[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 146 (2000), Part 16]
[Senate]
[Pages 23791-23792]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                       WORK OF THE 106TH CONGRESS

  Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, time has been reserved for two or three 
other Senators. We are checking to see if they are going to make it 
this afternoon.
  While we are waiting on that, I do want to put in the Record a report 
of some of the things that have happened in the Senate.
  There are those who are complaining that the Senate has not been 
doing its business. In fact, I have about four pages of legislation 
that has been passed over the past 2 years, but I want to read the list 
of things that have passed since Labor Day alone. I am not going to 
read them all. When the assertion is made the Senate has not been doing 
serious work, this belies that and makes it clear we have been doing 
very important and serious work.
  For instance, we have already repealed the telephone excise tax, a 
tax that was put on temporarily to help pay for the Spanish-American 
War. That was a part of one of the bills we passed a week or so ago. 
That has been repealed.
  We passed the Safe Drug Reimportation Act as part of one of the bills 
that passed last week.
  We passed permanent normal trade relations with China, legislation I 
am sure most people would describe as important trade legislation, 
whether they disagreed or agreed with it.
  We passed the H-1B visa bill which certainly has a very important 
effect on small businesses and high-tech industries in the United 
States, as well as other bills related to children's health, breast and 
cervical cancer prevention, rural schools and community self-
determination, and Aimee's law wherein a State can require or use law 
enforcement funds in relation to the release of a convict who commits a 
crime in another State. That information can be provided to the other 
State.
  The Violence Against Women Act was passed; victims of terrorism 
legislation; the Water Resources Development Act, including the very 
important Everglades provisions. We passed portions of the conservation 
bill called CARA, and perhaps even more of it will pass before we 
leave. We passed the intelligence authorization bill; the NASA 
authorization bill; and the Department of Defense authorization bill 
just last week, very important legislation for the future of our 
military men and women, not only in terms of their readiness and 
modernization of their equipment, but also a pay raise of 4.8 percent 
for our military men and women, and the strongest health care package 
for our military men and women, their families, and our retirees in the 
history of the country.
  In addition, we have passed seven appropriations conference bills. 
There have been questions about the tax bill. I do not think there is 
any big secret about it. All you have to do is look at bills that have 
passed the House or the Senate or the Finance Committee, and you will 
see that there is the community renewal legislation, which has the 
support of the President, the Speaker of the House, and a number of 
Senators. There has been an expectation that it would be done in some 
form before we leave; the very important improvements in pensions and 
IRAs, as well as 401(k)s, so that a greater amount can be put into 
these IRAs and 401(k)s.
  Then, since we have not been able to overcome objections from some of 
the Senators--I think Senator Wellstone, Senator Kennedy, and maybe 
others--the small business tax relief package, which is attached to the 
minimum wage, would be something that we want to get done before we 
leave here.
  Finally--certainly not least--I have tried to move, several times, 
the Foreign Sales Corporation legislation reported overwhelmingly by 
the Finance Committee--very important for our ability to do business in 
the trade area with Europe. We have not been able to clear it from an 
objection.
  So the expectation is that several of these bills that have broad 
bipartisan support would be joined together and passed before we leave 
at the end of the session. So I want the Record to reflect a portion of 
what has been done since Labor Day--not exactly an inactive period of 
time.
  Mr. President, so that this will be made a part of the Record, I ask 
unanimous consent that my entire list be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

    Legislation Cleared by Congress, Signed Into Law or Enroute to 
               President's Signature Just Since Labor Day

       Telephone Excise Tax Repeal (to fund Spanish-American War).
       Safe Drug Re-Importation Act.
       Permanent Normal Trade Relations with China.
       H1-B Visas.
       Children's Health Act.

[[Page 23792]]

       Breast & Cervical Cancer Prevention and Treatment Act.
       Internet Alcohol.
       TREAD bill.
       Rural Schools and Community Self-Determination Act.
       Strengthening Abuse and Neglect Courts Act.
       Intercountry Adoption Act.
       Aimee's Law (state can lose law enforcement funds if 
     release convict early who commits crime in another state).
       Violence Against Women Act.
       Sex Trafficking.
       Victims of Terrorism.
       Water Resources Development Act (including the Everglades).
       CARA provisions of Interior.
       Wildland Fire Management (part of Interior).
       Intelligence Authorization.
       NASA Authorization.
       DOD Authorization (including help for workers at nuclear 
     plants like Paducah, KY).
       Appropriations: Interior Conference Report; Transportation 
     Conference Report; Energy & Water Conference Report Post-Veto 
     Bill; Treasury/Postal Conference Report; Legislative Branch 
     Conference Report; VA/HUD Senate Bill (may face conference 
     with House).
       3 Continuing resolutions.


                        Final Week Expectations

       Restoration of payments to medicare providers so seniors--
     especially in rural areas--will continue to have a choice of 
     medicare plans.
       Appropriations remaining: Agriculture Conference Report; DC 
     Conference Report; Labor/HHS; Foreign Operations; Commerce/
     State/Justice.

                          ____________________