[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 39 (Thursday, April 11, 2002)]
[Daily Digest]
[Pages D321-D323]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

Committee Meetings
COMMERCE, JUSTICE, STATE AND JUDICIARY APPROPRIATIONS
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, State 
and Judiciary held a hearing on State Department Management. Testimony 
was heard from the following officials of the Department of State: 
Richard L. Armitage, Deputy Secretary; and Grant S. Green, Under 
Secretary, Management.
INTERIOR APPROPRIATIONS
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Interior held a hearing on 
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Testimony was heard from Steven 
Williams, Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of the 
Interior.
LABOR, HHS AND EDUCATION APPROPRIATIONS
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human 
Services, Education held a hearing on Department of Education Panel: No 
Child Left Behind Implementation Issues. Testimony was heard from the 
following officials of the Department of Education: Eugene Hickok, 
Under Secretary, Education; and Susan B. Neuman, Assistant Secretary, 
Elementary and Secondary Education.
TRANSPORTATION APPROPRIATIONS
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Transportation held a 
hearing on National Transportation Safety Board. Testimony was heard 
from Marion C. Blakey, Chairman, National Transportation Safety Board.
VA, HUD AND INDEPENDENT AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on VA, HUD and Independent 
Agencies held a hearing on NSF. Testimony was heard from the following 
officials of the NSF: Eamon M. Kelly, Chairman; and Rita R. Colwell, 
Director, NSF.
NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION BUDGET REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Military Procurement and 
the Subcommittee on Research and Development held a joint hearing on 
fiscal year 2003 National Defense Authorization budget request. 
Testimony was heard from the following officials of the Department of 
Defense: Lt. Gen. John M. Riggs, USA, Director, Objective Force-Task 
Force; and Lt. Gen. Edward Hanlon, USMC, Commanding General, Marine 
Corps Combat Development Command.
CORPORATION FOR NATIONAL AND COMMUNITY SERVICE
Committee on Education and the Workforce: Subcommittee on Select 
Education held a hearing on the ``Corporation for National and 
Community Service.'' Testimony was heard from Leslie Lankowsky, CEO, 
Corporation For National and Community Service; and a public witness.
DRINKING WATER NEEDS AND INFRASTRUCTURE
Committee on Energy and Commerce: Subcommittee on Environment and 
Hazardous Materials held a hearing entitled ``Drinking Water Needs and 
Infrastructure.'' Testimony was heard from Ben Grumbles, Deputy 
Assistant Administrator, Office of Water, EPA; Perry Beider, Principal 
Analyst, CBO; Dave Wood, Director, Natural Resources and Environmental 
Issues, GAO; and public witnesses.
NRC LICENSED FACILITIES--REVIEW ENHANCED SECURITY REQUIREMENTS
Committee on Energy and Commerce: Subcommittee on Oversight and 
Investigations met in executive session to hold a hearing entitled ``A 
Review of Enhanced Security Requirements at NRC Licensed Facilities.'' 
Testimony was heard from the following officials of the NRC: Richard A. 
Meserve, Chairman; Nils J. Diaz, Edward McGaffigan, Jr., and Jeffrey S. 
Merrifield, all Commissioners; and David N. Orrik, Reactor Security 
Specialist, Office of Nuclear Security and Incident Response; and 
public witnesses.
MISCELLANEOUS MEASURES
Committee on Financial Services: Ordered reported, as amended, H.R. 
2941, Brownfields Redevelopment Enhancement Act; and H.R. 3764, 
Securities and Exchange Commission Authorization Act of 2002.
  The Committee also began markup of H.R. 3763, Corporate and Auditing 
Accountability, Responsibility, and Transparency Act of 2002.
  Will continue April 16.
PRESIDENTIAL RECORDS ACCESS--VIEWS OF HISTORIANS
Committee on Government Reform: Held a hearing on ``The Importance of 
Access to Presidential Records: The Views of Historians.'' Testimony 
was heard from the following historians: Robert Dallek; Richard Reeves; 
Stanley Kutler; and Joan Hoff.
PAPERWORK INFLATION
Committee on Government Reform: Subcommittee on Energy Policy, Natural 
Resources, and Regulatory Affairs held a hearing on ``Paperwork 
Inflation-The Growing Burden on America.'' Testimony was heard

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from John D. Graham, Administrator, Office of Information and 
Regulatory Affairs, OMB; Charles O. Rossotti, Commissioner, IRS, 
Department of the Treasury; Vic Rezendes, Managing Director; Strategic 
Issues, GAO; Thomas Hunt Shipman, Deputy Under Secretary, Farm and 
Foreign Agricultural Services, USDA; Scott Cameron, Deputy Assistant 
Secretary, Performance and Management, Department of the Interior; and 
public witnesses.
FEDERAL SUPPLY SERVICE--FEDERAL TECHNOLOGY SERVICE HOW PURCHASING 
AGENCIES CHOOSE
Committee on Government Reform: Subcommittee on Technology and 
Procurement held a hearing on ``Making Sense of Procurement's Alphabet 
Soup: How Purchasing Agencies Choose Between FSS and FTS.'' Testimony 
was heard from David E. Cooper, Director, Acquisition and Sourcing 
Management, GAO; Stephen Perry, Administrator, GSA; Claudia S. Knott, 
Executive Director, Logistics Policy and Acquisition Management, 
Defense Logistics Agency, Department of Defense; and public witnesses.
U.S. POLICY TOWARD COLOMBIA
Committee on International Relations: Subcommittee on the Western 
Hemisphere held a hearing on U.S. Policy Toward Colombia. Testimony was 
heard from Otto J. Reich, Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Western 
Hemisphere Affairs, Department of State; the following officials of the 
Department of Defense: Peter W. Rodman, Assistant Secretary, 
International Security Affairs; and Maj. Gen. Gary D. Speer, USA, 
Acting Commander-in-Chief, U.S. Southern Command; and public witnesses.
OVERSIGHT--CIVIL RIGHTS COMMISSION
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on the Constitution held an 
oversight hearing on the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. Testimony was 
heard from the following officials of the U.S. Commission on Civil 
Rights: Abigail Thernstrom, Commissioner; and Les Jim, Staff Director; 
and public witnesses.
OVERSIGHT--U.S. PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Courts, the Internet, and 
Intellectual Property held an oversight hearing on the U.S. Patent and 
Trademark Office: Operations and Fiscal Year 2003 Budget. Testimony was 
heard from James Rogan, Under Secretary, Intellectual Property and 
Director, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Department of Commerce; and 
public witnesses.
MISCELLANEOUS MEASURES
Committee on Resources: Subcommittee on Fisheries Conservation, 
Wildlife and Oceans held a hearing on the following bills: H.R. 3470, 
to clarify the boundaries of Coastal Barrier Resources System Cape Fear 
Unit NC0907P; H.R. 3908, North American Wetlands Conservation 
Reauthorization Act; and H.R. 4044, to authorize the Secretary of the 
Interior to provide assistance to the State of Maryland for 
implementation of a program to eradicate nutria and restore marshland 
damaged by nutria. Testimony was heard from Representative McIntyre; 
Cathleen Short, Assistant Director, Fisheries and Habitat Conservation, 
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of the Interior; Kevin 
Sullivan, APHIS State Director, Wildlife Services, USDA; Edith 
Thompson, Invasive Species Coordinator, Department of Natural 
Resources, State of Maryland; and public witnesses.
MISCELLANEOUS MEASURES
Committee on Resources: Subcommittee on National Parks, Recreation and 
Public Lands held a hearing on the following bills: H.R. 3718, Little 
San Bernardino Mountains Right-of-Way Act; H.R. 3258, Reasonable Right-
of-Way Fees Act of 2001; and H.R. 3307, Vicksburg National Military 
Park Boundary Modification Act. Testimony was heard from 
Representatives Cubin, Thompson of Mississippi and Bono; the following 
officials of the Department of the Interior: Pete Culp, Assistant 
Director, Minerals, Realty and Resource Protection, Bureau of Land 
Management; and Durand Jones, Deputy Director, National Park Service; 
and public witnesses.
OVERSIGHT--ADEQUACY FAA OVERSIGHT OF PASSENGER AIRCRAFT MAINTENANCE
  Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, Subcommittee on 
Aviation held an oversight hearing on Adequacy of FAA Oversight of 
Passenger Aircraft Maintenance. Testimony was heard from the 
following officials of the Department of Transportation: Nicholas A. 
Sabatini, Associate Administrator, Regulation and Certification, 
FAA; and Alexis M. Stefani, Assistant Inspector General, Auditing; 
and public witnesses.
OVERSIGHT--FEMA'S OFFICE OF NATIONAL PREPAREDNESS
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure: Subcommittee on 
Economic Development, Public Buildings and Emergency Management held an 
oversight hearing on FEMA's Office of National Preparedness. Testimony 
was heard from Bruce Baughman, Director, Office of National 
Preparedness, FEMA: Deborah Daniels, Assistant Attorney General, Office 
of Justice Programs, Department of Justice; and Randall Yim, Managing 
Director, National Preparedness, GAO.

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OVERSIGHT--PASSENGER RAIL IN AMERICA
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure: Subcommittee on 
Railroads held an oversight hearing on Passenger Rail in America: What 
Should It Look Like? Testimony was heard from Jayetta Hecker, Director, 
Physical Infrastructure Issues, GAO; and public witnesses.
VETERANS LEGISLATION
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Subcommittee on Benefits held a hearing 
on the following bills: H.R. 1108, to amend title 38, United States 
Code, to provide that remarriage of the surviving spouse of a veteran 
after age 55 shall not result in termination of dependence and 
indemnity compensation; H.R. 2095, Reservist VA Home Loan Fairness Act 
of 2001; H.R. 2222, Veterans Life Insurance Improvement Act of 2001; 
and H.R. 3731, to amend title 38, United States Code, to increase 
amounts available to State approving agencies to ascertain the 
qualifications of educational institutions for furnishing courses of 
education to veterans and eligible persons under the Montgomery GI Bill 
and under other programs of education administered by the Department of 
Veterans Affairs. Testimony was heard from Representatives Bilirakis 
and Filner; Daniel Cooper, Under Secretary, Veterans Benefits 
Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs; and representatives of 
veterans organizations.
WELFARE REFORM REAUTHORIZATION PROPOSALS
Committee on Ways and Means: Subcommittee on Human Resources held a 
hearing on Welfare Reform Reauthorization Proposals. Testimony was 
heard from Representatives Mink of Hawaii, Kaptur, Kucinich, Lee, 
Tierney and Reynolds; Tommy G. Thompson, Secretary of Health and Human 
Services; and public witnesses.
EXPLORE PERMANENT NORMAL RELATIONS FOR RUSSIA
Committee on Ways and Means: Subcommittee on Trade held a hearing to 
explore Permanent Normal Relations for Russia. Testimony was heard from 
Representatives Lantos and Cox; Peter F. Allgeier, Deputy U.S. Trade 
Representative; Alan P. Larson, Under Secretary, Economic, Business, 
and Agricultural Affairs, Department of State; and public witnesses.

Joint Meetings
FARM BILL
Conferees met to resolve the differences between the Senate and House 
passed versions of H.R. 2646, to provide for the continuation of 
agricultural programs through fiscal year 2011, but did not complete 
action thereon, and will meet again tomorrow.