[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 110 (Monday, July 29, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5997-S5998]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


               Transportation and Housing Appropriations

  Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, I want to notify all of our colleagues 
that Senator Collins and I have been working together with many of our 
colleagues on amendments to the transportation and housing bill over 
the past week. I want to be very clear--that work is continuing. The 
majority leader has made clear that we are going to keep working on 
amendments

[[Page S5998]]

on that bill, so everybody should be prepared for more votes.
  I urge all of my colleagues to continue talking to me and to Senator 
Collins, and we will keep working to get as many amendments as 
possible.
  Many of you have approached us already with your plans and thoughts. 
I urge the rest of you not to wait until the last minute. Senator 
Collins and I are working with the floor staff to line up votes.
  I know everyone is anxious to have the August recess occur. We are as 
well. The sooner we can get the amendments and get this bill completed, 
the sooner all of us will be able to accomplish that.
  I know a number of our colleagues on the floor have noted that this 
has been an open process. That is what Senator Collins and I set out to 
do, and we are going to make sure that continues.
  This is a bipartisan bill. I will remind all of us that it got 6 
Republican votes in committee and 73 votes to proceed to the open 
debate we have had this past week. That debate, again, is going to 
continue. I am hopeful we can move to a bipartisan finish on a good 
bill that reflects great ideas from both sides of the aisle.
  I again want to thank Senator Collins for her work on this, and we 
are ready to move forward.
  I yield the floor to her at this time.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Maine.
  Ms. COLLINS. Thank you, Madam President.
  Colleagues, as the chairman of our subcommittee, Senator Murray, has 
pointed out, we are continuing to work through the amendments that have 
been filed on this bill.
  I do not think I need to remind any of our colleagues on either side 
of the aisle that the August recess is fast approaching and the Senate 
will have to wrap up its work on this bill before we adjourn.
  So I would say to my colleagues, if you have good ideas or even not 
so good ideas about this bill, we urge you to come to the floor and 
file your amendment and do so as soon as possible.
  As Chairman Murray has pointed out, there has been an open amendment 
process. We have disposed of some amendments; a couple through rollcall 
votes, a few others through unanimous consent. But we could have done a 
lot more last week had people been willing to come to the floor and 
allow us to proceed to amendments that were filed.
  I also want to highlight a letter the Appropriations Committee has 
received from more than 2,420 national, State, and local organizations, 
and State and local government officials in support of the funding that 
is in the programs that are included in this important bill. This is an 
important bill. It is a bill that will help us rebuild our crumbling 
infrastructure. It is a bill that helps us meet the housing needs of 
homeless veterans, of disabled senior citizens, of very low-income 
families. It is a bill that will help the private sector create 
thousands of new jobs at a time when our economy needs them--in fact, 
hundreds of thousands of new jobs.
  It is not surprising to me that so many organizations are lending 
their voices in support of this bill. I want to read one quote from the 
letter from these organizations. The letter notes that:

       Through these investments, Congress supports small business 
     job creation, expands our nation's infrastructure capacity, 
     supports economic recovery and growth, reduces homelessness 
     and housing hardships, and promotes lasting community and 
     family economic success.

  I think that is a very good description of the purpose and the 
programs in this bill.
  One of the programs in this bill that is extremely popular and has 
been used very well to promote economic development and community 
reinvestment in my State is the funding for the Community Development 
Block Grant Program. That is an area where our bill differs greatly 
from the House bill.
  I want to point out that tomorrow the House of Representatives is 
expected to consider its version of the fiscal year 2014 Transportation 
and Housing and Urban Development appropriations bill. Think about 
this. If we pass our bill, they pass their bill, we could actually 
proceed to a conference committee and work out the differences between 
our respective bills. The differences are marked. I do not minimize the 
differences in terms of priorities and funding, but that is what 
Congress is all about.
  If we do pass our bill and the House proceeds to pass its version of 
the T-HUD appropriations bill, we will be the first but I hope not the 
only fiscal year 2014 spending bill that is ready for conference, goes 
to conference, and I hope becomes law.
  Finally, let me say, I recognize the Senate bill is not perfect, 
despite the heroic efforts Senator Murray and I made in committee and 
the input and insight from our colleagues that are incorporated into 
this bill. But it is a good-faith bipartisan effort that attempts to 
strike the right balance between fiscal responsibility and our Nation's 
infrastructure and housing needs.
  I am confident the bill that would come back from conference would 
be, frankly, at a lower spending level, which I and many on my side of 
the aisle want to see. But I was encouraged by the Senate's vote last 
week of 73 to 26 to allow the Senate to proceed to this bill. I know we 
can make improvements. That is what the amendment process is all about.
  Again, I want to second what our chairman has said and encourage our 
colleagues to get their amendments filed and to work with both of us so 
we can proceed to wrap up this work session on a high note of passing, 
on time, an individual appropriations bill. I am willing to work hard 
over the recess to conference the two bills, to get going on that. I 
know the chairman is as well.
  I want to thank the chairman and my staff and her staff also for 
working so hard.
  Mrs. MURRAY. Madam President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The assistant bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. LEAHY. I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call 
be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. LEAHY. Madam President, what is the parliamentary situation?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The nomination of Mr. Comey to be the FBI 
Director.