[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 128 (Thursday, October 3, 2002)]
[House]
[Pages H7003-H7004]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




PRIVILEGES OF THE HOUSE--INTEGRITY OF PROCEEDINGS AS PRESCRIBED BY THE 
                              CONSTITUTION

  Ms. CARSON of Indiana. Mr. Speaker, I rise to a question of the 
privileges of the House, and offer a privileged resolution that I 
noticed yesterday pursuant to rule IX, and ask for its immediate 
consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will report the resolution.
  The Clerk read as follows:

       Whereas under Article I, Section IX, of the Constitution 
     states no money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in 
     Consequence of Appropriations made by law.
       Whereas it is the fiscal duty of the Congress to 
     appropriate annually the funds needed to support the 
     execution of the programs and operations of the Federal 
     Government.
       Whereas to date the House has only considered five 
     Appropriations bills.
       Whereas President George W. Bush has ignored the requests 
     of Amtrak for an Appropriation of $1.2 billion, and has 
     instead proposed only $521 million in funding.
       Whereas the House Appropriations Committee gutted funding 
     for Amtrak with every Republican member of the Committee 
     voting to cut funding, despite the dire impact this will have 
     on their own districts.
       Whereas instead of strong support and consistent growth in 
     support for the nation's passenger rail system the 
     President's FY 2003 Budget seeks to strangle Amtrak so that 
     the Administration can begin to implement plans to privatize 
     the system.
       Whereas Amtrak provided a critical transportation need in 
     the months after the terrorist attacks of September 11th, and 
     has seen consistent growth in ridership despite continued 
     levels of inadequate funding.
       Whereas Amtrak serves more than 500 stations in 46 states 
     and employs over 24,000 people, and Amtrak passengers on 
     Northeast corridor trains would fill 250 planes daily or over 
     91,000 flights each year.
       Resolved, That it is the sense of the House of 
     Representatives that the Congress should complete action on 
     the Fiscal Year (FY) 2003 Transportation Appropriations, with 
     an allocation of $1.2 billion for Amtrak.

                              {time}  1400

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Thornberry). The Chair will hear briefly 
from the gentlewoman from Indiana as to whether the resolution 
constitutes a question of privileges of the House under rule IX.
  Ms. CARSON of Indiana. Mr. Speaker, article 1, section 9, of the 
Constitution states that no money shall be drawn from the Treasury but 
in consequence of appropriations made by law. It is the fiscal duty of 
the Congress to appropriate the money necessary to provide the funds 
needed to support the execution of programs and operations of the 
Federal Government. To date, only five of the 13 appropriations 
measures have been considered. Mr. Speaker, this inaction has hampered 
this body's constitutional duty and called into question its integrity.
  The failure of this unrealistic budget resolution is especially true 
in respect to the fiscal year 2003 transportation appropriations bill 
in its funding for Amtrak. This inaction has hampered this body's 
constitutional duty. After the events of September 11, our Nation's air 
transportation system ground to a halt. After the Federal Aviation 
Administration grounded all flights following the terrorist attacks, 
travelers turned to Amtrak. Whether people had to travel for business, 
to help with rescue efforts or just to get home, Amtrak kept Americans 
moving during a time of national emergency. Amtrak ridership and 
revenues skyrocketed, led by the Northeast Corridor, which had a 13.5 
percent revenue growth and a 4.6 percent ridership growth in 2001. For 
the system as a whole, revenue rose 8.2 percent and ridership 4.3 
percent. The situation not only proved that Amtrak works but that 
passenger rail is a critical part of our transportation infrastructure.
  Despite this, Mr. Speaker, we continue to drastically underfund 
Amtrak, jeopardizing not only the safety and security of this country 
but the jobs and the livelihoods of tens of thousands of Americans. We 
have been told that if Amtrak receives the full $1.2 billion that both 
it and the Department of Transportation has recommended it receive, 
they will be able to begin to revitalize their operations, they will be 
able to revitalize and build upon the successes they have seen in the 
Northeast Corridor, they will be able to revitalize and build on rail 
service to areas of the country currently underserved by rail and, Mr. 
Speaker, they will be able to revitalize operations at their Beech 
Grove maintenance facility, which is in my district. They will be able 
to rehire the 228 employees who were furloughed back in February and 
rejuvenate a facility that has served this country since 1905. Workers 
at the plant right now are working 7 days a week to keep the facility 
running.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair requests the gentlewoman confine 
her remarks to the issue of whether the resolution constitutes a 
question of privileges of the House.
  Ms. CARSON of Indiana. Mr. Speaker, my question of privilege regards 
the integrity of our proceedings as a House as prescribed by the 
Constitution. The United States Constitution conveys upon this body the 
power to originate appropriation measures. It is not only our 
responsibility but our duty and obligation to restate this message in 
this legislation about the importance of Amtrak.
  I believe that we have probably not been in accordance with our 
constitutional responsibilities concerning appropriations and would 
argue that their continued inaction on such urgent priorities, as full 
funding of Amtrak, meets the test for privileged resolutions.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair is prepared to rule on the 
question of whether the resolution offered by the gentlewoman from 
Indiana constitutes a question of privileges of the House under rule 
IX.
  The resolution offered by the gentlewoman from Indiana expresses the 
sense of the House that the Congress should complete action on a 
legislative measure. Specifically, the resolution calls upon the 
Congress to complete action on a general appropriation bill with regard 
to prescribed funding for Amtrak.
  As the Chair ruled yesterday and earlier today, a resolution 
expressing the sentiment that Congress should act on a specified 
measure does not constitute a question of the privileges of the House 
under rule IX.
  The mere invocation of the general legislative power of the purse 
provided in the Constitution coupled with a fiscal policy end does not 
meet the requirements of rule IX and is really a matter properly 
initiated through introduction in the hopper under clause 7 of rule 
XII.
  Accordingly, the resolution offered by the gentlewoman from Indiana 
does not constitute a question of the privileges of the House under 
rule IX and may not be considered at this time.
  Ms. CARSON of Indiana. Mr. Speaker, I appeal the ruling of the Chair.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is, Shall the decision of the 
Chair stand as the judgment of the House?


           Motion to Table Offered by Mr. Rogers of Michigan

  Mr. ROGERS of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I move to lay the appeal on the 
table.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion to table 
offered by the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Rogers).
  The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that 
the ayes appeared to have it.


                             Recorded Vote

  Ms. CARSON of Indiana. Mr. Speaker, I demand a recorded vote.
  A recorded vote was ordered.
  The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--ayes 203, 
noes 192, not voting 36, as follows:

                             [Roll No. 441]

                               AYES--203

     Aderholt
     Akin
     Armey
     Bachus
     Ballenger
     Barr
     Bartlett
     Barton
     Bass
     Bereuter
     Biggert
     Bilirakis
     Blunt
     Boehlert
     Bonilla
     Bono
     Boozman
     Brady (TX)
     Brown (SC)
     Bryant
     Burr
     Burton
     Buyer
     Calvert
     Camp
     Cannon
     Cantor
     Capito
     Castle
     Chabot
     Chambliss
     Coble
     Collins
     Combest
     Cox
     Crane
     Crenshaw
     Cubin
     Culberson
     Cunningham
     Davis, Jo Ann
     Davis, Tom
     DeLay
     DeMint
     Diaz-Balart
     Doolittle
     Dreier
     Duncan
     Dunn
     Ehlers
     Ehrlich
     Emerson
     English
     Everett
     Ferguson
     Flake
     Fletcher
     Foley
     Forbes
     Fossella
     Frelinghuysen
     Gallegly
     Gekas
     Gibbons
     Gilchrest
     Gillmor

[[Page H7004]]


     Gilman
     Goode
     Goodlatte
     Goss
     Graham
     Graves
     Green (WI)
     Greenwood
     Grucci
     Gutknecht
     Hansen
     Hart
     Hastings (WA)
     Hayes
     Hayworth
     Hefley
     Herger
     Hobson
     Hoekstra
     Horn
     Hostettler
     Houghton
     Hulshof
     Hunter
     Hyde
     Isakson
     Issa
     Istook
     Johnson (CT)
     Johnson (IL)
     Johnson, Sam
     Jones (NC)
     Kelly
     Kennedy (MN)
     Kerns
     King (NY)
     Kingston
     Kirk
     Knollenberg
     Kolbe
     LaHood
     Latham
     LaTourette
     Leach
     Lewis (KY)
     LoBiondo
     Lucas (OK)
     Manzullo
     McCrery
     McHugh
     McKeon
     Mica
     Miller, Dan
     Miller, Gary
     Miller, Jeff
     Moran (KS)
     Morella
     Myrick
     Nethercutt
     Ney
     Northup
     Norwood
     Nussle
     Osborne
     Ose
     Otter
     Paul
     Pence
     Peterson (PA)
     Petri
     Pickering
     Pitts
     Platts
     Pombo
     Portman
     Pryce (OH)
     Putnam
     Quinn
     Radanovich
     Ramstad
     Regula
     Rehberg
     Riley
     Rogers (KY)
     Rogers (MI)
     Rohrabacher
     Ros-Lehtinen
     Royce
     Ryan (WI)
     Ryun (KS)
     Saxton
     Schaffer
     Sensenbrenner
     Sessions
     Shadegg
     Shaw
     Shays
     Sherwood
     Shimkus
     Shuster
     Simmons
     Simpson
     Skeen
     Smith (MI)
     Smith (NJ)
     Smith (TX)
     Souder
     Stearns
     Sullivan
     Sununu
     Sweeney
     Tancredo
     Tauzin
     Taylor (NC)
     Terry
     Thomas
     Thornberry
     Thune
     Tiahrt
     Tiberi
     Toomey
     Upton
     Vitter
     Walden
     Walsh
     Wamp
     Watkins (OK)
     Watts (OK)
     Weldon (FL)
     Weldon (PA)
     Weller
     Wicker
     Wilson (NM)
     Wilson (SC)
     Wolf
     Young (AK)
     Young (FL)

                               NOES--192

     Abercrombie
     Ackerman
     Allen
     Andrews
     Baca
     Baird
     Baldacci
     Baldwin
     Barrett
     Becerra
     Bentsen
     Berkley
     Berman
     Berry
     Bishop
     Blagojevich
     Blumenauer
     Bonior
     Borski
     Boswell
     Boucher
     Boyd
     Brady (PA)
     Brown (FL)
     Brown (OH)
     Capps
     Capuano
     Cardin
     Carson (IN)
     Carson (OK)
     Clay
     Clayton
     Clyburn
     Condit
     Conyers
     Costello
     Coyne
     Cramer
     Crowley
     Cummings
     Davis (CA)
     Davis (FL)
     Davis (IL)
     DeFazio
     Delahunt
     DeLauro
     Deutsch
     Dicks
     Dingell
     Doggett
     Dooley
     Doyle
     Edwards
     Engel
     Eshoo
     Etheridge
     Evans
     Farr
     Filner
     Ford
     Frank
     Frost
     Gephardt
     Gonzalez
     Gordon
     Gutierrez
     Hall (TX)
     Harman
     Hill
     Hilliard
     Hinchey
     Hinojosa
     Hoeffel
     Holden
     Holt
     Honda
     Hooley
     Hoyer
     Inslee
     Israel
     Jackson (IL)
     Jackson-Lee (TX)
     Jefferson
     John
     Johnson, E. B.
     Jones (OH)
     Kanjorski
     Kaptur
     Kennedy (RI)
     Kildee
     Kilpatrick
     Kind (WI)
     Kleczka
     Kucinich
     LaFalce
     Langevin
     Lantos
     Larsen (WA)
     Larson (CT)
     Lee
     Levin
     Lewis (GA)
     Lipinski
     Lofgren
     Lowey
     Lucas (KY)
     Luther
     Lynch
     Maloney (NY)
     Markey
     Matheson
     Matsui
     McCarthy (MO)
     McCarthy (NY)
     McCollum
     McDermott
     McGovern
     McIntyre
     McNulty
     Meehan
     Meek (FL)
     Meeks (NY)
     Menendez
     Millender-McDonald
     Miller, George
     Mollohan
     Moore
     Moran (VA)
     Murtha
     Nadler
     Napolitano
     Neal
     Oberstar
     Obey
     Olver
     Ortiz
     Owens
     Pallone
     Pascrell
     Pastor
     Payne
     Pelosi
     Peterson (MN)
     Phelps
     Pomeroy
     Price (NC)
     Rahall
     Rangel
     Reyes
     Rivers
     Rodriguez
     Roemer
     Ross
     Rothman
     Roybal-Allard
     Rush
     Sabo
     Sanchez
     Sanders
     Sandlin
     Schakowsky
     Schiff
     Scott
     Serrano
     Sherman
     Shows
     Skelton
     Smith (WA)
     Snyder
     Solis
     Spratt
     Stenholm
     Strickland
     Tauscher
     Taylor (MS)
     Thompson (CA)
     Thompson (MS)
     Tierney
     Turner
     Udall (CO)
     Udall (NM)
     Velazquez
     Visclosky
     Waters
     Watson (CA)
     Watt (NC)
     Waxman
     Weiner
     Wexler
     Woolsey
     Wu
     Wynn

                             NOT VOTING--36

     Baker
     Barcia
     Boehner
     Callahan
     Clement
     Cooksey
     Deal
     DeGette
     Fattah
     Ganske
     Granger
     Green (TX)
     Hastings (FL)
     Hilleary
     Jenkins
     Keller
     Lampson
     Lewis (CA)
     Linder
     Maloney (CT)
     Mascara
     McInnis
     McKinney
     Oxley
     Reynolds
     Roukema
     Sawyer
     Schrock
     Slaughter
     Stark
     Stump
     Stupak
     Tanner
     Thurman
     Towns
     Whitfield

                              {time}  1436

  Mr. HALL of Texas and Mr. WYNN changed their vote from ``aye'' to 
``no.''
  So the motion to table was agreed to.
  The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________