expanded Earned Income Tax Credit is now worth about $1,800 a year to a family of four living on $20,000. The budget bill I vetoed would have reversed this achievement and raised taxes on nearly 8 million of these people. We should not do that. We should not do that. But I also agree that the people who are helped under this initiative are not all those in our country who are working hard to do a good job raising their children and that work. I agree that we need a tax credit for working families with children. That's one of the things most of us in this Chamber, I hope, can agree on. I know it is strongly supported by the Republican majority, and it should be part of any final budget agreement. I want to challenge every business that can possibly afford it to provide pensions for your employees, and I challenge Congress to pass a proposal recommended by the White House Conference on Small Business that would make it easier for small businesses and farmers to establish their own pension plans. That is something we should all agree on. 2140 We should also protect existing pension plans. Two years ago, with bipartisan support, it was almost unanimous on both sides of the aisle, we moved to protect the pensions of 8 million working people and to stabilize the pension of 32 million more. Congress should not now let companies endanger those workers' pension funds. I know the proposal to liberalize the ability of employers to take money out of the pension funds for other purposes would raise money for the Treasury, but I believe it is false economy. I vetoed that proposal last year, and I would have to do so again. Finally, if our working families are going to succeed in the new economy, they must be able to buy health insurance policies that they do not lose when they change jobs or when someone in their family gets sick. Over the past two years, over 1 million Americans in working families have lost their health insurance. We have to do more to make health care available to every American, and Congress should start by passing the bipartisan bill sponsored by Senator KENNEDY and Senator KASSEBAUM that would require insurance companies to stop dropping people when they switch jobs and stop denying coverage for preexisting conditions. Let's all do that. And even as we enact savings in these programs, we must have a common commitment to preserve the basic protections of Medicare and Medicaid, not just to the poor, but to people in working families, including children, people with disabilities, people with AIDS, senior citizens in nursing homes. In the past three years, we have saved $15 billion just by fighting health care fraud and abuse. We have all agreed to save much more. We have all agreed to stabilize the Medicare Trust Fund, but we must not abandon our fundamental obligations to the people who need Medicare and Medicaid. America cannot become stronger if they become weaker. The GI Bill for Workers, tax relief for education and child-rearing, pension availability and protection, access to health care, preservation of Medicare and Medicaid, these things, along with the Family and Medical Leave Act passed in 1993, these things will help responsible, hard-working American families to make the most of their own lives. But employers and employees must do their part as well, as they are doing in so many of our finest companies: working together, putting the longterm prosperity ahead of the shortterm gain. As workers increase their hours and their productivity, employers should make sure they get the skills they need and share the benefits of the good years as well as the burdens of the bad ones. When companies and workers work as a team, they do better, and so does America. Our fourth great challenge is to take our streets back from crime and gangs and drugs. At last we have begun to find a way to reduce crime, forming community partnerships with local police forces to catch criminals and prevent crime. This strategy, called community policing, is clearly working. Violent crime is coming down all across America. In New York City, murders are down 25 percent; in St. Louis, 18 percent; and in Seattle, 32 percent. But we still have a long way to go before our streets are safe and our people are free from fear. The Crime Bill of 1994 is critical to the success of community policing. It provides funds for 100,000 new police in communities of all sizes. We are already a third of the way there, and I challenge the Congress to finish the job. Let us stick with a strategy that is working and keep the crime rate coming down. Community policing also requires bonds of trust between citizens and police. I ask all Americans to respect and support our law enforcement officers. and to our police I say, our children need you as role models and heroes. Don't let them down. The Brady Bill has already stopped 44,000 people with criminal records from buying guns. The assault weapons ban is keeping 19 kinds of assault weapons out of the hands of violent gangs. I challenge the Congress to keep those laws on the books. Our next step in the fight against crime is to take on gangs the way we once took on the mob. I am directing the FBI and other investigative agencies to target gangs that involve juveniles and violent crime, and to seek authority to prosecute as adults teenagers who maim and kill like adults. And I challenge local housing authorities and tenant associations: Criminal gang members and drug dealers are destroying the lives of decent tenants. From now on, the rule for residents. who commit crime and peddle drugs should be, one strike and you're out. I challenge every State to match Federal policy to assure that serious violent criminals serve at least 85 percent of their sentence. More police and punishment are important, but they are not enough. We have got to keep more of our young people out of trouble with prevention strategies not dictated by Washington, but developed in communities. I challenge all of our communities, all of our adults, to give our children futures to say yes to, and I challenge Congress not to abandon the Crime Bill's support of these grassroots prevention efforts. Finally, to reduce crime and violence, we have to reduce the drug problem. The challenge begins in our homes with parents talking to their children openly and firmly, and embraces our churches and synagogues, our youth groups and our schools. I challenge Congress not to cut our support for drug-free schools. People like these DARE officers are making a real impression on grade school children that will give them the strength to say no when the time comes. Meanwhile, we continue our efforts to cut the flow of drugs into America. For the last two years, one man in particular has been on the front lines of that effort. Tonight I am nominating him, a hero of the Persian Gulf War and the Commander in Chief of the United States States military's military's Southern Command, General Barry McCaffrey as America's new drug czar. General McCaffrey has earned three Purple Hearts and two Silver Stars fighting for this country. Tonight I ask that he lead our Nation's battle against drugs at home and abroad. To succeed, he needs a force far larger than he has ever commanded before. He needs all of us, every one of us has a role to play on this team. Thank you, General McCaffrey, for agreeing to serve your country one more time. Our fifth challenge, to leave our environment safe and clean for the next generation. Because of a generation of bipartisan effort, we do have cleaner water and air: lead levels in children's blood has been cut by 70 percent; toxic emissions from factories, cut in half. Lake Erie was dead and now it is a thriving resource. But 10 million children under 12 still live within four miles of a toxic waste dump. A third of us breathe air that endangers our health, and in too many communities, the water is not safe to drink. We still have much to do. Yet Congress has voted to cut environmental enforcement by 25 percent. That means more toxic chemicals in our water, more smog in our air, more pesticides in our food. Lobbyists for our polluters have been allowed to write their own loopholes into bills to weaken laws that protect the health and safety of our children. Some say that the taxpayers should pick up the tab for toxic waste and let polluters who can afford to fix it off the hook. I challenge Congress to reex amine those policies and to reverse them. This issue has not been a partisan issue. The most significant environmental gains in the last 30 years were made under a Democratic Congress and President Richard Nixon. We can work together. We have to believe some basic things. Do you believe we can expand the economy without hurting the environment? I do. Do you believe we can create more jobs over the long run by cleaning the environment up? I know we can. That should be our commitment. We must challenge businesses and communities to take more initiative in protecting the environment, and we have to make it easier for them to do it. To businesses, this administration is saying, if you can find a cheaper, more efficient way than government regulations require to meet tough pollution standards, do it, as long as you do it right. To communities we say, we must strengthen community right-toknow laws requiring polluters to disclose their emissions, but you have to use the information to work with business to cut pollution. People do have a right to know that their air and their water are safe. Our sixth challenge is to maintain America's leadership in the fight for freedom and peace throughout the world. Because of American leadership, more people than ever before live free and at peace, and Americans have known 50 years of prosperity and security. We owe thanks especially to our veterans of World War II. I would like to say to Senator BOB DOLE and to all others in this Chamber who fought in World War II; and to all others on both sides of the aisle who have fought bravely in all of our conflicts since, I salute your service and so do the American people. All over the world, even after the Cold War, people still look to us and trust us to help them seek the blessings of peace and freedom. But as the Cold War fades in the memory, voices of isolation say, America should retreat from its responsibilities. I say they are wrong. The threats we face today as Americans respect no Nation's borders. Think of them: terrorism, the spread of weapons of mass destruction, organized crime, drug trafficking, ethnic and religious hatred, aggression by rogue states, environmental degradation. If we fail to address these threats today, we will suffer the consequences in all our tomorrows. Of course we can't be everywhere; of course we can't do everything. But where our interests and our values are at stake and where we can make a difference, America must lead. We must not be isolationists, we must not be the world's policeman, but we can and should be the world's very best peacemaker. By keeping our military strong, by using diplomacy where we can and force where we must, by working with others to share the risk and the cost of our efforts, America is making a difference for people here and around the world. For the first time since the dawn of the nuclear age, for the first time since the dawn of the nuclear age, there is not a single Russian missile pointed at America's children. North Korea has now frozen its dangerous nuclear weapons program. In Haiti, the dictators are gone, democracy has a new day, the flow of desperate refugees to our shores has subsided. Through tougher trade deals for America, over 80 of them, we have opened markets abroad, and now exports are at an all-time high, growing faster than imports and creating good American jobs. We stood with those taking risks for peace, in Northern Ireland where Catholic and Protestant children now tell their parents, violence must never return; in the Middle East where Arabs and Jews who once seemed destined to fight forever now share knowledge and resources and even dreams. And we stood up for peace in Bosnia. Remember the skeletal prisoners, the mass graves, the campaigns of rape and torture, the endless lines of refugees, the threat of a spreading war. All of these threats, all these horrors, have now begun to give way to the promise of peace. Now our troops and a strong NATO, together with our new partners from Central Europe and elsewhere, are helping that peace to take hold. As all of you know, I was just there with a bipartisan congressional group, and I was so proud not only of what our troops were doing, but of the pride they evidenced in what they were doing. They knew what America's mission in this world is, and they were proud to be carrying it out. The Through these efforts, we have enhanced the security of the American people. But make no mistake about it, important challenges remain. START II treaty with Russia will cut our nuclear stockpiles by another 25 percent. I urge the Senate to ratify it now. We must end the race to create new nuclear weapons by signing a truly comprehensive nuclear test ban treaty this year. As we remember what happened in the Japanese subway, we can outlaw poison gas forever if the Senate ratifies the Chemical Weapons Convention this year. We can intensify the fight against terrorists and organized criminals at home and abroad, if Congress passes the anti-terrorism legislation I proposed after the Oklahoma City bombing now. We can help more people move from hatred to hope all across the world in our own interest if Congress gives us the means to remain the world's leader for peace. My fellow Americans, the six challenges I have just discussed are for all of us. Our seventh challenge is really America's challenge to those of us in this hallowed hall tonight, to reinvent our government and make our democracy work for them. Last year this Congress applied to itself the laws it applies to everyone else. This Congress banned gifts and meals from lobbyists. This Congress forced lobbyists to disclose who pays them and what legislation they are trying to pass or kill. This Congress did that and I applaud you for it. Now I challenge Congress to go further, to curb special interest influence in politics by passing the first truly bipartisan campaign finance reform bill in a generation. You, Republicans and Democrats alike, can show the American people that we can limit spending and we can open the airwaves to all candidates. I also appeal to Congress to pass the line item veto you promised the American people. Our administration is working hard to give the American people a government that works better and costs less. Thanks to the work of Vice President GORE we are eliminating 16,000 pages of unnecessary rules rules and regulations, shifting more decisionmaking out of Washington back to States and local communities. As we move into the era of balanced budgets and smaller government, we must work in new ways to enable people to make the most of their own lives. We are helping America's communities not with more bureaucracy but with more opportunities. Through our successful successful empowerment zones and community development banks, we are helping people to find jobs, to start businesses. And with tax incentives for companies that clean up abandoned industrial properties, we can bring jobs back to places that desperately, desperately need them. But there are some areas that the Federal Government should not leave and should address and address strongly. One of these areas is the problem of illegal immigration. After years of neglect, this administration has taken a strong stand to stiffen the protection of our borders. We are increasing border controls by 50 percent. We are increasing inspections to prevent the hiring of illegal immigrants. And tonight I announce I will sign an executive order to deny Federal contracts to businesses that that hire illegal immigrants. Let me be very clear about this. We are still a nation of immigrants. We should be proud of it. We should honor every legal immigrant here working hard to be a good citizen, working hard to become a new citizen. But we are also a nation of laws. I want to say a special word now to those who work for our Federal Government. Today the Federal work force is 200,000 employees smaller than it was the day I took office as President. Our Federal Government today is the today smallest it has been in 30 years, and it is getting smaller every day. Most of our fellow Americans probably don't know that. There's a good reason, a good reason. The remaining Federal work force is composed of hard-working Americans who are now working harder and working smarter than ever before to make sure the quality of our services does not decline. I would like to give you one example. His name is Richard Dean. He is a 49year-old Vietnam veteran who has worked for the Social Security Administration for 22 years now. Last year he was hard at work in the Federal building in Oklahoma City, when the blast killed 169 people and brought the rubble down all around him. He reentered that building four times. He saved the lives of three women. He is here with us this evening and I want to recognize Richard and applaud both his public service and his extraordinary personal heroism. But Richard Dean's story doesn't end there. This last November, he was forced out of his office when the government shut down. And the second time the government shut down, he continued helping Social Security recipients, but he was working without pay. On behalf of Richard Dean and his family and all the other people who are out there working every day doing a good job for the American people, I challenge all of you in this Chamber, never, ever shut the Federal Government down again. On behalf of all Americans, especially those who need their Social Security payments at the beginning of March, I also challenge the Congress to preserve the full faith and credit of the United States, to honor the obligations of this great nation as we have for 220 years, to rise above partisanship and pass a straightforward extension of the debt limit and show the people America keeps its word. I know that this evening I have asked a lot of Congress and even more from America, but I am confident. When Americans work together in in their homes, their schools, their churches and synagogues, their civic groups, their workplace, they can meet any challenge. I say again, the era of big government is over, but we can't go back to the era of fending for yourself. We have to go forward to the era of working together as a community, as a team, as one America, with all of us reaching across these lines that divide us, the division, the discrimination, the rancor, we have to reach across it to find common ground. We have got to work together, if we want America to work. I want you to meet two more people tonight who do just that. just that. Lucius Wright is a teacher in the Jackson, Mississippi public school system. Vietnam veteran, he has created groups to help inner city children turn away from gangs and build futures they can believe in. Sergeant Jennifer Rogers is a police officer in Oklahoma City. Like Richard Dean she helped to pull her fellow citizens out of the rubble and deal with that awful tragedy. She reminds us that in their response to that atrocity, the people of Oklahoma City lifted all of us with their basic sense of decency and community. Lucius Wright and Jennifer Rogers are special Americans, and I have the honor to announce tonight that they are the very first of several thousand Americans who will be chosen to carry the Olympic torch on its long journey from Los Angeles to the centennial of the modern Olympics in Atlanta this summer, not because they are star athletes but because they are star citizens, community heroes meeting America's challenges. They are our real champions. Please stand up. Now each of us must hold high the torch of citizenship in our own lives. None of us can finish the race alone. We can only achieve our destiny together, one hand, one generation, one American connecting to another. There have always been things we could do together, dreams we could make real which we could never have done on our own. We Americans have forged our identity, our very union, from the very point of view that we can accommodate every point on the planet, every different opinion. But we must be bound together by a faith more powerful than any doctrine that divides us, by our belief in progress, our love of liberty and our relentless search for common ground. America has always sought and always risen to every challenge. Who would say that having come so far together we will not go forward from here? Who would say that this Age of Possibility is not for all Americans? Our country is and always has been a great and good nation, but the best is yet to come, if we all do our part. Thank you, God bless you, and God bless the United States of America. At 10 o'clock and 13 minutes p.m., the President of the United States retired from the Hall of the House, followed by his Cabinet. The Chief Chief Justice Justice of the United States and Associate Justices of the Supreme Court retired from the Hall of the House. The ambassadors, ministers and charges d'affaires of foreign governments retired from the Hall of the House. The SPEAKER, at 10 o'clock and 15 minutes p.m., then declared the joint session of the two Houses dissolved. The Vice President and Members of the Senate retired from the Hall of the House. 15.23 REFERENCE OF THE PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE On motion of Mr. DIAZ-BALART, the message of the President, as delivered, together with the accompanying documents, was referred to the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union and ordered to be printed (H. Doc. 104-168). 15.24 WAIVING POINTS OF ORDER AGAINST CONFERENCE REPORT ON S. Mr. DIAZ-BALART, by direction of the Committee on Rules, reported (Rept. No. 104-457) the resolution (H. Res. 340) waiving points of order against the conference report to accompany the bill (S. 1124) to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 1996 for military activities of the Department of Defense, to prescribe personnel strengths for such fiscal year for the Armed Forces, and for other purposes. When said resolution and report were referred to the House Calendar and ordered printed. 15.25 ENROLLED BILLS SIGNED Mr. THOMAS, from the Committee on House Oversight, reported that the committee had examined and found truly enrolled bills of the House of the following titles, which were thereupon signed by the Speaker: H.R. 1606. An Act to designate the United States Post Office building located at 24 Corliss Street, Providence, Rhode Island, as the "Henry Kizirian Post Office Building. H.R. 2061. An Act to designate the Federal building located at 1550 Dewey Avenue, Baker City, Oregon, as the "David J. Wheeler Federal Building." 15.26 LEAVE OF ABSENCE By unanimous consent, leave of absence was granted To Mr. TORKILDSEN, for today and balance of the week; and To Mr. TATE, for today. And then, 15.27 ADJOURNMENT On motion of Mr. SCARBOROUGH, pursuant to the order of the House agreed to on January 22, 1996, at 10 o'clock and 20 minutes p.m., the House adjourned until 12 o'clock noon Wednesday, January 24, 1996. 15.28 REPORTS OF COMMITTEES ON PUBLIC BILLS AND RESOLUTIONS Under clause 2 of rule XIII, reports of committees were delivered to the Clerk for printing and reference to the proper calendar, as follows: Mr. DIAZ-BALART: Committee on Rules. House Resolution 340. Resolution waiving points of order against the conference report. to accompany the bill (S. 1124) to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 1996 for military activities of the Department of Defense, to prescribe personnel strengths for such fiscal year for the Armed Forces, and for other purposes (Rept. No. 104-451). Referred to the House Calendar. 15.29 PUBLIC BILLS AND RESOLUTIONS Under clause 5 of rule X and clause 4 of rule XXII, public bills and resolutions were introduced and severally referred as follows: By Mr. HOUGHTON (for himself, Mr. H.R. 2864. A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide for 501(c)(3) bonds a tax treatment similar to governmental bonds, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Ways and Means. By Mrs. MEEK of Florida: H.R. 2865. A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to increase the tax on handguns and assault weapons, to increase the license application fee for gun dealers, and to use the proceeds from those increases to pay for medical care for gunshot victims; to the Committee on Ways and Means, and in addition to the Committees on the Judiciary, and Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned. By Mr. SCHUMER: H.R. 2866. A bill to amend title 18, United States Code, with respect to health care fraud, and for other purposes; to the Committee on the Judiciary. By Mr. SOLOMON (for himself, Ms. H.R. 2867. A bill to prohibit U.S. voluntary and assessed contributions to the United Nations if the United Nations imposes any tax or fee on U.S. persons or continues to develop or promote proposals for such taxes or fees; to the Committee on International Relations. By Mr. TEJEDA (for himself, Mr. H.R. 2868. A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to make permanent alternative teacher certification programs; to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. By Mr. WHITFIELD: H.R. 2869. A bill to extend the deadline for commencement of construction of a hydroelectric project in the State of Kentucky; to the Committee on Commerce. By Mr. ZIMMER (for himself and Mr. H.R. 2870. A bill to eliminate the duties on Tetraamino Biphenyl; to the Committee on Ways and Means. By Mr. OBEY: H.J. Res. 157. Joint resolution making further continuing appropriations for the fiscal year 1996, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Appropriations. 15.30 PRIVATE BILLS AND RESOLUTIONS Under clause 1 of rule XXII, Mr. YOUNG of Florida introduced a bill (H.R. 2871) to authorize the Secretary of Transportation to issue a certificate of documentation with appropriate endorsement for employment in the coastwise trade and on the Great Lakes and their tributary and connecting waters in trade with Canada for vessel Ark; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. H.R. 1684: Mr. PETERSON of Florida, Mrs. LOWEY, Mr. WARD, and Mr. WILSON. H.R. 1707: Ms. JACKSON-LEE. H.R. 1791: Mr. WELDON of Florida. H.R. 1818: Mr. BEREUTER. H.R. 1893: Mr. NADLER. H.R. 1968: Mr. TORKILDSEN, MS. JACKSONLEE, and Mr. LATOURETTE. H.R. 2009: Ms. RoS-LEHTINEN and Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts. H.R. 2128: Mr. CALVERT, Mr. LINDER, Mr. GALLEGLY, Mr. BAKER of Louisiana, and Mr. BACHUS. H.R. 2192: Mr. LANTOS. H.R. 2276: Mr. LATOURETTE. H.R. 2350: Mr. EHLERS and Mr. STOCKMAN. H.R. 2445: Mr. ISTOOK. H.R. 2458: Mr. LATOURETTE and Mr. CARDIN. H.R. 2477: Mr. ENSIGN. H.R. 2548: Mrs. SMITH of Washington, Mr. CALVERT, and Mr. HAYWORTH. H.R. 2566: Mr. BLUTE, Mr. SCHUMER, and Mr. UNDERWOOD. H.R. 2568: Mr. CRAPO. H.R. 2579: Mrs. LOWEY, Mr. RAHALL, Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts, Mr. QUILLEN, Mr. EVANS, Mr. ENGEL, Mr. HAYWORTH, Mr. WOLF, Mr. BILBRAY, Mr. CRANE, Mrs. MINK of Hawaii, Mr. HANSEN, Mr. DELLUMS, Mr. FOGLIETTA, and Mr. ORTON. H.R. 2585: Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD. H.R. 2634: Mr. YOUNG of Alaska and Mr. LEWIS of Kentucky. H.R. 2655: Mr. TORRICELLI, Mr. BREWSTER, Mr. TANNER, Mr. FRANKS of New Jersey, Mr. LONGLEY, and Mr. MENENDEZ. H.R. 2657: Mr. WARD. H.R. 2664: Mr. COBLE, Ms. MCKINNEY, Mr. BASS, Mr. JACOBS, Mr. CONDIT, Mr. BUNNING of Kentucky, and Mrs. WALDHOLTZ. H.R. 2683: Mr. LANTOS. H.R. 2690: Mr. GUNDERSON, Mr. CALVERT, and Ms. JACKSON-LEE. H.R. 2707: Mr. WICKER. H.R. 2723: Mr. NETHERCUTT and Mr. HAYWORTH. H.R. 2724: Mr. BERMAN, Mr. MARTINEZ, Mr. THOMPSON, Mr. FOGLIETTA, Mr. BISHOP, Mr. LIPINSKI, Mr. LAFALCE, Mr. MILLER of California, Mr. BONIOR, Mr. VENTO, Mr. SANDERS, Mr. BROWN of California, Mr. SERRANO, Mr. GUTIERREZ, Mr. OWENS, and Mr. DELLUMS. H.R. 2725: Mr. BERMAN, Mr. MARTINEZ, Mr. THOMPSON, Mr. FOGLIETTA, Mr. BISHOP, Mr. LIPINSKI, Mr. LAFALCE, Mr. MILLER of California, Mr. BONIOR, Mr. VENTO, Mr. SANDERS, Mr. BROWN of California, Mr. SERRANO, Mr. GUTIERREZ, Mr. OWENS, and Mr. DELLUMS. H.R. 2751: Mr. EVANS. H.R. 2757: Mr. EHLERS, Mr. MORAN, Mr. BREWSTER, Mr. QUILLEN, and Mr. HASTINGS of Washington. H.R. 2769: Mr. WELDON of Florida and Mr. OXLEY. H.R. 2779: Mr. BALLENGER, Mr. DREIER, Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas, Mr. INGLIS of South Carolina, Mr. SPENCE, Mr. STOCKMAN, Mr. STUMP, and Mr. TRAFICANT. H.R. 2796: Ms. RIVERS, MS. JACKSON-LEE, and Mr. HYDE. H.R. 2837: Mr. FOGLIETTA, Mr. PETE GEREN of Texas, Mrs. MINK of Hawaii, Mr. FILNER, Mr. MOAKLEY, and Mr. FROST. H.R. 2839: Mrs. MINK of Hawaii and Mr. FROST. H.R. 2841: Mr. BROWDER, Mr. POMEROY, Mr. FROST, and Mr. BONIOR. H.J. Res. 93: Mr. STOCKMAN, Mr. LIPINSKI, H. Con. Res. 50: Mr. CHRISTENSEN. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 24, 1996 (6) 16.1 DESIGNATION OF SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE The House was called to order by the SPEAKER pro tempore, Mr. HOBSON, who laid before the House the following communication: WASHINGTON, DC, January 24, 1996. I hereby designate the Honorable DAVID L. HOBSON to act as Speaker pro tempore on this day. NEWT GINGRICH, Speaker of the House of Representatives. 16.2 APPROVAL OF THE JOURNAL The SPEAKER pro tempore, Mr. HOBSON, announced he had examined and approved the Journal of the proceedings of Tuesday, January 23, 1996. Mr. STEARNS, pursuant to clause 1, rule I, objected to the Chair's approval of the Journal. The question being put, viva voce, Will the House agree to the Chair's approval of said Journal? The SPEAKER pro tempore, Mr. HOBSON, announced that the yeas had it. Mr. STEARNS objected to the vote on the ground that a quorum was not present and not voting. The SPEAKER pro tempore, Mr. HOBSON, pursuant to clause 5, rule I, announced that the vote would be postponed until later today. The point of no quorum was considered as withdrawn. 16.3 COMMUNICATIONS Executive and other communications, pursuant to clause 2, rule XXIV, were referred as follows: 1959. A letter from the Director, Office of Management and Budget, transmitting OMB estimate of the amount of change in outlays. or receipts, as the case may be, in each fiscal year through fiscal year 2000 resulting from passage of H.R. 1655 and H.R. 2627, pursuant to Public Law 101-508, section 13101(a) (104 Stat. 1388-582); to the Committee on the Budget. 1960. A letter from the Director, Office of Management and Budget, transmitting OMB's estimate of the amount of discretionary new budget authority and outlays for the current year-if any-and the budget year provided by H.R. 1643, H.R. 1358, and House Joint Resolution 134, pursuant to Public Law 101-508, section 13101(a) (104 Stat. 1388-578); to the Committee on the Budget. 1961. A letter from the Secretary of Energy, transmitting a copy of the annual report on the Coke Oven Emission Control Program for fiscal year 1995, pursuant to Public Law 101-549, section 301 (104 Stat. 2559); to the Committee on Commerce. 1962. A letter from the Secretary of Commerce, transmitting the 1996 annual report to the Congress on foreign policy export controls, pursuant to 50 U.S.C. app. 2413; to the Committee on International Relations. 1963. A letter from the Assistant Secretary for Legislative Affairs, Department of State, transmitting a report concerning the unauthorized transfer of U.S.-origin defense articles, pursuant to 22 U.S.C. 2753(e); to the Committee on International Relations. 1964. A letter from the Comptroller General, General Accounting Office, transmitting the Comptroller General's 1995 annual report, pursuant to 31 U.S.C. 719(a); to the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight. 1965. A letter from the Director, Office of Management and Budget, transmitting a report on the activities of Federal agencies in implementing the Computer Matching and Privacy Protection Act for calendar years 1992 and 1993, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552a(r); to the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight. 1966. A letter from the Chairman, U.S. Parole Commission, transmitting a copy of the annual report in compliance with the Government in the Sunshine Act during the calendar year 1995, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552b(j); to the Committee on Government Reform and Oversight. 1967. A letter from the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Water and Science, Department of the Interior, transmitting the High Plains States Groundwater Demonstration Program 1995 interim report, pursuant to 43 U.S.C. 390g-2(c)(2); to the Committee on Re sources. 1968. A letter from the Secretary of the Interior, transmitting a copy of the annual report for fiscal year 1994 covering the Outer Continental Shelf [OCS] Natural Gas and Oil Leasing and Production Program, pursuant to 43 U.S.C. 1343; to the Committee on Re sources. 1969. A letter from the Secretary of Health and Human Services, transmitting the Department's report entitled, "Medicare Alzheimer's Disease Demonstration Evaluation," pursuant to section 9342 of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1986, as amended: jointly, to the Committee on Commerce and Ways and Means. 16.4 WAIVING POINTS OF ORDER AGAINST THE CONFERENCE REPORT ON S. 1124 Mr. DIAZ-BALART, by direction of the Committee on Rules, called up the following resolution (H. Res. 340): Resolved, That upon adoption of this resolution it shall be in order to consider the conference report to accompany the bill (S. 1124) to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 1996 for military activities of the Department of Defense, to prescribe personnel strengths for such fiscal year for the Armed Forces, and for other purposes. All points of order against the conference report and against its consideration are waived. The conference report shall be considered as read. When said resolution was considered. After debate. By unanimous consent, the previous question was ordered on the resolution to its adoption or rejection and under the operation thereof, the resolution was agreed to. A motion to reconsider the vote whereby said resolution was agreed to was, by unanimous consent, laid on the table. 16.5 DOD AUTHORIZATIONS-FY 1996 Mr. SPENCE, pursuant to House Resolution 340, called up the following conference report (Rept. No. 104-450): The committee of conference on the disagreeing votes of the two Houses on the amendments of the House to the bill (S. 1124), to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 1996 for military activities of the Department of Defense, to prescribe personnel strengths for such fiscal year for the Armed Forces, and for other purposes, having met, after full and free conference, have agreed to recommend and do recommend to their respective Houses as follows: That the Senate recede from its disagreement to the amendment of the House to the text of the bill and agree to the same with an amendment as follows: In lieu of the matter proposed to be inserted by the House amendment, insert the following: Sec. 114. Report on AH-64D engine upgrades. Sec. 115. Requirement for use of previously authorized multiyear procurement authority for Army small arms procurement. Subtitle C-Navy Programs Sec. 131. Nuclear attack submarines. Sec. 132. Research for advanced submarine technology. Sec. 133. Cost limitation for Seawolf submarine program. Sec. 134. Repeal of prohibition on backfit of Trident submarines. Sec. 135. Arleigh Burke class destroyer program. Sec. 136. Acquisition program for crash attenuating seats. Sec. 137. T-39N trainer aircraft. program. Subtitle D-Air Force Programs Sec. 141. B-2 aircraft program. Subtitle E-Chemical Demilitarization Program Sec. 151. Repeal of requirement to proceed expeditiously with development of chemical demilitarization cryofracture facility at Tooele Army Depot, Utah. Sec. 152. Destruction of existing stockpile of lethal chemical agents and munitions. Sec. 153. Administration of chemical demilitarization program. TITLE II-RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT, TEST, AND EVALUATION Subtitle A-Authorization of Appropriations Sec. 201. Authorization of appropriations. Sec. 202. Amount for basic research and exploratory development. Sec. 203. Modifications to Strategic Envi- Subtitle B-Program Requirements, Sec. 211. Space launch modernization. Sec. 214. Development of laser program. Sec. 216. Space-based infrared system. gram. Sec. 219. Nonlethal weapons study. Sec. 220. Federally funded research and development centers and university-affiliated research centers. Sec. 221. Joint seismic program and global seismic network. Sec. 222. Hydra-70 rocket product improvement program. Sec. 223. Limitation on obligation of funds until receipt of electronic combat consolidation master plan. Sec. 224. Report on reductions in research, development, test, and evalua tion. Sec. 225. Advanced Field Artillery System (Crusader). Sec. 226. Demilitarization of conventional munitions, rockets, and explosives. Sec. 227. Defense Airborne Reconnaissance program. Subtitle C-Ballistic Missile Defense Act of 1995 Sec. 231. Short title. Sec. 232. Findings. Sec. 233. Ballistic Missile Defense policy. Sec. 234. Theater Missile Defense architecture. Sec. 235. Prohibition on use of funds to implement an international agreement concerning Theater Missile Defense systems. Sec. 236. Ballistic Missile Defense cooperation with allies. Sec. 237. ABM Treaty defined. Sec. 238. Repeal of Missile Defense Act of 1991. Subtitle D-Other Ballistic Missile Defense Provisions Sec. 251. Ballistic Missile Defense program elements. Sec. 252. Testing of Theater Missile Defense interceptors. Sec. 253. Repeal of missile defense provisions. Subtitle E-Miscellaneous Reviews, Studies, and Reports Sec. 261. Precision-guided munitions. Sec. 263. Analysis of consolidation of basic research accounts of military departments. Sec. 264. Change in reporting period from calendar year to fiscal year for annual report on certain contracts to colleges and universities. Sec. 265. Aeronautical research and test capabilities assessment. Subtitle F-Other Matters Sec. 271. Advanced lithography program. Sec. 272. Enhanced fiber optic guided missile (EFOG-M) system. Sec. 273. States eligible for assistance under Defense Experimental Program To Stimulate Competitive Research. |