Jerry Lewis

Mr. LEWIS of California

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Chairman, will the gentlewoman yield?

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. chairman, the gentleman is correct. Mr. Chairman, my staff helps me a little. I failed to recognize that on this list as prepared that my own amendment is not on the list and that needs to be included, as well. I think probably my staff wanted to cut me off, but I know the gentleman would not want to do that.

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Chairman, if the gentleman would yield, the gentleman is correct. I would almost desperately hope that neither of us would want to take all that time.

Mr. LEWIS of California. On each of those amendments mentioned and amendments thereto, that is correct. Mr. Chairman, this will not restrict other amendments being brought forth that have been filed. It is on those specific areas.

Mr. LEWIS of California. Ten minutes on a side.

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the last word. Mr. Chairman, I rise in order to lay the foundation very briefly for a unanimous consent to inform the Members that we have somewhere in the neighborhood of only 30 or 40 amendments left on this bill. There seems to be some agreement coming together, and some of those hopefully will fall off because of duplication and so forth. But by way of expediting the time for the Members, I will be asking unanimous consent for a 10-minute time limitation on a series of amendments. So if the Members will bear with me, I ask unanimous consent for a 10-minute time limit on the following amendments: one amendment by the gentleman from Louisiana [Mr. Fields]; one amendment by the gentleman from Michigan [Mr. Hoekstra]; one amendment by the gentleman from Indiana [Mr. Hostettler]; one amendment by the gentleman from Illinois [Mr. Durbin]; one amendment by the gentleman from Massachusetts [Mr. Kennedy]; similarly by the gentleman from New Jersey [Mr. Pallone]; two by the gentleman from Indiana [Mr. Roemer]; one by the gentleman from Pennsylvania [Mr. Walker]; one by the gentleman from Connecticut [Mr. Gejdenson]; all in title III. It will be 10 minutes on a side.

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Chairman, I am very happy to engage in a colloquy with the gentleman from Massachusetts. I must say that he and I share interest and concern about the impact and especially the potential health effects of indoor air quality problems. The data that was just outlined. The dollar amounts appear to be essentially correct. We came close to spending $18 million last year, and this year the proposal is in excess of $20 million. It is a problem that is very real. We tried to confirm these dollar amounts with the budget officer as late as this morning. In the meantime we both know that an individual constituency, like the office that handles indoor air quality, may be more enthusiastic than another office at EPA regarding this. At this point we do not really see an intense need for additional money other than that program within EPA's proposal and that which we have outlined in the bill. It is an important problem. I would suggest that the gentleman and I continue to communicate with one another. I am sure that we can make progress in that connection.

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Chairman, this is noncontroversial and essentially corrects the earlier action of the committee with respect to flood insurance rates. We had inadvertently included language which would freeze the flood rates in place on June 1, 1996, and did not realize this would greatly reduce the flexibility FEMA has to adjust rates up or down in accordance with the provisions of the Flood Insurance Reform Act of 1994. This amendment merely restores the necessary flexibility needed by FEMA to operate this program successfully. I know of no opposition to this amendment and urge its adoption.

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to offer the amendment at the desk dealing with page 77, a portion of the bill not yet read.

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Chairman, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Chairman, I yield the balance of my time to the gentleman from New Jersey [Mr. Frelinghuysen], my colleague from the committee.

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Chairman, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from New Jersey [Mr. Saxton].

Mr. LEWIS of California. This amendment addresses $75 million and does not eliminate all the funding for space station. But clearly the House has spoken in that connection and it almost is in a separate category. We have on a bipartisan basis struck an agreement that provides very significantly broad-based support for an annual amount for space station. We are going forward with that. We have international agreements that take us forward with that. But this amendment addresses the shuttle specifically and in my judgment could in a very significant was impair the process and the work that we are doing there. Mr. Chairman, I urge the Members to recognize what this amendment is in terms of its real purpose; that is, to undermine the mission of NASA, to undermine man's presence in space and, indeed, it would undermine what has been the past will of the House as it reflects the will of the American people for us to continue on this pioneering effort in space. Mr. Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. LEWIS of California. I do, Mr. Chairman.

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Chairman, if the gentleman would continue to yield, I would suggest to the gentleman that even in committee, if we reserve partisan rhetoric, we get different kinds of results.

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Chairman, I am tempted to say that filling out a form does not do an awful lot necessarily for the environment, but that really is not the point. Indeed, it is my judgment that in this country and often in this body, our very positive work on behalf of the environment has become swept up in the polarization of the entire place. We work best in this subject area when the House comes together and recognizes that all of us care about the air, all of us care about clean water. Hand in hand, working together, we can take this issue out of the hands of the shrill voices, the extremes on the one hand who want to do absolutely nothing, and the extremes on the other hand that would like to use this for some population or no-growth policy of their own. The environment is most critical to all of our existence, and working together, separate from partisanship, is the most helpful step that I could imagine we could take. I encourage the gentleman to help us participate in that direction.

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Chairman, I simply ask the Members for a ``no'' vote, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. LEWIS of California

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Chairman, I withdraw my unanimous consent request. recorded vote

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Chairman, with almost the entire House present, and with the number of votes that are coming forth, I ask unanimous consent to have 1 minute on my side and 1 minute for the gentleman from Ohio [Mr. Stokes] to briefly outline what these votes are.

Mr. LEWIS of California

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Speaker, I would suggest we come back to this.

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman will continue to yield, I would say the gentleman, I think, makes a very important point. And I frankly would love to see the amendment to the Markey amendment myself. Therefore, we are going to withhold on this list until that kind of courtesy is shown and we will return to this request for unanimous consent at another time.

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Speaker, I will give the gentleman the time, if he would like. What the gentleman wants to do is eliminate all these limitations on time in order not to have this amendment come forward. If we eliminate all the limitations on time, surely we will get there eventually and the amendment will come forward anyway.

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Speaker, it would not be in order. If I could verbalize a minor little amendment to this list, at the point of the Markey amendment, with the exception of one amendment to the Markey amendment, within the time limit of 40 minutes by Mr. Boehlert.

Mr. LEWIS of California. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?