[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 91 (Thursday, June 19, 2003)]
[Daily Digest]
[Pages D697-D699]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

Committee Meetings
REVIEW--COMMODITY FUTURES MODERNIZATION ACT
Committee on Agriculture: Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities and 
Risk Management held a hearing to review of the Commodity Futures 
Modernization Act. Testimony was heard from public witnesses.
LEGISLATIVE APPROPRIATIONS
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Legislative approved for 
full Committee action the Legislative appropriations for fiscal year 
2004.
LABOR, HHS, EDUCATION AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human 
Services, Education and Related Agencies approved for full Committee 
action the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related 
Agencies appropriations for fiscal year 2004.
SCHOOL READINESS ACT
Committee on Education and Workforce: Ordered reported, as amended, 
H.R. 2210, School Readiness Act.
HIGHER EDUCATION-INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMS QUESTIONS OF BIAS
Committee on Education and the Workforce: Subcommittee on Select 
Education held a hearing on ``International Programs in Higher 
Education and Questions of Bias.'' Testimony was heard from public 
witnesses.
MEDICARE PRESCRIPTION DRUG AND MODERNIZATION ACT; SOCIAL SECURITY ACT 
AMENDMENTS
Committee on Energy and Commerce: Ordered reported the following bills: 
H.R. 2743, as amended, Medicare Prescription Drug and Modernization 
Act, and H.R. 531, to amend title XXI of the Social Security Act to 
extend the availability of allotments for fiscal years 1998-2001, under 
the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).
NEW BASEL ACCORD--UNIFIED U.S. POSITION SEARCH
Committee on Financial Services: Subcommittee on Financial Institutions 
and Consumer Credit held a hearing entitled ``The New Basel Accord--In 
Search of a Unified U.S. Position.'' Testimony was heard from Roger 
Ferguson, Vice-Chairman, Board of Governors, Federal Reserve System; 
the following officials of the Department of the Treasury: James E. 
Gilleran, Director, Office of Thrift Supervision; and

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John D. Hawke, Jr., Comptroller of the Currency; Donald Powell, 
chairman, FDIC; and public witnesses.
RURAL HOUSING IN AMERICA
Committee on Financial Services: Subcommittee on Housing and Community 
Opportunity held a hearing entitled ``Rural Housing in America.'' 
Testimony was heard from Phyllis Fong, Inspector General, USDA; William 
B. Shear, Acting Director, Financial Markets and Community Investment, 
GAO; and public witnesses.
MISCELLANEOUS MEASURES; REPORT
Committee on Government Reform: Ordered reported the following 
measures: H.R. 2396, to designate the facility of the United States 
Postal Service located at 1210 Highland Avenue in Duarte, California as 
the ``Francisco A. Martinez Flores Post Office,'' H.R. 1761, to 
designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 
9350 East Corporate Hill Drive in Wichita, Kansas, as the `` Garner E. 
Shriver Post Office Building''; H.R. 2249, Postmasters Equity Act of 
2003; H.R. 2328, to designate the facility of the Postal Service 
located at 2001 East Willard Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, as 
the ``Robert A. Borski Post Office Building''; H. Con. Res. 6, 
supporting the goals and ideals of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary 
Disease Awareness Month; H. Con. Res. 208, Supporting the National 
Men's Health Week; and H. Res. 240, expressing the sense of the House 
of Representatives that there should be established a National 
Community Health Center Week to raise awareness of health services 
provided by community, migrant, public housing, and homeless health 
centers.
  The Committee also approved the following report entitled ``Report--A 
Citizen's Guide on Using the Freedom of Information Act and the Privacy 
Act of 1974 to Request Government Records.''
NEXT STEP--INVESTIGATION OF USE OF INFORMANTS BY JUSTICE--WILLIAM 
BULGER TESTIMONY
Committee on Government Reform: Held a hearing entitled ``The Next Step 
in the Investigation of the Use of Informants by the Department of 
Justice.'' Testimony was heard from William Bulger, President, 
University of Massachusetts.
U.S. POLICY IN AFGHANISTAN
Committee on International Relations: Held a hearing on U.S. Policy in 
Afghanistan: Current Issues in Reconstruction. Testimony was heard from 
Ambassador Peter Tomsen, former Special Envoy to Afghanistan; Larry P. 
Goodson, Professor, Middle East Studies, Department of National 
Security and Strategy, U.S. Army War College, Department of the Army; 
Bernard Frahi, Chief, Operations Branch, Division for Operations and 
Analysis, Office for Drug Control and Crime Prevention, United Nations; 
and public witnesses.
PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY IN FOOD CONSUMPTION ACT
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Commercial and 
Administrative Law held a hearing on H.R. 339, Personal Responsibility 
in Food Consumption Act. Testimony was heard from public witnesses.
OVERSIGHT--CONSULAR ID CARDS
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Immigration, Border 
Security, and Claims held an oversight hearing on ``The Issuance, 
Acceptance, and Reliability of Consular Identification Cards.'' 
Testimony was heard from Representative Gutierrez; John Andrews, 
member, Senate, State of Colorado; and public witnesses.
OVERSIGHT--DOMESTIC NATURAL GAS SUPPLY SHORTAGE
Committee on Resources: Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources 
held an oversight hearing on the Domestic Natural Gas Supply Shortage. 
Testimony was heard from Steve Brown, Director, Energy Economics and 
Micro Economic Policy Analysis, Office of the Federal Reserve System, 
Dallas, Texas; and public witnesses.
MISCELLANEOUS MEASURES
Committee on Resources: Subcommittee on Forests and Forest Health and 
the Subcommittee on Fisheries Conservation, Wildlife and Oceans held a 
joint hearing on the following bills: H.R. 2057, Chronic Wasting 
Disease Support for States Act of 2003; and H.R. 2416, to provide for 
the protection of paleontological resources on Federal lands. Testimony 
was heard from Representative McGovern; the following officials of the 
Department of the Interior: Charles Groat, Director, U.S. Geological 
Survey; and Robert Lamb, Senior Advisor to the Secretary, Policy, 
Management and Budget; the following officials of the USDA: Bobby 
Acord, Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service; and 
Elizabeth Estill, Deputy Chief, Programs and Legislation, Forest 
Service; and public witnesses.
MISCELLANEOUS MEASURES
Committee on Resources: Subcommittee on Forests and Forest Health held 
a hearing on the following bills: H.R. 511, Mount Naomi Wilderness 
Boundary Adjustment Act; H.R. 708, to require the conveyance of certain 
National Forest System lands in

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Mendocino National Forest, California, to provide for the use of the 
proceeds from such conveyance for National Forest purposes; H.R. 1038, 
Public Lands Fire Regulations Enforcement Act of 2003; and H.R. 1651, 
Sierra National Forest Land Exchange Act of 2003. Testimony was heard 
from Representatives Tancredo, Radanovich, Bishop of Utah and Thompson 
of California; Elizabeth Estill, Deputy Chief, Programs and 
Legislation, Forest Service, USDA; Larry Parkinson, Deputy Assistant 
Secretary, Law Enforcement and Security, Department of the Interior; 
and public witnesses.
OVERSIGHT--UPDATE WATER QUALITY STANDARDS
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure: Subcommittee on Water 
Resources and Environment held an oversight hearing on the Need to 
Update Water Quality Standards to Improve Clean Water Act Programs. 
Testimony was heard from John B. Stephenson, Director, Natural 
Resources and Environment, GAO; and public witnesses.
HEALTH SAVINGS ACCOUNT AVAILABILITY ACT
Committee on Ways and Means: Ordered reported, as amended, H.R. 2351, 
Health Savings Account Availability Act.
UNEMPLOYMENT FRAUD AND ABUSE
Committee on Ways and Means: Subcommittee on Oversight and the 
Subcommittee on Human Resources held a joint hearing on unemployment 
fraud and abuse. Testimony was heard from Mason Bishop, Deputy 
Assistant Secretary, Employment and Training Administration, Department 
of Labor; Robert J. Cramer, Managing Director, Office of Special 
Investigations, GAO; David Clegg, Deputy Chairman, Communications, 
Employment Security Commission, State of North Carolina; and a public 
witness.
S CORPORATION REFORM
Committee on Ways and Means: Subcommittee on Select Revenue Measures 
held a hearing on S Corporation Reforms. Testimony was heard from Greg 
Jenner, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Tax Policy, Department of the 
Treasury; and public witnesses.
IRAQ WMD
Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence: Met in executive session to 
continue hearings on Iraq WMD. Testimony was heard from departmental 
witnesses.
BRIEFING--COUNTERINTELLIGENCE ISSUES
Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence: Subcommittee on Human 
Intelligence, Analysis and Counterintelligence met in executive session 
to receive a briefing on Counterintelligence Issues. The Committee was 
briefed by departmental witnesses.
BRIEFING--GLOBAL INTELLIGENCE UPDATE
Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence: Subcommittee on 
Intelligence Policy and National Security met in executive session to 
receive a briefing on Global Intelligence Update. The Subcommittee was 
briefed by departmental witnesses.
``RESPONSE TO TERRORISM: HOW IS DHS IMPROVING OUR CAPABILITIES?''
Select Committee on Homeland Security: Held a hearing entitled 
``Response to Terrorism: How is DHS Improving Our Capabilities?'' 
Testimony was heard from Michael Brown, Under Secretary, Homeland 
Security, Emergency Preparedness and Response, Department of Homeland 
Security.