[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 160 (Wednesday, December 14, 2005)]
[Daily Digest]
[Pages D1281-D1282]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                                            Wednesday, December 14, 2005

[[Page D1281]]

                              Daily Digest


HIGHLIGHTS

      The House agreed to the Conference Report to accompany H.R. 3199, USA 
      PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005.
      The House agreed to the Conference Report to accompany H.R. 3010, 
      Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and 
      Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2006.


                                 Senate

Chamber Action
Routine Proceedings, pages S13517-S13597
Measures Introduced: Nine bills and four resolutions were introduced, as 
follows: S. 2096-2104, S. Res. 331-333, and S. Con. Res. 69.
  Page S13570
Measures Passed:
  Honoring Former Governor Carroll A. Campbell: Senate agreed to S. Res. 
332, honoring the life of former Governor Carroll A. Campbell and expressing 
the deepest condolences of the Senate to his family.
  Page S13593
  Recognizing the Philippines: Senate agreed to S. Res. 333, recognizing the 
centennial of sustained immigration from the Philippines to the United 
States and acknowledging the contributions of our Filipino-American 
community to our country over the last century.
  Pages S13593-94
  Settlement Common Stock: Senate passed S. 449, to facilitate shareholder 
consideration of proposals to make Settlement Common Stock under the Alaska 
Native Claims Settlement Act available to missed enrollees, eligible elders, 
and eligible persons born after December 18, 1971.
  Page S13594
  Indian Land Contracts: Senate passed H.R. 327, to allow binding 
arbitration clauses to be included in all contracts affecting land within 
the Gila River Indian Community Reservation, clearing the measure for the 
President.
  Page S13594
Deficit Reduction Act--Motions to Instruct Conferees: Senate began 
consideration of the message from the House of Representatives to accompany 
S. 1932, to provide for reconciliation pursuant to section 202(a) of the 
concurrent resolution on the budget for fiscal year 2006 (H. Con. Res. 95), 
disagreeing to the amendment of the House, requesting a conference with the 
House thereon, and taking action on the following motions to instruct 
Conferees proposed thereto:
  Pages S13521-31
Adopted:
  By 64 yeas to 27 nays (Vote No. 351), Senate agreed to Carper Motion to 
Instruct Conferees to insist that any conference report shall not include 
the provision in the House amendment relating to the reauthorization of the 
Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Program, and insist that Congress 
enact free standing legislation that builds on the bipartisan Senate 
Committee on Finance's reported version of the Personal Responsibility and 
Individual Development for Everyone Act (the PRIDE Act, S. 667) to 
reauthorize the Nation's welfare-to-work laws.
Pages S13528-29
  By 75 yeas to 16 nays (Vote No. 352), Senate agreed to Baucus Motion to 
Instruct Conferees not report a conference report that would impair access 
to, undermine eligibility for, make unaffordable by increasing beneficiary 
cost-sharing, adversely affect Medicaid services, or in any way undermine 
Medicaid's Federal guarantee of health insurance coverage. 
                                                  Pages S13527-28, S13529-30
  By 66 yeas to 26 nays (Vote No. 353), Senate agreed to Harkin Motion to 
Instruct Conferees to insist that any conference report does not contain any 
cuts to Federal food assistance programs, including the food stamp program 
established under the Food Stamp Act of 1977 (7 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.). 
                                                     Pages S13527, S13530-31
Pending:
  DeWine Motion to Instruct Conferees to insist that any conference report 
shall not include the provisions contained in section 8701 of the House 
amendment relating to the repeal of section 754 of the Tariff Act of 1930. 
                                                             Pages S13522-23
  Kohl Motion to Instruct Conferees to insist that any conference report 
shall not include any of the provisions in the House amendment that reduce 
funding for the child support program established under part D of title IV 
of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 651 et seq.), and to insist that the 
conference report shall not include any restrictions on

[[Page D1282]]

the ability of States to use Federal child support incentive payments for 
child support program expenditures that are eligible for Federal matching 
payments.
Pages S13523-24
  Kennedy Motion to Instruct Conferees to insist that the Senate provisions 
increasing need based financial aid in the bill S. 1932, which were fully 
offset by savings in the bill S. 1932, be included in the final conference 
report and that the House provisions in the bill H.R. 4241 that impose new 
fees and costs on students in school and in repayment be rejected in the 
final conference report.
Pages S13536-37
  Reed Motion to Instruct Conferees to insist on a provision that makes 
available $2,920,000,000 for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Act of 
1981 (42 U.S.C. 8621 et seq.), in addition to the $2,183,000,000 made 
available for such Act in the Departments of Labor, Health, and Human 
Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2006. 
                                                             Pages S13544-46
  A unanimous-consent agreement was reached providing for further 
consideration of the message from the House to accompany S. 1932 (listed 
above) at 3:30 p.m., on Thursday, December 15, 2005, with a series of votes 
to occur on the pending motions to instruct Conferees.
Page S13594
USA PATRIOT Act--Conference Report: Senate began consideration of the 
conference report to accompany H.R. 3199, to extend and modify authorities 
needed to combat terrorism.
  Pages S13546-61
  A motion was entered to close further debate on the conference report and, 
in accordance with the provisions of rule XXII of the Standing Rules of the 
Senate, a vote on cloture will occur on Friday, December 16, 2005. 
                                                                 Page S13546
  A unanimous-consent-time agreement was reached providing for further 
consideration of the conference report on Thursday, December 15, 2005, with 
2 hours equally divided between the two Leaders or their designees. 
                                                                 Page S13594
Labor/HHS/Education Appropriations Conference Report--Agreement: A 
unanimous-consent-time agreement was reached providing for consideration of 
the conference report to accompany H.R. 3010, making appropriations for the 
Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related 
Agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2006, at 9 a.m., on 
Thursday, December 15, 2005; that following all debate time, the conference 
report be set aside with the vote on adoption to occur at a time to be 
determined.
  Page S13593
Nominations Received: Senate received the following nominations:
  Patrick Joseph Schiltz, of Minnesota, to be United States District Judge 
for the District of Minnesota.
  Jack Zouhary, of Ohio, to be United States District Judge for the Northern 
District of Ohio.
  Routine lists in the Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Foreign Service, Marine 
Corps, Navy.
Pages S13595-97
Nominations Discharged: The following nominations were discharged from 
further committee consideration and placed on the Executive Calendar:
  Stephanie Johnson Monroe, of Virginia, to be Assistant Secretary for Civil 
Rights, Department of Education, which was sent to the Senate on June 23, 
2005, from the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
  Donald A. Gambatesa, of Virginia, to be Inspector General, United States 
Agency for International Development, which was sent to the Senate on 
September 13, 2005, from the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs.
  Marilyn Ware, of Pennsylvania, to be Ambassador to Finland, which was sent 
to the Senate on October 26, 2005, from the Senate Committee on Foreign 
Relations.
Pages S13569-70, S13593
Messages From the House:
  Pages S13567-68
Measures Referred:
  Page S13568
Executive Communications:
  Pages S13568-69
Additional Cosponsors:
  Pages S13570-72
Statements on Introduced Bills/Resolutions:
  Pages S13572-92
Additional Statements:
  Pages S13566-67
Authorities for Committees to Meet:
  Page S13592
Privileges of the Floor:
  Pages S13592-93
Record Votes: Three record votes were taken today. (Total--353) 
                                                Pages S13529, S13530, S13531
Adjournment: Senate convened at 9:45 a.m., and adjourned at 7:59 p.m., until 
9 a.m., on Thursday, December 15, 2005. (For Senate's program, see the 
remarks of the Acting Majority Leader in today's Record on page S13594-95.)