Bellingham, Washington, Hazardous Liquid Pipeline 
Incident. Testimony was heard from Senators Gorton and Murray; 
Representatives Metcalf and Inslee; Kelley Coyner, Administrator, 
Research and Special Programs Administration, Department of 
Transportation; James E. Hall, Chairman, National Transportation Safety 
Board; the following officials of the State of Washington: Steve 
Hunter, Supervisor, Spill Response Section, Department of Ecology; and 
Mark Asmundson, Mayor, Bellingham; and public witnesses.