Thad Cochran

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. For the information of my colleagues, there will be three consecutive rollcall votes beginning at 9:50 tomorrow morning. The third vote in the order is the motion to invoke cloture. If cloture is invoked, it is the intention of the majority leader to stay in session late into the evening on Wednesday with votes in order to complete action on the bill.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. I now ask unanimous consent that notwithstanding the provisions of rule XXII, all Members have until the hour of 9:30 a.m. in order to file second-degree amendments to S. 652.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, at the request of the majority leader, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand in recess until the hour of 9 a.m. on Wednesday, June 14, 1995; that following the prayer the Journal of proceedings be deemed approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and there then be a period for morning business until the hour of 9:30 a.m., with the 30 minutes equally divided between Senators Mack and Bradley; further, that at the hour of 9:30 a.m. the Senate resume consideration of S. 652, the telecommunications bill, and there be 20 minutes for debate on the Feinstein amendment to be equally divided in the usual form, to be followed immediately by a vote on or in relation to the Feinstein amendment No. 1270, to be followed by a vote on or in relation to the Gorton amendment No. 1277, to be followed by a vote on the motion to invoke cloture on S. 652, with the mandatory live quorum waived.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I send a cloture motion to the desk.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that this bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, today I am introducing the National Family Enterprise Preservation Act of 1995 which will provide estate tax relief to many of our Nation's family owned farms and businesses. Our current tax laws are forcing many inheritors of family farms and businesses to sell the enterprise in order to pay estate taxes. A family farm or business is not only a productive component of our economy, it is a distinctive part of our American economic system and the personal dream of millions of Americans. But all this is being threatened by high taxes that are imposed by government when the owner dies. Small businesses are being forced to merge into large corporations because marketable stock can be acquired tax free and many estate tax problems can be avoided. In 1942, the estate tax affected only 1 estate out of 60. Today, this number has increased to 1 out of 20. Another consideration is that inflation has pushed the value of many family farms and businesses into the range of estate tax liability. The result has been that heirs of these enterprises often sell their business to pay estate taxes. Family owned farms and businesses are a vital component of our economy and society and should be preserved. They give families a sense of freedom, accomplishment, and pride in ownership. This is the essence of free enterprise. Mr. Chairman, earlier this year I had the opportunity to visit with a tree farmer from my State who was recognized this year by the Mississippi Forestry Association as ``Forester of the Year.'' His name is Chester Thigpen, and he is truly a remarkable man. taxpayers for whom I am introducing this legislation today. Mr. Thigpen and his wife, Rosett, live in Montrose, MS. When he was a child, he dreamed of owning land. He first brought a small parcel of land in 1940, continued to save and slowly added acreage to his farm. He worked hard to improve his land and that land allowed him to provide for his family and made it possible to put his five children through college. This land represents a tremendous amount of pride and hard work for Thigpens. They always thought they would be able to leave a legacy for their children as a reward for their hard work and as a symbol of their family's success. But there is a big problem. The Thigpen's land over the last 50 years has increased considerably in value. The estate tax burden is going to make it nearly impossible for their children to keep the farm when their parents die. Mr. and Mrs Thigpen and other hard working Americans should not have to sacrifice their lifelong dreams because of unnecessary tax burdens. Their. children should have the same opportunity their parents have had, to use their property to be productive citizens. The legislation I am introducing will increase from $600,000 to $1 million the value of property that may pass free of Federal estate and gift taxes. In addition, the current annual gift tax exclusion of $10,000 would be increased to $20,000 in the case of gifts to qualified family members of family enterprise property. This legislation will also change special use valuation. Currently, special use valuation cannot reduce the gross estate by more than $750,000. This amount would be increased to $1 million. And finally, this bill will make changes in the family enterprise interest on estates. Mr. Chairman, I submit an editorial from the March 3, 1995 issue of the Washington Times and a copy of Mr. Thigpen's remarks to the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means, which I ask a unanimous consent be printed in the Record, along with a copy of the bill.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. I now ask unanimous consent that the first vote tomorrow morning at 9 a.m. be 20 minutes in length, and the remaining votes in the sequence be limited as under the terms of today's sequence of votes on the budget.

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand in recess until the hour of 9 a.m. on Thursday, May 25, 1995; that following the prayer, the Journal of proceedings be deemed approved to date, the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day, and the Senate then immediately proceed to a vote on the adoption of the conference report to accompany H.R. 1158, the rescissions bill. I further ask unanimous consent that immediately following the vote on the conference report, the Senate resume consideration of S. Con. Res. 13, the concurrent budget resolution.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I now ask unanimous consent that the Senate stand in recess under the previous order.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, for the information of all Senators, there will be a rollcall vote at 9 a.m. on the rescissions conference report. Immediately following that vote, the Senate will resume consideration of the budget resolution and will begin a series of rollcall votes on or in relation to remaining amendments to the budget.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, an issue of the journal entitled Uniformed Services Journal, May-June 1995, contains an article entitled, ``World War II Revisited: A Retrospect Of V-E Day and the Events Leading Up To It.'' The article includes recollections of some of the distinguished Members of the Congress who participated in World War II, among them Senator Strom Thurmond, Senator Bob Dole, Senator Daniel Inouye, Congressmen Tom Bevill, Sam Gibbons, Sonny Montgomery, and others. It is an excellent reminiscence of their experiences and their views about the significance of V-E Day and their personal involvement in the events leading up to that occasion. I ask unanimous consent that a copy of the article from the Uniformed Services Journal be printed in the Record.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that there now be a period for the transaction of routine morning business with Senators permitted to speak for up to 5 minutes each.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I yield myself the remainder of the time under the order. Mr. President, the Senators from Wisconsin and Arizona complain about two provisions in this conference report dealing with NASA. They are administrative provisions, and they are clearly and fully explained in the committee report on pages 132 and 133. Let me add to the Clear Lake development facility issue by saying that the authority to enter into this transaction was previously passed by the [[Page S7382]] Senate last year on the NASA authorization bill on October 5. This purchase saves taxpayers' funds and makes needed facilities available to NASA on a timely basis. It was considered carefully by the Senate conferees and was found to be not only in the public interest but in the interests of the Federal Government. That is why it was included and approved. Insofar as the Yellow Creek Facility in Mississippi is concerned, time does not permit a long narrative to expand on the provisions of this conference report itself, describing the history of this facility. Let me just quickly say from my own personal recollection, the Federal Government came into this northeast corner of Mississippi, condemned property to build a huge nuclear facility for TVA. Halfway through the construction phase, after everybody had been stressed and strained in terms of accommodating the Federal Government's interest or this agency's interest, they canceled the facility, putting a lot of people out of work who had moved to the area who helped build the facility, and finally NASA decided they would take the land. Transfers were authorized by Congress for NASA to build an advanced solid rocket motor facility on the property. People moved into the area--scientists, technicians and all the rest--schools were built, roads were built, infrastructure developed, by the State, by local governments, taxes were raised, to help pay for this Federal facility and accommodate the interests of the Federal Government. Patriotism was rampant because of the new pride in that part of the State to do something for our Federal Government and our space program. NASA abandoned ASRM when the House voted it down one night and canceled all the authority for the funds. Then they worked out a program to have a nozzle facility built to take the place of this other facility. Now it has been canceled, just recently. Finally, they say in Mississippi, ``Look, get the Federal Government out of here. Let the State government try to do something that is predictable that makes sense.'' This is after $100 million had been invested by local and State interests, local taxpayers. People have lost money building housing in this area, doing things in anticipation of the result that would come from these Federal Government activities. Now, finally, we are just saying in this provision, this is an emergency supplemental bill, too, not just a rescission bill. It provides funds for disaster assistance, to disaster victims. I challenge anybody to find anyone who has been victimized any more than the people of this part of the State of Mississippi by actions of the Federal Government. This provision has been requested by NASA, it was considered carefully by conferees on both sides. It is included here, because it is in the public interest. There ought to be more included here to deal with the victims of that disaster. I will not belabor it. I congratulate the Senator from Iowa for his comments about the facility. They complain about being in the bill, in the conference report now. We defended the position of the Senate. The Senate authorized this to continue to be a Federal Agriculture Research Service facility. We had to compromise with the House. The Senator, complaining that we should not have compromised, I suppose. It does not make logical sense to me to complain about the actions of the conferees who were bound to defend the position of the Senate. The Senate entertained an amendment of the Senator from Arizona and voted it down. We are obligated to take up for the Senate and we did. But we had to compromise with the House and we worked it out, and the Senator fully described the result. I am proud of the work our conferees did. We worked hard and brought back a conference agreement that I hope the Senate will approve when we vote on it tomorrow morning. Mr. President, the fiscal year 1995 Agriculture, Rural Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act provided $297 million in cost- of-money lending authority for telephone loans of the Rural Utilities Service, formerly the Rural Electrification Administration, at a subsidy cost of $60,000. There is a 7-percent interest rate cap in that program, and when rates exceeded that amount at the beginning of the fiscal year, the cost-of-money program was substantially curtailed because of inadequate subsidy. Because of the cap, when long-term Treasury rates exceed 7 percent, the interest rates on individual loans require a subsidy. The $60,000 subsidy was appropriated to satisfy the loan loss reserve requirement of the Treasury Department, not to subsidize interest rates. The conference report accompany H.R. 1158, incorporates a provision included in the Senate-passed bill which removes the interest rate cap for fiscal year 1995 in this program. This action will allow the Rural Utilities Service to utilize the entire $297 million in loan authority provided for this program. It is my understanding that the Rural Utilities Service has already approved seven loans during this fiscal year, totalling $3.2 million. However, none of the funds on these loans have been drawn down by the borrowers. Since interest rates on these loans are fixed at the time of draw down, not at the time of approval, there will be no interest rate subsidy associated with these loans upon enactment of H.R. 1158. Fortunately, the long-term Treasury rate is now around 7 percent again, rather than almost 8 percent that existed early in October. This means that borrowers will receive a reasonable rate of interest at no cost to the Treasury for any loan in this program approved during fiscal year 1995. However, if interest rates do rise, the program will still continue at the authorized levels, without an interest rate subsidy, as Congress intended.

Mr. COCHRAN. Only 3 minutes remain with this Senator. I am advised the Senator from West Virginia has 8 minutes, and he authorized us to yield back that time. So the Senator can speak very quickly. We will be in morning business very soon.

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, reserving the right to object, we have an order for the disposition of debate under the rescissions supplemental appropriations bill. I wonder if the Senator will permit us to complete that action, and then there will be a period for morning business set aside for the Senator to speak.

Mr. COCHRAN. Does that conclude the authority under the conference report, under the order previously entered?

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I ask first of all to yield back the balance of time under the order of the Senator from West Virginia.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, today I am introducing legislation to include audiology services in the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program [FEHBP]. This bill would amend the statute governing the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program by requiring FEHBP insurance carriers to guarantee direct access to, and reimbursement for, audiologist-provided hearing care services when hearing care is covered under a FEHBP plan. The statute governing FEHBP, title 5, United States Code, section 8902(k)(1), allows direct access to services provided by optometrists, clinical psychologists and nurse midwives, yet fails to allow direct access to services provided by audiologists in FEHBP plans covering hearing care services. The legislation I am introducing today would remedy this situation by permitting direct access to audiology services in FEHBP plans covering hearing care services. This measure will not increase health care costs since it would not mandate any new insurance benefits. On the contrary, the bill should reduce costs of hearing care by facilitating direct access to health care providers who are uniquely qualified to diagnose the extent and causes of hearing impairment. I hope my colleagues will carefully consider this legislation and join me in support of its enactment.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, this also brings to mind legislation that I introduced recently to bring under the purview of the Public Safety Officers Benefits Act the employees of FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, as well as employees of State and local emergency management and civil defense agencies. Senators may not realize this, but State and local police officers, firefighters, State and local rescue squads [[Page S6650]] and ambulance crews, Federal law enforcement officers and firefighters, are all covered under the Public Safety Officers Benefits Act, which provides death benefits and permanent disability benefits for those who are injured with some traumatic injury while in the line of duty. Excluded under this act are those who work for civil defense agencies and the employees of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. This had been brought to my attention a few years ago, and during the confirmation hearings in our Governmental Affairs Committee of James Lee Witt, the current FEMA Director, I asked him his reaction to legislation that would expand coverage of this act and his responses were very favorable. I introduced the legislation. It was not adopted in the last Congress, but I have recently reintroduced the bill and it is now pending in the Senate as S. 791. I hope Senators will take a look at this bill and consider cosponsoring the legislation, or supporting its passage. I am today sending a letter to all Senators, inviting their attention to this legislation and the circumstances of it. The enactment of this bill will provide these civil defense employees and emergency management employees with the same kind of assurance that others who are similarly employed will have, should death or disabling injury result from the performance of their duty. Their families would receive survivor benefits, and they could be made eligible for disability benefits. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent a copy of my ``Dear Colleague'' letter to which I have referred be printed at this point in the Record.

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, last Friday, President Clinton declared a major disaster for the State of Mississippi, due to damage resulting from severe storms, flooding, and related problems, weather problems that occurred on May 8 and during the days following. This declaration is deeply appreciated by the people of Mississippi and the State of Mississippi because very severe damage has occurred in our State as all of us know who had an opportunity to watch television and read about the devastating floods that occurred all across the gulf coast, from New Orleans to Mobile and beyond. Included in this area of severe weather damage was my State of Mississippi. All of the coast counties and some of those counties that are more inland received severe damage. This declaration makes it possible now for the Federal Emergency Management Agency, led by James Lee Witt, to provide private, individual assistance to those disaster victims who qualify under Federal legislation. The letter also states that additional public assistance may be added at a later date. It is my understanding that the Governor's office and his staff are working with Federal agents at this time in Mississippi, to try to ensure that all possible assistance, emergency and otherwise, is made available to these disaster victims. I commend the Governor and his staff for the fine work they are doing. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent a copy of the President's letter to our Governor, Kirk Fordice, be printed at this point in the Record.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I object to further proceedings on this matter at this time.

Mr. COCHRAN

Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I object to further proceedings on this matter at this time.