Ted Stevens

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I seek time under the time allocated to me under the current procedure in the Senate.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, today the Citizens Against Government Waste issued their 2001 Pork List. I am here to discuss that briefly. Five items on the first page of this list were requested in the President's budget as part of the Corps of Engineers regular program, but they are charged to be pork. Those were requested by President Clinton and his administration, not by me. Also, $11 million listed as pork in the Interior Department budget was also requested by the President, not me, to manage fish and game in Alaska. It shows the accuracy of this list. Other items listed on this ``waste'' list include runway lights. It so happens that 80 villages in Alaska have no roads or hospitals. They depend on medical evacuation by aircraft when people have babies, suffer a heart attack, or have to have medical assistance. Those same villages have no runway lights at all. North of the Arctic Circle, the Sun doesn't even rise beginning in mid-December until the end of the following January, making it impossible for an evacuation plane to land without lights. In fact, this is a persistent problem for us all winter throughout Alaska. After a Native man in Hoonah, AK, suffered a heart attack and sat on the tarmac for 3 days waiting for medical evacuation, the mayor wrote to me and asked for runway lights. We looked into it and found that it was true. I really did not realize there were so many of these small airports that had no lights. I not only am proud that the Senate acceded to my request for runway lights in last year's appropriations bills, I want to put the Senate on notice that this year I am going to seek funds so that every village in Alaska has runway lights. Under the current procedure for allocation aid for improvement of airports, they are not eligible. I believe if it is wasteful to make sure a woman in hard labor can deliver her baby in a hospital with a doctor attending, instead of in an airplane hangar with the help of a mechanic, then I am guilty of asking the Senate for pork and proud of the Senate for giving it to me. The Citizens Against Government Waste listed funding to aid in the recovery of the endangered stellar sea lion as pork. The Senate and the whole Congress remember the battle over the sea lion at the end of the last session. That issue threatened to shut down the pollack fishery in Alaska, which supplies most of the fish for fast food and frozen products nationwide. The Office of Management and Budget estimated the closure of that fishery would cost the national economy as much as a half billion dollars annually. By making a Federal investment to assure sound science to protect the sea lions, we will avoid that loss in our fisheries, families will not lose their jobs, and the Federal Government will continue to collect corporate and personal income taxes far in excess of the money we put up to assure sound science is used in addressing that problem. Likewise, the list includes transportation vouchers so welfare mothers can get to their jobs and get off welfare. By making another small investment in public transportation--$60,000 in this case--women, particularly in the Matanuska-Susitna Borough in our State, can work, pay taxes, and save the Government thousands and thousands--hundreds of thousands of dollars in welfare benefits. If that is pork, again I am guilty. Alaska has the highest rate of alcoholism in the Nation. Alaska is No. 1 in child abuse, No. 1 in domestic violence, and No. 1 in suicide, particularly among young men in the Native villages. Working with our Governor and State legislature, and faith-based institutions such as Catholic Charities that utilize volunteers, and an enormous number of volunteers, some of this pork brought the Federal Government in as a partner to address these problems that are persistent in our State. Those projects, along with homeless shelters, are listed as shameful pork in this list. For me, not addressing these crying human needs would be what would be shameful, and I am ashamed of the people who made the list. Alaska has the highest unemployment rate in our Nation. Some communities have unemployment rates four times the national unemployment rate during the Great Depression. We have unemployment as high as 80 percent in some of our cities and villages. I addressed that issue with job training programs to help get people off welfare rolls and into productive employment where they will pay taxes. That, too, is listed as pork. Despite the nationwide shortages of nurses, teachers, and pilots, those training programs which we instituted in our State are listed as pork. In a State where only a handful of communities have doctors, let alone nurses, our health needs are tremendous. By utilizing cost- effective telemedicine for our veterans and Native people, we offer basic health care services using community health aides in areas that have no doctors, no clinics, and no hospitals. Those programs, again, are listed as wasteful, even though they are the most cost-effective programs in the country, delivering health care service to people who are literally hundreds of miles from the doctors who provide the care through telemedicine. Alaska, also unfortunately, is failing in educational achievement. In some of our school districts, not only will the schools receive a failing grade, but not one of the students in those schools can pass the State exit exam in order to graduate. But summer reading programs that we put in place to address those needs, and similar programs to address the problems of education in a State that is one-fifth the size of the United States and has such a small population, all of these things are listed as pork. The criterion seems to be if President Clinton requested it, it was not pork. If I requested it or a member of our committee requested it, it is pork. Our State has 70 percent of the lands in national parks, 85 percent of the lands in national wildlife refuges, over one-third of the national forest lands, and receives less money for improvements and utilization of those lands than any other State that has such parks or wildlife refuges or forests. We have 50 percent of the coastline of the United States, and we harvest over 50 percent of the fish that are consumed in the United States. We have more than half of the Indian tribes in the United States. I challenge anyone to look at the dismal record of the executive branch in stewardship of either the Natives or these lands or fisheries areas, and compare that to what we have done here in the Congress. My amendments last year were not pork. Not one of them will enrich any person or any community. They meet needs in my State. We don't build tunnels under rivers for $8 billion. We don't build sports stadiums with tax advantages. We are a sovereign State, and so long as I am here, we will receive a fair share of Federal spending in order to meet our needs. I criticize those who made this list. I wish they would come out and face us. I will have a hearing, let them come and face us. It is high time these people who are issuing these lists have some responsibility. They issue the lists in order to get contributions from our citizens to try to prevent so-called pork. It is not pork at all. It is meeting the needs of the people in my State, and I for one am pleased, pleased, very pleased that my colleagues have supported my request to meet those needs.

Mr. STEVENS. I will be happy to yield.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, the Steller sea lion crisis continues to be a serious issue for Alaska fishermen and the families and communities that depend on them. A recent guest columnist piece in the Seattle Post Intelligencer contains a good description of the flawed regulatory process that led us to this point. I ask unanimous consent that this piece be printed in the Record.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, the Senate Appropriations Committee has adopted rules governing its procedures for the 107th Congress. Pursuant to Rule XXVI, paragraph 2, of the Standing Rules of the Senate, on behalf of myself and Senator Byrd I ask unanimous consent that a copy of the Committee rules be printed in the Record.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I am very pleased to come to the floor to support the nominations of Gale Norton to be Secretary of the Department of the Interior. She has a proven record as a public servant and the credentials, experience, and character to be a great Secretary of the Interior. I know a little bit about this Department. I was at the Interior Department during the days of President Eisenhower first as a legislative counsel, then as Assistant to the Secretary of the Interior, Fred Seaton, and then as the Solicitor of the Interior Department. I recall that in those days we had informal meetings with Members of Congress to discuss the real issues facing Federal land managers and the people living and working near those lands. Those were nonpartisan talks that assured the success of later more formal administrative and legislative initiatives during the Eisenhower administration. In Alaska, one-third of the lands are managed by the Bureau of Land Management, two-thirds of the lands managed by the National park Service, and almost 90 percent of the lands managed by the Fish and Wildlife Service. All agencies of the Department of the Interior, and one-quarter of all the lands under the management of the Interior Department have been declared to be wilderness by the U.S. Congress and not available for our use. Many of Alaska's Native people, as well as other Alaskans, live within the boundaries of these Federal conservation areas that have been withdrawn. They make their livelihood off of the land, and many times there are conflicts between our people and the Department of the Interior. As an Alaskan, I am very pleased to support Gale Norton because of her background, and as a Senator, I say to my colleagues that we are most fortunate to have this brilliant young woman as a guardian of our Nation's lands and native people. As a lawyer, she will look beyond rhetoric. As a former Interior Department official, she will understand the duty and stewardship and traditions of that Department. As a former attorney general of a Western State, she will remember the communities and the people who neighbor Federal lands under her jurisdiction. I shall vote for her nomination and welcome the opportunity to do so. I yield the floor.

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, the Senator from Louisiana was ahead of me. I will be pleased to wait for him, if Senator Bingaman would like me to do so.

Mr. STEVENS. Thank you.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, today I am honored to introduce the Public Safety Medal of Valor Act. It is a bill intended to enhance recognition of an important segment of our public servants. These are the men and women who engage in the law enforcement and public safety duties that benefit our communities every day. I introduced this bill early in the 106th Congress, and the Senate passed it unanimously in May 1999. The Senate Judiciary Committee deliberated on a similar piece of legislation, H.R. 46, and reported a version with amendments. Unfortunately, after the Senate passed H.R. 46 in the last days of the 106th Congress, there was not time for the House to act. Today I submit the bill as introduced in the 106th Congress, and hope my colleagues will join me again in seeking its passage.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, today I am honored to introduce the Public Safety Medal of Valor Act. It is a bill intended to enhance recognition of an important segment of our public servants. These are the men and women who engage in the law enforcement and public safety duties that benefit our communities every day. I introduced this bill early in the 106th Congress, and the Senate passed it unanimously in May 1999. The Senate Judiciary Committee deliberated on a similar piece of legislation, H.R. 46, and reported a version with amendments. Unfortunately, after the Senate passed H.R. 46 in the last days of the 106th Congress, there was not time for the House to act. Today I submit the bill as introduced in the 106th Congress, and hope my colleagues will join me again in seeking its passage.

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I am proud to introduce a piece of legislation important to my State, the ``Alaska Wetlands Conservation Act.'' The legislation I submit today is identical to that introduced in the 106th Congress, except for a minor addition relative to silviculture. The new language simply clarifies the existing exemption for normal silviculture activities as applied to lands owned by Alaska Native corporations established pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (``ANCSA'') Congress in enacting the ANCSA intended and expected that Native timber holdings would be subject to harvesting. In fact, most Native timber lands are former national forest lands that, at the time of the enactment of ANCSA in 1971, were part of an ``established'' or ``ongoing'' silviculture program for that forest. I hope my colleagues will support my State and its Native peoples as we pursue this legislation.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I am proud to introduce a piece of legislation important to my State, the ``Alaska Wetlands Conservation Act.'' The legislation I submit today is identical to that introduced in the 106th Congress, except for a minor addition relative to silviculture. The new language simply clarifies the existing exemption for normal silviculture activities as applied to lands owned by Alaska Native corporations established pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (``ANCSA'') Congress in enacting the ANCSA intended and expected that Native timber holdings would be subject to harvesting. In fact, most Native timber lands are former national forest lands that, at the time of the enactment of ANCSA in 1971, were part of an ``established'' or ``ongoing'' silviculture program for that forest. I hope my colleagues will support my State and its Native peoples as we pursue this legislation.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. I will, but I seek to follow Senator Byrd. He is my chairman. I will follow Senator Byrd.

Mr. STEVENS. Madam President, I am humbled by the statement of the President pro tempore and the current chairman of the Appropriations Committee. He and I have served together now for many years. I know he did not know earlier today in our conference I told the conference that I thought that this resolution that has been crafted by our two leaders was, in fact, extending a hand of friendship across this aisle based upon trust. He, in his normal way, has stated it more clearly and precisely than I. Senator Byrd honors us all. But we are here as senior Members. As our leader on this side of the aisle has said, this is a 50/50 split in the Senate. But it is still the Senate of the United States. Coming from Alaska, I know the value of the vote that comes from the Vice- Presidency. It was the only vote that Vice President Agnew cast that broke the tie on the Alaska pipeline and brought our Nation billions of barrels of oil. We face issues all the time when we are split and have a tie. This time we start with a tie, but we start also with the friendships and the knowledge of one another that have been built up over the years. I think it will be an interesting experience for newcomers to witness. The Senate starts on the basis of trust. When I was a very new and appointed Senator, I asked a Senator here who was managing the bill on the other side of the aisle to call me when it came time to offer an amendment. I was tied up in a committee. I was surprised that the bell rang in the committee and the vote was going on. I came to the floor. I am not one to be shy in expressing my opinions, and I went to the then manager of the bill and started to berate him. Senator Mike Mansfield came to me and said: Senator, you should not use language like that on the floor of the Senate. I told Senator Mansfield what had happened. He, as the majority leader, looked at that Senator and said: Is that true? The manager of the bill said: That's true, but that amendment would not have passed. Senator Mansfield said: Have you got your amendment, Senator? He took the amendment from me, he stopped the vote that was going on, he returned the bill to second reading, and he offered my amendment. That amendment passed, and it has benefited my State for a long time. I merely state it here today to say every Senator on this floor has equal rights. The 50/50 that we have is the result of the voters of the country, but there need not be a division between this body in terms of the 50. We work on the basis of a majority. We can have a tie at almost any time, or a majority with a quorum. We are looking at a process where every Senator has the right now to understand the responsibility that comes from this agreement that has been reached. I congratulate the Democratic majority leader; I congratulate our future Republican majority leader for reaching this conclusion. I share the feelings of my friend from West Virginia that this is an act, really, of true statesmanship. I believe those who have not agreed should help us make it work because it will take the relationships that exist between myself and my great friend from West Virginia to make this work. I not only trust the Senator from West Virginia, I trust him with my life, and he knows that. We have never had an argument. I have served with him as chairman; he has served with me as chairman. We have resolved every difference we ever had before we came to the floor. That is what is going to happen now. Most of the work we do will be in committee. This resolution gives us the ability to work in committee on the basis of trust. I honor the two leaders for what they have done. I am proud of the Senate today.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I want to publicly state I think we ought to thank our Creator for giving us the opportunity to serve in this body, and to have a period of time like we have just come through, where I have been able to speak for people of different nationalities, different tongues, who have come to our country and sought freedom and an opportunity to work for themselves, so that they will now be able to continue that work. It really is, to me, a very significant day. To be able to accomplish this is very much a humbling experience.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, we all recognize the Senator's diligence in keeping the gambling industry out of Hawaii. Would I be correct then saying this provision would not have any impact on those cruise ships that begin or end their voyages in a foreign port or on the mainland so long as they don't gamble while in Hawaii?

Mr. STEVENS. I thank the Senator for his explanation.

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I would like to engage the distinguished chairman of the Senate Interior Appropriations subcommittee in a short discussion on an item which is included on page 171 of the conference report on the recently passed Interior appropriations bill, H.R. 4578. In that bill, there is a reference to utilizing the Alaska ``Job in the Woods'' program for projects ``that enhance the southeast Alaska economy, such as the southeast Alaska intertie.'' May I inquire of the distinguished chairman if that language refers specifically to the currently proposed Swan Lake-Lake Tyee Intertie project for which the Forest Service completed its final environmental impact statement and issued its record of decision on August 29, 1997?

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I would like to engage the distinguished chairman of the Senate VA-HUD Appropriations subcommittee in a short discussion on an item which is included on page 79 of the Conference Report H. Rept. 106-988 (H.R. 4635) for the VA-HUD appropriations bill. In that bill, there is funding available for Catholic Community Services. I am told that reference is incorrect and that the funding should actually be made available for Catholic Social Services for renovations and construction at the Brother Francis Shelter and AWAIC's transitional housing. I would ask the distinguished subcommittee chairman whether it was his understanding that Catholic Social Services was the intended recipient of this funding rather than Catholic Community Services, and if so, would the chairman make note of this for the Record?

Mr. STEVENS. I thank my colleague. authoritative root server

Mr. STEVENS. Yes, that is correct.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the consideration of S. Con. Res. 162.

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I regret deeply that last concurrent resolution, and at some time in the future I will explain it. I am awaiting some other papers. For the time being, let me say this. I have stood on the Senate floor several times talking about the Steller sea lion problem. I personally thank Mr. John Podesta, the President's assistant, for talking to me for so long and working with our staff and myself for so long, into the early hours this morning and through the day, to bring about a resolution of the problem I have been discussing. I cannot say we won this argument, but I can say we have reached a conclusion that will allow a substantial portion, approximately 90 percent, of the fishermen affected by this issue to return to fishing next January. These are people who live along a stretch of coastline and on islands, as I said, that are the same distance as from this city to the end of the Florida chain. They are people who live in very harsh circumstances and have one basic source of income, and that is fishing. We have been able now to agree on a process by which the fishing season will commence on January 20. Incidentally, it has nothing to do with the Inauguration; it just happens to be the first day of fishing season. We are delighted we have found a way to resolve the conflict. It still means there is a long hard task ahead of not only this Secretary of Commerce and his personnel but the next Secretary of Commerce and personnel to carry out the agreement we have crafted and to see that it works. I am pleased to say we have had a great many people who have assisted us. As I said earlier, the distinguished majority leader and minority leader were personally involved, as were their staffs, along with the staff of the Assistant to the President, and the Office of Management and Budget. I cannot leave out, and would not leave out, the distinguished chairman of the House Appropriations Committee, the Honorable Bill Young, a Representative from Florida, who waited for this resolution. I know it was a harsh task he had, and there are many Members in both the House and Senate who were inconvenienced by this delay. I can only thank them for their cooperation. As I have said before, not one Member of Congress argued with me about the delay. They all understood that we had a substantial problem. It is not easy to represent a State and people who live closer to Tokyo than Washington, DC. These people really have but three spokesmen in Washington compared to the many that other States have. They rely on us to convey their wishes and to convey their dilemmas over potential Federal actions and to seek solutions. I am delighted we have received the cooperation that led to a consensus today that I believe will assist them and will start the resolution of this problem and bring it to a conclusion where we can abide by the Magnuson-Stevens Act that governs the fisheries off our shores and, at the same time, respect the findings that are made under the Endangered Species Act. I thank Sylvia Matthews, Office of Management and Budget; Michael Deitch, Office of Management and Budget; Penny Dalton of NOAA; Mark Childress of Senator Daschle's office; Dave Hoppe of Senator Lott's office; and Lisa Sutherland and David Russell of my office for their hard work on the issue pertaining to Steller sea lions.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Judiciary Committee be discharged from further consideration of H.R. 46 and the Senate proceed to its immediate consideration.

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, Senator Hatch has an amendment which is at the desk.