[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 122 (Wednesday, September 19, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Pages S9491-S9494]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  TREASURY AND GENERAL GOVERNMENT APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2002--Continued


                 Amendments Nos. 1577 and 1578, En Bloc

  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, on behalf of Senator Campbell and myself, 
I send two amendments to the desk and ask they be agreed to en bloc. 
They are a Campbell amendment for Senators Feingold, Grassley, and 
Harkin regarding shipments of day-old poultry, and a Dorgan for Kohl 
amendment regarding information on foreign animal disease. I send the 
amendments to the desk.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       The Senator from North Dakota [Mr. Dorgan], for Mr. 
     Campbell, for himself, Mr. Feingold, Mr. Grassley, and Mr. 
     Harkin, proposes an amendment numbered 1577.
       The Senator from North Dakota [Mr. Dorgan], for Mr. Kohl, 
     proposes an amendment numbered 1578.

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, the amendments are agreed 
to.
  The amendments (Nos. 1577 and 1578) were agreed to, as follows:


                           amendment no. 1577

       At the appropriate place, insert the following:

[[Page S9492]]

     SECTION 1. AMENDMENT TO TITLE 39.

       Section 5402(d) of title 39, United States Code, is amended 
     by--
       (1) inserting ``(1)'' after ``(d)''; and
       (2) inserting at the end the following:
       ``(2)(A) In the exercise of its authority under paragraph 
     (1), the Postal Service may require any air carrier to accept 
     as mail shipments of day-old poultry and such other live 
     animals as postal regulations allow to be transmitted as mail 
     matter. The authority of the Postal Service under this 
     subparagraph shall not apply in the case of any air carrier 
     who commonly and regularly refuses to accept any live animals 
     as cargo.
       ``(B) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the 
     Postal Service is authorized to assess, as postage to be paid 
     by the mailers of any shipments covered by subparagraph (A), 
     a reasonable surcharge that the Postal Service determines in 
     its discretion to be adequate to compensate air carriers for 
     any necessary additional expense incurred in handling such 
     shipments.
       ``(C) The authority of the Postal Service under 
     subparagraph (B) shall apply during the period beginning on 
     the date of enactment of this paragraph, and ending September 
     30, 2005.''.
                                  ____



                           amendment no. 1578

  (Purpose: To improve the collection of information relating to the 
                introduction of foreign animal disease)

       On page 26, after line 8 insert the following new section:
       ``Sec.   . None of the funds appropriated or made available 
     by this Act may be used for the production of Customs 
     Declarations that do not inquire whether the passenger had 
     been in the proximity of livestock.''

  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote, and I move 
to lay that motion on the table.
  The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.


                           amendment no. 1578

  Mr. KOHL. Mr. President, I congratulate Senator Dorgan and Senator 
Campbell, chairman and ranking member of the Appropriations 
Subcommittee on Treasury and General Government, for their fine work in 
crafting the bill now before the Senate. I also thank them for 
accepting an amendment I have offered to help strengthen this country's 
safeguards against the possible introduction of foreign animal disease.
  I serve as chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on 
Agriculture, Rural Development and Related Agencies, and we have given 
substantial attention to the ongoing problems of exotic pests and 
disease that have been introduced into this country over the years. 
Attention and concern for this problem has been heightened this past 
year with reports from the United Kingdom where outbreaks of foot and 
mouth disease have severely harmed the British economy and, in 
particular, rural areas in the British Isles. The U.S. livestock sector 
quickly realized the danger that the spread of foot and mouth disease, 
and similar infectious diseases, could reach our shores with equally 
devastating effect.
  When Secretary Veneman testified before our subcommittee this spring, 
she told us that strong measures were in place to reduce the 
possibility that foreign animal disease would come to America. The fact 
that to date no such outbreaks have occurred here speaks to the 
strength of those measures. However, such safeguards are only as strong 
as their weakest part.
  Currently, all passengers coming to the United States on aircraft or 
by other means are required to complete Customs Declaration form 6059B 
which poses a set of questions about that individual's activities 
abroad. Included is a question which asks if the passenger is 
``bringing fruits, plants, meats, food, soil, birds, snails, other live 
animals, wildlife products, or have been on a farm or ranch outside the 
U.S.'' If the passenger answers this question in the affirmative, he or 
she is likely to be referred to USDA's Animal and Plant Health 
Inspection Service, APHIS, for further inquiry. Clearly, this question 
is designed to help provide the Customs Service with adequate 
information to know if a referral to APHIS is warranted or not.
  I have every confidence that APHIS personnel who serve on the front 
line of this country's inspection force have the expertise and 
commitment to ask the right questions and take the right actions to 
safeguard against foreign pests and disease, such as Foot and Mouth 
Disease. However, current practice does not ensure that all overseas 
travelers who have been in the vicinity of diseased livestock will have 
received proper referral to the appropriate agencies. If a traveler did 
not visit a farm or ranch, for example, the Customs Service would not 
have the information necessary to make a proper referral to USDA. Still 
travelers in rural areas of certain countries, such as the UK may come 
in close contact with livestock either at county fairs, rural bed and 
breakfasts, on back country trails, or other settings that may not 
strike one as a ``farm or ranch,'' but may in fact pose the same level 
of risk.
  My amendment simply requires that any new Customs declaration forms 
used for entry into the United States ask a question in a manner to 
alert the traveler to the fact that simply being in the proximity of 
livestock needs to be brought to the attention of Customs or USDA 
personnel due to the high risk of foreign borne disease. My amendment 
does not require the destruction of forms now in use. However, I 
understand that these forms are now in the process of being redrafted 
which, I believe, makes my amendment doubly timely. It is my further 
expectation that until such time that this change is actually put in 
place, Customs Service personnel will be provided guidance to sensitize 
them to making further verbal inquiry of travelers who have traveled in 
countries known to have infectious animal disease outbreaks to 
determine if they may have been in areas where a likelihood of 
infection was possible.
  Again, my amendment is not lengthy, nor does it require much. 
However, I believe it will help strengthen our Nation's defense against 
invasion by foreign animal disease. If the asking of one question 
prevents an outbreak of a devastating disease in America, it will 
certainly be a question worth asking.


    FUNDING FOR ADDITIONAL CUSTOMS INSPECTORS ON THE NORTHERN BORDER

  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I rise to comment the managers of the 
Treasury, Postal appropriation bill, Chairman Dorgan and Ranking Member 
Campbell, for including in their bill funds to increase the number of 
Customs officers stationed on our northern border. I particularly 
commend their foresight, which was confirmed by the tragic events of 
last week, and the suggestion that some of the terrorists may have 
entered the United States through ports of entry in my home State of 
Maine.
  Mr. DORGAN. I thank the Senator from Maine for her kind words. The 
bill before us does indeed include $25 million to fund a northern 
border hiring initiative. These funds would be used to hire 
approximately 285 additional Customs officers for our northern border.
  Mr. CAMPBELL. Due to dramatic increases in land border traffic and 
trade with Canada coupled with only token increase in staffing in 
recent years, our ports of entry are woefully understaffed.
  Ms. COLLINS. The situation in Maine is of particular concern to me. 
Ninety-eight Customs inspectors are currently stationed in my home 
State. Yet, according to a Customs Service resource allocation analysis 
based on threat and workload assessments, Maine should have 253 
inspectors, or two-and-one-half times more than are currently there. 
Maine has 23 land border ports of entry, some of which are manned by a 
single inspector at any given point in time. Our Customs and 
Immigration and Naturalization Service inspectors work long and hard to 
protect the integrity of our border. But they need reinforcements.
  I understand that the lack of Customs officials in Maine would not be 
ameliorated completely by this bill. But it, in conjunction with the 
$25 million for additional Immigration and Naturalization Service 
inspectors included in the Senate-passed Commerce, Justice, State 
appropriations bill, would take a strong step in the right direction. 
And I ask the distinguished chairman and ranking member to help ensure 
that Maine receives its fair share of additional inspectors.
  Mr. DORGAN. I assure the Senator from Maine that the Customs Service 
will be instructed to pay particular attention to the needs of Maine 
when assessing where to deploy these officers.
  Mr. CAMPBELL. We appreciate the Senator bringing Maine's needs to our 
attention and fully intend to see those needs met, to the extent 
possible, through the funds appropriated by this bill.

[[Page S9493]]

                    Amendment No. 1574, As Modified

  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, on behalf of Mr. Johnson, I ask unanimous 
consent to modify his amendment, which I offered earlier today on his 
behalf.
  I ask unanimous consent that Senator Smith of Oregon be added as an 
original cosponsor of the Johnson amendment.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The amendment (No. 1574), as modified, is as follows:

       At the end of title VI, insert the following:
       Sec.   . (a) From funds made available by this or any other 
     Act, the Secretary of the Treasury may provide for the 
     administrative costs for the issuance of bonds, to be known 
     as `Unity Bonds', under section 3102 of title 31, United 
     States Code, in response to the acts of terrorism perpetrated 
     against the United States on September 11, 2001.
       (b) If bonds described in subsection (a) are issued, such 
     bonds shall be in such form and denominations, and shall be 
     subject to such terms and conditions of issue, conversion, 
     redemption, maturation, payment, and rate of interest as the 
     Secretary of the Treasury may prescribe.

  Mr. JOHNSON. Mr. President, I rise today to offer an amendment that 
authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to issue Unity Bonds in 
support of recovery and response efforts relating to the September 11, 
2001, hijackings and attacks on the Pentagon and the World Trade 
Center. This amendment is similar to legislation that I introduced last 
week, S. 1430. I was pleased that several of my Republican colleagues 
introduced similar bills because this is an initiative that should and 
must be bipartisan.
  Unity Bonds will allow Americans who want to show their support for 
this great country to participate in a meaningful way. This amendment 
deserves full bipartisan support, and I look forward to working in a 
consensus fashion to make Unity Bonds available to all Americans.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that Senator 
Hutchinson of Arkansas be added as a cosponsor to the McConnell 
amendment.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, the ranking member, Senator Campbell, and 
I have discussed the issue of the McConnell and Johnson amendments, 
both of which were offered this afternoon. We suggest the Senate 
approve both the Johnson and McConnell amendments. I ask unanimous 
consent that the Johnson amendment and the McConnell amendment be 
agreed to at this time. Let me be clear, I am asking consent that the 
McConnell amendment be agreed to as offered earlier today and that the 
Johnson amendment be agreed to as modified by the modification I sent 
to the desk a few moments ago.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  Mr. CAMPBELL. Mr. President, we have no objection. We support the 
amendments.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, the amendments are agreed 
to.
  The amendments (Nos. 1573 and 1574, as modified) were agreed to.
  Mr. DORGAN. I move to reconsider the vote.
  Mr. CAMPBELL. I move to lay that motion on the table.
  The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.


                           Amendment No. 1579

  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, on behalf of our colleague, Senator 
Hollings, I send an amendment to the desk, and I ask for its immediate 
consideration.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       The Senator from North Dakota (Mr. Dorgan) for Mr. Hollings 
     proposes an amendment numbered 1579.

  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the reading 
of the amendment be dispensed with.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The amendment is as follows:

       At the appropriate place, insert:


DESIGNATION OF G. ROSS ANDERSON, JR. FEDERAL BUILDING AND UNITED STATES 
                               COURTHOUSE

       (a) The Federal building and courthouse located at 315 S. 
     McDuffie Street, Anderson, South Carolina, shall be known and 
     designated as the ``G. Ross Anderson, Jr. Federal Building 
     and United States Courthouse.''
       (b) Any reference in a law, map, regulation, document, 
     paper, or other record of the United States to the Federal 
     building and courthouse referred to in section 1 shall be 
     deemed to be a reference to the G. Ross Anderson, Jr. Federal 
     Building and United States Courthouse.

  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, we have cleared the amendment. I believe 
my colleague from Colorado has cleared the amendment as well.
  Mr. CAMPBELL. That is correct, Mr. President. We concur.
  Mr. DORGAN. I urge its adoption.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there further debate on the amendment? If 
not, the question is on agreeing to amendment No. 1579.
  The amendment (No. 1579) was agreed to.
  Mr. DORGAN. I move to reconsider the vote.
  Mr. CAMPBELL. I move to lay that motion on the table.
  The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the list I 
will send to the desk be the only first-degree amendments remaining in 
order to H.R. 2590, the Treasury-Postal appropriations bill; that these 
amendments be subject to relevant second-degree amendments; that upon 
disposition of all amendments, the bill be read a third time, and the 
Senate vote on passage of the bill; that upon passage the Senate insist 
on its amendment, request a conference with the House on the 
disagreeing votes of the Houses, and that the Chair be authorized to 
appoint conferees on the part of the Senate, with the above occurring 
with no intervening action or debate.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The list is as follows:
       Bingaman: 1 GSA.
       Byrd: 2 Relevant.
       Byrd: Relevant to the list.
       Clinton: September 11 Heroes Stamp Act.
       Daschle: 2 Relevant.
       Daschle: Relevant to the list.
       Dorgan: Managers' amendments.
       Dorgan: Relevant.
       Dorgan: Relevant to list.
       Feinstein: 1 Breast Cancer Stamp.
       Feinstein: 2 Relevant.
       Johnson: 1 Unity Bonds.
       Kerry: OMB study of the funding of SBA programs.
       Kohl: Customs declarations and livestock.
       Reid: Relevant.
       Reid: Relevant to the list.
       Schumer: 3 Relevant.
       Hollings: SC facility.
       Specter: 2 Relevant.
       McConnell: War bonds.
       Shelby: 1 Relevant.
       Hatch: Drugs/Utah.
       Hatch: 2 Relevant.
       Lott: 2 Relevant.
       Lott: 2 Relevant to list.
       Campbell: Relevant.
       Nickles: 2 Relevant to list.
       Domenici: 2 Relevant to list.

  Mr. DORGAN. I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. DORGAN. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum 
call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, we have a finite list of amendments that 
would be offered to this bill, H.R. 2590, the Treasury-Postal 
appropriations. As I look through the list, I see a fair number of 
amendments that will not, in fact, be offered. There are a number we 
will be accepting. I say, if there are Senators who have amendments on 
this list, come to the floor to offer them. It would be our hope to 
move to third reading this evening. My expectation is we do not have a 
final vote on the bill today. We would likely do that Friday morning--
of course at the discretion of the leader.
  In order to finish the amendments and get to third reading, we need 
those who wish to offer their amendments to come to the floor and do 
so. We have been on the floor since 10 this morning. We know there are 
Members who have indicated to the respective Cloakrooms

[[Page S9494]]

they have amendments, and they are properly on the list we have asked 
consent for, but in order to have amendments considered, Senators have 
to come to the floor and actually offer them.
  I ask Senators and their staffs who might be monitoring these 
proceedings to call the Cloakroom if they can regarding their 
amendments because we would like to go to third reading.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, Senator Campbell and I have been talking 
about the list we have presented that makes certain amendments in order 
and available to be offered. It is a very small list. In fact, with the 
exception of being able to approve a number of items on this list, I 
believe there are only two Senators remaining who have yet to come to 
the floor and offer amendments on which they are protected on the list. 
We ask them to do that. It is now 10 minutes before 7 in the evening. 
Those Senators would have had notice all day that we have been working 
on this bill. And, frankly, the Senate has been in a quorum call much 
of the day.
  Senator Campbell and I encourage those Senators who still have 
amendments they may wish to offer to either come and offer them or 
perhaps call us and notify us that they will not be offering those 
amendments, at which point we could go to third reading.
  My understanding from leadership is that we will not be going to a 
final vote tonight. Perhaps this will require a rollcall vote. It is 
not certain at this moment. But, in any event, to get to third reading, 
we need to clear these amendments. I believe there are only two 
Senators for whom we are waiting. If they intend to offer the 
amendments, we hope they are on their way to the floor or that their 
staffs will find them and get them to the floor of the Senate so they 
can do that. If they are deciding not to offer those amendments, please 
notify us. We want to go to third reading.
  Mr. CAMPBELL. Mr. President, to our knowledge, we have only two 
Senators on our side who said they have an amendment they want to 
offer. We are on the phone now to try to get them down here. But I 
think if we can get them down here quickly, we will be able to finish 
this bill by Friday.

  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, if, in fact, there is a way to get to 
third reading, and then do a voice vote on final passage, of course we 
would prefer to do that as well. My expectation is we will have a 
recorded vote on the conference report when it comes back from the 
conference, but I do not know that that has yet been cleared. My 
understanding was that a voice vote had not been cleared some while 
ago.
  In any event, if we can finish the amendments and get to third 
reading, it will have represented, in my judgment, significant 
progress. This is a fairly sizeable appropriations bill. The ability to 
do this bill today on the floor of the Senate would, I think, signal to 
the American people that this is a new seriousness of purpose in the 
Senate. We want to obviously do our business, and do it the right way, 
but we want to express to the American people that we are willing to 
work together and get things done.
  This country suffers from a pretty serious crisis as a result of the 
terrorist acts. We want to demonstrate to the American people that we 
can go back to work and we can get this work done in an expeditious 
way.
  Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the order for the 
quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

                          ____________________