[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 1]
[Senate]
[Pages 156-157]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




            MAKING MINORITY PARTY APPOINTMENTS TO COMMITTEES

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I send a resolution to the desk.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the resolution by title.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A resolution (S. Res. 6) making minority party appointments 
     to certain Senate committees for the 109th Congress.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
resolution.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the resolution 
be agreed to.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The resolution (S. Res. 6) was agreed to, as follows:

                               S. Res. 6

       Resolved, That notwithstanding the provisions of rule XXV, 
     the following shall constitute the minority party's 
     membership on the following standing committees for the 109th 
     Congress, or until their successors are chosen:
       COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE, NUTRITION, AND FORESTRY: Mr. 
     Harkin (Ranking Member), Mr. Leahy, Mr. Conrad, Mr. Baucus, 
     Mrs. Lincoln, Ms. Stabenow, Mr. Nelson of Nebraska, Mr. 
     Dayton, and Mr. Salazar.
       COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS: Mr. Byrd (Ranking Member), Mr. 
     Inouye, Mr. Leahy, Mr. Harkin, Ms. Mikulski, Mr. Reid, Mr. 
     Kohl, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Dorgan, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Durbin, 
     Mr. Johnson, and Ms. Landrieu.
       COMMITTEE ON ARMED SERVICES: Mr. Levin (Ranking Member), 
     Mr. Kennedy, Mr. Byrd, Mr. Lieberman, Mr. Reed, Mr. Akaka, 
     Mr. Nelson of Florida, Mr. Nelson of Nebraska, Mr. Dayton, 
     Mr. Bayh, and Mrs. Clinton.
       COMMITTEE ON BANKING, HOUSING, AND URBAN AFFAIRS: Mr. 
     Sarbanes (Ranking Member), Mr. Dodd, Mr. Johnson, Mr. Reed, 
     Mr. Schumer, Mr. Bayh, Mr. Carper, Ms. Stabenow, and Mr. 
     Corzine.
       COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION: Mr. 
     Inouye (Ranking Member), Mr. Rockefeller, Mr. Kerry, Mr. 
     Dorgan, Mrs. Boxer, Mr. Nelson of Florida, Ms. Cantwell, Mr. 
     Lautenberg, Mr. Nelson of Nebraska, and Mr. Pryor.
       COMMITTEE ON ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES: Mr. Bingaman 
     (Ranking Member), Mr. Akaka, Mr. Dorgan, Mr. Wyden, Mr. 
     Johnson, Ms. Landrieu, Mrs. Feinstein, Ms. Cantwell, Mr. 
     Corzine, and Mr. Salazar.
       COMMITTEE ON ENVIRONMENT AND PUBLIC WORKS: Mr. Jeffords 
     (Ranking Member), Mr. Baucus, Mr. Lieberman, Mrs. Boxer, Mr. 
     Carper, Mrs. Clinton, Mr. Lautenberg, and Mr. Obama.
       COMMITTEE ON FINANCE: Mr. Baucus (Ranking Member), Mr. 
     Rockefeller, Mr. Conrad, Mr. Jeffords, Mr. Bingaman, Mr. 
     Kerry, Mrs. Lincoln, Mr. Wyden and Mr. Schumer.
       COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN RELATIONS: Mr. Biden (Ranking Member), 
     Mr. Sarbanes, Mr. Dodd, Mr. Kerry, Mr. Feingold, Mrs. Boxer, 
     Mr. Nelson of Florida, and Mr. Obama.
       COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, EDUCATION, LABOR, AND PENSIONS: Mr. 
     Kennedy (Ranking Member), Mr. Dodd, Mr. Harkin, Ms. Mikulski, 
     Mr. Jeffords, Mr. Bingaman, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Reed, and Mrs. 
     Clinton.
       COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS: 
     Mr. Lieberman (Ranking Member), Mr. Levin, Mr. Akaka, Mr. 
     Carper, Mr. Dayton, Mr. Lautenberg, and Mr. Pryor.
       COMMITTEE ON THE JUDICIARY: Mr. Leahy (Ranking Member), Mr. 
     Kennedy, Mr. Biden, Mr. Kohl, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Feingold, 
     Mr. Schumer, and Mr. Durbin.
       COMMITTEE ON RULES AND ADMINISTRATION: Mr. Dodd (Ranking 
     Member), Mr. Byrd, Mr. Inouye, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Schumer, 
     Mr. Dayton, Mr. Durbin and Mr. Nelson of Nebraska.
       COMMITTEE ON SMALL BUSINESS AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP: Mr. Kerry 
     (Ranking Member), Mr. Levin, Mr. Harkin, Mr. Lieberman, Ms. 
     Landrieu, Ms. Cantwell, Mr. Bayh, and Mr. Pryor.
       COMMITTEE ON VETERANS' AFFAIRS: Mr. Akaka (Ranking Member), 
     Mr. Rockefeller, Mr. Jeffords, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Obama and Mr. 
     Salazar.
       SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON AGING: Mr. Kohl (Ranking Member), Mr. 
     Jeffords, Mr. Feingold, Mr. Wyden, Mrs. Lincoln, Mr. Bayh, 
     Mr. Carper, Mr. Nelson of Florida, and Mrs. Clinton.
       COMMITTEE ON THE BUDGET: Mr. Conrad (Ranking Member), Mr. 
     Sarbanes, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Wyden, Mr. Feingold, Mr. Johnson, 
     Mr. Byrd, Mr. Nelson of Florida, Ms. Stabenow, and Mr. 
     Corzine.
       SELECT COMMITTEE ON ETHICS: Mr. Johnson (Vice Chairman), 
     Mr. Akaka, and Mr. Pryor.
       COMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS: Mr. Dorgan (Vice Chairman), 
     Mr. Inouye, Mr. Conrad, Mr. Akaka, Mr. Johnson, and Ms. 
     Cantwell.
       SELECT COMMITTEE ON INTELLIGENCE: Mr. Rockefeller (Vice 
     Chairman), Mr. Levin, Mrs. Feinstein, Mr. Wyden, Mr. Bayh, 
     Ms. Mikulski, and Mr. Corzine.
       JOINT ECONOMIC COMMITTEE: Mr. Reed, Mr. Kennedy, Mr. 
     Sarbanes, and Mr. Bingaman.

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote, and I move to 
lay that motion on the table.
  The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.


                             Funding Levels

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I want to engage my colleague, the 
distinguished majority leader, in a colloquy regarding committee 
funding. As the majority leader is aware, the current biennial funding 
authorization for committee funding expires on February 28. Normally, 
by now the Rules Committee has advised the committees of the budget 
assumptions for the next biennial period, March 1, 2005 through 
February 28, 2007, so that they may be preparing their committee 
authorizing resolutions for the next biennial funding period. However, 
the Rules committee is awaiting direction from the leadership. Based on 
conversations between the majority leader and myself, is the majority 
leader in a position to announce the funding and allocation assumptions 
for the next biennial committee funding period?
  Mr. FRIST. I am pleased to respond to the inquiry of the Democratic 
leader. The budget assumptions for the

[[Page 157]]

next committee funding biennial period, subject to appropriations, will 
be an across-the-board freeze budget, with salary baselines adjusted by 
COLAs of 3.71 percent in 2005, as approved by the President pro tempore 
this week; and 3.3 percent assumed for 2006 and 3.5 percent assumed for 
2007, although both the 2006 and 2007 actual COLA amounts remain 
subject to the approval of the President pro tempore.
  Mr. REID. Is it my understanding that such a freeze will result in 
aggregate funding levels, subject to appropriations, as follows: March 
1, 2005-September 30, 2005: $53,243,918; October 1, 2005-September 30, 
2006; $93,467,365; and October 1, 2006-February 28, 2007: $39,782,891, 
and that such funding levels include, but do not separately allocate, 
the additional 10 percent allocated to the committees in the 108th 
Congress?
  Mr. FRIST. That is correct. With regard to committee personnel salary 
allocations between the majority and minority staff, the Democratic 
leader and I have agreed to a 60-40 split of all personnel funds, after 
allocations for non-designated administrative and clerical staff are 
agreed to by the chairman and ranking member pursuant to Rule XXVII of 
the Standing Rules of the Senate. However, the chairman and ranking 
member of any committee may, by mutual agreement, modify the allocation 
of personnel funds. The division of committee office space shall be 
commensurate with this allocation agreement.
  Mr. REID. I thank the majority leader for his comments and assistance 
in reaching this agreement.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, if I could, if the distinguished acting 
leader would allow me to say a word, what we have just done has been 
something that is important for the institution. We want to show 
bipartisanship, and this has been very difficult. Briefly, because I 
know we have a joint session, let me say the chairmen and ranking 
members do yeoman's work around here. They work very hard.
  What has just been completed is a compromise. I appreciate the 
cooperation of Senator Frist and Senator McConnell, Senator Lott and 
Senator Dodd. We have worked hard to arrive at this point, and we have 
shown some bipartisanship. We on the Democratic side, and I think I can 
speak for some of my friends on the Republican side, hope that the 
money the committees are going to get to do their work is not all 
needed. We didn't use it all last time. I hope we don't need it this 
time. But at least we have a framework where we have divided the 
responsibilities of the Senate on a 60-40 basis. I believe that is 
fair. I hope never in the future of this institution, no matter what 
party is in control, will it ever change and be any lower.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I thank my colleague, the Democratic 
leader, as well. I am glad we were able to work this out.

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