D 550

Thursday, May 4, 1995

Daily Digest

Senate

Chamber Action

Routine Proceedings, pages S6131–S6191

Measures Introduced: Four bills and one resolution

were introduced, as follows: S. 757–760, and S. Con.

Res. 12. Pages S6168–69

Measures Reported: Reports were made as follows:

S. 184, to establish an Office for Rare Disease Research in the National Institutes of Health. (S. Rept.

No. 104–79) Page S6168

Product Liability Fairness Act: Senate continued

consideration of H.R. 956, to establish legal standards and procedures for product liability litigation,

taking action on amendments proposed thereto, as

follows: Pages S6148–59

Adopted:

By 60 yeas to 39 nays (Vote No. 149), Kyl Amendment No. 681 (to Amendment No. 596), to

make improvements concerning alternative dispute

resolution. Page S6154

Rejected:

(1) Abraham Amendment No. 600 (to Amendment No. 596), to provide for proportionate liability

for noneconomic damages in all civil actions whose

subject matter affects commerce. (By 51 yeas to 48

nays (Vote No. 148), Senate tabled the amendment.)

 Pages S6153–54

(2) Hollings Amendment No. 682 (to Amend- ment No. 596), to provide for product liability insurance reporting. (By 56 yeas to 43 nays (Vote No.

150), Senate tabled the amendment.) Pages S6154–55

Pending:

Gorton Amendment No. 596, in the nature of a

substitute. Pages S6148–55

During consideration of this measure today, Senate

also took the following action:

By 46 yeas to 53 nays (Vote No. 151), three-fifths

of those Senators duly chosen and sworn not having

voted in the affirmative, Senate failed to agree to

close further debate on Gorton Amendment No.

596, listed above. Page S6155

By 47 yeas to 52 nays (Vote No. 152), three-fifths

of those Senators duly chosen and sworn not having

voted in the affirmative, Senate failed to agree to

close further debate on Gorton Amendment No.

596, listed above. Pages S6158–59

Senate will resume consideration of the bill on

Friday, May 5, 1995.

Nominations Received: Senate received the following nominations:

Andre M. Davis, of Maryland, to be United States

District Judge for the District of Maryland.

Catherine C. Blake, of Maryland, to be United

States District Judge for the District of Maryland.

Herbert F. Collins, of Massachusetts, to be a

Member of the Thrift Depositor Protection Oversight Board for a term of three years.

43 Army nominations in the rank of General.

 Page S6191

Communications: Page S6168

Statements on Introduced Bills: Pages S6169–81

Additional Cosponsors: Page S6181

Amendments Submitted: Pages S6182–83

Notices of Hearings: Page S6183

Authority for Committees: Page S6183

Additional Statements: Pages S6183–89

Record Votes: Five record votes were taken today. (Total—152) Pages S6154–55, S6158–59

Recess: Senate convened at 9:30 a.m., and recessed

at 6:13 p.m., until 10 a.m., on Friday, May 5, 1995.

(For Senate’s program, see the remarks of the Majority Leader in today’s RECORD on page S6189.)

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet)

APPROPRIATIONS—FOREIGN ASSISTANCE

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Foreign

Operations held hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 1996 for foreign assistance programs, focusing on multilateral development banks,

receiving testimony from Robert E. Rubin, Secretary

of the Treasury.

Subcommittee will meet again on Thursday, May

11.
May 4, 1995 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — DAILY DIGEST D 551

APPROPRIATIONS—COAST GUARD

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Transportation held hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 1996 for the United States

Coast Guard, receiving testimony from Adm. Robert

E. Kramek, Commandant, United States Coast

Guard, Department of Transportation. Subcommittee will meet again on Thursday, May

11.

APPROPRIATIONS—POSTAL SERVICE/OMB

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Treasury, Postal Service, and General Government held

hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year

1996, receiving testimony in behalf of funds for

their respective activities from Alice M. Rivlin, Director, Office of Management and Budget; and

Marvin T. Runyon, Postmaster General, United

States Postal Service.

Subcommittee will meet again on Thursday, May

18.

AUTHORIZATIONS—DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Committee held open and

closed hearings on S. 727, authorizing funds for fiscal year 1996 for military activities of the Department of Defense and the Future Years Defense Program, focusing on the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization, receiving testimony from Lt. Gen. Malcolm R. O’Neill, USA, Director, and Adm. John T.

Hood, both of the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization; and Sidney Graybeal, Science Applications

International Corporation, and William R. Graham,

both of McLean, Virginia. Hearings were recessed subject to call.

FEDERAL HOUSING ADMINISTRATION

REFORM

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs:

Subcommittee on Housing Opportunity and Community Development concluded hearings to examine

the mission of the Federal Housing Administration

(FHA), focusing on the Department of Housing and

Urban Development’s proposal to reform the structure, programs, and accountability of the FHA, after

receiving testimony from Nicolas P. Retsinas, Assistant Secretary for Housing—Federal Housing Commissioner, Department of Housing and Urban Development; and Stephen Moore, CATO Institute, and

G. Richard Dunnells, Holland and Knight, both of

Washington, D.C.

MEDICARE SOLVENCY

Committee on the Budget: Committee concluded hearings to examine solvency in the Medicare Program,

focusing on proposals to reform the Medicare system

in an effort to ensure future health care benefits for

the elderly, after receiving testimony from Donna E.

Shalala, Secretary of Health and Human Services;

June E. O’Neill, Director, Congressional Budget Office; and Henry J. Aaron, The Brookings Institution,

Washington, D.C.

COMPUTER AND COMMUNICATIONS

TECHNOLOGIES

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Science, Technology, and Space held

oversight hearings on the Office of Science and

Technology Policy’s High-Performance Computing

and Communications Program, focusing on the

World Wide Web interactive computer technology,

receiving testimony from John Toole, Director, National Coordination Office, High Performance Computing and Communications, Office of Science and

Technology Policy (Bethesda, Maryland); Richard

Gowen, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, Rapid City; Steven Running, University of

Montana, Missoula; and Bill Burrall, Moundsville

Junior High, Moundsville, West Virginia. Hearings were recessed subject to call.

SUPERFUND REFORM

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on Superfund, Waste Control, and Risk

Assessment resumed oversight hearings on the implementation of the Comprehensive Environmental

Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (P.L.

102–426), receiving testimony from Robert W.

Varney, New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services, Concord, on behalf of the National

Governor’s Association; James C. Colman, Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, Boston, on behalf of the Association of State and Territorial Solid Waste Management Officials; Russell J.

Harding, Michigan Department of Natural Resources, Detroit; Jonathan B. Howes, North Carolina

Department of Environment, Health and Natural

Resources, on behalf of the National Academy of

Public Administrators; David R. Tripp, Stinson,

Mag and Fizzell, Wichita, Kansas; Karen Florini,

Environmental Defense Fund, and Kent Jeffreys, National Center for Policy Analysis, both of Washington, D.C.; and Velma Dunn, Phoenix, Arizona.

Hearings continue on Tuesday, May 9.

VACCINES FOR CHILDREN

Committee on Finance: Committee concluded hearings

to examine the implementation and progress of the

Vaccine For Children (VFC) Entitlement Program,

focusing on barriers to immunization and the impact

of the VFC on immunization rates, after receiving

testimony from Kwai-Cheung Chan, Director for

Program Evaluation in Physical Systems Areas, General Accounting Office; David Satcher, Director,
D 552 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — DAILY DIGEST May 4, 1995

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Department of Health and Human Services (Atlanta, Georgia); Lloyd F. Novick, New York State Department

of Health, Albany; Irwin E. Redlener, Children’s

Health Fund, New York, New York; F. E. Thompson, Mississippi State Department of Health, Jackson; and David L. Wood, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, California.

ORGAN TRANSPLANTATION IN CHINA

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded

hearings to examine China’s use of executed prisoners’ body organs for transplantation, after receiving

testimony from Harry Wu, Laogai Research Foundation, Milipitas, California; David J. Rothman, Columbia University, and Bill Schulz, Amnesty International USA, both of New York, New York; Mike

Jendrzejczyk, Human Rights Watch/Asia, Washington, D.C.; and Pei Qi Gao, London, England.

NAVY SHIP PROCUREMENT

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations resumed hearings to examine waste and mismanagement in the United

States Navy ship procurement system, focusing on a

1985 contract known as the Navy T–AO Kaiser

Class Oiler Contract, in which the Navy never received two ships, receiving testimony from Steven S.

Honigman, General Counsel, Ronald Kiss, Deputy

Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and Harold V. Hanson, Contracting Officer, Naval Sea Systems Command, all of the Department of the Navy; William

R. Boyles, Jr., Tampa Shipyards, Inc., Tampa, Florida; and Thomas C. Weller, Jr. and Ronald J. Stevens, both of Mobile, Alabama.

Hearings were recessed subject to call.

NOMINATIONS

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded

hearings on the nominations of Mary Beck Briscoe,

of Kansas, to be United States Circuit Judge for the

Tenth Circuit; Peter C. Economus, to be United

States District Judge for the Northern District of

Ohio; John Garvan Murtha, to be United States District Judge for the District of Vermont; and George

A. O’Toole, to be United States District Judge for

the District of Massachusetts, after the nominees testified and answered questions in their own behalf.

Ms. Briscoe was introduced by Senators Dole and

Kassebaum, Mr. Economus was introduced by Senator Glenn, Mr. Murtha was introduced by Senators

Jeffords and Leahy, and Mr. O’Toole was introduced

by Senators Kennedy and Kerry.

COUNTER-TERRORISM

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Terrorism, Technology, and Government Information concluded hearings on S. 390, to improve the ability of

the United States to respond to the international terrorism threat, and S. 735, to prevent and punish acts

of terrorism, after receiving testimony from Senator

Smith; Philip C. Wilcox, Jr., Coordinator for

Counter-Terrorism, Department of State; Paul W.

Virtue, Deputy General Counsel, Immigration and

Naturalization Service, and Teresa Wynn

Roseborough, Deputy Assistant Attorney General,

Office of Legal Counsel, both of the Department of

Justice; and Khalil E. Jahshan, National Association

of Arab Americans, Sean Mc Manus, Irish National

Caucus, David Cole, Georgetown University Law

Center, Gregory T. Nojeim, American Civil Liberties

Union, and Robert S. Rifkind, American Jewish

Committee, all of Washington, D.C.

PRIMARY HEALTH CARE SERVICES

Committee on Labor and Human Resources: Committee

concluded hearings on proposed legislation to authorize funds for the Public Health Service’s Community and Migrant Health Center programs, the

Health Care for the Homeless Program, and the

Health Services for Residents of Public Housing Program, focusing on the Administration’s proposal to

consolidate the programs in an effort to provide

more efficient and effective health care for the underprivileged, after receiving testimony from Ciro V.

Sumaya, Administrator, and Marilyn H. Gaston, Director, both of the Health Resources and Services

Administration, Public Health Service, Department

of Health and Human Services (Rockville, Maryland); Mark V. Nadel, Associate Director, Health Financing and Policy Issues, Health, Education, and

Human Services Division, General Accounting Office; John M. Silva, Family Health Care Centers, St.

Louis, Missouri; Richard J. Morrissey, Kansas Department of Health and the Environment, Topeka;

and Debra Singletary, Delmarva Rural Ministries,

Dover, Delaware.