[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 101 (Thursday, June 21, 2007)]
[Daily Digest]
[Pages D871-D874]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                                            Thursday, June 21, 2007

[[Page D871]]

                              Daily Digest


HIGHLIGHTS

      Senate passed H.R. 6, CLEAN Energy Act.
      The House passed H.R. 2764, making appropriations for the 
      Department of State, foreign operations, and related programs for 
      the fiscal year ending September 30, 2008.


                                 Senate


Chamber Action
Routine Proceedings, pages S8165-S8271
Measures Introduced: Ten bills and one resolution were introduced, as 
follows: S. 1672--1681, and S. Res. 248.
  Pages S8230-31
Measures Reported:
  S. Res. 225, designating the month of August 2007 as ``National 
Medicine Abuse Awareness Month''.
  S. Res. 230, designating the month of July 2007, as ``National Teen 
Safe Driver Month''.
  S. Res. 235, designating July 1, 2007, as ``National Boating Day''. 
                                                             Page S8230
Measures Passed:
  Clean Energy Act: By 65 yeas to 27 nays (Vote No. 226), Senate passed 
H.R. 6, to reduce our Nation's dependency on foreign oil by investing 
in clean, renewable, and alternative energy resources, promoting new 
emerging energy technologies, developing greater efficiency, and 
creating a Strategic Energy Efficiency and Renewables Reserve to invest 
in alternative energy, and after taking action on the following 
amendments proposed thereto:
  Pages S8166-S8221
Adopted:
  Stevens Modified Amendment No. 1792 (to Amendment No. 1502), to 
provide for corporate average fuel economy (CAFE) standards. 
                                                      Pages S8181-S8206
  Reid Amendment No. 1502, in the nature of a substitute.
Page S8166
  Bingaman Amendment No. 1639 (to Amendment No.1502), to make certain 
technical edits to title III.
Page S8206
  Bingaman Amendment No. 1677 (to Amendment No.1502), to improve the 
bill.
Pages S8206-07
  Bingaman Amendment No. 1798 (to Amendment No.1502), to make technical 
amendments.
Pages S8207-08
  Bingaman (for Cantwell) Amendment No. 1698 (to Amendment No.1502), to 
modify the definition of renewable biomass.
Page S8208
  Bingaman Modified Amendment No. 1568 (to Amendment No. 1502), to 
prevent supply disruptions from planned refinery outages.
Page S8208
  Bingaman (for Domenici) Amendment No. 1569 (to Amendment No.1502), to 
provide an alternate sulfur dioxide removal measurement for certain 
coal gasification project goals.
Pages S8208-09
  Bingaman (for Inouye) Modified Amendment No. 1597 (to Amendment 
No.1502), to propose a study of the adequacy of transportation of 
domestically-produced renewable fuel by railroads and other modes of 
transportation.
Page S8209
  Bingaman (for Dole/Carper) Amendment No. 1624 (to Amendment No.1502), 
to expand the scope of the applied research program on energy storage 
systems to include flow batteries.
Page S8209
  Bingaman (for Akaka) Modified Amendment No. 1764 (to Amendment 
No.1502), to promote the development and use of marine and hydrokinetic 
renewable energy technologies.
Page S8209
  Bingaman (for Boxer) Amendment No. 1799 (to Amendment No.1502), to 
reduce emissions of carbon dioxide from the Capitol power plant. 
                                                         Pages S8209-10
  Bingaman (for Inhofe) Amendment No. 1602 (to Amendment No.1502), to 
provide transitional assistance for farmers who plant dedicated energy 
crops for a local cellulosic refinery.
Page S8210
  Bingaman (for Inhofe/Clinton) Amendment No. 1660 (to Amendment 
No.1502), to modify sections to provide for the use of geothermal heat 
pumps.
Pages S8210-12

[[Page D872]]


  Bingaman (for Murkowski/Stevens) Modified Amendment No. 1513 (to 
Amendment No.1502), to amend the Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline Act to 
allow the Federal Coordinator for Alaska Natural Gas Transportation 
Projects to hire employees more efficiently.
Page S8212
  Bingaman (for Voinovich) Amendment No. 1683 (to Amendment No.1502), 
to implement the Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear 
Damage.
Pages S8212-14
  Bingaman Modified Amendment No. 1729 (to Amendment No.1502), to 
provide for the treatment of certain applications and requests. 
                                                             Page S8214
  Bingaman (for Menendez) Amendment No. 1675 (to Amendment No. 1502), 
to provide for a study on the effect of laws limiting the siting of 
privately owned electric distribution wires on the development of 
combined heat and power facilities.
Page S8214
  Bingaman (for Burr) Modified Amendment No. 1687 (to Amendment No. 
1502), to express the sense of Congress that the Department of Energy 
should be the lead United States Government agency in charge of 
formulating and coordinating the national energy security policy of the 
United States.
Page S8214
  Bingaman (for Burr) Amendment No. 1688 (to Amendment No. 1502), to 
require the President to submit to Congress an annual national energy 
security strategy report.
Pages S8214-15
  Bingaman (for Burr) Amendment No. 1689 (to Amendment No. 1502), to 
amend the National Security Act of 1947 to add the Secretary of Energy 
to the National Security Council in recognition of the role energy and 
energy security issues play in the United States national security. 
                                                             Page S8215
  Bingaman (for Sanders) Modified Amendment No. 1525 (to Amendment No. 
1502), to require that not less than 30 percent of the hot water demand 
for certain new or substantially modified Federal buildings be met 
through the installation and use of solar hot water heaters. 
                                                             Page S8215
  Bingaman/Domenici Modified Amendment No. 1567 (to Amendment No. 
1502), to require the Secretary of Energy to establish a program to 
evaluate the cost-effectiveness of installing advanced insulation into 
commercial refrigerated trailers, refrigerators, freezers, and 
refrigerator-freezers.
Page S8215
  Bingaman (for Carper) Amendment No. 1717 (to Amendment No. 1502), to 
require the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director of 
Minerals Management Service, to conduct a study to assess each offshore 
wind resource located in the region of the eastern outer Continental 
Shelf.
Page S8215
  Bingaman (for Feingold) Amendment No. 1710 (to Amendment No. 1502), 
to clarify the purposes of the energy and environmental block grant 
program.
Page S8215
  Bingaman (for Wyden) Modified Amendment No. 1759 (to Amendment No. 
1502), to provide for a national assessment of carbon sequestration and 
methane and nitrous oxide emissions from terrestrial ecosystems. 
                                                         Pages S8215-16
  Bingaman (for Cantwell) Modified Amendment No. 1797 (to Amendment No. 
1502), to modernize the electricity grid of the United States by 
catalyzing the production, use, and integration of technologies capable 
of communicating and recording valuable information relating to 
conditions of supply, consumer loads, and system performance. 
                                                         Pages S8216-17
  Bingaman (for Kohl) Modified Amendment No. 1595 (to Amendment No. 
1502), to provide a set-aside for small automobile manufacturers and 
component suppliers for awards under the advanced technology vehicles 
manufacturing incentive program.
Page S8219
  Bingaman (for Brown) Modified Amendment No. 1676 (to Amendment No. 
1502), to establish a renewable energy innovation partnership program 
to support the development, demonstration, and deployment of systems 
and projects relating to renewable energy.
Page S8219
  Bingaman (for Hutchison/Cornyn) Modified Amendment No.1679 (to 
Amendment No. 1502), to require the Secretary of Energy to enter into 
an arrangement with the National Academy of Sciences to assess the 
impact of the renewable fuel standard.
Page S8219
  Bingaman (for Collins) Modified Amendment No. 1615 (to Amendment No. 
1502), to provide for the development and coordination of a 
comprehensive and integrated United States research program that 
assists the people of the United States and the world to understand, 
assess, and predict human-induced and natural processes of abrupt 
climate change.
Page S8219
  Bingaman (for Cardin) Modified Amendment No. 1520 (to Amendment No. 
1502), to promote the energy independence of the United States. 
                                                         Pages S8219-20
  Bingaman (for Collins) Modified Amendment No. 1700 (to Amendment No. 
1502), to provide for research support to facilitate the development of 
sustainable markets and technologies to produce and use woody biomass 
and other low-carbon fuels.
Page S8220
  Bingaman (for Enzi) Amendment No. 1724 (to Amendment No. 1502), to 
modify the deadline by which the President is required to approve or 
disapprove a certain State petition.
Page S8220

[[Page D873]]


  Bingaman (for Snowe/Kerry) Amendment No. 1702 (to Amendment No. 
1502), to authorize loans for renewable energy systems and energy 
efficiency projects under the Express Loan Program of the Small 
Business Administration.
Page S8217
  Bingaman (for Kerry/Snowe) Modified Amendment No. 1706 (to Amendment 
No. 1502), to establish a small business energy efficiency program. 
                                                         Pages S8217-19
  During consideration of this measure today, the Senate also took the 
following action:
   By 38 yeas to 55 nays (Vote No. 222), three-fifths of those Senators 
duly chosen and sworn, not having voted in the affirmative, Senate 
rejected the motion to waive section 201 of S. Con. Res. 21, FY08 
Congressional Budget Resolution, with respect to Kyl/Lott Modified 
Amendment No. 1733 (to Amendment No. 1704), to provide a condition 
precedent for the effective date of the revenue raisers. Subsequently, 
the pay-as-you-go point of order that the amendment would cause or 
increase an on-budget deficit for either of the applicable time periods 
set out in S. Con. Res. 21, was sustained, and the amendment thus fell.
                                                         Pages S8166-75
   By 57 yeas to 36 nays (Vote No. 223), three-fifths of those Senators 
duly chosen and sworn, not having voted in the affirmative, Senate 
rejected the motion to close further debate on Baucus Amendment No. 
1704 (to Amendment No. 1502), to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 
1986 to provide or energy advancement and investment.
Pages S8175-76
   By 61 yeas to 32 nays (Vote No. 224), three-fifths of those Senators 
duly chosen and sworn, having voted in the affirmative, Senate agreed 
to the motion to close further debate on Reid Amendment No. 1502, in 
the nature of a substitute.
Page S8177
   By 62 yeas to 32 nays (Vote No. 225), three-fifths of those Senators 
duly chosen and sworn, having voted in the affirmative, Senate agreed 
to the motion to close further debate on the bill.
Pages S8220-21
  Chair sustained a point of order under Rule XXII, that the following 
amendments were not germane or were drafted improperly, and the 
amendments thus fell:
  Reid (for Bingaman) Amendment No. 1537 (to Amendment No. 1502), to 
provide for a renewable portfolio standard.
Page S8166
  Klobuchar (for Bingaman) Amendment No. 1573 (to Amendment No. 1537), 
to provide for a renewable portfolio standard.
Page S8166
  Bingaman (for Klobuchar) Amendment No. 1557 (to Amendment No. 1502), 
to establish a national greenhouse gas registry.
Page S8166
  Corker Amendment No. 1608 (to Amendment No. 1502), to allow clean 
fuels to meet the renewable fuel standard.
Page S8166
  Cardin Modified Amendment No. 1520 (to Amendment No. 1502), to 
promote the energy independence of the United States.
Page S8166
  Collins Amendment No. 1615 (to Amendment No. 1502), to provide for 
the development and coordination of a comprehensive and integrated 
United States research program that assists the people of the United 
States and the world to understand, assess, and predict human-induced 
and natural processes of abrupt climate change.
Page S8166
  Baucus Amendment No. 1704 (to Amendment No. 1502), to amend the 
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide or energy advancement and 
investment.
Page S8166
EMPLOYEE FREE CHOICE ACT/COMPREHENSIVE IMMIGRATION REFORM AGREEMENT: A 
unanimous-consent agreement was reached providing that at 11:30 a.m., 
on Tuesday, June 26, 2007, Senate resume consideration of the motion to 
proceed to consideration of H.R. 800, to amend the National Labor 
Relations Act to establish an efficient system to enable employees to 
form, join, or assist labor organizations, to provide for mandatory 
injunctions for unfair labor practices during organizing efforts, and 
vote on the motion to invoke cloture thereon; that if cloture is 
invoked the motion to proceed be agreed to and Senate vote immediately 
on the motion to invoke cloture on the motion to proceed to 
consideration of S. 1639, to provide for comprehensive immigration 
reform, and that if cloture is invoked the motion to proceed be agreed 
to; provided further, that if cloture is invoked on the motion to 
proceed to S. 1639, that it be in order, upon the disposition of all 
post-cloture debate time, for there to be 20 minutes equally divided, 
for debate only, on a motion to waive the Congressional Budget Act of 
1974 in response to a Budget point of order against the bill made by 
Senator Sessions, or his designee; and that on Wednesday, June 27, 
2007, if the Senate is considering S. 1639, Senator Sessions be 
recognized, for debate only, for up to two hours.
  Pages H8205-06
DIGITAL AND WIRELESS NETWORK TECHNOLOGY PROGRAM--REFERRAL AGREEEMENT: A 
unanimous-consent agreement was reached providing that the Committee on 
Health, Education, Labor and Pensions be discharged from further 
consideration of S. 1650, to establish a digital and wireless network 
technology program, and the bill be referred to the Committee on 
Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
  Page S8270
Removal of Injunction of Secrecy: The injunction of secrecy was removed 
from the following treaty:
  Tax Convention with Belgium (Treaty Doc. No. 110-3).

[[Page D874]]


  The treaty was transmitted to the Senate today, considered as having 
been read for the first time, and referred, with accompanying papers, 
to the Committee on Foreign Relations and ordered to be printed. 
                                                             Page S8270
Nominations Received: Senate received the following nominations:
  John J. Young, Jr., of Virginia, to be Under Secretary of Defense for 
Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics.
  Deborah Taylor Tate, of Tennessee, to be a Member of the Federal 
Communications Commission for a term of five years from July 1, 2007.
  Robert Clarke Brown, of Ohio, to be a Member of the Board of 
Directors of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority for a term 
expiring November 22, 2011.
  Clarence H. Albright, of South Carolina, to be Under Secretary of 
Energy.
  Ronald K. McMullen, of Iowa, to be Ambassador to the State of 
Eritrea.
  3 Air Force nominations in the rank of general.
Page S8271
Messages from the House:
  Page S8228
Measures Referred:
  Page S8228
Measures Placed on the Calendar:
  Page S8228, S8270
Measures Read the First Time:
  Pages S8228-29, S8271
Executive Communications:
  Page S8229
Petitions and Memorials:
  Page S8229
Additional Cosponsors:
  Pages S8231-34
Statements on Introduced Bills/Resolutions:
  Page S8234-42
Additional Statements:
  Pages S8225-28
Amendments Submitted:
  Pages S8242-69
Notices of Hearings/Meetings:
  Page S8269
Authorities for Committees to Meet:
  Pages S8269-70
Record Votes: Five record votes were taken today. (Total--226) 
                                       Pages S8175, S8176, S8177, S8221
Adjournment: Senate convened at 10:30 a.m. and adjourned at 11:51 p.m., 
until 10 a.m. on Friday, June 22, 2007. (For Senate's program, see the 
remarks of the Acting Majority Leader in today's Record on page S8271.)