Date: 1982-07-20
Speaker: ROBERT C. BYRD (democrat)
Chamber: S

I thank the Chair. Mr. President. what I am saying does not go to the substance of the amendment itself. I could vote for or against the amendment. standing alone. I do not know. I would have to study it. What I am saying goes to the Senate as an institution and to the budget process and to the counittee system. If we are going to use this deviceand I do not say this in any way derogatorily of the Committee on Finance or of any Senator who sought to include this language in the billbut if we are going to use this process in this way. then every committee of the Senate. every standing committee of the Senate. should understand that the budget process can be utilized to undermine the committee system and to rob every committee of its jurisdiction over any subject matter that appropriately comes within the jurisdition of that committee. All that Is needed is that the Committee on Finance. in carrying out the reconciliation instructions of the budget resolution. include in its reconciliation instructions. language that involves matters under the jurisdiction of any other committee. So I can say that this ought to be a matter of concern to the Senator from Vermont . chairman of the Committee on Environment and Public Works. It is a matter that ought to be of con6ern to Mr. DOLE. chairman of the Committee on Finance. It is a matter that ought to be concern to Mr. PERCY. chairman of the Committee on Foreign Relations. It is a matter that ought to be of concern to Mr. Rorn. who is chairman of the Governmental Affairs Committee. to Mr. TruRMoND. chairman of the Committee on the Judiciary. to Mr. HATCH. chairman of the Committ.9 on Labor and Human Resources. to Mr. MATHIras. chairman of the Committee on Rules and Administration. and to the chairmen of all other standing committees. It ought to be a matter of concern to the ranking minority members of those committees. As a matter of fact. it ought to be a matter of concern to the chairmen of every subcommittee of every standing committee in the Senate. because if this approach can be taken and can succeed. then we might as well do away with the committee and subcommittee system in the Senate. because no longer can committees be sure that they. and they alone. will have jurisdiction over the subject matter that is set forth and assigned to them in rule XXV of the Standing Rules of the Senatethe subject matter that appropriately comes within their juris. diction. So I approach this because I am deeply concerned that the budget process here is being used in a way that will undermine the committee system and in a way that will under. mine the institution. because. after all. the Senate operates basically on the committee system. The committees of the Senate are minilegislaturesthey are small legislative bodies acting within the overall aegis of the full committees. I think we do a serious injury to the committee system and we do a serious injury to the budget process when we uste the budget process to include authorizing legislation that otherwise would come before the Senate. that otherwise would not be subject to the time limitations and rule of germaneness governing this bill. and that also subverts the institution itself. I say to the majority that the minority never did this. I can see in it the seeds of destruction of the committee system and. ultimately. the seeds of destruction of the budget process - itself. I hope that some way can be found here to remove this language from this bill. and it is for that purpose that I have offered the motion to recommit the bill with instructions that it be reported back forthwith. with title IV deleted. If the Senate does not do that. I say to the majority. in the utmost spirit of goodwill. that we are sowing the seeds of destruction of the budget reform process and of the committee system. We are undermining the institution. We are giving too much power to the budget process. and when we give that power to that process. we take it away from the ordinary process to which the Senate has been accustomed for so many decades. We are sowing the wind that will reap the whirlwind. I implore my colleagues to vote for this motion to recommit. If the motion to recommit fails. at such time as the Senate reaches title IV. I will make a point of order against that title. on the basis that it violates paragraph 5 of rule XV of the Standing Rules of the Senate and that it goes beyond the intent of the rule. because no Senate committee can report any amendment which contains any significant matter not within the jurisdiction of the committee proposing such amendment. This language is not within the Jurisdiction of the Finance Committee to report. and if the Senate upholds this approach today then the Finance Committee has a perfect right. in my judgment. to claim jurisdiction in the future over this subject matter which at this moment appropriately comes within the jurisdiction of the Commerce Committee and is so stated in rule XXV of the Standing Rules of the Senate to come within the jurisdiction of the Commerce Committee. So. Mr. President. this is a very. very serious matter. and I would hope that the chairmen of the committees who are on the other side of the asle would view it as being very serious because I tell you. Mr. President. the majority is not always going to be on that side of the aisle. In time. the majority will again be on this side of the aisle and if the majority today bends the intent of the rule. circumvents the intent of the rule. undermines the budget process. undermines the.committee system. then todays majority which tomorrow will be in the minority will have ample time to regret the action that It is taking today. Of course. the majority today can make the minority bend to the majoritys will. But the majority of yesterday did not use the budget process in this way. If the budget process is going to be used in this way. let me say here and now that the minority of today will some day be in the majority and I do not want to see this process undermined by either party. whichever party happens to be in the majority. because the institution is at stake. the committee system is at stake. the budget reform process is at stake. the reconciliation process Is at stake. and if we are going to commit mayhem on all of these processes today just to get this title IV enacted we will have done a tremendous disservice to the committee system. to the budget reform process. to the Senate itself and it will be a disservice that we all will come to regret. I yield the floor.