[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 99 (Wednesday, July 20, 2005)]
[Daily Digest]
[Pages D788-D790]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

Committee Meetings
AIR FORCE'S FUTURE TOTAL FORCE PLAN
Committee on Armed Services: Held a hearing on the Air Force's Future 
Total Force Plan. Testimony was heard from the following officials of 
the Department of Defense: LTG H. Steven Blum, USA, Chief, National 
Guard Bureau; and the following officials of the U.S. Air Force: LTG 
Stephen G. Wood, Deputy Chief of Staff, Plans and Programs; LTG Daniel 
James, III; LTG John A. Bradley, Chief, Air Force Reserve; MG Roger P. 
Lemke, The Adjutant General of Nebraska; and MG Mason C. Whitney, The 
Adjutant General of Colorado.
DD(X) SURFACE COMBATANT SHIP
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Projection Forces 
concluded hearings on Department of the Navy FY06 Plans and Programs 
for the DD(X) Next-Generation Multi-Mission Surface Combatant Ship. 
Testimony was heard from Paul L. Francis, Director, Acquisition and 
Sourcing Management, GAO; Ronald O'Rourke, Specialist in National 
Defense, CRS, Library of Congress; the following officials of the 
National Security Division, CBO: J. Michael Gilmore, Assistant 
Director; and Eric J. Labs, Principal Analyst; and public witnesses.
PERFORMANCE-BASED BUDGETING
Committee on the Budget: Held a hearing on Performance-Based Budgeting. 
Testimony was heard from Representatives Cuellar and Conaway; and Clay 
S. Johnson, III, Deputy Director, Management, OMB.
COLLEGE ACCESS AND OPPORTUNITY ACT
Committee on Education and the Workforce: Began mark up of H.R. 609, 
College Access and Opportunity Act.
  Will continue tomorrow.
MISCELLANEOUS MEASURES
Committee on Energy and Commerce: Ordered reported, as amended, the 
following measures: H.R. 3204, State High Risk Pool Funding Extension 
Act of 2005; H.R. 3205, Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act; 
H.R. 1132, National All Schedules Prescription Electronic Reporting Act 
of 2005; H. Res. 220, Recognizing America's Blood Centers and its 
member organizations for their commitment to providing over half the 
Nation with a safe and adequate volunteer donor blood supply; H. Res. 
261, Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the 
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services should be commended for 
implementing the Medicare demonstration project to assess the quality 
of care of cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy, and should extend 
the project, at least through 2006, subject to any appropriate 
modifications; and H.R. 2355, Health Care Choice Act of 2005.
ELECTRONIC WASTE
Committee on Energy and Commerce: Subcommittee on Environment and 
Hazardous Materials held a hearing

[[Page D789]]

entitled ``Electronic Waste: An Examination of Current Activity, 
Implications for Environmental Stewardship, and the Proper Federal 
Role.'' Testimony was heard from Benjamin Wu, Deputy Under Secretary, 
Office of Technology, Department of Commerce; Barry Breen, Deputy 
Assistant Administrator, Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response, 
EPA; Kendl P. Philbrick, Secretary, Department of the Environment, 
State of Maryland; Dawn R. Gallagher, Commissioner, Department of 
Environmental Protection, State of Maine; and a public witness.
MONETARY POLICY AND THE STATE OF THE ECONOMY
Committee on Financial Services: Held a hearing on Monetary Policy and 
the State of the Economy. Testimony was heard from Alan Greenspan, 
Chairman, Board of Governors, Federal Reserve System.
IMPROPER PAYMENTS INFORMATION ACT IMPLEMENTATION
Committee on Government Reform: Subcommittee on Government Management, 
Finance, and Accountability held a hearing entitled ``Implementing the 
Improper Payments Information Act Are We Making Progress?'' Testimony 
was heard from Linda Combs, Controller, Office of Federal Financial 
Management, OMB; and McCoy Williams, Director, Financial Management and 
Assurance, GAO.
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT INFORMATION QUALITY
Committee on Government Reform: Subcommittee on Regulatory Affairs held 
a hearing entitled ``Improving the Information Quality in the Federal 
Government.'' Testimony was heard from Kimberly T. Nelson, Assistant 
Administrator and Chief Information Officer, EPA; Tom Melius, Assistant 
Director, External Affairs, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Department 
of the Interior; Jim Scanlon, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary, 
Science and Data Policy, Department of Health and Human Services; and 
public witnesses.
HOMELAND SECURITY INFORMATION SHARING
Committee on Homeland Security: Subcommittee on Intelligence, 
Information Sharing, and Terrorism Risk Assessment held a hearing 
entitled ``A Progress Report on Information Sharing for Homeland 
Security.'' Testimony was heard from the following officials of the 
Department of Homeland Security: Matthew Broderick, Director, Homeland 
Security Operations Center; and Joshua D. Filler, Director, Office of 
State and Local Government Coordination; John Cohen, Senior Homeland 
Security Policy Advisor, Executive Office of Public Safety, State of 
Massachusetts; and public witnesses.
NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION AUTHORIZATION ACT
Committee on Rules: Granted, by voice vote, a structured rule providing 
one hour of general debate on H.R. 3070, to reauthorize the human space 
flight, aeronautics, and science programs of the National Aeronautics 
and Space Administration, and for other purposes, equally divided and 
controlled by the Chairman and ranking minority member of the Committee 
on Science. The rule waives all points of order against consideration 
of the bill. The rule provides that the amendment in the nature of a 
substitute recommended by the Committee on Science now printed in the 
bill shall be considered as an original bill for the purpose of 
amendment. The rule waives all points of order against the committee 
amendment in the nature of a substitute. The rule makes in order only 
those amendments printed in the Rules Committee report accompanying the 
resolution. The rule provides that the amendments printed in the report 
may be considered only in the order printed in the report, may be 
offered only by a Member designated in the report, shall be considered 
as read, shall be debatable for the time specified in the report 
equally divided and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, shall 
not be subject to amendment, and shall not be subject to a demand for 
division of the question in the House or in the Committee of the Whole. 
The rule waives all points of order against the amendments printed in 
the report. Finally, the rule provides one motion to recommit with or 
without instructions.
USA PATRIOT AND TERRORISM PREVENTION REAUTHORIZATION ACT
Committee on Rules: Granted, by voice vote, a structured rule providing 
two hours of general debate on H.R. 3199, to extend and modify 
authorities needed to combat terrorism, and for other purposes, with 
one hour and 30 minutes equally divided and controlled by the chairman 
and ranking minority member of the Committee on the Judiciary and 30 
minutes equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking 
minority member of the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. The 
rule waives all points of order against consideration of the bill. The 
rule provides that in lieu of the amendments recommended by the 
Committee on the Judiciary and the Permanent Select Committee on 
Intelligence now printed in the bill, the amendment in the nature of a 
substitute printed in part A of the Rules Committee report shall be 
considered as the original bill for the purpose of amendment and shall 
be considered as read. The rule waives all points of order

[[Page D790]]

against the amendment in the nature of a substitute printed in part A 
of the Rules Committee report. The rule makes in order only those 
amendments printed in part B of the Rules Committee report, which may 
be offered only in the order printed in the report, may be offered only 
by a Member designated in the report, shall be considered as read, 
shall be debatable for the time specified in the report equally divided 
and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, shall not be subject 
to amendment, and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the 
question in the House or in the Committee of the Whole. The rule waives 
all points of order against the amendments printed in part B of the 
Rules Committee report. Finally, the rule provides one motion to 
recommit with or without instructions. Testimony has heard from 
Chairman Sensenbrenner, Chairman Hoekstra and Representatives Flake, 
Shays, Berman, Nadler, Jackson-Lee, Waters, Harman, Hastings of 
Florida, Ruppersberger, Lowey, Sanders, Maloney and Baldwin.
HYDROGEN ECONOMY FUTURE
Committee on Science: Subcommittee on Energy and the Subcommittee on 
Research held a joint hearing on Fueling the Future: On the Road to the 
Hydrogen Economy. Testimony was heard from the following officials of 
the Department of Energy: Douglas Faulkner, Acting Assistant Secretary, 
Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy; and George Crabtree, 
Director, Materials Science Division, Argonne National Laboratory; and 
public witnesses.
FRAUD IN INCOME TAX RETURN PREPARATION
Committee on Ways and Means: Subcommittee on Oversight held a hearing 
on Fraud in Income Tax Return Preparation. Testimony was heard from the 
following officials of the IRS, Department of the Treasury: Nancy J. 
Jardini, Chief, Criminal Investigation; and Nina Olson, National 
Taxpayer Advocate; and pubic witnesses.