```

[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 79 (Friday, May 12, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H4900-H4901]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

                          LEGISLATIVE PROGRAM

  (Mr. GEPHARDT asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. GEPHARDT. Mr. Speaker, I yield to the distinguished gentleman 
from Texas [Mr. Armey] for the purpose of discussing the schedule for 
next week.
  Mr. ARMEY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Missouri for 
yielding.
  Mr. Speaker, on Monday, May 15, the House will meet at 12 p.m. for 
legislative business. We will consider three bills under suspension of 
the rules: a resolution expressing the sense of the House that Japan 
should immediately eliminate barriers to United States exports on autos 
and auto parts.
  Mr. Speaker, let me just mention with respect to this bill, out of 
consideration for the gentleman from Michigan [Mr. Levin], it is 
possible that this may not be considered until Tuesday. We will see if 
we can work that out.
  We will continue then on Monday with H.R. 1045, legislation 
eliminating the National Education Standards and Improvement Council, 
and H.R. 1266, the Greens Creek Land Exchange Act of 1995.

                              {time}  1300

  We then plan to take up the rules for three hatchery bills: H.R. 614, 
the New London National Fish Hatchery Conveyance; H.R. 584, the 
Fairport National Fish Hatchery Conveyance; and H.R. 535, the Corning 
National Fish Hatchery conveyance.
  Mr. Speaker, if any recorded votes are ordered, they will not take 
place before 5 p.m. on Monday evening.
  We then plan to return to debate on amendments to H.R. 961, the Clean 
Water Amendments Act of 1995.
  On Tuesday the House will meet at 10 a.m. to consider one bill under 
suspension of the rules.
  Mr. Speaker, that bill is H.R. 1590, legislation requiring the 
trustees of the Medicare trust fund to report recommendations on 
resolving the projected financial insolvency of the trust funds.
  We then plan to continue consideration of amendments for the clean 
water legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, it is our hope and our intention that we will be able to 
complete the clean water legislation on Tuesday, and we will continue 
working between the majority and minority floor managers with those 
people who have amendments to see what arrangements we can make to 
assure completion within that timeframe and still give it as much 
consideration as possible to the Members. But it is our hope and I 
think with some confidence I can say our intention to complete the bill 
in that time.
  That will make it possible, Mr. Speaker, on Wednesday for the House 
to meet at 10 a.m. and consider the three hatchery bills made in order 
under the rules adopted on Monday. We will then begin general debate on 
the fiscal year 1996 budget resolution. Members should be advised that 
the House may work late on Wednesday evening.
  On Thursday the House will meet at 9 a.m. We plan to recess 
immediately to honor former Members of Congress, and then reconvene at 
10 a.m. to return to debate and consideration of substitutes to the 
committee-passed fiscal year 1996 budget resolution.
  It is our hope to have Members on their way home to their families 
and their districts by approximately 6:30 p.m. on Thursday night.
  There will be no votes on Friday, May 19.
  I thank the gentleman for yielding.
  Mr. GEPHARDT. I would like to ask the distinguished majority leader a 
couple of questions. First, do you expect votes on Monday night on 
clean water amendments?
  Mr. ARMEY. No. We can have some of the debate, but we expect no votes 
on the Clean Water Act on Monday night.
  Mr. GEPHARDT. Second, I would like to ask if we could reserve the 
time between say 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. on Monday for special orders, 
instead of recessing.
  Mr. ARMEY. I do not believe we can make this agreement at this point 
because we have suspensions we must look at.
  Mr. GEPHARDT. Finally, in looking at the schedule, it appears that we 
are talking about a 4-hour period for debate on the budget. And I must 
say to the distinguished majority leader that there is a lot of desire 
I am sure on both sides of the aisle to adequately debate this very 
important budget, and the changes that are being proposed by many 
Members in the budget, and I would like to ask if we could perhaps see 
more time for debate in this period that you have set out.
  Mr. ARMEY. I do appreciate the gentleman's point. The Committee on 
Rules has not issued a rule on debate for the budget, and I am sorry I 
cannot report on how much time will be made available, and I know there 
are discussions taking place on that.
  Mr. GEPHARDT. I would just say to the gentleman that we had been 
hoping for more like 14 hours of general debate. This is a very 
important document for the future of the country, and people deserve to 
know exactly what the alternatives are and how they would work and 
allow for adequate debate, so I urge the Committee on Rules to take 
that under consideration. I know these hatchery bills are probably 
important somewhere, but probably more important and especially to a 
bass fisherman of such renown as the majority leader, but maybe we 
could get to the budget a little faster and have more time to use.
  Mr. ARMEY. Again let me say I do appreciate that. It is a point 
perhaps you want to communicate to the Committee on Rules, and I would 
certainly be willing to do the same. This is a very important piece of 
legislation. I know those members of the Joint Economic Committee that 
generally conduct what is know as the Humphrey-Hawkins debate have 
expressed their concern, and we will continue to encourage the 
Committee on Rules.
  Mr. GEPHARDT. I yield to the gentleman from Louisiana.
  Mr. TAUZIN. I thank the minority leader for yielding. I suppose the 
question I want to ask is in terms of Monday night's treatment of the 
current bill we are on, the Clean Water Act, I understand there will be 
no votes Monday night, but will there be debate on amendments, and how 
long will we go Monday night, do you expect?
  Mr. ARMEY. Again I thank the gentleman. The debate that we have 
Monday night will be on the Boehlert amendments. We would probably, 
possibly debate for as much as an hour or an hour and one-half. One of 
the things we are going to be very sensitive to is there be some time 
retained so that there will be closing comments made before the vote is 
taken on the next day.
  Any Members that wish to participate in that debate on the Boehlert 
amendment should be advised, though, that their best opportunity to do 
so would be Monday evening, because we do have a real resolve to 
complete the bill on Tuesday, and, therefore, between
 the floor managers there may be a need to do some time arrangements 
for Tuesday. So if you are anxious to be a part of that debate relative 
to wetlands that is known as the Boehlert amendment, I would encourage 
you to be here Monday night.

  Mr. GEPHARDT. I yield to the gentleman from California.
  Mr. MINETA. I thank the leader for yielding. I was just going to ask 
relative to the debate, then we would still 
[[Page H4901]] have all of Monday without any limitation, is that what 
I hear? How long do you anticipate that we would then be going on 
Monday?
  Mr. ARMEY. Monday evening.
  Mr. MINETA. No set time?
  Mr. ARMEY. No, there would be no set time. Of course, participation 
is determined by the number of Members here. We would obviously like to 
get as much of that debate out of the way while still retaining some 
opportunity for the principals to have some statements before the end 
of debate.
  Mr. MINETA. I would also like to ask, the Pennsylvania primary or I 
guess Philadelphia city elections are on Tuesday, and there have been 
some comments from our colleagues in the Philadelphia area about that. 
So if they are not able to be back for Monday night's general debate, 
would they still be able to do general debate or at least make some 
statements on Tuesday?
  Mr. ARMEY. We would try to accommodate that. Of course as you know 
the reason we have determined not to have votes Monday night is out of 
consideration for those folks. Certainly we will talk to them. And of 
course the sponsor of the amendment would want to have some comments 
prior to the vote on Tuesday and perhaps one or two others, so we will 
try to be as accommodating as possible.
  Mr. GEPHARDT. I yield to the gentleman from Texas.
  Mr. DOGGETT. I thank the gentleman for yielding, and I would ask the 
distinguished majority leader, I am troubled to hear of even the 
possibility that this budget might get as little as 4 hours of time. It 
has been described as a revolutionary budget, and I know as one of I 
guess what would be the chief revolutionaries you would have some 
concern about explaining it fully, and that is barely 1 hour for $100 
billion of Medicare cuts, and I would hope you would work with the 
Committee on Rules so that we could have a full and complete debate 
extending over at least a couple of days to explore what this budget 
means for ordinary American families.
  Mr. ARMEY. Let me just say I thank the gentleman from Texas for that 
observation, and as I said to the gentleman from Missouri, we will work 
with the Committee on Rules to get as full a debate as we can.
  Mr. DOGGETT. I thank the gentleman.
  Mr. GEPHARDT. I thank the gentleman.
  

                          ____________________
```