[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 173 (Thursday, November 8, 2007)]
[House]
[Pages H13387-H13388]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




APPOINTMENT OF CONFEREES ON H.R. 3093, COMMERCE, JUSTICE, SCIENCE, AND 
               RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2008

  Mr. MOLLOHAN. Mr. Speaker, pursuant to clause 1 of rule XXII and by 
direction of the Committee on Appropriations, I move to take from the 
Speaker's table the bill (H.R. 3093) making appropriations for the 
Departments of Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies for the 
fiscal year ending September 30, 2008, and for other purposes, with a 
Senate amendment thereto, disagree to the Senate amendment, and agree 
to the conference asked by the Senate.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Snyder). The question is on the motion.
  The motion was agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.


            Motion To Instruct Offered by Mr. Frelinghuysen

  Mr. FRELINGHUYSEN. Mr. Speaker, I offer a motion to instruct 
conferees.
  The Clerk read as follows:

       Mr. Frelinghuysen moves that the managers on the part of 
     the House at the conference on the disagreeing votes of the 
     two Houses on the bill, H.R. 3093, be instructed to recede to 
     section 527 of the Senate amendment.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 7 of rule XXII, the 
gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Frelinghuysen) and the gentleman from 
West Virginia (Mr. Mollohan) each will control 30 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey.
  Mr. FRELINGHUYSEN. Mr. Speaker, this motion to instruct is 
straightforward. It instructs the House conferees to recede to the 
Senate on a provision in the Senate-passed bill that would prevent the 
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission from using funds to initiate 
civil action against an organization which requires its employees to 
speak English at work.
  This provision was motivated by a lawsuit filed earlier this year 
against the Salvation Army. In that particular case, the EEOC sued the 
Salvation Army over its policy that its employees speak English. The 
lawsuit sought hundreds of thousands of dollars in monetary and 
punitive damages.
  What is more troubling is that when you look at the history of this 
issue, you will find a Federal court ruling almost 4 years ago that 
upheld the Salvation Army's policy that employees speak English at 
work. You will also find that the Salvation Army gave the two employees 
a year to learn English before it took action to terminate them.
  The EEOC has an important mission, one which we all support.

                              {time}  2030

  The EEOC currently has a tremendous backlog of pending cases, 
approximately 46,000, a number that the Commission estimates will grow. 
At a time when the EEOC is struggling to fulfill its mission, cases 
like this lead one to questions about the Commission's ability to set 
priorities.
  By insisting on the Senate amendment, we are sending an important 
message to the EEOC that we expect them to prioritize their actions and 
work diligently to address the major discrimination issues facing the 
American workers.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption of the motion and reserve the balance of 
my time.
  Mr. MOLLOHAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to the amendment.
  Mr. Speaker, I agree with the gentleman that this amendment would 
send an important message to the EEOC, but I agree it's important for a 
different reason. I think it's important because I think it would be a 
perverse message.

[[Page H13388]]

  The United States Congress has, in previous years, passed legislation 
specifically granting to the EEOC authorization and responsibility to 
work on behalf of employees where they face discrimination in the 
workplace. That legislation anticipated an opening of a remedy for 
employees. This amendment would close a remedy for employees.
  These cases should be decided on their facts. If we were to adopt 
this motion and the conference were to include the amendment in its 
agreement, then the EEOC would not have an opportunity to look at the 
facts and represent employees pursuant thereto. Therefore, we do oppose 
the amendment.
  I want to point out that the court in this case upheld the decision 
and upheld the position of the employer in this case. That's well and 
good.
  What's important in that is that the court, through due process, 
decided the matter. That's the way the EEOC ought to operate, not 
through Congress in a motion to instruct conferees and in an 
appropriation conference, taking away what the Congress has already 
given jurisdiction in these cases.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. FRELINGHUYSEN. Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption of the motion.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. MOLLOHAN. Mr. Speaker, I urge in the strongest terms opposition 
to the motion.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Without objection, the previous question is 
ordered on the motion to instruct.
  There was no objection.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion to instruct.
  The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that 
the noes appeared to have it.
  Mr. FRELINGHUYSEN. 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 218, 
nays 186, not voting 28, as follows:

                            [Roll No. 1076]

                               YEAS--218

     Aderholt
     Akin
     Alexander
     Altmire
     Bachmann
     Bachus
     Baird
     Baker
     Barrett (SC)
     Barrow
     Bartlett (MD)
     Biggert
     Bilbray
     Bilirakis
     Bishop (GA)
     Blackburn
     Blunt
     Boehner
     Bonner
     Bono
     Boozman
     Boustany
     Brady (TX)
     Broun (GA)
     Brown (SC)
     Brown-Waite, Ginny
     Buchanan
     Burgess
     Burton (IN)
     Calvert
     Camp (MI)
     Campbell (CA)
     Cannon
     Cantor
     Capito
     Carnahan
     Carney
     Carter
     Castle
     Chabot
     Coble
     Cole (OK)
     Conaway
     Conyers
     Costello
     Culberson
     Cummings
     Davis (KY)
     Davis, David
     Davis, Lincoln
     Davis, Tom
     Deal (GA)
     Dent
     Donnelly
     Doolittle
     Drake
     Dreier
     Duncan
     Ehlers
     Ellsworth
     Emerson
     English (PA)
     Everett
     Fallin
     Feeney
     Ferguson
     Flake
     Forbes
     Fortenberry
     Fossella
     Foxx
     Franks (AZ)
     Frelinghuysen
     Gallegly
     Garrett (NJ)
     Gerlach
     Gilchrest
     Gillibrand
     Gingrey
     Gohmert
     Goode
     Goodlatte
     Graves
     Hall (TX)
     Harman
     Hastings (WA)
     Hayes
     Heller
     Hensarling
     Herger
     Herseth Sandlin
     Hill
     Hobson
     Hoekstra
     Hulshof
     Hunter
     Inglis (SC)
     Issa
     Johnson (IL)
     Johnson, Sam
     Jones (NC)
     Jordan
     Kagen
     Kanjorski
     Keller
     King (IA)
     King (NY)
     Kingston
     Kirk
     Kline (MN)
     Knollenberg
     Kuhl (NY)
     Lamborn
     Lampson
     Latham
     LaTourette
     Lewis (CA)
     Lewis (KY)
     Linder
     Lipinski
     LoBiondo
     Lucas
     Mack
     Manzullo
     Marchant
     Marshall
     Matheson
     McCarthy (CA)
     McCaul (TX)
     McCotter
     McCrery
     McHenry
     McHugh
     McIntyre
     McKeon
     McMorris Rodgers
     McNerney
     Meeks (NY)
     Melancon
     Mica
     Miller (FL)
     Miller (MI)
     Miller, Gary
     Mitchell
     Moran (KS)
     Murphy, Tim
     Musgrave
     Myrick
     Neugebauer
     Nunes
     Pearce
     Pence
     Peterson (MN)
     Peterson (PA)
     Petri
     Pickering
     Pitts
     Platts
     Poe
     Porter
     Price (GA)
     Pryce (OH)
     Putnam
     Ramstad
     Regula
     Rehberg
     Reichert
     Renzi
     Rogers (AL)
     Rogers (KY)
     Rogers (MI)
     Rohrabacher
     Roskam
     Ross
     Rothman
     Royce
     Ryan (WI)
     Sali
     Saxton
     Schmidt
     Sensenbrenner
     Sessions
     Shadegg
     Shays
     Shimkus
     Shuler
     Shuster
     Skelton
     Smith (NE)
     Smith (NJ)
     Smith (TX)
     Souder
     Space
     Spratt
     Stearns
     Sullivan
     Tancredo
     Taylor
     Terry
     Thornberry
     Tiahrt
     Tiberi
     Turner
     Upton
     Walberg
     Walden (OR)
     Walsh (NY)
     Wamp
     Weldon (FL)
     Weller
     Whitfield
     Wicker
     Wilson (NM)
     Wilson (OH)
     Wilson (SC)
     Wolf
     Young (AK)
     Young (FL)

                               NAYS--186

     Abercrombie
     Ackerman
     Allen
     Andrews
     Arcuri
     Baca
     Baldwin
     Barton (TX)
     Becerra
     Berkley
     Berman
     Berry
     Bishop (NY)
     Blumenauer
     Boswell
     Boucher
     Boyd (FL)
     Boyda (KS)
     Brady (PA)
     Braley (IA)
     Brown, Corrine
     Butterfield
     Capps
     Capuano
     Cardoza
     Castor
     Chandler
     Clarke
     Clay
     Cleaver
     Clyburn
     Cohen
     Cooper
     Costa
     Courtney
     Cramer
     Crowley
     Cuellar
     Davis (AL)
     Davis (CA)
     Davis (IL)
     DeFazio
     DeGette
     Delahunt
     DeLauro
     Diaz-Balart, L.
     Diaz-Balart, M.
     Dingell
     Doggett
     Edwards
     Ellison
     Emanuel
     Engel
     Eshoo
     Etheridge
     Farr
     Fattah
     Filner
     Frank (MA)
     Gonzalez
     Gordon
     Green, Al
     Green, Gene
     Grijalva
     Gutierrez
     Hall (NY)
     Hare
     Hastings (FL)
     Higgins
     Hinchey
     Hinojosa
     Hirono
     Hodes
     Holt
     Honda
     Hooley
     Hoyer
     Inslee
     Israel
     Jackson (IL)
     Jackson-Lee (TX)
     Jefferson
     Johnson (GA)
     Johnson, E. B.
     Jones (OH)
     Kaptur
     Kennedy
     Kildee
     Kilpatrick
     Kind
     Klein (FL)
     Kucinich
     Langevin
     Larsen (WA)
     Lee
     Lewis (GA)
     Loebsack
     Lofgren, Zoe
     Lowey
     Lynch
     Mahoney (FL)
     Maloney (NY)
     Markey
     Matsui
     McCarthy (NY)
     McCollum (MN)
     McDermott
     McGovern
     McNulty
     Meek (FL)
     Michaud
     Miller (NC)
     Miller, George
     Mollohan
     Moore (KS)
     Moore (WI)
     Murphy (CT)
     Murphy, Patrick
     Murtha
     Nadler
     Napolitano
     Neal (MA)
     Obey
     Olver
     Ortiz
     Pallone
     Pascrell
     Pastor
     Payne
     Perlmutter
     Pomeroy
     Price (NC)
     Rahall
     Rangel
     Reyes
     Richardson
     Rodriguez
     Ros-Lehtinen
     Roybal-Allard
     Ruppersberger
     Rush
     Ryan (OH)
     Salazar
     Sanchez, Linda T.
     Sanchez, Loretta
     Sarbanes
     Schakowsky
     Schiff
     Schwartz
     Scott (GA)
     Scott (VA)
     Serrano
     Sestak
     Shea-Porter
     Sherman
     Sires
     Slaughter
     Smith (WA)
     Snyder
     Solis
     Stark
     Stupak
     Sutton
     Tauscher
     Thompson (CA)
     Thompson (MS)
     Tierney
     Towns
     Tsongas
     Udall (CO)
     Udall (NM)
     Van Hollen
     Velazquez
     Visclosky
     Walz (MN)
     Wasserman Schultz
     Waters
     Watson
     Watt
     Waxman
     Weiner
     Welch (VT)
     Wexler
     Woolsey
     Wu
     Yarmuth

                             NOT VOTING--28

     Bean
     Bishop (UT)
     Boren
     Buyer
     Carson
     Crenshaw
     Cubin
     Dicks
     Doyle
     Giffords
     Granger
     Hastert
     Holden
     Jindal
     LaHood
     Lantos
     Larson (CT)
     Levin
     Lungren, Daniel E.
     Moran (VA)
     Oberstar
     Paul
     Radanovich
     Reynolds
     Simpson
     Tanner
     Westmoreland
     Wynn


                Announcement by the Speaker Pro Tempore

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (during the vote). Members are advised there 
are 2 minutes remaining on the vote.

                              {time}  2053

  Ms. CASTOR and Messrs. SESTAK, LYNCH, HODES and DeFAZIO changed their 
vote from ``yea'' to ``nay.''
  Messrs. McNERNEY, COSTELLO, COLE of Oklahoma, BAIRD and KAGEN changed 
their vote from ``nay'' to ``yea.''
  So the motion to instruct was agreed to.
  The result of the vote was announced as above recorded.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Without objection, the Chair appoints the 
following conferees:
  Messrs. Mollohan, Kennedy, Fattah, Ruppersberger, Schiff, Honda, Ms. 
DeLauro, Messrs. Price of North Carolina, Obey, Frelinghuysen, 
Culberson, Rogers of Kentucky, Latham, Aderholt and Lewis of 
California.
  There was no objection.

                          ____________________