[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 52 (Thursday, March 26, 2009)]
[Daily Digest]
[Pages D328-D329]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




[[Page D328]]




                        House of Representatives


Chamber Action
Public Bills and Resolutions Introduced: 47 public bills, H.R. 1726-
1772; 1 private bill, H.R. 1773; and 7 resolutions, H. Con. Res. 83-84; 
and H. Res. 288, 290-293 were introduced.                
  Pages H4061-63
Additional Cosponsors:                                   
  Pages H4063-64
Reports Filed: Reports were filed today as follows:
  H.R. 1171, to amend title 38, United States Code, to reauthorize the 
Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program for fiscal years 2010 through 
2014, with amendments (H. Rept. 111-54);
  H.R. 1377, to amend title 38, United States Code, to expand veteran 
eligibility for reimbursement by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs for 
emergency treatment furnished in a non-Department facility, with an 
amendment (H. Rept. 111-55);
  H.R. 1513, to increase, effective as of December 1, 2009, the rates 
of disability compensation for veterans with service-connected 
disabilities and the rates of dependency and indemnity compensation for 
survivors of certain service-connected disabled veterans (H. Rept. 111-
56); and
  H. Res. 289, waiving a requirement of clause 6(a) of rule XIII with 
respect to consideration of certain resolutions reported from the 
Committee on Rules (H. Rept. 111-57).                    
Pages H4060-61
Chaplain: The prayer was offered by the Guest Chaplain, Reverend Gary 
Shaw, Central Christian Center, Joplin, Missouri.            
  Page H4029
Federal Land Assistance, Management and Enhancement Act: The House 
passed H.R. 1404, to authorize a supplemental funding source for 
catastrophic emergency wildland fire suppression activities on 
Department of the Interior and National Forest System lands and to 
require the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Agriculture 
to develop a cohesive wildland fire management strategy, by a recorded 
vote of 412 ayes to 3 noes, Roll No. 162.                
  Pages H4031-44
Accepted:
  Rahall amendment (No. 1 printed in H. Rept. 111-52) that strikes from 
the bill the Sense of Congress language on the designation of Flame 
Fund appropriations as emergency spending;               
Pages H4032-33
  Polis amendment (No. 3 printed in H. Rept. 111-52) that requires 
revisions of the cohesive wildland fire management strategy at least 
once every five years;                                   
Pages H4033-34
  Hastings (WA) amendment (No. 5 printed in H. Rept. 111-52) that 
requires the review of certain wildfires specified in the bill to 
include an assessment of what actions, if any, could have been taken in 
advance of the fire that may have prevented the fire or at least 
reduced the severity of the fire;                        
Pages H4034-35
  Hastings (WA) amendment (No. 6 printed in H. Rept. 111-52) that 
requires the review of certain wildfires specified in the bill to 
include an assessment of the quantity of greenhouse gases produced as a 
result of the fire;                                          
Page H4035
  Heinrich amendment (No. 7 printed in H. Rept. 111-52) that requires 
the cohesive wildland fire management strategy required in the bill to 
include among its elements a system to assess the impacts of climate 
change on the frequency and severity of wildland fire;   
Pages H4035-36
  Lujan amendment (No. 9 printed in H. Rept. 111-52) that requires the 
cohesive wildland fire management strategy required in the bill to 
include among its elements a system to study the effects of invasive 
species on wildland fire risk. Adds to the list of eligible uses for 
cost-share grants provided for in the bill implementation of fire-
safety programs focused on the eradication or control of invasive 
species;                                                 
Pages H4036-37
  Rahall amendment (No. 10 printed in H. Rept. 111-52) that requires 
the cohesive wildland fire management strategy required in the bill to 
include among its elements a plan, developed in coordination with the 
National Guard Bureau, to maximize the use of National Guard resources 
to fight wildfires;                                      
Pages H4037-38
  Perlmutter amendment (No. 2 printed in H. Rept. 111-52) that 
clarifies that authorized suppression activities for the Flame Fund 
include containment activities in response to crisis insect 
infestations to reduce the likelihood of wildfires (by a recorded vote 
of 420 ayes with none voting ``no'', Roll No. 157); 
                                                  Pages H4033, H4040-41
  Hastings (WA) amendment (No. 4 printed in H. Rept. 111-52) that 
requires advance notice, in writing, to adjacent landowners whenever 
the Department of Agriculture sets a prescribed fire on National Forest 
System land (by a recorded vote of 420 ayes with none voting ``no'', 
Roll No. 158);                                       
Pages H4034, H4041
  Minnick amendment (No. 8 printed in H. Rept. 111-52) that requires 
that the Secretaries, in considering severity of and threat posed by a 
fire for the purposes of determining whether to declare that a wildland 
fire suppression activity is eligible for funding from the Flame Fund, 
take into account areas where insect infestation has created an extreme 
risk

[[Page D329]]

for wildfire (by a recorded vote of 422 ayes with none voting ``no'', 
Roll No. 159); and                                
Pages H4036, H4041-42
  Kirkpatrick (AZ) amendment (No. 12 printed in H. Rept. 111-52) that 
amends the definition of ``fire-ready community'' in the bill to 
provide that a community satisfies the definition if it is located 
within a priority area identified by the fire risk maps required by the 
bill, and meets two of the other four criteria listed in the bill for 
``fire-ready communities'' (by a recorded vote of 418 ayes to 2 noes, 
Roll No. 160).                                    
Pages H4038, H4042-43
Rejected:
  Goodlatte amendment (No. 13 printed in H. Rept. 111-52) that sought 
to authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to enter into contracts or 
cooperative agreements with a State Forester to prepare and implement 
``good neighbor'' projects on National Forest System land to complement 
any similar project being performed on bordering or adjacent non-
Federal land. Would have provided that the decision to proceed with a 
good neighbor project is in the Secretary's sole discretion. Defined 
good neighbor projects to include certain fuels reduction projects (by 
a recorded vote of 148 ayes to 272 noes, Roll No. 161). 
                                                  Pages H4038-40, H4043
  Agreed that the Clerk be authorized to make technical and conforming 
changes to reflect the actions of the House.                 
Page H4045
  H. Res. 281, the rule providing for consideration of the bill, was 
agreed to on Wednesday, March 25th.
Meeting Hour: Agreed that when the House adjourns today, it adjourn to 
meet at 12:30 p.m. on Monday, March 30th for morning hour debate. 
                                                             Page H4046
Quorum Calls--Votes: Six recorded votes developed during the 
proceedings of today and appear on pages H4040-41, H4041, H4042, H4042-
43, H4043 and H4044. There were no quorum calls.
Adjournment: The House met at 10 a.m. and adjourned at 3:01 p.m.