[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 118 (Thursday, July 17, 2008)]
[House]
[Pages H6710-H6711]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM

  (Mr. BLUNT asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. BLUNT. I would like to ask my friend, the majority leader, to 
give us an update on what he plans to bring to the floor next week.
  I would yield.
  Mr. HOYER. I thank the Republican whip for yielding. On Monday, the 
House will meet in pro forma session at 12:30 p.m.
  On Tuesday, the House will meet at 12:30 p.m. for morning hour and 2 
p.m. for legislative business with votes postponed until 6:30 p.m.
  On Wednesday and Thursday, the House will meet at 10 a.m. for 
legislative business. On Friday the House will meet at 9 a.m. for 
legislative business.
  We will consider several bills under suspension of the rules. A 
complete list of suspensions will be announced by the close of business 
tomorrow.
  In addition, we will consider H.R. 3999, the National Highway Bridge 
Reconstruction and Inspection Act and H.R. 5501 the Tom Lantos and 
Henry J. Hyde United States Global Leadership Against HIV/AIDS, 
Tuberculosis, and Malaria Reauthorization Act of 2008.
  We will also consider legislation to address the housing crisis, H.R. 
3221, the American Housing Rescue and Foreclosure Prevention Act of 
2008. Finally, we may also consider additional energy-related 
legislation.
  Mr. BLUNT. On the topic of additional energy-related legislation, I 
know we just had a bill on the floor on energy. It was a heated debate. 
And while a majority voted for the bill, it didn't pass. I wonder if 
there is any opportunity that bill might come back next week with a 
rule.
  Mr. HOYER. We have not discussed that yet. We regret it, of course, 
that it didn't pass. But having said that, I'm sure there will be 
discussions as to what the next steps will be. But I am not prepared to 
announce what they will be, mainly because I'm not sure what they will 
be at this point in time. But we are still very interested in the 
proposition, as you know, that that legislation spoke to, and that is 
providing an accelerated exploration, discovery and exploitation of our 
energy here in the United States, drilling in the National Petroleum 
Reserve in Alaska, building a line to get not only the oil, but also 
natural gas down to the lower 48, and to ensure that companies aren't 
inventorying property on which either they or others might be producing 
energy for America.
  So we believe the provisions of that bill are important. And I would 
think that we're going to be looking at ways in which we may move 
forward on that. But it has not been decided.
  Mr. BLUNT. I thank the gentleman for that. As you mentioned, there is 
lots of interest in the bill. I appreciate the fact that we were able 
to extend debate, even on a suspension bill. But I think this is a 
topic where certainly both sides evidenced a willingness to discuss it. 
And we need to do that. And I would hope to see more energy legislation 
on the floor and would hope to have it under a rule if that is at all 
possible.
  On appropriations, last week I mentioned that the chairman, the 
appropriations chairman, had appeared to announce that there would be 
no appropriations work on the floor. Your comment at the time, if I 
recall, was that that had not been a decision that you and the other 
leaders had made yet.
  Today, the Speaker announced that the House would consider the 
Defense bill before October. I'm wondering if you have any idea when 
that might happen and if there is a chance that

[[Page H6711]]

the five other bills that are out of committee could also get to the 
floor before October, and what could happen with the Interior bill 
which would obviously be the most important bill as it relates to this 
topic of energy that we just discussed.
  I would yield.
  Mr. HOYER. I thank the gentleman for yielding.
  I agree with the Speaker that it is our intention to move the Defense 
bill. We think that is critically important to do. We think it's 
critically important to move the other bills as well.
  I was having a discussion with the chairman of the Appropriations 
Committee during the last vote. I asked him about his discussions with 
Mr. Lewis to try to facilitate the consideration of appropriation 
bills. My belief is that they hadn't made as much progress as he had 
hoped to make, but with relation to the other bills, I will just 
reiterate what I have said, that I continue to talk to Mr. Obey about 
my hope that we can find a way to move appropriation bills to the floor 
if that is possible. But we have not gotten any scheduled at this 
point. We do intend to move certainly the Defense bill. The Speaker was 
accurate on that.
  Mr. BLUNT. I thank the gentleman for that. And the Defense bill 
certainly is critical, as all these bills are. And obviously I share 
the sense that it's a primary responsibility of the Federal Government 
to defend the country. But the Homeland Security bill, the Military 
Construction and Veterans bill also are particularly important 
components of that very element of what we do, and other bills that are 
out such as the Financial Services bill, all the discussions we're 
having and will have about housing over the next few days, but another 
bill where if we knew that the regulators were funded and how they were 
funded and the other things that happened, that is a helpful thing to 
know.
  I think that is all the questions I have for today, and I would yield 
back.

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