[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 53 (Thursday, April 22, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H2332-H2335]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          PERSONAL EXPLANATION

  Mr. GOSS. Mr. Chairman, on roll call Nos. 128, 129, I was unavoidably 
detained. Had I been present, I would have voted ``no.''


                Preferential Motion Offered by Mr. Baird

  Mr. BAIRD. Mr. Chairman, I offer a preferential motion.
  The Clerk read as follows:

       Mr. Baird moves that the Committee of the Whole do now rise 
     and report the bill H.R. 2844 back to the House with the 
     recommendation that the enacting clause be stricken.

  The CHAIRMAN. The gentleman from Washington (Mr. Baird) is recognized 
for 5 minutes in support of his motion.
  Mr. BAIRD. Mr. Chairman, this is as serious as it gets. Two and a 
half years ago, we were given a remarkable gift. We were given the gift 
of life itself, as a plane was heading this way with the intent to kill 
all of us. Had they succeeded, the institution that we hold so dear, 
that provides for representation on a proportional basis by the 
citizens of our areas would have at least temporarily perished.
  We have no adequate provisions before us today to fill that gap 
should it happen, but we have no question today that we must confront 
that possibility. In an era of nuclear weapons, of terrorists who mean 
our destruction, we must accept our own mortality in order that we can 
preserve the immortality of this institution we all so cherish.
  We have had a spirited debate today. I lament that we were not all 
given sufficient time to participate, that key amendments were not 
offered, and that we were not all here for this. I know well that we 
have many things to do, but this is about the very existence of the 
institution.
  Yesterday I had the privilege of speaking with many of my colleagues 
on both sides of the aisle, and I asked a simple question: Have we, in 
all sincerity and honesty, given enough

[[Page H2333]]

thought to the measure before us, given the gravity of the issue before 
us? And many of those colleagues looked me in the eye and said, 
frankly, no. And yet today we are moving forward towards passage of a 
bill, which well-intentioned, and I do not doubt the intentions of the 
authors of this bill, and there is merit to expediting elections, and I 
appreciate the give and take, but, my colleagues, please understand, 
this bill carries with it a number of problems.
  I believe this bill disenfranchises independent voters. I believe it 
does not provide for situations in which States cannot conduct their 
elections in 45 days. I believe it leads to a chaotic process as some 
States replenish their Members and others have yet to, and the 
leadership of the House changes. But most importantly of all, it leaves 
us without a Congress.
  My friends on the other side have suggested some things which I need 
to clarify, because I think they are not fair and they are not 
accurate. They have suggested some of us want to take away the rights 
of citizens to elect their Representatives. It is not true. Not a 
single voice in the House of Representatives today shared that message. 
Instead, we all said we love, and would adhere to and would defend to 
the death the rights of citizens to elect their Representatives.
  But we have also said that no representation at all for a period of 
45 days is a more grave and egregious insult to the intent of the 
Framers than would be temporary appointments in some fashion followed 
by direct election. Do not let anyone suggest to you that we want to 
take away the right to election, but neither imagine that the bill 
today will solve the problem.
  At a time of the most grave crisis in the history of our Nation, we 
would be left without a United States Congress. Go home and look at the 
Constitution and tear out Article I. That is the consequence if we do 
not take further action.
  Let me ask this, too. Go home and ask your constituents that if you 
were to perish, along with hundreds of our colleagues today, and a 
Cabinet member became the President of the United States, someone they 
had never elected and do not even know, and that individual chooses to 
send their son or daughter to war, would they like to have a 
Representative from their region there to express their views, or would 
they prefer that that seat be vacated? That is the issue before us.
  I am going to ask my colleagues to vote ``no'' on this resolution, 
not because it is not well intentioned, but because we have not 
adequately given it the attention we deserve. If you can look yourself 
in the eye as you put that card in that slot and say, I have given 5 
hours of study to this resolution, 5 hours, then vote your conscience.

                              {time}  1545

  But if you have not, please vote ``no'' so you can have more time to 
study this and discuss it with scholars.
  Finally, we have asked and the chairman has agreed, and I am grateful 
for that, that we explore and debate the issue of a constitutional 
amendment to solve this. But I would beseech the chairman to please not 
only bring up my proposal, give other Members a chance to bring up 
proposals so the issue gets full and fair debate.
  Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Chairman, I rise in opposition to the 
preferential motion.
  Mr. Chairman, we have been debating this matter in the Committee of 
the Whole and before that when the rule was adopted for almost 5 hours. 
It has become crystal clear that the entire thrust of this debate is 
whether a reconstituted House of Representatives following a disaster 
will be comprised of elected Members or temporary appointments, 
appointed by somebody, maybe the Governor, maybe the legislature, maybe 
we ourselves before our demise.
  The issue of maintaining the people's House I think is the paramount 
consideration we ought to be giving on this issue. But even if Members 
agree we should amend the Constitution to have temporary appointments, 
I think everybody ought to agree we ought to have special elections as 
quickly as possible so that those who come to replace us will arrive 
with a mandate from the people of our district.
  So whether or not Members favor a temporary appointment method, which 
I do not, or Members favor keeping the House being solely elected, 
Members ought to vote for this bill because it does allow for the 
filling of vacancies when 100 or more seats are vacant as quickly as 
possible. That is the issue we have before us today, and it is an issue 
which I believe is of paramount importance because, should this Nation 
be in crisis as a result of a huge number of Members in the House of 
Representatives being killed in a terrorist attack, the sooner we put 
the people back in charge with representatives elected by the people I 
think should be the paramount issue.
  Now, the final point I would like to make is, yes, my committee will 
mark up and send out to the floor the Baird constitutional amendment at 
our next markup, and I hope that the leadership would schedule that as 
quickly as possible. I for one will vigorously oppose it because I 
believe the principle of an elected House of Representatives is one 
that should prevail over everything.
  The final point I would like Members to consider is if we end up 
having an appointed House of Representatives even temporarily and an 
appointed Senate and an appointed President, where do the people rule? 
They do not rule in any of the three branches that make laws and 
appropriate the public's money; that is all done by appointed 
positions. And that is why I believe it is important to maintain the 
elected nature of this House of Representatives even in the case where 
a catastrophe occurs. I would urge rejection of the preferential motion 
and urge passage of the bill.
  Mr. BAIRD. Mr. Chairman, I withdraw my preferential motion.
  The CHAIRMAN. Without objection, the preferential motion is 
withdrawn.
  There was no objection.
  The CHAIRMAN. There being no further amendments in order, the 
question is on the committee amendment in the nature of a substitute, 
as amended.
  The committee amendment in the nature of a substitute, as amended, 
was agreed to.
  The CHAIRMAN. Under the rule, the Committee rises.
  Accordingly, the Committee rose; and the Speaker pro tempore (Mr. 
LaHood) having assumed the chair, Mr. Simpson, Chairman of the 
Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, reported that 
that Committee, having had under consideration the bill (H.R. 2844) to 
require States to hold special elections to fill vacancies in the House 
of Representatives not later than 21 days after the vacancy is 
announced by the Speaker of the House of Representatives in 
extraordinary circumstances, and for other purposes, pursuant to House 
Resolution 602, he reported the bill back to the House with an 
amendment adopted by the Committee of the Whole.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the rule, the previous question is 
ordered.
  Is a separate vote demanded on the amendment to the committee 
amendment in the nature of a substitute adopted by the Committee of the 
Whole? If not, the question is on the committee amendment in the nature 
of a substitute.
  The committee amendment in the nature of a substitute was agreed to.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the engrossment and third 
reading of the bill.
  The bill was ordered to be engrossed and read a third time, and was 
read the third time.


                 Motion to Recommit Offered by Mr. Watt

  Mr. WATT. Mr. Speaker, I offer a motion to recommit.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is the gentleman opposed to the bill?
  Mr. WATT. I am, Mr. Speaker, in its present form.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will report the motion to 
recommit.
  The Clerk read as follows:

       Mr. Watt moves to recommit the bill H.R. 2844 to the 
     Committee on House Administration with instructions to report 
     the same back to the House forthwith with the following 
     amendment:

       In section 26(b) of the Revised Statutes of the United 
     States, as proposed to be added by the bill, add at the end 
     the following new paragraph:

[[Page H2334]]

       ``(5) Rule of construction regarding federal election 
     laws.--Nothing in this subsection may be construed to affect 
     the application to special elections under this subsection of 
     any Federal law governing the administration of elections for 
     Federal office (including any law providing for the 
     enforcement of any such law), including, but not limited to, 
     the following:
       ``(A) The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 1973 et 
     seq.), as amended.
       ``(B) The Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and 
     Handicapped Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ee et seq.), as amended.
       ``(C) The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting 
     Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff et seq.), as amended.
       ``(D) The National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (42 
     U.S.C. 1973gg et seq.), as amended.
       ``(E) The Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 
     U.S.C. 12101 et seq.), as amended.
       ``(F) The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 701 et 
     seq.), as amended.
       ``(G) The Help America Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15301 et 
     seq.), as amended.''.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
North Carolina (Mr. Watt) is recognized for 5 minutes in support of his 
motion to recommit.
  Mr. WATT. Mr. Speaker, the artificial time frames and deadlines 
specified in H.R. 2844 could make it impossible to comply with many 
State and Federal laws. Consequently, it has the potential to cause 
serious violations of voting rights and civil rights. To correct that 
problem, I rise to offer this motion to recommit with instructions.
  The motion to recommit seeks to limit the damage posed by H.R. 2844 
by ensuring that nothing in the bill will undercut the requirements of 
the civil rights and voting rights laws that this Congress enacted and 
this country has painstakingly honored over the last 40 years.
  I cannot support a measure that does not protect the voting rights of 
every American, including racial and language minorities, people with 
disabilities, the elderly, and our young men and women serving in the 
military.
  H.R. 2844 jeopardizes those protections now afforded to racial and 
language minorities under section 5 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 by 
making it impossible to provide voting materials to States or political 
subdivisions with more than 5 percent of the citizens of voting age who 
are single-language minorities and are limited-English proficient 
within the time frame prescribed by this legislation.
  Are these citizens not entitled to participate? The Rehabilitation 
Act of 1973 and the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 sought to 
empower individuals with disabilities to participate fully in society. 
H.R. 2844 will diminish both laws by not providing sufficient time to 
find facilities to host polling sites that are accessible to persons 
with disabilities. These citizens should be entitled to participate in 
our democracy even in crisis times.
  In the last term of Congress, we passed the Help America Vote Act of 
2002. The bill passed with bipartisan support in an effort to address 
the problems brought to light during the 2000 Presidential elections. 
Does H.R. 2844 allow enough time for provisional ballots to be printed 
and for other important provisions of that law to be complied with? The 
answer is, no.
  H.R. 2844 will also undermine the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens 
Absentee Voting Act by failing to provide sufficient time for absentee 
ballots to be printed, distributed, and returned from Americans living 
abroad. This includes military and diplomatic personnel, their 
families, and other Americans living abroad. The Department of Defense 
believes that a minimum of 45 days should be allowed from the time 
ballots are printed, not from the date the election is called. Our 
military men and women are serving our Nation all around the world. 
They should be entitled to participate in our democracy, even in times 
of crisis.
  I think we should be sure that every law passed by this body to 
ensure equal protection of voting rights to every citizen, not just 
certain Americans, should apply to special elections. H.R. 2844 fails 
to make good on that promise.
  For these reasons, I offer this motion to recommit and ask my 
colleagues for their support based on the proposition that every 
citizen should be able to participate in our democracy, especially in 
times of crisis.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. 
Sensenbrenner) is recognized for 5 minutes in opposition to the motion 
to recommit.
  Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to the motion to 
recommit for now, but I am prepared to accept this motion to recommit 
for a number of reasons.
  First of all, I think the motion to recommit is redundant in that all 
Federal laws apply to these special elections, not just the laws that 
are enumerated to the motion to recommit with instructions that the 
gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Watt) has offered, but I want to be 
much more serious in terms of dealing with this.
  How the House is reconstituted following a disaster should not be an 
issue of partisan debate. Much of what has gone on here today has been 
a partisan debate; and in accepting this motion to recommit, I am 
reaching out to the other side to say let us make the passage of this 
bill bipartisan because the acceptance of the motion to recommit should 
make the bill bipartisan.

                              {time}  1600

  And that, coupled with my commitment to deal with the gentleman from 
Washington's (Mr. Baird) constitutional amendment, certainly should 
show that we are dealing with this issue in good faith. And whether one 
supports the gentleman from Washington's (Mr. Baird) amendment or not, 
it is important, I think, to make sure that the replacement 
representatives that are elected are elected and seated as soon as 
humanly possible, and that is what this bill attempts to do.
  So I would hope that after the acceptance of this motion to recommit, 
we could pass this bill by an overwhelming vote; and I would reach out 
to my friends on the other side of the aisle and make that offer and 
hope that they reciprocate.
  I yield to the distinguished gentleman from California (Mr. Dreier), 
chairman of the Committee on Rules.
  Mr. DREIER. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend for yielding to me.
  Mr. Speaker, I would join with the chairman of the Committee on the 
Judiciary and say that we do truly want to work in a bipartisan way to 
make sure that the greatest deliberative body known to man is 
maintained as that, and I hope very much that our decision to accept 
the motion to recommit which is being offered in good faith by the 
gentleman from North Carolina will see us proceed with an overwhelming 
vote.
  Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. LaHood). Without objection, the previous 
question is ordered on the motion to recommit.
  There was no objection.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion to recommit.
  The motion to recommit was agreed to.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. 
Sensenbrenner) reporting back on behalf of the Committee on House 
Administration?
  Mr. SENSENBRENNER. I am, Mr. Speaker, in the absence of the chairman.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman may proceed.
  Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to the instructions of the 
House on the motion to recommit, I report the bill, H.R. 2844, back to 
the House with an amendment.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Clerk will report the amendment.
  The Clerk read as follows:

       Amendment:
       In section 26(b) of the Revised Statutes of the United 
     States, as proposed to be added by the bill, add at the end 
     the following new paragraph:
       ``(5) Rule of construction regarding federal election 
     laws.--Nothing in this subsection may be construed to affect 
     the application to special elections under this subsection of 
     any Federal law governing the administration of elections for 
     Federal office (including any law providing for the 
     enforcement of any such law), including, but not limited to, 
     the following:
       ``(A) The Voting Rights Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 1973 et 
     seq.), as amended.
       ``(B) The Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and 
     Handicapped Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ee et seq.), as amended.
       ``(C) The Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting 
     Act (42 U.S.C. 1973ff et seq.), as amended.
       ``(D) The National Voter Registration Act of 1993 (42 
     U.S.C. 1973gg et seq.), as amended.
       ``(E) The Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 
     U.S.C. 12101 et seq.), as amended.
       ``(F) The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 701 et 
     seq.), as amended.

[[Page H2335]]

       ``(G) The Help America Vote Act of 2002 (42 U.S.C. 15301 et 
     seq.), as amended.''.
  Mr. SENSENBRENNER (during the reading). Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous 
consent that the amendment be considered as read and printed in the 
Record.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Wisconsin?
  There was no objection.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the amendment.
  The amendment was agreed to.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the engrossment and third 
reading of the bill.
  The bill was ordered to be engrossed and read a third time, and was 
read the third time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the passage of the bill.
  The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that 
the ayes appeared to have it.
  Mr. SENSENBRENNER. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The vote was taken by electronic device, and there were--yeas 306, 
nays 97, not voting 30, as follows:

                             [Roll No. 130]

                               YEAS--306

     Abercrombie
     Ackerman
     Aderholt
     Akin
     Baca
     Bachus
     Baker
     Ballance
     Ballenger
     Barrett (SC)
     Bartlett (MD)
     Barton (TX)
     Bass
     Beauprez
     Becerra
     Bereuter
     Berman
     Biggert
     Bilirakis
     Bishop (GA)
     Bishop (NY)
     Bishop (UT)
     Blackburn
     Blumenauer
     Blunt
     Boehner
     Bonilla
     Bonner
     Bono
     Boozman
     Boswell
     Boucher
     Boyd
     Bradley (NH)
     Brady (TX)
     Brown (SC)
     Brown, Corrine
     Brown-Waite, Ginny
     Burgess
     Burns
     Burr
     Burton (IN)
     Buyer
     Calvert
     Camp
     Cannon
     Cantor
     Capito
     Capps
     Capuano
     Cardoza
     Carson (IN)
     Carson (OK)
     Case
     Castle
     Chabot
     Chandler
     Chocola
     Coble
     Cole
     Conyers
     Cooper
     Costello
     Cox
     Crane
     Crenshaw
     Crowley
     Cubin
     Culberson
     Cunningham
     Davis (FL)
     Davis (TN)
     Davis, Jo Ann
     Davis, Tom
     Deal (GA)
     DeFazio
     DeLay
     Deutsch
     Diaz-Balart, L.
     Diaz-Balart, M.
     Doolittle
     Doyle
     Dreier
     Dunn
     Edwards
     Ehlers
     Emerson
     Engel
     English
     Etheridge
     Everett
     Fattah
     Feeney
     Ferguson
     Flake
     Foley
     Ford
     Fossella
     Frank (MA)
     Franks (AZ)
     Frelinghuysen
     Garrett (NJ)
     Gerlach
     Gibbons
     Gilchrest
     Gillmor
     Gingrey
     Goode
     Goodlatte
     Goss
     Granger
     Graves
     Green (TX)
     Green (WI)
     Greenwood
     Gutknecht
     Hall
     Harman
     Harris
     Hart
     Hastings (WA)
     Hayes
     Hayworth
     Hensarling
     Herger
     Hobson
     Hoeffel
     Hoekstra
     Holden
     Hooley (OR)
     Hostettler
     Hunter
     Hyde
     Isakson
     Israel
     Issa
     Istook
     Jefferson
     Jenkins
     Johnson (IL)
     Johnson, Sam
     Jones (NC)
     Kanjorski
     Keller
     Kelly
     Kennedy (MN)
     Kildee
     Kind
     King (IA)
     King (NY)
     Kingston
     Kirk
     Kleczka
     Kline
     Knollenberg
     Kolbe
     LaHood
     Lampson
     Lantos
     Latham
     Leach
     Levin
     Lewis (CA)
     Lewis (GA)
     Lewis (KY)
     Linder
     Lipinski
     LoBiondo
     Lofgren
     Lowey
     Lucas (KY)
     Maloney
     Manzullo
     Markey
     Marshall
     Matheson
     McCarthy (MO)
     McCarthy (NY)
     McCotter
     McCrery
     McHugh
     McIntyre
     McKeon
     McNulty
     Meek (FL)
     Meeks (NY)
     Mica
     Miller (FL)
     Miller (MI)
     Miller (NC)
     Miller, Gary
     Moore
     Moran (KS)
     Moran (VA)
     Murphy
     Murtha
     Musgrave
     Myrick
     Napolitano
     Nethercutt
     Neugebauer
     Ney
     Northup
     Norwood
     Nussle
     Ortiz
     Osborne
     Ose
     Otter
     Owens
     Oxley
     Pascrell
     Pastor
     Paul
     Pearce
     Pence
     Petri
     Pickering
     Pitts
     Platts
     Porter
     Portman
     Price (NC)
     Pryce (OH)
     Putnam
     Quinn
     Radanovich
     Rahall
     Ramstad
     Rangel
     Regula
     Rehberg
     Renzi
     Reyes
     Reynolds
     Rodriguez
     Rogers (AL)
     Rogers (KY)
     Rogers (MI)
     Ros-Lehtinen
     Roybal-Allard
     Royce
     Ruppersberger
     Rush
     Ryan (WI)
     Ryun (KS)
     Sanchez, Loretta
     Sandlin
     Saxton
     Schrock
     Scott (GA)
     Scott (VA)
     Sensenbrenner
     Sessions
     Shadegg
     Shaw
     Shays
     Sherman
     Sherwood
     Shimkus
     Simmons
     Simpson
     Skelton
     Smith (NJ)
     Smith (TX)
     Smith (WA)
     Snyder
     Souder
     Spratt
     Stearns
     Stenholm
     Stupak
     Sullivan
     Sweeney
     Tancredo
     Tanner
     Terry
     Thompson (MS)
     Thornberry
     Tiahrt
     Tiberi
     Towns
     Turner (OH)
     Turner (TX)
     Udall (CO)
     Udall (NM)
     Upton
     Velazquez
     Vitter
     Walden (OR)
     Walsh
     Wamp
     Watt
     Weiner
     Weldon (FL)
     Weldon (PA)
     Weller
     Wexler
     Whitfield
     Wicker
     Wilson (NM)
     Wilson (SC)
     Wolf
     Wu
     Wynn
     Young (FL)

                                NAYS--97

     Alexander
     Allen
     Andrews
     Baird
     Baldwin
     Bell
     Berkley
     Berry
     Brady (PA)
     Brown (OH)
     Clay
     Cramer
     Cummings
     Davis (AL)
     Davis (CA)
     Davis (IL)
     DeGette
     DeLauro
     Dicks
     Dingell
     Doggett
     Dooley (CA)
     Emanuel
     Eshoo
     Evans
     Farr
     Filner
     Frost
     Gonzalez
     Gordon
     Grijalva
     Gutierrez
     Hefley
     Hill
     Holt
     Honda
     Hoyer
     Inslee
     Jackson (IL)
     John
     Johnson (CT)
     Johnson, E. B.
     Kaptur
     Kennedy (RI)
     Kilpatrick
     Kucinich
     Langevin
     Larsen (WA)
     Larson (CT)
     LaTourette
     Lee
     Lucas (OK)
     Lynch
     Majette
     Matsui
     McCollum
     McDermott
     McGovern
     McInnis
     Meehan
     Menendez
     Michaud
     Miller, George
     Nadler
     Neal (MA)
     Oberstar
     Obey
     Olver
     Pallone
     Pelosi
     Peterson (MN)
     Pomeroy
     Rohrabacher
     Ross
     Rothman
     Ryan (OH)
     Sabo
     Sanchez, Linda T.
     Sanders
     Schakowsky
     Schiff
     Serrano
     Slaughter
     Solis
     Stark
     Strickland
     Tauscher
     Taylor (MS)
     Thomas
     Thompson (CA)
     Tierney
     Van Hollen
     Visclosky
     Waters
     Watson
     Waxman
     Woolsey

                             NOT VOTING--30

     Boehlert
     Cardin
     Carter
     Clyburn
     Collins
     Delahunt
     DeMint
     Duncan
     Forbes
     Gallegly
     Gephardt
     Hastings (FL)
     Hinchey
     Hinojosa
     Houghton
     Hulshof
     Jackson-Lee (TX)
     Jones (OH)
     Millender-McDonald
     Mollohan
     Nunes
     Payne
     Peterson (PA)
     Pombo
     Shuster
     Smith (MI)
     Tauzin
     Taylor (NC)
     Toomey
     Young (AK)


                Announcement by the Speaker Pro Tempore

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. LaHood) (during the vote). Members are 
advised 2 minutes remain in this vote.

                              {time}  1623

  Ms. BERKLEY, Mr. GORDON and Ms. LINDA SANCHEZ of California changed 
their vote from ``yea'' to ``nay.''
  Mr. SPRATT and Mr. LEWIS of Georgia changed their vote from ``nay'' 
to ``yea.''
  So the bill was passed.
  The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
  The title of the bill was amended so as to read: ``A bill to require 
States to hold special elections to fill vacancies in the House of 
Representatives not later than 45 days after the vacancy is announced 
by the Speaker of the House of Representatives in extraordinary 
circumstances, and for other purposes.''.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________