Ted Stevens

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, the bill before us sets up a prospect of having the merchant marine available to the United States in the event of emergency on a daily charge basis. The taxpayers will not pay any more regardless of the contract between the seafarers and their employer, the operator of the vessel. This is a new approach. The Senator from Iowa is mistaken. The funds that were paid for those ships that were in the Persian Gulf were not taxpayer dollars. They were dollars provided by our Persian Gulf allies. In any event, we are trying to change that. I say to my friend from Iowa that these people are not in the military. They are civilians. They are not subject to the control of the Federal Government. Their salaries are not in the control of the Federal Government. The Constitution prevents what the Senator from Iowa wants to do, and that is for Congress to legislate an amendment to a private contract between the seafarers and their employers. I have to say that, if this is the Taxpayers Union provision, as the Senator from Iowa said, someone has misinformed that organization because this bill has nothing to do with payment to the people who man these ships. That is between the employer and the employee. It is not a Government affair. As I said last night, our alternative is to once again try to contract with foreign ships to provide us vessels to carry our goods to supply our men and women in the field in times of crisis. In the last Persian Gulf crisis we did that. We paid a minimum of 50 percent more on the total contract--not just the seafarers' contract moneys for entering into a war zone but for the whole vessel. And some of them, despite the fact that we paid them a 100-percent bonus, refused to enter the war zone. This is a bill to give us the merchant marine we need in times of emergency, particularly in times of a war. These people are not in the military. They are not subject to the draft. They are not required to go in harm's way by any law that I know of, and there is no way to conscript them, which is what the amendment of the Senator from Iowa will do. It literally conscripts them, and says, ``In the event of the war, you are working for the Federal Government.'' I have never heard of such an approach. I want to say again that I moved to table the amendment last night because it really does nothing to help this bill. It is an attempt to drag a red herring across the Senate floor and tell us that somehow or other the taxpayers will be forced to pay for these people extraordinary rates if they are called upon to provide service during times of war, that under the bill we have to pay whatever their contract provides that their employer is going to pay them. The Secretary of Defense sets the rate for the cost of those vessels--fully crewed--under this bill; what is paid to the seafarer is between the employer and the employee. It is none of the Federal Government's business. Does the Senator wish time?

Mr. STEVENS. If there are amendments to be disposed of, we might be able to dispose or review them at this time. We have seen no other amendment today. We know the Senator from Iowa may have other amendments. May I inquire if any other Senator has an amendment to this bill? We would like to know if any other Senator has an amendment at this time.

Mr. STEVENS. I suggest the absence of a quorum.

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

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Will the Senator yield?

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, reserving the right to object, it is my understanding that there will be 15 minutes for Senator Harkin before the motion to table his second-degree amendment and 15 minutes for Senator Grassley before we move to table his first-degree amendment.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. For how long?

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that a summary of the managers' amendment be printed in the Record at this point, and that it be printed in the permanent Record following the managers' amendment of yesterday.

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, while we are waiting the manager on the Democratic side, I have a parliamentary inquiry. Was the managers' amendment that was adopted last evening printed in the Record?

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the bill be deemed read for a third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid on the table, and any statements relating to the bill appear at this point in the Record.

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate now proceed to the consideration of Calendar 430, H.R. 3120.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the bill be deemed 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 this point in the Record.

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Environment and Public Works Committee be discharged of H.R. 3287, and further that the Senate proceed now to its immediate consideration.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the committee amendment be agreed to, the bill be deemed read for a third time, passed, the motion to reconsider be laid on the table and any statements relating to the bill be placed at an appropriate place in the Record.

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate turn to immediate consideration of Calendar No. 573, H.R. 3068.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate temporarily set aside Senate bill 1505 and that the Senate now proceed to the consideration of Calendar No. 262, House bill 1350, the maritime security bill. I further ask unanimous consent that no amendment relative to the tuna-dolphin issue on the Panama declaration issue be in order.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, if there is no further business to come before the Senate, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate stand in adjournment, in accordance with the previous order, following the remarks of Senator Grassley.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, tomorrow morning at 10 a.m., the Senate will vote on or in relation to the Grassley amendment to the maritime bill. Other rollcall votes are possible on the remaining amendments to the maritime bill. It is hoped that a unanimous-consent agreement regarding the maritime bill can be reached tomorrow morning which would allow Members to know the voting schedule for the remainder of Friday's session. The Senate may also be asked to turn to consideration of any other items cleared for action.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I further ask unanimous consent that the time between 9:30 a.m. and 10 a.m. be equally divided in the usual form prior to a vote on the motion to table the Grassley amendment to occur at 10 a.m.

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that when the Senate completes its business today, it stand in adjournment until the hour of 9:30 a.m. on Friday, September 20; further, that immediately following the prayer, the Journal of proceedings be deemed approved to date, the morning hour be deemed to have expired and the time for the two leaders be reserved for their use later in the day and the Senate immediately resume consideration of H.R. 1350, the pending legislation, the maritime bill.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the Senate now proceed to the consideration en bloc of H.R. 3676, which is at the desk, calendar 560, which is S. 2006, and calendar 561, which is S. 2007, that the bills be deemed read for a third time and passed, the motions to reconsider be laid on the table en bloc, and any statements relating to these bills appear at the appropriate point in the Record.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I now ask unanimous consent that the Senate go into a period of routine morning business so that we can bring about the closing of this day, and we will continue on this bill tomorrow morning following a vote on my motion to table.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, unfortunately, the amendment that the Senator from Iowa has offered deals with another situation. Under this bill before the Senate, the U.S. Government will pay a flat fee for the use of the vessel fully crewed. What the shipowners pay the crew is a private matter. It will not affect the payment at all. As I said in my opening statement, the problem with the Persian Gulf, Desert Shield and Desert Storm, was we had to go to get foreign shipping. And in most instances, the premiums extracted were 50 percent of the total cost, not just the crew cost. In some instances, it was double the charter price. In spite of that, crews refused to enter the war zone. Now, the Senator's amendment deals with something that happened in the past, which would not be the situation in the future with regard to this bill. But even with regard to what happened under Desert Shield/ Desert Storm, I think the Senator forgets that we recovered the cost of our participation in that crisis, that war, from Kuwait and Saudi Arabia. This wasn't taxpayer cost that the Senator was talking about at all. So, as I indicated, if we had had an agreement, I would not make a motion to table. I now move to table the amendment. Under the leader's direction, there will be no vote on that tonight. The vote will occur tomorrow morning at 10 o'clock.

Mr. STEVENS

Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, on behalf of the leadership, I object.

Mr. STEVENS

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