Trent Lott

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that there now be a period for the transaction of routine morning business with Senators permitted to speak therein for up to 10 minutes each.

Mr. LOTT

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, this resolution concerns a criminal prosecution brought against Jack L. Williams and Archibald R. Schaffer, III, representatives of Tyson Foods, Inc., alleging illegal gratuities to officials of the Department of Agriculture, including former Secretary Espy, and related charges. The Independent Counsel, who is bringing this prosecution, seeks evidence from an employee of the Senate on the professional staff of the Appropriations Committee about communications with meat and poultry processing industry representatives and Executive Branch officials about a labeling rule promulgated by the Agriculture Department in 1993. The defense may also call Senator Bumpers to testify. This resolution would authorize testimony and document production by Senator Bumpers and employees of the Senate, except where a privilege should be asserted, with representation by the Senate Legal Counsel.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I move to table the amendment and ask for the yeas and nays.

Mr. LOTT. I move to lay that motion on the table. The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.

Mr. LOTT

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 President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, this is a great day for America's drivers, rail passengers, and freight haulers. Today, the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA21) has been signed into law. TEA21 will lead to better, safer, and less congested roads and bridges throughout the country. This extremely important transportation legislation is a great investment in our nation's future. I applaud my colleagues, in both chambers of Congress, and on both sides of the aisle, for passing the Transportation Equity Act by overwhelming majorities. Transportation is one of the few issues that Congress deals with that clearly and directly impacts every American, every day. That is why it was so imperative that both chambers take swift action on this important infrastructure bill. Whether driving to work, participating in a car pool, taking a commuter train, riding a school bus, hauling goods from one city to the next, or transporting an accident victim to the nearest hospital, Americans depend on safe roads, highways, and bridges to get them to their ultimate destination. When the extended Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) ran out on May 1, Congress recognized the importance of getting this new reauthorization legislation passed. A number of states could have been in serious jeopardy had Congress waited beyond the Memorial Day recess to enact the Transportation Equity Act. Now that the President has acted on this landmark transportation bill, I am proud that Congress has fulfilled one of our most important responsibilities to the American people. Authorizing road and bridge improvements into the next century is a significant accomplishment. This act alone should dispel the notion that this Congress has done nothing. The Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA21) deals with a wide range of highway, transit, research, recreational, safety and environmental policy initiatives. TEA21 is a balanced and effective infrastructure bill that will enhance our nation's roads and highways. TEA21 extends and improves upon many of the provisions contained in ISTEA, helping move America forward into the next century. It furthers the notion of an efficient and integrated national intermodal transportation system. This unified system links America's 161,000 mile National Highway System with state and local roads, ports, trade corridors, and airports. TEA21 is necessary for our nation's prosperity. The Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century provides a total of $216 billion for infrastructure development and improvements. That represents a 40% boost in transportation spending over current levels. This bill affects every state, every county and every city, providing significantly more money for the projects around the country that need and deserve federal assistance. TEA21 provides $173 billion for highways, $41.3 billion for mass transit, and $1.7 billion for highway safety programs. That translates into an annual highway spending increase of $8 billion and about $2 billion more annually for mass transit. Every year, $10 billion more will be spent on needed infrastructure. Mr. President, I am particularly pleased that the Transportation Equity Act, as its title implies, provides more equity than the formula allocations provided by ISTEA. Under TEA21, each state is guaranteed to receive at least 90.5 cents for every dollar that its drivers send to Washington through the gas pump. As a result, forty-nine states will receive more money, with an average increase of about 44% over their current allocation levels. Even Massachusetts, the one state that did not receive a funding increase, will still get back more than it contributes annually to the Highway Trust Fund. Many of the beneficiaries of the Act's minimum guarantee are the southern, midwestern, and western states commonly referred to as donor states. For years, these states have received far less in highway funding than they contributed in gas tax revenues. While TEA21 doesn't completely eliminate their donor status, North Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, Indiana, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Arizona, Montana, among other donor states, will for the first time see an overall increase of more than 50% and a return of more than 90 cents on the dollar. My home state of Mississippi, for example, will receive 92 cents. That's a 58% increase over the state's current gas tax return. While this is not a perfect dollar for dollar exchange, it represents significant progress that will help pave a great number of dirt and other substandard roads in Mississippi. In the years to come, I will continue my efforts to improve the formula allocation for all donor states. Mr. President, TEA21 also re-establishes the covenant with our nation's drivers. It insures that each dollar of revenue contributed to the Highway Trust Fund is spent on transportation priorities and not on other initiatives. While this bill does not take the Highway Trust Fund off-budget, it does guarantee a minimum of $200.5 billion will be spent over the next six years on highways, safety, and mass transit programs. TEA21 also ensures that Congress fulfills its obligation to live within the Balanced Budget Agreement. TEA21 authorizes bridge repair and improvement projects around the country. It supports the preservation of national historic covered bridges and includes funding that will allow states to retrofit bridges so they will be less prone to earthquake damage. Additionally, the bill provides $900 million to replace the decaying Woodrow Wilson Memorial Bridge, a 35 year old structure that now carries more than twice the 72,000 vehicles it was built to withstand. At the current rate of deterioration, passenger and freight traffic will be forced to stop in seven years. This is a major crossing on America's East-Coast highway that carries over 190,000 cars and trucks daily. That is why TEA21 was correct to step in. I believe Congress has passed a bill that not only improves and enhances America's transportation system, but one that enriches our nation's economy and our quality of life. New roads and bridges spur economic development, increase mobility, and foster connectivity. For each dollar spent on our nation's infrastructure, society receives an exponential financial and social return on this public investment. In fact, economist Thomas Hogarty recently concluded that motor vehicle transport yields $6 trillion to $10 trillion in tangible benefits annually. That's trillion with a ``t.'' Good roads, good bridges, and good transit systems facilitate the movement of people and supplies from the suburbs to major metropolitan areas and back, from one region of the country to another and from America to across the globe. Aside from heightening intrastate and interstate travel and trade, transportation improvements also support the creation of better and higher paying jobs. In Mississippi, for example, road work over the last ten years has helped prompt a 34% increase in the state's growth rate. I am very excited about the economic prospects for Mississippi under TEA21. Mr. President, passage of the Transportation Equity Act will help repeat Mississippi's success story in each and every state. Infrastructure expenditures directly and indirectly support the 10 million people employed by our nation's transportation and related industries. In fact, Congressional Quarterly recently reported that TEA21 will lead to the creation of 400,000 new jobs throughout the United States. TEA21 will strengthen our trade relationships with neighbors to the north and south of our nation's borders. TEA21 provides $700 million for trade and border crossings, and supports the continued development I-69, an 1,800 mile interstate that will stretch between nine states, from the Texas border with Mexico to Michigan's border with Canada. This Pan-American roadway, with vital regional connectors, will promote economic development all along its path. Additionally, I-69 will help virtually every state by fostering interstate and international commerce, helping our nation realize the benefits of the North American Free Trade Agreement. The Transportation Equity Act is also a bill about safety. It provides over $2 billion for highway safety programs and authorizes $650 million in motor carrier safety grants. One of the many important reforms in TEA21 is the $500 million seat belt program which provides incentive grants to states that increase their seat belt usage or that exceed the national average. The Act also takes aim at drunk driving. It provides grants to states that have or adopt the more strict 0.08 percent blood-alcohol standard. TEA21 also promotes the development of airbags that do a better job of protecting children and smaller adults. One of the issues that I felt very strongly about was the creation of a program to encourage states to improve their one-call system. As this Congress focused on our surface infrastructure, I felt it was important to include protections for our underground infrastructure. This took the form of a national call-before-you-dig system used to prevent accidents at underground facilities such as telephone, cable and power lines, water-maines and pipelines. A number of serious accidents have been caused by excavation without notice or by inaccurate markings of underground lines. While 49 states have one-call programs, it is widely recognized that many states' systems need to be strengthened. Under TEA21, states that significantly improve their current one-call systems will qualify to receive federal grants. TEA21's one-call provision does not impose a federal mandate or establish a one-size- fits-all approach. It merely establishes national goals and offers states that want to participate the opportunity to apply for assistance. Decisions on a state's one-call system will still be left up to each state. The identification of minimum standards, however, will offer states a guide-post to help them improve their systems should they choose to do so. I believe that this non-prescriptive approach to state one-call systems will significantly enhance public safety, minimize disruptions, and improve environmental protection. The Transportation Equity Act is also an environmental bill. It establishes private sector mitigation banks in support of wetlands, and streamlines the environmental review process for transportation projects. Senator Bond and Senator Breaux championed these much needed fixes. TEA21 also increases annual funding for the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Program and for Transportation Enhancements to $1.5 billion and $630 million respectively. Additionally, the bill extends the Aquatic Resources Trust Fund, which supports sportfish restoration and boat safety programs, and provides to the fund an additional 1.5 cents per gallon of fuel tax revenues in fiscal year 2002, and another 2 cents after 2003. Another one of the important compromises achieved in this bill involves the harmonization of the Environmental Protection Agency's schedule for regulating regional haze and the 2.5 particulate matter standard. This bill also authorizes several transportation research programs which will help our nation adapt to and utilize constantly changing technologies that will improve safety, ease congestion, and protect the environment. Mr. President, I would like to conclude by thanking our colleagues who were instrumental in crafting and passing this landmark bill. First, my heartfelt appreciation goes out to Senator John Chafee for his stewardship of this important, responsible, and historic transportation package. I also want to pay special tribute to Senator Warner, Senator Baucus, Senator McCain, Senator Hollings, Senator D'Amato, Senator Sarbanes, Senator Roth, Senator Moynihan, Senator Bond, and Senator Nickles because their guidance and leadership proved vital to this effort. I also want to recognize Senator Domenici for his efforts to ensure that the desired funding levels fell within the budget caps. Without his help, we may well have ended up with a much smaller bill. All of the Senate conferees deserve a great deal of credit for bringing this much-needed transportation bill to fruition. Each and every one of them rolled up their sleeves and worked with Congressman Bud Shuster, Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, and the House conferees to produce the largest infrastructure bill in U.S. history. Lastly, a number of Senate staff worked long and hard on this bill. They worked many weekends and frequently late into the night. Mr. President, our colleagues know that staff provide invaluable assistance as public policy is formulated. Here they were essential. On behalf of our nation's highway users, I would like to thank each of them. I believe it is important to identify the staff directly involved in TEA21. From the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works: Daniel Corbett; Albert Dahlberg; Stephanie Daigle; Chris Hessler; Abigail Kinnison; Ann Loomis; Jason Patlis; Jimmie Powell; Kathy Ruffalo; Tom Sliter; Ellen Stein; Sharon Tucker; and Linda Willard. From the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation: Ann Begeman; Carl Bentzel; Moses Boyd; Lance Bultena; Charlotte Casey; Timothy Cook; Penny Dalton; James Drewry; Clyde Hart; Clark LeBlanc; John Raidt; and Sloan Rappoport. From the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Robert Drozdowski; Rachel Forward; Loretta Garrison; Steven Harris; Peggy Kuhn; Howard Menell; and Joseph Mondello. From the Senate Committee on the Budget: William Hoagland; Brian Riley; and Austin Smythe. From the Senate Legislative Counsel: Janine Johnson. The following staff also participated on behalf of their Senator: Rob Alexander; Steven Apicella; Mark Ashby; Doug Benevento; Renee Bennett; Kirsten Beronia; Chad Bradley; Rick Dearborn; Steve Dye; Mike Egan; James English; Tracy Henke; Keith Hennessey; Timothy Hess; Gerry Gilligan; Chris Jahn; Arnie Kupferman; Adam Lawrence; Stephanie Leger; Ryan Leonard; Lisa Linnell; James McCarthy; Stephen McMillin; Ashley Miller; Beth Miller; Liz O'Donoghue; Justin Oliver; Brigitta Pari; Peter Phipps; Mark Prater; Chris Prins; Darla Romfo; Joyce Rechtscheffen; Brad Robinson; Peter Rogoff; Jason Rupp; Christine Russell; David Russell; Pamela Sellers; Joshua Sheinkmen; Becky Shipp; Gary Smith; Dave Thompson; Polly Trottenberg; Joseph Trujillo; Mitch Warren; Andrew Wheeler; Melissa White; Clay Williams; and Drew Willision. Again, these individuals worked very hard on the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century and the Senate owes them a debt of gratitude for their dedicated service to this legislation. Mr. President, now that President Clinton has signed The Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century, our nation has enacted the foundation of our infrastructure for the next millennium. TEA21 will improve interstate and international commerce, stimulate our economy, protect our environment, and foster the use of modern transportation technologies. With TEA21, American's can now look forward to better, safer and less congested roads and bridges throughout the nation.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, thank you.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. For the information of all Senators--and I know Senator Kerry will want to comment; but I want to make it clear what we have done here--these two votes will be the two votes that will begin at 6 p.m., with one right behind the one at 6. They will be the last two votes of the evening. Following those two votes, we will continue to work on a similar agreement, which we have not yet gotten everybody to sign off on, that will provide for votes on the marriage penalty and the self- deductibility of taxes issue by midday on Wednesday. We are working to see if we can get an agreement to have a vote at 1 o'clock, followed by an alternative that the Democrats would offer. We do have a joint meeting in the morning to hear the President of South Korea at 10 o'clock. So we will not actually be able to get started on the marriage penalty and its alternative discussion until about 11 o'clock. But Senators will be notified when the second cloture vote will occur and the marriage penalty votes will occur during Wednesday's session of the Senate, we assume shortly after the noon hour; hopefully by 1 or 2 o'clock. I yield the floor. Several Senators addressed the Chair.

Mr. LOTT. If the Senator would yield, I want to say I have discussed with him today and with others in the Senate and in the administration, the fact of the matter is, we sort of have been locked in this position for a week. The important thing was to try to come to an agreement and get some votes on these important issues. This gets us started in that direction. I think that is important.

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, as most Senators are aware, there is a signing ceremony at the White House at 5:30 on the highway transportation bill, so a large number of Senators will be there for that occasion. But we thought it was important we get a vote on the drug-related amendment this afternoon. So we have checked with parties on both sides. I ask unanimous consent that a vote occur on amendment No. 2451 at 6 p.m. this evening, and immediately following that vote the Senate proceed to vote on the Democratic alternative, with the time between now and 6 o'clock to be equally divided on the issue of drugs. I further ask unanimous consent that immediately following the granting of this consent, the Democratic leader be recognized to offer their alternative, and the Coverdell amendment be temporarily laid aside for that purpose.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, today, I have the pleasure to announce that Senator Gordon Smith is the latest recipient of the Golden Gavel Award, having presided his 100th hour earlier today. The Golden Gavel has served for many years to mark a Senator's 100th presiding hour and continues to represent our appreciation for the time these dedicated Senators contribute to presiding over the U.S. Senate-- a very important duty. With respect to presiding, Senator Smith has consistently pitched-in when presiding difficulties have arisen. With the aid of his enthusiastic scheduling staff, Senator Smith has gladly carried more than his share of the presiding load. It is with sincere appreciation that I announce to the Senate the newest recipient of the Golden Gavel Award--Senator Gordon Smith of Oregon.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. I object to further proceedings on this matter at this time.

Mr. LOTT. I understand there is a bill at the desk due for its second reading, Mr. President.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, the Senate will resume consideration of the Coverdell drug amendment pending to the tobacco legislation. As a reminder to all Members, under a previous order, a cloture vote on the tobacco committee substitute will occur at 2:15 p.m. today. Members have until 12:30 p.m. in order to file second-degree amendments. And with respect to the second cloture motion which was filed, all Members have until 12:30 in order to file first-degree amendments. It is hoped that a vote could occur on the Coverdell drug amendment prior to the cloture vote today. Therefore, rollcall votes can be expected this morning prior to the recess for the party caucuses to meet. If the first cloture motion is not invoked--and I expect it will not be--I will be consulting with the minority leader for the timing with regard to the second cloture vote, which would occur some time on Wednesday. It could occur on Wednesday morning, but it will depend on other developments in the interim. Also during today's session, the Senate may consider any legislative or executive items cleared for action. I ask unanimous consent that the Senate stand in recess from 12:30 p.m. until 2:15 to allow for the weekly party caucuses to meet.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. The minority leader filed a cloture motion yesterday, Thursday, June 4, and a second cloture motion was filed today by our minority colleagues. Therefore, I ask unanimous consent that the first cloture vote occur on Tuesday, June 9, at 2:15 p.m., and the mandatory quorum under rule XXII be waived. I further ask unanimous consent that all second-degree amendments must be filed by 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday.

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand in adjournment until 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday, June 9. I further ask unanimous consent that on Tuesday, immediately following the prayer, the routine requests through the morning hour be granted and the Senate resume consideration of Coverdell amendment No. 2451 pending to the tobacco legislation.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, first, I listened with great interest to the comments of the Senator from Rhode Island about these two amendments. I urge him to think about the end game and not just look at this vote or this amendment at this time. Like everybody else around here, people are assuming that if we have a bad bill at this point--which we do--or if we add an amendment here or there, that is going to become law. Somebody needs to think about how do we get to an end result that will achieve the things we want. If there ever is a bill, it will have a teenage smoking cessation campaign and it will have a drug abuse cessation campaign. It is very appropriate that we tie these two together. It will have additional help for health programs that have been affected by smoking. NIH, obviously, would be a major beneficiary, and it should be. We need research on the health problems caused by smoking. Medicaid and Medicare--that would be the end result. Somebody better think about how do you ever get an end result. If we don't add something on marriage penalty, tax relief, and on drugs, there won't be a bill. There will not be a bill. I want to remind everybody how we got to this point. First of all, Senator McCain, the manager of the bill, chairman of the Commerce Committee, had hearings; his committee met. They reported the bill out. I think it was 19 or 20-1. Republicans and Democrats voted for it. All of them had to sort of hold their noses, knowing there were too many things in here that were the wrong thing to do, and they had gone too far. They had some problems, but they got it done. It was a Republican chairman and every Republican but one voted to report it out of that committee. I want the record to show, once again, that I am the guy that called up this legislation for it to be considered. But I am here to say that at this point it looks to me like it is over because of the games that are being played. Now, efforts were being made this very morning to work out a reasonable compromise on the tax cut proposal by Senator Gramm. We were going to have to have a good debate and a vote on this drug-related amendment. There were going to have to be additional votes on the attorneys' fees issue. There is going to have to be votes on the substitutes, if offered, by Senators Hatch, Gramm and Domenici. At that point, perhaps cloture could begin. That is not what has been happening. Yesterday, Senator Daschle filed a cloture motion and, frankly, I did not appreciate the way that was being done. We are not ready for cloture on this. We have some other issues that have to be considered before cloture would ever be invoked. And now, for the information of all Senators, the junior Senator from North Dakota, Senator Conrad, has filed a cloture motion on the pending committee amendment to the tobacco bill. Now, who else is going to file a cloture? We have a good man back here in the cloakroom, Tiny; maybe he can file cloture on this bill. Is everybody going to wander in and file a cloture? Do we want two cloture votes on Tuesday, or one every day, or do we want a bill? Frankly, Mr. President, I am offended by this. I consider it a breach of the good faith that we have worked in within this Chamber. I was not notified this was going to happen until 5 minutes after 11. I never had a discussion with my counterpart on the other side, and then Senator Conrad files his cloture motion at about 11:20. I resent it. I don't appreciate it. It is counterproductive and it is killing this bill. So I truly regret this action by our minority colleagues. As all Senators know, rule XXII, the cloture rule, is one of the most rigid of our rules, as far as imposing an arbitrary schedule for the consideration of a bill. Amendments and even dictating the convening time of the Senate with respect to the time of a cloture rollcall vote are locked in under this rule. The bill before us would require eight cloture motions--that is an important point--to be invoked and each of the eight cloture items to be disposed of with up to 30 hours of debate on each. They are as follows: cloture on the Commerce Committee amendment; cloture on the bill, S. 1415; cloture on the motion to proceed to a House revenue bill; cloture on the substitute amendment to insert the Senate text into the House revenue bill; cloture on passage of the House revenue bill; cloture on the motion to insist on the Senate amendment required to send the bill to conference; cloture on the motion to request a conference with the House on disagreeing amendments; and cloture on the appointment of conferees. I am not the only guy in the Senate who knows where all these cloture motions can be filed. Of course, that is assuming you get cloture, which then would require 30 hours and hundreds of amendments. This is a very complex, very important piece of legislation, no matter what your viewpoint is, for or against. Everybody has to acknowledge that it has many moving parts, is very complex, and there are many opportunities for amendments to be offered and for mischief to be caused. It could take forever or, in fact, never, as far as this bill being completed, unless we have some modicum of cooperation on both sides of the aisle and some effort to be fair to Senators that do have amendments that they think should be offered. So I am disappointed. But if this is the way we are going to proceed, if it is going to be done this way, then I will join the ranks of those that are going to use every procedural parliamentary tool to work against this legislation, and we can just go ahead and admit that it was a good thought. We tried our best. It didn't work. I think that is unfortunate. But the way that this is set up now, that is exactly where we are. I yield the floor. Mr. DASCHLE addressed the Chair.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, on behalf of the Democratic leader I make the following request. I understand that H.R. 3433, received earlier today from the House, is at the desk. I ask for its first reading.

Mr. LOTT. I now ask for its second reading, and object to my own request.

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I would like to notify the Senate that this is the bill that is commonly referred to as the Deadbeat Parents Punishment Act, and I appreciate the cooperation that we received on both sides of the aisle today to get this legislation through, because it is clearly something that should be passed. We should have felony violations for failure to pay legal child support obligations. I am glad to move the legislation. I ask unanimous consent the bill be considered read a third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and any statements relating to the bill be printed at the appropriate place in the Record.

Mr. LOTT

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

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate immediately proceed to executive session to consider the following nomination on the Executive Calendar: No. 624. I further ask unanimous consent that the nomination be confirmed; that the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table; that any statements relating to the nomination of Judge Richard Roberts, to be a U.S. District Judge for the District of Columbia, appear at the appropriate place in the Record; that the President be immediately notified of the Senate's action; and that the Senate then return to legislative session.

Mr. LOTT

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

Mr. LOTT

Mr. LOTT. Mr. President, for the information of all Senators, the Senate will not be in session on Monday, and we will resume the pending drug amendment at 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday. It is my hope that a vote will occur on the drug amendment prior to the scheduled cloture vote at 2:15 p.m. on Tuesday. That means it will have to occur before the luncheons that day. Rollcall votes could occur then Tuesday morning, one after 9:30 a.m. and then a second one at 2:15 p.m. I will consult with the minority leader, of course, further with respect to the scheduling of the second cloture vote, assuming the first cloture vote is not invoked, and that vote will occur then I believe on Wednesday. The Senate could also consider any other legislative or executive items that may be cleared for action on Tuesday. In fact, we hope to have another Executive Calendar nomination or two that we will be able to get cleared.