Ralph Regula

Mr. REGULA

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, reclaiming my time, I think the gentleman makes the point very clear. I would say to my colleagues, when you vote on this, keep in mind that you are putting 34 million workers at risk who may end up with no coverage for as much as 2 years under the requirement of the rulemaking process to put anything back in place for these rules. I want to make one other point, and that is that it has been raised that we had a motion to instruct. Keep in mind that when the motion to instruct, when many Members voted for it was when the old rules were still in place, and the motion to instruct would have allowed, had it actually been consummated, would have allowed the old rules to be enforced, but they are gone. They are gone. Therefore, there would not be anything out there if we take away the Department's authority, which is being proposed by this amendment. So I have to reiterate that we are running a great risk that in passing this amendment, if it were to become law, that 34 million workers will be on their own. Let me make a couple of other points, and that is, under the proposal of the Department of Labor, contracts can cover any matters of overtime rules. They can be put into union contracts, and it would supersede any departmental regulations. So any way we look at it, we are not doing people a favor by voting for this. I think, in fact, we are putting their overtime very much in jeopardy, and I hope my colleagues will consider that as they vote on this issue and on this proposed amendment.

Mr. REGULA

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, I reserve a point of order.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, I reserve a point of order.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, I continue to reserve a point of order.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, we will have to insist on our point of order because obviously this is legislating on an appropriations, to add the language that the gentleman from Wisconsin is proposing. It violates clause 2 of rule XXI. The rule states in pertinent part that an amendment to a general appropriation bill shall not be in order if it changes existing law. Obviously, this amendment proposes a change in existing law by prescribing changes in tax liabilities; and, therefore, we insist on our point of order.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the requisite number of words. I rise in support of this amendment. I think it is a fairness issue because we want to give all the children in the schools of the United States an opportunity. What this does, and unfortunately we had to drop it from the original bill, it was $296 million last year and down to zero, in an effort to beef up a lot of programs that are very important to Members. But I think in fairness this is a very modest amendment that is being proposed by the gentleman from Arizona. It is $20 million. It gives the schools that are taking responsibility, the parochial schools, some of the private schools, some of the schools that are in another venue, and it is a modest amount to say to them, we understand and we care about what happens in your school, too. We care about the students in your school, that they get an equal shot or at least some help, a recognition of the importance of that. The Even Start program will still have a lot of money left. It is not as if we are putting it way behind. In light of all that, I strongly support the amendment proposed by the gentleman from Arizona.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, I reserve a point of order on the proposed amendment.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent that the remainder of the bill through page 95, line 21, be considered as read, printed in the Record, and open to amendment at any point.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, I reserve a point of order.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?

Mr. REGULA. I yield to the gentleman from Maine.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, I make a point of order against the amendment because it provides an appropriation for an unauthorized program and therefore violates clause 2 of rule XXI. The pertinent part of clause 2 of rule XXI is as follows: An appropriation may not be in order as an amendment for an expenditure not previously authorized by law. Mr. Chairman, the authorization for this program has not been signed into law, and therefore it violates clause 2 of rule XXI. I ask for a ruling from the Chair.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, I withdraw my point of order.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, we recognize the validity of the gentleman's point and we certainly, in light of the circumstances, concede that the point of order is valid.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the last word. I appreciate the fact that the gentleman is withdrawing the amendment. I think it has been a good discussion about what is a continuing problem. We have recognized it to some extent by putting 12 million plus or minus in AHRQ to do this very thing, and it is something we should keep in mind in the future. But the problem here is there is no offset for the $50 million. I think the intention is good, but this has been a tough bill to make all the dollars fit.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, I reserve a point of order against the amendment.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, well, if the gentleman would be willing to withdraw, we certainly would keep it in mind in conference, because I understand. I come from a State where it gets reasonably cold in the winter, too. I understand what the gentleman is saying about fuel costs. We do not know, I see gasoline is like a yo-yo. One day it is $1.89 out my way, and the next day it is $1.69. But the problem for the Secretary of HHS to manage all these agencies, what we have tried to do is put in a reasonable amount for his needs. Now, in conference, maybe we can address this, and we would certainly keep it in mind if the gentleman would consider withdrawing it.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, reclaiming my time, it seems easy to take this out of the administrative budget of the Secretary of Health and Human Services, but let me point out that he has a great challenge in oversight to manage that Department effectively, and that is part of his administrative budget. Within that budget, he has to administer the Centers for Disease Control, the National Institutes of Health, the FDA, HRSA, SAMHSA, the Indian Health Services, CMS, the children and families programs, the older americans programs and the health care quality. Now, that is quite a range of services that he has to manage effectively if they are going to serve the public well, and we are faced with some priority choices here.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, I have been very pleased to see that NIH has responded so quickly and thoughtfully to the House report language. I think it is a very simple proposition: NIH, or the taxpayer, pays for the research, even pays for the journals, and should be able to share the results with the taxpaying public. Our investment in research is not well served by a process that limits taxpayer access instead of expanding it, and I should add public access. I encourage NIH to move expeditiously to finalize its proposal after considering the comments it receives on its policy. The public deserves nothing less.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, I reserve a point of order on this, and we do not have a copy of the amendment.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, reluctantly we concede the point of order, but I would point out this is part of the President's request. It is a management tool to let the user pay for a service being provided by the government. But the gentleman is correct, it does violate the right of the authorizers to deal with this subject, and it is not a proper part of the bill.

Mr. REGULA. I yield to the gentleman from Vermont.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the requisite number of words. Mr. Chairman, I want to point out that we recognized in our bill the importance of LIHEAP. We did increase it by $111 million over last year. The total provided in the bill is now $1.9 billion, a lot of money, and that is the formula grants that go right out to the States. In addition, there is $100 million for the contingent emergency fund, and lastly, in the weatherization assistance grant, which came to us from the Subcommittee on the Interior and Related Agencies, we are funded at $227 million. None of us know exactly what the needs will be in the coming winter. It could be severe, it could be mild; and if it is a mild winter, I think this is more than adequate. If it is a severe winter, we may want to do a supplemental appropriation.

Mr. REGULA. Mr. Chairman, will the gentleman yield?