[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 93 (Tuesday, July 12, 2005)]
[House]
[Page H5709]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          PERSONAL EXPLANATION

  Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to enter into the Record that 
on July 12 of this year, due to unavoidable circumstances, I was unable 
to be present. If I had not been detained today, July 12, 2005, I would 
have voted as follows:
  On Previous Question on OSHA rollbacks, I would have voted ``nay'' to 
defeat the previous question on the Rule. If defeated we would have 
allowed the House to consider the Miller-Owens bill to raise the 
minimum wage. The minimum wage would be raised to $7.25 an hour from 
$5.15 an hour. The minimum wage has been frozen since 1997.
  On H. Res. 351--rule providing consideration for 4 OSHA rollback 
bills--I would have voted ``nay.''
  On H. Res. 352--providing that the House of Representatives will 
focus on removing barriers to competitiveness of the United States 
economy--I would have voted ``nay.'' I would not have supported the 
legislation because it would not improve U.S. competitiveness. Instead 
this resolution attempts to blame trial lawyers and ``regulation'' for 
the challenges facing the U.S. economy.
  On H. Res. 343--commending the State of Kuwait for granting women 
certain important political rights--I would have voted ``yea.''
  On H.R. 804--to exclude from consideration as income certain payments 
under the national flood insurance program--I would have voted ``yea.''
  On H.R. 68--NASA and JPL 50th Anniversary Commemorative Coin Act--I 
would have voted ``yea.''
  On H.R. 739--OSHA rollback on employer citations--I would have voted 
``nay.'' I would not have supported the legislation because it 
undermines the timely abatement of unsafe working conditions, 
encouraging employers to challenge OSHA citations. One of the principal 
purposes of the Occupational Safety and Health Act is ``to assure so 
far as possible every working man and woman in the nation safe and 
healthful working conditions.'' However, this bill effectively delays 
the timely abatement of unsafe working conditions, by encouraging 
employers to litigate citations rather than correcting health and 
safety hazards.
  On H.R. 740--OSHA rollback to stack the Occupational Safety and 
Health Review Commission--I would have voted ``nay.'' I would not have 
supported the legislation because it unjustifiably ensures that only 
lawyers are appointed to the Commission.
  On H.R. 741--OSHA rollback of the Secretary of Labor's authority to 
issue citations--I would have voted ``nay.'' I would not have supported 
the legislation because it provides that the OSHA Review Commission 
shall have deference to override the Secretary of Labor's reasonable 
interpretations of the Secretary's own workplace safety standards--
thereby increasing the incentives for challenges to Labor Department's 
rules and regulations.
  On H.R. 742--OSHA rollback to require OSHA to pay attorneys' fees--I 
would have voted ``nay.'' I would not have supported the legislation 
because it requires OSHA to pay attorneys' fees and costs for employers 
with 100 or less employees and a net worth of $7 million or less in an 
administrative or judicial proceeding in which OSHA does not prevail. 
It is a blatant attempt to chill OSHA's exercise of statutory 
responsibility to enforce the Occupational Safety and Health (OCS) Act, 
by penalizing the agency for every instance in which it attempts to do 
so unsuccessfully, and therefore, undermined the enforcement of 
workplace health and safety laws.

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