[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 38 (Thursday, March 6, 2008)]
[Daily Digest]
[Pages D240-D241]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                                            Thursday, March 6, 2008

[[Page D240]]

                              Daily Digest


HIGHLIGHTS

      Senate passed S. 2663, Consumer Product Safety Modernization Act.

                                 Senate


Chamber Action
Routine Proceedings, pages S1661-S1718
Measures Introduced: Eight bills and two resolutions were introduced, 
as follows: S. 2723-2730, S. Res. 475, and S. Con. Res. 69. 
                                                             Page S1703
Measures Passed:
  Consumer Product Safety Modernization Act: By 79 yeas and 13 nays 
(Vote No. 41), Senate passed H.R. 4040, to establish consumer product 
safety standards and other safety requirements for children's products 
and to reauthorize and modernize the Consumer Product Safety 
Commission, after striking all after the enacting clause and inserting 
in lieu thereof, the text of S. 2663, Senate companion measure, as 
amended.
  Pages S1669-97
Consumer Product Safety Commission Reform Act: Senate continued 
consideration of S. 2663, to reform the Consumer Product Safety 
Commission to provide greater protection for children's products, to 
improve the screening of noncompliant consumer products, to improve the 
effectiveness of consumer product recall programs, taking action on the 
following amendments proposed thereto:
  Pages S1669-97
Adopted:
  Pryor (for Feinstein) Amendment No. 4104, to prohibit the 
manufacture, sale, or distribution in commerce of certain children's 
products and child care articles that contain specified phthalates. 
                                                     Pages S1669, S1693
  Pryor (for Klobuchar) Amendment No. 4088, to authorize the Commission 
by rule to exempt lead crystal from the ban on lead in children's 
products if the Commission determines that the lead content is not 
absorbable and does not have an adverse impact on public safety. 
                                                         Pages S1693-94
  Pryor (for Dodd) Modified Amendment No. 4092, to encourage and ensure 
the use of safe equestrian helmets.
Pages S1693-94
  Pryor (for McCaskill) Amendment No. 4101, to revise the section on 
Inspector General reports.
Pages S1693-94
  Pryor (for Boxer) Amendment No. 4112, to clarify the requirement to 
include cautionary statements on advertisements.
Pages S1693-94
  Pryor (for Landrieu) Amendment No. 4120, to authorize the Consumer 
Product Safety Commission to identify and validate alternative 
technologies for the facilitation of recalls of durable infant or 
toddler products.
Pages S1693, S1694-95
  Pryor (for Collins) Amendment No. 4123, to provide that Federal 
employees shall be limited to the remedies available under chapters 12 
and 23 of title 5, United States Code, for any violation of the 
whistleblower provisions.
Pages S1693, S1695
  Pryor (for Klobuchar) Amendment No. 4128, to revise the inaccessible 
component rule for children's products.
Pages S1693, S1695
  Pryor (for Nelson (FL)/Klobuchar) Modified Amendment No. 4130, to 
require the Consumer Product Safety Commission to promulgate consumer 
product safety rules with respect to durable infant or toddler products 
and to improve provisions related to registration of such products. 
                                                  Pages S1682-93, S1695
  Pryor (for Obama/Cardin) Amendment No. 4113, to clarify and expand 
requirements with respect to information in recall notices. 
                                                     Pages S1693, S1695
  Pryor (for Obama) Amendment No. 4114, to require the Comptroller 
General of the United States conduct a study and report on the 
effectiveness of authorities relating to the safety of imported 
consumer products.
Pages S1693, S1695-96
  Pryor (for Durbin/Hatch) Amendment No. 4141, to modify the automatic 
residential garage door operators standards requirements. 
                                                     Pages S1693, S1696
  Pryor (for Inouye) Amendment No. 4136, of a perfecting nature. 
                                                     Pages S1693, S1696
  Pryor (for Inouye) Amendment No. 4137, to modify the scope of 
products to which section 15(b) applies.
Pages S1693, S1696

[[Page D241]]


  Pryor (for Inouye) Amendment No. 4138, to revise the section 
requiring a study of preventable injuries and deaths of minority 
children related to certain consumer products.
Pages S1693, S1696
  Pryor (for Snowe) Amendment No. 4143, to ensure that the Commission 
appropriately addresses impacts on small businesses of the revised 
civil penalties provisions.
Pages S1693, S1696
  Pryor (for Kyl) Modified Amendment No. 4116, to provide that 
attorney-client privileged information shall retain the same 
protections that would apply in private civil litigation if private 
counsel is retained to pursue an enforcement action authorized under 
this Act.
Pages S1693, S1696
  Pryor (for Kyl) Modified Amendment No. 4118, to require a court to 
review the reasonableness of fees paid to private counsel retained in 
an enforcement action that is authorized under this Act. 
                                                     Pages S1693, S1696
  Pryor Amendment No. 4090, of a technical nature.
Pages S1669, S1693
  Cardin Amendment No. 4103, to require the Consumer Product Safety 
Commission to develop training standards for product safety inspectors.
                                                     Pages S1669, S1693
  Dorgan Amendment No. 4098, to ban the importation of toys made by 
companies that have a persistent pattern of violating consumer product 
safety standards.
Pages S1669, S1693
  Pryor (for Casey) Modified Amendment No. 4109, to require the 
Consumer Product Safety Commission to study the use of formaldehyde in 
the manufacturing of textiles and apparel articles and to prescribe 
consumer product safety standards with respect to such articles. 
                                                     Pages S1669, S1693
  Pryor (for Cornyn) Modified Amendment No. 4108, to provide 
appropriate procedures for individual actions by whistleblowers, to 
provide for the appropriate assessment of costs and expenses in 
whistleblower cases.
Pages S1669, S1693, S1696
Rejected:
  Vitter Amendment No. 4097, to allow the prevailing party in certain 
civil actions related to consumer product safety rules to recover 
attorney fees. (By 56 yeas and 39 nays (Vote No. 40), Senate tabled the 
amendment).
Pages S1669-71
Withdrawn:
  Dorgan Amendment No. 4122, to strike the provision allowing the 
Commission to certify a proprietary laboratory for third party testing.
                                                             Page S1669
  DeMint Amendment No. 4124, to strike section 31, relating to garage 
door opener standards.
Page S1669
  Brown/Casey Amendment No. 4132, to authorize the temporary refusal of 
admission into the customs territory of the United States of consumer 
products manufactured by companies that have violated consumer product 
safety rules.
Pages S1679-82
  During consideration of this measure today, Senate also took the 
following action:
  The motion to invoke cloture on the bill was withdrawn.
Page S1694
  Subsequently, S. 2663 was returned to the Senate calendar. 
                                                             Page S1694
  Iowa State University of Science and Technology: Senate agreed to S. 
Res. 475, congratulating Iowa State University of Science and 
Technology on its 150 years of leadership and service to the United 
States and the world as Iowa's land-grant university.
  Pages S1716-17
Nomination Confirmed: Senate confirmed the following nomination:
  Hector E. Morales, of Texas, to be Permanent Representative of the 
United States of America to the Organization of American States, with 
the rank of Ambassador.
Page S1718
Messages from the House:
  Page S1702
Measures Referred:
  Page S1702
Measures Placed on the Calendar:
  Pages S1661-62, S1702-03
Measures Read the First Time:
  Pages S1703, S1717-18
Executive Reports of Committees:
  Page S1703
Additional Cosponsors:
  Pages S1703-05
Statements on Introduced Bills/Resolutions:
  Pages S1705-12
Additional Statements:
  Pages S1701-02
Amendments Submitted:
  Pages S1712-16
Authorities for Committees to Meet:
  Page S1716
Record Votes: Two record votes were taken today. (Total--41) 
                                                     Pages S1671, S1697
Adjournment: Senate convened at 9:30 a.m. and adjourned at 6:00 p.m., 
until 10:00 a.m. on Friday, March 7, 2008. (For Senate's program, see 
the remarks of the Majority Leader in today's Record on page S1718.)