[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 56 (Tuesday, May 9, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3661-S3662]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    UNANIMOUS CONSENT AGREEMENT--AFRICA TRADE CONFERENCE BILL REPORT

  Mr. LOTT. If I could get this unanimous consent request in, then we 
would understand what the procedure would be for today and tomorrow and 
even Thursday morning. So if my colleagues will bear with me one 
moment.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that at 9:30 a.m. on 
Wednesday, the Senate proceed to the conference report to accompany the 
Africa trade bill, that the report be considered as having been read, 
and the vote occur on adoption of the motion to proceed immediately, 
and following the vote and the reporting by the clerk, I be immediately 
recognized to send a cloture motion to the desk. I also ask unanimous 
consent that the cloture vote occur on Thursday, May 11, at 10:30 a.m., 
with the mandatory quorum having been waived.
  This has been discussed with the Democratic leadership.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?

[[Page S3662]]

  Mr. KENNEDY. Reserving the right to object, I would like to see if we 
could give at least some assurances to the Members about when we would 
come back to deal with the education legislation.
  As the Senator himself knows, this is our one chance every 5 or 6 
years to try to deal with this issue. We have been making some progress 
during the course of these last few days. We do not have a whole long 
list of amendments, and we are prepared to deal with short time limits.
  I am wondering now whether the leader could give us at least some 
idea when we are going to come back to it.
  Mr. LOTT. Let me again emphasize, first, that this would provide for 
a vote at 9:30 in the morning on the motion to proceed to the Africa 
and CBI trade bill. If it is agreed to, then the cloture vote, by 
agreement, will be Thursday morning at 10:30.
  With regard to the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, our 
colleagues probably are aware we have already agreed that there are two 
more amendments that, by unanimous consent, we would go to next--the 
Stevens-Jeffords and others amendment; to be followed by a Kennedy 
amendment. So we have the next group of two amendments that would be in 
order.
  I have discussed this with Senator Daschle. It is our intent, now 
that we have appropriations bills that are becoming available, that, 
for probably now on into the summer, we are going to be dual-tracking 
bills wherever it is necessary, so we can get an appropriations bill 
done or an urgent bill such as the conference report on Africa trade 
and CBI. There is a belief we should go ahead and get that done and 
move to appropriations bills when they are available, and then come 
back to the authorizations, whether it is the elementary and secondary 
education bill or trade bill or whatever it may be.
  So it is our intent to come back to ESEA and proceed with the 
amendments that it is already been agreed we will consider next while 
we work to see if we can get another grouping of two or more amendments 
to be considered.
  I agree, there has been good debate. The amendments have been focused 
on elementary and secondary education, and we have amendments still 
pending on both sides that relate to that. As long as there is that 
kind of cooperation and progress being made, I think we should continue 
to pursue it.
  So it is my intent to come back to elementary and secondary 
education, if not later on this week, then next week, when we have a 
window.
  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, I appreciate what the Senator has said. 
As I understand, he will make the best effort to come back to it this 
week, but we will have an opportunity to come back to it next week. Is 
that the leader's plan?

  Mr. LOTT. That is my hope and intent. We should be able to do that 
and continue to move appropriations bills, also.
  Again, it will take cooperation on the MILCON construction 
appropriations bill, which does have the military funding for Kosovo 
and for the fuel costs. We have the agriculture bill that is available 
that has, I believe, the disaster funding in it in addition to the 
regular agricultural appropriations programs. And the Foreign 
Operations bill has been reported.
  But we will work with the leadership as to exactly when those will 
come up. We will try to move through those three as quickly as we can 
and try to move the Africa trade bill with the CBI provisions, and the 
ESEA. I think those three appropriations bills and these two--the 
conference report and this authorization bill--will take the remainder 
of the time probably for the next couple weeks. We are going to stay on 
it.
  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, just further reserving the right to 
object, and I will not object, I take the assurances of the leader that 
we will return to this in every expectation next week. I think there 
are many of us who believe this issue is of equal importance to a 
number of the appropriations bills, since we are talking about 
appropriations next fall, next October, and we are running late in 
terms of the ESEA. So there is a real sense of urgency about it. But I 
am grateful to the leader for giving us those assurances.
  I do not object.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Several Senators addressed the Chair.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The majority leader.
  Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, if I could go further, I ask unanimous 
consent that the time between 9:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. on Thursday be 
equally divided in the usual form on the subject of the African and CBI 
trade bill.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. LOTT. Therefore, a rollcall vote will occur at 9:30 a.m. on 
Wednesday, and a vote is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. on Thursday. There 
may be additional votes after that.
  I think Members should expect additional votes on Thursday, although 
we have not agreed to what they would be at this point.
  I do want to note that I certainly believe the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act is very important. That is why we have been on 
it the second week. We have given a lot of time to it. I think that is 
fine. This is a high priority in the minds of the American people and 
every State in the Nation, and with us.
  However, the appropriations bills each have emergency provisions in 
them--an emergency for the Kosovo funding and the fuel costs for our 
military; the agriculture bill has the emergency disaster funding in 
it, though some of it for North Carolina, and expected disasters; and 
the Foreign Operations bill has funding in it for the very dangerous 
situation involving Colombian drugs. That is why we are going to be 
trying to move those as quickly as possible.
  I thank my colleagues and announce there will be no further votes 
this evening.

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