106th Congress (1999 - 2000)

January 6, 1999 - December 3, 1999

Senate Committee Meetings by Date
Compiled from the Congressional Record's Daily Digests via Thomas at thomas.loc.gov

1999/01/06
Daily Digest - Wednesday, January 6, 1999; pages D1 - D 8

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

U.S. ARMED FORCES STATUS

Committee on Armed Services: On Tuesday, January 5, committee concluded
hearings to review the status of the United States Armed Forces and any
shortfalls in resources and capabilities that might prevent them from
successfully executing their assigned missions, after receiving
testimony from Gen. Henry H. Shelton, USA Chairman of the Joint Chiefs
of Staff; Gen. Dennis J. Reimer, USA Chief of Staff of the Army; Gen.
Charles C. Krulak, USMC Commandant of the Marine Corps; Admiral Jay L.
Johnson, USN Chief of Naval Operations; Gen. Michael E. Ryan, USAF Chief
of Staff of the Air Force. 

ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee approved Senator Campbell as
Chairman and Senator Inouye as Vice Chairman. Also, Committee approved
their rules of procedure for the 106th Congress. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/01/07
Daily Digest - Thursday, January 7, 1999;  pages D10 - D11

Committee Meetings

No committee meetings were held. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/01/08
Daily Digest - Friday, January 8, 1999; pages D14 - D16

Committee Meetings

No committee meetings were held. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/01/12
Daily Digest - Tuesday, January 12, 1999; pages D17 - D18

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

STEM CELL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human
Services, Education and Related Agencies held hearings to examine the
scientific implications of stem cell research and development, focusing
on patent and technology transfer implications and how intellectual
property consideration affect basic science and the future development
of products for public benefits, receiving testimony from Q. Todd
Dickinson, Acting Assistant Secretary of Commerce, and Acting
Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks; Maria C. Freire, Director,
Office of Technology Transfer, National Institute of Health, Department
of Health and Human Services; Lawrence S.B. Goldstein, University of
California, San Diego School of Medicine, on behalf of the American
Society for Cell Biology; Doug Melton, Harvard University, Cambridge,
Massachusetts, on behalf of the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation
International; and Richard L. Pikunis, Jr., Marlton, New Jersey. 

Hearings were recessed subject to call. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/01/14
Daily Digest - Thursday, January 14, 1999; pages D20 - D22

Committee Meetings

No committee meetings were held. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/01/15
Daily Digest - Friday, January 15, 1999; pages D24 - D26

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

YEAR 2000 CONVERSION

Committee on Appropriations: Committee concluded oversight hearings to
examine the status of government and industry efforts to prepare for
Year 2000 computer compliance, and to review a related proposed
allocation and plan for certain federal agencies to achieve Y2K
compliance activities, after receiving testimony from John A. Koskinen,
Chair, President's Council on Year 2000 Conversion. 

Joint Meetings

HUMAN RIGHTS IN RUSSIA

Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (Helsinki Commission):
Commission held hearings to examine recent developments in the area of
human rights and civil liberties in Russia, receiving testimony from
Elena Bonnor, Andrei Sakharov Foundation, Ludmilla Alexeyeva, Moscow
Helsinki Group, Larry Uzzell, Keston Institute, all of Moscow, Russia;
Micah Naftalin, Union of Councils for Soviet Jews, David Satter, Hudson
Institute, both of Washington, D.C.; and Mark B. Levin, National
Conference of Soviet Jewry, New York, New York.  

Commission recessed subject to call. 



1999/01/16
Daily Digest - Saturday, January 16, 1999; pages D27 - D28

Committee Meetings

No committee meetings were held. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/01/19  [This entry typed into file.]
Daily Digest - Tuesday, January 19, 1999;  pages D29 - D55

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet)

SOCIAL SECURITY REFORM

Committee on the Budget:  Committee held hearings on Social Security
reform issues, including treatment of  [PAGE D53] the postwar
generation, privatization, and Old Age, Survivors, and Disability
Insurance program, receiving testimony from Jagadeesh Gokhale, Federal
Reserve Bank of Cleveland, Cleveland, Ohio; Andrew A. Samwick, Dartmouth
College, Hanover, New Hampshire; Don K. Kebodeaux, First Financial
Capital Corporation, Houston, Texas; and Henry J. Aaron and Gary
Burtless, both of the Brookings Institution, Washington, D.C.

Hearings continue on Friday, January 22.

No Joint heaings noted.



1999/01/20
Daily Digest - Wednesday, January 20, 1999; pages D57 - D60

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

YEAR 2000 CONVERSION

Committee on Appropriations: Committee concluded hearings to examine the
status of government and industry efforts to prepare for Year 2000
computer compliance, after receiving testimony from David M. Walker,
Comptroller General of the United States, General Accounting Office. 

AUTHORIZATION--EXPORT ADMINISTRATION ACT

Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on
International Trade and Finance concluded hearings on proposed
legislation to authorize funds for programs of the Export Administration
Act and the potential need for an extension of the expired EAA, after
receiving testimony from William A. Reinsch, Under Secretary of Commerce
for Export Administration. 

FEDERAL TAX POLICY

Committee on the Budget: Committee concluded hearings on Federal Tax
Policy issues, including the tax rate, revenue growth, future changes in
the tax code, tax reform consequences, use of federal budget surplus for
tax cuts, and saving and investment initiatives, after receiving
testimony from Lawrence B. Lindsey, American Enterprise Institute, Mark
A. Bloomfield, American Council for Capital Formation, and William G.
Gale, Brookings Institution, all of Washington, D.C. 

ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee adopted
its rules of procedure for the 106th Congress. 

Also, Committee announced the Chairmen and ranking minority members for
its subcommittees. 

AUTHORIZATION--FAA

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee held
hearings on S.82, authorizing funds for the Federal Aviation
Administration, receiving testimony from Patrick V. Murphy, Deputy
Assistant Secretary for Aviation and International Affairs and David F.
Traynham, Assistant Administrator for Policy, Planning, and
International Aviation, Federal Aviation Administration, both of the
Department of Transportation; and John H. Anderson, Jr., Director,
Transportation Issues, Resources, Community, and Economic Development
Division, General Accounting Office. 

Hearings were recessed subject to call. 

ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee adopted its rules
of procedure for the 106th Congress. 

NOMINATIONS

Committee on Finance: Committee concluded hearings on the nominations of
Susan G. Esserman of Maryland, to be Deputy United States Trade
Representative, with the rank of Ambassador, and Timothy F. Geithner of
New York, to be Under Secretary for International Affairs, Gary S.
Gensler of Maryland, to be Under Secretary for Domestic Finance, Edwin
M. Truman of New York, to be Assistant Secretary for International
Affairs, and David C. Williams of Illinois, to be Inspector General for
Tax Administration, all of the Department of the Treasury, after the
nominees testified and answered question in their own behalf. Ms.
Esserman was introduced by Senator Graham. 

ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee adopted its rules of
procedure for the 106th Congress, and announced the following
subcommittee assignments: Subcommittee on International Security,
Proliferation and Federal Services: Senators Cochran (Chair), Stevens,
Collins, Domenici, Specter, Gregg, Akaka, Levin, Torricelli, Cleland,
and Edwards. Subcommittee on Government Management, Restructuring and
the District of Columbia: Senators Voinovich (Chair), Roth, Gregg,
Durbin, and Torricelli. Permanent Subcommittee on Investigation:
Senators Collins (Chair), Roth, Stevens, Voinovich, Domenici, Cochran,
Specter, Levin, Akaka, Durbin, Cleland, and Edwards. 

ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING

Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions: Committee adopted
its rules of procedure for the 106th Congress, and announced the
following subcommittee assignments: Subcommittee on Children and
Families: Senators Gregg (Chairman), Frist, DeWine, Collins, Brownback,
Hagel, Dodd, Bingaman, Wellstone, Murray, and Reed. Subcommittee on
Public Health: Senators Frist (Chairman), Gregg, Enzi, Collins,
Brownback, Sessions, Kennedy, Harkin, Mikulski, Bingaman, and Reed.
Subcommittee on Aging: Senators DeWine (Chairman), Jeffords, Hutchinson,
Gregg, Mikulski, Murray, and Dodd. Subcommittee on Employment, Safety
and Training: Senators Enzi (Chairman), Jeffords, Hutchinson, Hagel,
Sessions, Wellstone, Kennedy, Harkin, and Dodd. 

HEALTH CARE

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded
hearings to examine group health plan comparative information and
coverage determination standards, focusing on proposed regulation on
internal claims and appeals procedures and D59information disclosure
requirements for plans under the Employee Retirement and Income Security
Act (ERISA), after receiving testimony from Leslie Kramerich, Deputy
Assistant Secretary of Labor for Policy Pension and Welfare Benefits
Administration; Kathleen Sebelius, Kansas Insurance Department, Topeka,
on behalf of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners; J.
Randall MacDonald, GTE Corporation, Irving, Texas, on behalf of the
Association of Private Pension and Welfare Plans; Rand E. Rosenblatt,
Rutgers University Law School, Camden, New Jersey; Stephen J.
deMontmollin, AvMed Health Plan, Gainesville, Florida, on behalf of the
American Association of Health Plans; Bohn D. Allen, Arlington, Texas,
on behalf of the Texas Medical Association. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/01/21
Daily Digest - Thursday, January 21, 1999; pages D62 - D64

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

MINORITY HEALTH ISSUES

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human
Services, Education and Related Agencies held hearings to examine the
results of the Institute of Medicine assessment of National Institutes
of Health research and programs for ethnic minorities and the medically
underserved, including differences in cancer survival rates, cancer
research approach and prioritization, prevention and treatment programs,
clinical trials, research result communication, and improvement of
health, receiving testimony from M. Alfred Haynes, Chair, Committee on
Cancer Research Among Minorities and the Medically Underserved,
Institute of Medicine; Richard Klausner, Director and Otis W. Brawley,
Assistant Director, both of the National Cancer Institute, Department of
Health and Human Resources; Louis W. Sullivan, Morehouse School of
Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia, former Secretary of Health and Human
Services; and Armin D. Weinberg, Center for Cancer Control
Research/Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, on behalf of the
Intercultural Cancer Council. 

Hearings were recessed subject to call. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/01/22
Daily Digest - Friday, January 22, 1999; pages D65 - D68

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

SOCIAL SECURITY REFORM

Committee on the Budget: Committee concluded hearings on Social Security
reform issues, including projected Social Security surpluses, voluntary
savings matches, privatized individual accounts, retirement ages,
cost-of-living allowance, and benefit reduction, after receiving
testimony from Sam Beard, Economic Security 2000, and David A. Smith,
AFL-CIO, both of Washington, D.C., and Elizabeth O'Connor, Tribune
Company, Chicago, Illinois, on behalf of the Third Millennium. 

ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING

Committee on Environment and Public Works: On Thursday, January 21,
Committee announced the following subcommittee assignments: Subcommittee
on Superfund, Waste Control, and Risk Assessment: Senators Robert Smith
(Chairman), Warner, Inhofe, Crapo, Lautenberg, Moynihan, and Boxer.
Subcommittee on Clean Air, Wetlands, Private Property, and Nuclear
Safety: Senators Inhofe (Chairman), Voinovich, Bennett, Hutchison,
Graham, Lieberman, and Boxer. Subcommittee on Transportation and
Infrastructure: Senators Voinovich (Chairman), Warner, Robert Smith,
Bond, Inhofe, Thomas, Baucus, Moynihan, Reid, Graham, and Lieberman.
Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife, and Drinking Water: Senators Crapo
(Chairman), Thomas, Bond, Warner, Bennett, Hutchison, Reid, Lautenberg,
Wyden, Graham, and Boxer. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Finance: Committee ordered favorably reported the following
business items; 

S. 262, to make miscellaneous and technical changes to various trade
laws; and 

The nominations of Susan G. Esserman of Maryland, to be Deputy United
States Trade Representative, with the rank of Ambassador, and Timothy F.
Geithner of New York, to be Under Secretary for International Affairs,
Gary S. Gensler of Maryland, to be Under Secretary for Domestic Finance,
Edwin M. Truman of New York, to be Assistant Secretary for International
Affairs, and David C. Williams of Illinois, to be Inspector General for
Tax Administration, all of the Department of the Treasury. 

Committee announced the following subcommittee assignments: Subcommittee
on Health Care: Senators Chafee (Chairman), Roth, Jeffords, Grassley,
Gramm, Nickles, Hatch, Thompson, Rockefeller, Baucus, Breaux, Conrad,
Graham, Bryan, and Kerrey. Subcommittee on International Trade: Senators
Grassley (Chairman), Thompson, Murkowski, Roth, D66Lott, Gramm, Hatch,
Chafee, Jeffords, Moynihan, Baucus, Rockefeller, Breaux, Conrad, Graham,
Kerrey, and Robb. Subcommittee on Social Security and Family Policy:
Senators Nickles (Chairman), Gramm, Lott, Jeffords, Chafee, Thompson,
Breaux, Moynihan, Rockefeller, Kerrey, and Robb. Subcommittee on
Taxation and IRS Oversight: Senators Hatch (Chairman), Lott, Nickles,
Mack, Murkowski, Grassley, Thompson, Baucus, Moynihan, Conrad, Bryan,
and Robb. Subcommittee on Long-Term Growth and Debt Reduction: Senators
Murkowski (Chairman), Mack, Chafee, Graham, and Bryan. 

                                [Page: D66]

Also, Committee designated the following committee members to serve on
the Joint Committee on Taxation: Senators Roth (Chairman), Chafee,
Grassley, Moynihan, and Baucus; and the following committee members to
serve as congressional advisors on trade policy and negotiations:
Senators Roth (Chairman), Chafee, Grassley, Moynihan, and Baucus. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/01/23
Daily Digest - Saturday, January 23, 1999; pages D69 - D70.

Committee Meetings

No committee meetings were held. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/01/25
Daily Digest - Monday, January 25, 1999; pages D71 - D72

Committee Meetings

No Committee Meetings were held. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/01/26
Daily Digest - Tuesday, January 26, 1999; pages D73 - D76

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

AGRIBUSINESS CONCENTRATION

Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Committee concluded
hearings to examine economic concentration in agriculture and
agribusiness with an emphasis on changes in the pork industry and other
areas of livestock farming, focusing on Cargill, Incorporated's proposed
acquisition of Continental Grain Company's grain merchandising business,
and S.101, to promote trade in United States agricultural commodities,
livestock, and value-added products, and to prepare for future bilateral
and multilateral trade negotiations, after receiving testimony from
Senator Dorgan; Keith Collins, Chief Economist, Department of
Agriculture; Mark Drabenstott, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, and
Steve D. Hunt, U.S. Premium Beef Ltd., both of Kansas City, Missouri; C.
Robert Taylor, Auburn University, Auburn, Alabama; Dean Kleckner,
American Farm Bureau Federation, Washington, D.C.; Leland Swenson,
National Farmers Union, Washington, D.C.; Donna Reifschneider, Smithton,
Illinois, on behalf of the National Pork Producers Council; Paul Hitch,
Hitch Enterprises, Guyman, Oklahoma, on behalf of the National
Cattlemen's Beef Association; Frank Sims, Cargill, Incorporated,
Minneapolis, Minnesota; and J. Patrick Boyle, American Meat Institute,
Arlington, Virginia. 

STEM CELL RESEARCH

Committee on Appropriations: Committee concluded hearings on the
ethical, scientific, and legal implications of the recent decision of
the Department of Health and Human Services to allow federally funded
stem cell research, after receiving testimony from Harold Varmus,
Director, National Institutes of Health, and Harriet Rabb, General
Counsel, both of the Department of Health and Human Services; Eric M.
Meslin, National Bioethics Advisory Commission, Rockville, Maryland; and
Richard M. Doerflinger, Committee for Pro-Life Activities/National
Conference of Catholic Bishops, Washington, D.C. 

TRADE POLICY

Committee on Finance: Committee held hearings on trade policy issues,
including trade negotiating agenda, international economic agenda,
including export promotion programs, trade adjustment assistance
program, and administration of unfair trade laws, receiving testimony
from Robert E. Rubin, Secretary of the Treasury; Lawrence H. Summers,
Deputy Secretary of the Treasury; William M. Daley, Secretary of
Commerce; and Charlene Barshefsky, United States Trade Representative. 

Hearings continue on Wednesday, January 27. 

IMPROVING EDUCATION OPPORTUNITIES

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded
hearings on S. 277, to improve elementary and secondary education
programs, after receiving testimony from Senators Bond, Hutchison, and
Lautenberg. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/01/27
Daily Digest - Wednesday, January 27, 1999; pages D78 - D80

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Armed Services: Committee ordered favorably reported S. 4,
to improve pay and retirement equity for members of the Armed Forces,
with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. 

BUDGET PROCESS REFORM

Committee on the Budget/Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committees
concluded joint hearings on S. 92, to provide for biennial process and a
biennial appropriations process and to enhance oversight and the
performance of the Federal Government, and S. 93, to improve and
strengthen the budget process, after receiving testimony from Senator
McCain; Representatives Nussle and Cardin; Timothy J. Muris, George
Mason University School of Law, Fairfax, Virginia; and Martha H.
Phillips, The Concord Coalition, and Van Doorn Ooms, Committee for
Economic Research, both of Washington, D.C. 

OFFSHORE OIL AND GAS ACTIVITY IMPACT

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded oversight
hearings on the impacts of coastal areas and communities caused by
offshore oil and gas exploration and development, and on S. 25, to
provide Coastal Impact Assistance to State and local governments, to
amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act Amendments of 1978, the Land
and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965, the Urban Park and Recreation
Recovery Act, and the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act (commonly
referred to as the Pittman-Robertson Act) to establish a fund to meet
the outdoor conservation and recreation needs of the American people,
after receiving testimony from Alaska State Representative Jim Whitaker,
Fairbanks; James I. Palmer, Jr., Mississippi Department of Environmental
Quality, Jackson; Donald F. Oltz, Geological Survey of Alabama,
Tuscaloosa; Jack C. Caldwell, Louisiana Department of Natural Resources,
Baton Rouge; and Mark Van Putten, National Wildlife Federation, Vienna,
Virginia.  

TRADE POLICY

Committee on Finance: Committee continued hearings on trade policy
issues affecting the services sector, international investments,
agricultural trade, housing costs, and the steel industry, receiving
testimony from Gary G. Benanav, New York Life International Inc., New
York, New York; Calman J. Cohen, Emergency Committee for American Trade,
and Franklin D. Raines, Fannie Mae, both of Washington, D.C.; Dean
Kleckner, American Farm Bureau Federation, Parkridge, Illinois; George
Becker, D79United Steelworkers of America, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; J.
Peter Kelly, LTV Steel Company, Cleveland, Ohio; and Richard K.
Riederer, Weirton Steel Corporation, Weirton, West Virginia. 

                                [Page: D79]

Hearings were recessed subject to call. 

IMF REFORM

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on International Economic
Policy, Export, and Trade Promotion met to receive a briefing on
International Monetary Fund reform issues, including transparency,
accountability, market-based loans, private sector burden-sharing, and
policy improvement from Lawrence H. Summers, Deputy Secretary of the
Treasury. 

Subcommittee recessed subject to call. 

SATELLITE/CABLE COMPETITION

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Antitrust, Business Rights,
and Competition concluded hearings to examine the competitive
implications of Echostar's proposed purchase of the MCI orbital
satellite slot, after receiving testimony from Decker Anstrom, National
Cable Television Association, and Gene Kimmelman, Consumers Union, both
of Washington, D.C.; and Charles W. Ergen, Echostar Communications
Corporation, Littleton, Colorado. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee ordered
favorably reported S. 280, to provide for education flexibility
partnership, with an amendment. 

ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING

Special Committee on Aging: Committee adopted its rules of procedure for
the 106th Congress. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/01/28
Daily Digest - Thursday, January 28, 1999; pages D81 - D86

Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet) 

IRAQ POLICY

Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded hearings, in open and
closed sessions, on issues involving Iraq, including the Department of
Defense's role in implementing Iraq policies and events surrounding
Operation Desert Fox, after receiving testimony from Walter B. Slocombe,
Under Secretary of Defense for Policy; and Gen. Anthony C. Zinni, USMC,
Commander in Chief, U.S. Central Command. 

SOCIAL SECURITY

Committee on the Budget: Committee concluded hearings to examine the
United States long-term fiscal outlook, focusing on Social Security
reform and funding, after receiving testimony from Alan Greenspan,
Chairman, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. 

PETROLEUM INDUSTRY

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded oversight
hearings on the current state of the petroleum industry in the United
States, including the effects of declining crude oil prices and foreign
oil dependence, and S. 325, to provide tax incentives to encourage
production of oil and gas within the United States, after receiving
testimony from Senators Hutchison and Conrad; Jay Hakes, Administrator,
Energy Information Administration, Department of Energy; North Dakota
Governor Edward T. Schafer, Bismark, on behalf of the Interstate Oil and
Gas Compact Commission; Lee R. Raymond, Exxon Corporation, Irving,
Texas; John H. Litchtblau, Petroleum Industry Research Foundation, Inc.,
New York, New York; C. Robert Palmer, Rowan Companies, Inc., Houston,
Texas; Steven Layton, Equinox Oil Company, The Woodlands, Texas, on
behalf of the Independent Petroleum Association of America; Dewey F.
Bartlett, Jr., Keener Oil and Gas Company, Tulsa, Oklahoma; Jonathan W.
Cuneo, American Anti-Trust Institute, Washington, D.C.; Gary W. Fonay,
Lynx Petroleum, Hobbs, New Mexico; Danny Biggs, Pickrell Drilling Co.
Inc., Great Bend, Kansas, on behalf of the National Stripper Well
Association. 

Also, committee's subcommittee assignments are as follows: Subcommittee
on Energy Research, Development, Production and Regulation: Senators
Nickles (Chairman), Domenici, Bunning, Gorton, Craig, Fitzgerald, Gordon
Smith, Graham, Akaka, Dorgan, Johnson, Landrieu, and Bayh. Subcommittee
on Forests and Public Land Management: Senators Craig (Chairman), Burns,
Fitzgerald, Campbell, Domenici, Thomas, Gordon Smith, Wyden, Akaka,
Johnson, Landrieu, Bayh, and Lincoln. Subcommittee on National Parks,
Historic Preservation, and Recreation: Senators Thomas (Chairman),
Campbell, Burns, Nickles, Bunning, Gorton, Akaka, Graham, Landrieu,
Bayh, and Lincoln. Subcommittee on Water & Power: Senators Gordon Smith
(Chairman), Gorton, Bunning, Craig, Campbell, Dorgan, Graham, Wyden, and
Lincoln. 

                                [Page: D83]

TRADE POLICY

Committee on Finance: Committee continued hearings on trade policy
issues, including abusive child labor, international labor, global
environmental objectives, and global economic integration, receiving
testimony from Senator Harkin; Alexis M. Herman, Secretary of Labor;
Carol M. Browner, Administrator, Environmental Protection Agency; John
J. Sweeney, AFL-CIO, and Durwood J. Zaelke, Center for International
Environmental Law, both of Washington, D.C.; Abraham Katz, U.S. Council
for International Business, New York, New York; and William H. Lash III,
George Mason University Law School, Arlington, Virginia. 

Hearings were recessed subject to call. 

SATELLITE TELEVISION SERVICE

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded hearings on S. 247, to
amend title 17, United States Code, to reform the copyright law with
respect to satellite retransmissions of broadcast signals, after
receiving testimony from Bruce T. Reese, Bonneville International
Corporation (KSL-TV), Salt Lake City, Utah; Charles E. Meinkey,
Satellite TV Warehouse, St. George, Utah; Michael Peterson, Utah Rural
Electric Association, Richfield; and Peter R. Martin, Mt. Mansfield
Television, Inc. (WCAX-TV), Burlington, Vermont. 

No Joint hearings noted.




1999/01/29
Daily Digest - Friday, January 29, 1999; pages D87 - D88

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

ECONOMIC AND BUDGET OUTLOOK

Committee on the Budget: Committee concluded hearings to examine the
Congressional Budget Office's report on The Economic and Budget Outlook:
Fiscal Years 2000-2009, after receiving testimony from June E. O'Neill,
Director, Congressional Budget Office. 

VETERANS BENEFITS

Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on findings
and recommendations of the Commission on Servicemembers and Veterans
Transition Assistance, after receiving testimony from former Senator
Dole; Kenneth W. Kizer, Under Secretary for Health, and Joseph Thompson,
Under Secretary for Benefits, both of the Department of Veterans
Affairs; Rudy F. de Leon, Under Secretary for Personnel and Readiness,
Sue Bailey, Assistant Secretary for Health Affairs, and Francis M. Rush,
Jr., Acting Assistant Secretary for Force Management, all of the
Department of Defense; and Anthony J. Principi, Chairman, and G. Kim
Wincup, Vice Chairman, both of the Congressional Commission on
Servicemembers and Veterans Transition Assistance, Arlington, Virginia. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee met in closed session to
consider pending intelligence matters. Committee recessed subject to
call. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/02/02
Daily Digest - Tuesday, February 2, 1999; pages D89 - D94

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

NATIONAL SECURITY

Committee on Armed Services: Committee held hearings, in open and closed
sessions, on current and future worldwide threats to U.S. national
security, including proliferation of weapons of mass destruction,
international narcotrafficking and organized crime, information warfare,
terrorist bombings, Russia, China, Iraq, North Korea, Iran, India and
Pakistan, the Balkans, the Aegean, Haiti, and Africa, receiving
testimony from George J. Tenet, Director, Central Intelligence Agency;
and Lt. Gen. Patrick M. Hughes, USA, Director, Defense Intelligence
Agency. 

Hearings were recessed subject to call. 

PRESIDENT'S BUDGET

Committee on the Budget: Committee held hearings on the President's
proposed budget request for fiscal year 2000, receiving testimony from
Jack Lew, Director, Office of Management and Budget. 

Committee will meet again tomorrow. 

NOMINATION

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded hearings
on the nomination of Carolyn L. Huntoon, of Virginia, to be Assistant
Secretary of Energy for Environmental Management, after the nominee, who
was introduced by Senator Landrieu, testified and answered questions in
her own behalf. 

PRESIDENT'S BUDGET AND TAX PROPOSALS

Committee on Finance: Committee held hearings on the President's
proposed budget request for fiscal year 2000 and related tax proposals,
receiving testimony from Robert E. Rubin, Secretary of the Treasury. 

Hearings were recessed subject to call. 

No Joint hearings noted



1999/02/03
Daily Digest - Wednesday, February 3, 1999; p. D95-D100

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

DEFENSE BUDGET

Committee on Armed Services: Committee held hearings on proposed
legislation authorizing funds for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of
Defense, receiving testimony from William S. Cohen, Secretary of
Defense; and Gen. Henry H. Shelton, USA, Chairman, Joint Chiefs of
Staff. 

Committee will meet again on Tuesday, February 9. 

PRESIDENT'S BUDGET

Committee on the Budget: Committee held hearings on the President's
proposed budget request for fiscal year 2000, receiving testimony from
Robert Rubin, Secretary of the Treasury; and Sylvia Mathews, Deputy
Director, Office of Management and Budget. 

Committee will meet again on Tuesday, February 9. 

No Joint hearings noted


1999/02/04
Daily Digest - Thursday, February 4, 1999; pages D102 - D108

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

COUNTERTERRORISM

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, State,
the Judiciary, and Related Agencies concluded hearings on
counterterrorism issues, including terrorist prevention, response
capabilities, domestic readiness, domestic terrorist groups, the
bombings in East Africa, international terrorism, and international
partnerships and cooperations, after receiving testimony from Janet
Reno, Attorney General, and Louis J. Freeh, Director, Federal Bureau of
Investigation, both of the Department of Justice; and Madeleine K.
Albright, Secretary of State. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Armed Services: Committee began markup of S. 257, to state
the policy of the United States regarding the deployment of a missile
defense capable of defending the territory of the United States against
limited ballistic missile attack, but did not complete action thereon,
and recessed subject to call. 

RECREATION FEE DEMONSTRATION PROGRAM

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded hearings
to review the Department of the Interior Recreation Fee Demonstration
Program, focusing on implementation, fee revenue generation,
expenditures, approaches to fee collection, and effects on visitation,
after receiving testimony from Barry T. Hill, Associate Director for
Energy, Resources, and Science Issues, Resources, Community, and
Economic Development Division, General Accounting Office; Robert J.
Lamb, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Budget and Finance;
Ronald E. Stewart, Deputy Chief for Programs and Legislation, Forest
Service, Department of Agriculture; Derrick Crandall, American
Recreation Coalition, and Edward W. Moreland, American Motorcyclist
Association, both of Washington, D.C.; Robert Jones, Utah Guides and
Outfitters Association, Moab; David L. Brown, America Outdoors,
Knoxville, Tennessee; and W. Kent Olson, Friends of Acadia, Bar Harbor,
Maine. 

NUCLEAR SAFETY COMMISSION

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on Clean Air,
Wetlands, Private Property, and Nuclear Safety concluded oversight
hearings to review activities of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission,
including nuclear industry regulation, enforcement and safety concerns,
and NRC organizational and regulatory reforms, after receiving testimony
from Shirley Ann Jackson, Chairman, and Greta Joy Dicus, Nils Diaz,
Edward McGaffigan, and Jeffrey S. Merrifield, all Commissioners, all of
the Nuclear Regulatory Commission; Gary L. Jones, Associate Director,
Energy, Resources, and Science Issues, Resources, Community, and
Economic Development Division, General Accounting Office; Joe F. Colvin,
Nuclear Energy Institute, and David Lochbaum, Union of Concerned
Scientists, both of Washington, D.C.; and James T. Rhodes, Institute of
Nuclear Power Operations, Atlanta, Georgia. 

WORK INCENTIVES FOR THE DISABLED

Committee on Finance: Committee held hearings on S.331, to amend the
Social Security Act to expand the availability of health care coverage
for working individuals with disabilities, to establish a Ticket to Work
and Self-Sufficiency Program in the Social Security Administration to
provide such individuals with meaningful opportunities to work,
receiving testimony from Senator Kennedy; former Senator Dole; Joe
Leean, Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services, Madison;
Larry D. Henderson, Independent Resources, Inc., Wilmington, Delaware;
Allan I. Bergman, Brain Injury Association, Inc., Alexandria, Virginia;
and Joann Elliot, Washington, D.C. 

Hearings were recessed subject to call. 

NOMINATION

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee concluded hearings on the
nomination of James M. Simon, Jr., of Alabama, to be Assistant Director
of Central Intelligence for Administration, after the nominee testified
and answered questions in his own behalf. 

No Joint hearings noted



1999/02/06
Daily Digest - Saturday, February 6, 1999; pages D110 - D112

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

SUBCOMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee announced
the following Subcommittee assignments: Subcommittee on Securities:
Senators Grams (Chairman), Bunning, Shelby, Allard, Bennett, Hagel,
Santorum, Crapo, Dodd, Schumer, Bayh, Johnson, Bryan, Reed, and Edwards.
Subcommittee on International Trade and Finance: Senators Enzi
(Chairman), Crapo, Grams, Hagel, Mack, Johnson, Kerry, Bayh, and
Schumer. Subcommittee on Housing and Transportation: Senators Allard
(Chairman), Santorum, Grams, Shelby, Gramm, Kerry, Edwards, Dodd, and
Bryan. Subcommittee on Economic Policy: Senators Mack (Chairman),
Bennett, Enzi, Bunning, Reed, Dodd, and Kerry. Subcommittee on Financial
Institutions: Senators Bennett (Chairman), Hagel, Mack, Enzi, Santorum,
Bunning, Crapo, Shelby, Allard, Bryan, Reed, Schumer, Edwards, Johnson,
Bayh, and Sarbanes. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Small Business: On Friday, February 5, Committee ordered
favorably reported the following business items: 

S. 314, to require the Small Business Administration to establish a
limited-term loan guarantee program under which the SBA would guarantee
loans made by private lenders to assist small businesses in correcting
Year 2000 (Y2K) computer problems; 

S. 364, to amend the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 to permit
Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) to receive contingent
obligations, such as warrants and royalties, when financing a D111small
business, to increase the funding level for Participating Securities, to
strike the requirement for SBA to reserve 50% of the leverage for SBICs
with less than $20 million in private capital, to provide for an assumed
tax rate for the purposes of determining whether "after-tax" income of a
small business organized as a "pass-through" entity for tax purposes is
within the limits required if the small business is to qualify for SBIC
financing, and to reduce the requirement for SBA to issue SBIC
guarantees and trust certificates to once every twelve months; and 

                               [Page: D111]

The nomination of Phyllis K. Fong, of Maryland, to be Inspector General,
Small Business Administration. 

Also, the committee approved their rules of procedure for the 106th
Congress. 

Y2K IMPACT ON FOOD SUPPLY

Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem: On Friday,
February 5, Committee concluded hearings to examine Y2K problem within
the food supply industry, focusing on the Department of Agriculture's
assessment of the food industry's Y2K preparedness, food processing and
distribution, Y2K impacts on food producers, dairy industry, precision
farming and general crop farming, after receiving testimony from Senator
Lugar; Daniel R. Glickman, Secretary of Agriculture; Tyrone K. Thayer,
Cargill Inc., Minneapolis, Minnesota; Allen Dickason, Suiza Foods
Corporation, Dallas, Texas; and Ken Evans, Arizona Farm Bureau
Federation, Yuma. 

No Joint Hearings

1999/02/08
Daily Digest - Monday, February 8, 1999; pages D 114 - D118

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

SUBCOMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS

Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: On Tuesday, January
26, Committee announced the following subcommittee assignments:
Subcommittee on Production and Price Competitiveness: Senators Roberts
(Chairman), Helms, Cochran, Grassley, Craig, Kerrey, Daschle, Johnson,
and Lincoln. Subcommittee on Marketing, Inspection, and Product
Promotion: Senators Coverdell (Chairman), Helms, Cochran, McConnell,
Baucus, Conrad, and Kerrey. Subcommittee on Forestry, Conservation, and
Rural Revitalization: Senators Craig (Chairman), Santorum, Coverdell,
Fitzgerald, Grassley, Conrad, Leahy, Daschle, and Baucus. Subcommittee
on Research, Nutrition, and General Legislation: Senators Fitzgerald
(Chairman), D115 McConnell, Roberts, Santorum, Leahy, Johnson, and
Lincoln. 

                               [Page: D115]

SUBCOMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS

Committee on Appropriations: Committee announced the following
subcommittee assignments: Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural
Development, and Related Agencies: Senators Cochran (Chairman), Specter,
Bond, Gorton, McConnell, Burns, Kohl, Harkin, Dorgan, Feinstein, and
Durbin. Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, State, and Judiciary:
Senators Gregg (Chairman), Stevens, Domenici, McConnell, Hutchison,
Campbell, Hollings, Inouye, Lautenberg, Mikulski, and Leahy.
Subcommittee on Defense: Senators Stevens (Chairman), Cochran, Specter,
Domenici, Bond, McConnell, Shelby, Gregg, Hutchison, Inouye, Hollings,
Byrd, Leahy, Lautenberg, Harkin, Dorgan, and Durbin. Subcommittee on
District of Columbia: Senators Hutchison (Chairman), Kyl, and Durbin.
Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development: Senators Domenici
(Chairman), Cochran, Gorton, McConnell, Bennett, Burns, Craig, Reid,
Byrd, Hollings, Murray, Kohl, and Dorgan. Subcommittee on Foreign
Operations: Senators McConnell (Chairman), Specter, Gregg, Shelby,
Bennett, Campbell, Bond, Leahy, Inouye, Lautenberg, Harkin, Mikulski,
and Murray. Subcommittee on Interior: Senators Gorton (Chairman),
Stevens, Cochran, Domenici, Burns, Bennett, Gregg, Campbell, Byrd,
Leahy, Hollings, Reid, Dorgan, Kohl, and Feinstein. Subcommittee on
Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education: Senators Specter
(Chairman), Cochran, Gorton, Gregg, Craig, Hutchison, Stevens, Kyl,
Harkin, Hollings, Inouye, Reid, Kohl, Murray, and Feinstein.
Subcommittee on Legislative Branch: Senators Bennett (Chairman),
Stevens, Craig, Feinstein, and Durbin. Subcommittee on Military
Construction: Senators Burns (Chairman), Hutchison, Craig, Kyl, Murray,
Reid, and Inouye. Subcommittee on Transportation: Senators Shelby
(Chairman), Domenici, Specter, Bond, Gorton, Bennett, Campbell,
Lautenberg, Byrd, Mikulski, Reid, Kohl, and Murray. Subcommittee on
Treasury and General Government: Senators Campbell (Chairman), Shelby,
Kyl, Dorgan, and Mikulski. Subcommittee on VA-HUD-Independent Agencies:
Senators Bond (Chairman), Burns, Shelby, Craig, Hutchison, Kyl,
Mikulski, Leahy, Lautenberg, Harkin, and Byrd. 

SUBCOMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS

Committee on Armed Services: On Thursday, January 14, Committee
announced the following subcommittee assignments: Subcommittee on
Airland: Senators Santorum (Chairman), Inhofe, Roberts, Allard,
Hutchinson, Lieberman, Cleland, Landrieu, and Reed. Subcommittee on
Emerging Threats and Capabilities: Senators Roberts (Chairman), Bob
Smith, Santorum, Snowe, Sessions, Bingaman, Kennedy, Byrd, and
Lieberman. Subcommittee on Personnel: Senators Allard (Chairman),
Thurmond, McCain, Snowe, Cleland, Kennedy, and Reed. Subcommittee on
Readiness and Management Support: Senators Inhofe (Chairman), Thurmond,
McCain, Santorum, Roberts, Hutchinson, Robb, Bingaman, Byrd, Cleland,
and Landrieu. Subcommittee on Seapower: Senators Snowe (Chairwoman),
McCain, Bob Smith, Sessions, Kennedy, Robb, and Reed. Subcommittee on
Strategic: Senators Smith (Chairman), Thurmond, Inhofe, Allard,
Hutchinson, Sessions, Landrieu, Bingaman, Byrd, Robb, and Lieberman. 

No Joint Hearings 



1999/02/09
Daily Digest - Tuesday, February 9, 1999; pages D120 - D124

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--AGRICULTURE

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural
Development, and Related Agencies concluded hearings on the proposed
budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of Agriculture,
after receiving testimony from Dan Glickman, Secretary, Richard
Rominger, Deputy Secretary, Keith Collins, Chief Economist, and Stephen
B. Dewhurst, Budget Officer, all of the Department of Agriculture. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Armed Services: Committee ordered favorably reported S.
257, to state the policy of the United States regarding the deployment
of a missile defense capable of defending the territory of the United
States against limited ballistic missile attack. 

NOMINATION

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded
hearings on the nomination of Wayne O. Burkes, of Mississippi, to be a
Member of the Surface Transportation Board, Department of
Transportation, after the nominee, who was introduced by Senator
Cochran, testified and answered questions in his own behalf. 

YEAR 2000 COMPUTER PROBLEM

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee held
hearings on S. 96, to regulate commerce between and among the several
States by providing for the orderly resolution of disputes arising out
of computer-based problems related to processing data that includes a
2-digit expression of that year's date, receiving testimony from
Senators Bennett and Dodd; Marshall N. Carter, State Street Corporation,
Boston, Massachusetts; Thomas J. Donohue, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Don
Gilbert, National Retail Federation, and Anthony T. Pierce, Akin, Gump,
Strauss, Hauer, and Feld, all of Washington, D.C.; Mark Yarsike, Produce
Palace, Bingham Farms, Michigan; Robert Courtney, Pennsauken, New
Jersey; and Howard L. Nations, Houston, Texas.  

Hearings were recessed subject to call. 

                               [Page: D121]

SOCIAL SECURITY

Committee on Finance: Committee concluded hearings on general revenue
financing of Social Security, after receiving testimony from David M.
Walker, Comptroller General of the United States, General Accounting
Office; Edward M. Gramlich, Member, Board of Governors of the Federal
Reserve System, on behalf of the 1994-1996 Quadrennial Advisory Council
on Social Security; David S. Koitz, Legislative Specialist,
Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress; and Robert
Greenstein, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, and C. Eugene
Steuerle, Urban Institute, both of Washington, D.C. 

ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION ACT

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds to extend programs
and activities under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965,
after receiving testimony from Richard W. Riley, Secretary of Education. 

No Joint hearings noted



1999/02/10
Daily Digest - Wednesday, February 10, 1999; pages D125 - D130

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

NOMINATION

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee ordered favorably reported the
nomination of Montie R. Deer, of Kansas, to be Chairman of the National
Indian Gaming Commission. 

Prior to this action, Committee concluded hearings on the nomination,
after the nominee testified and answered questions in his own behalf. 

No Joint hearings noted



1999/02/11
Daily Digest - Thursday, February 11, 1999; pages D132 - D138

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee ordered
favorably reported the following business items: 

S. 313, to repeal the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1935, to
enact the Public Utility Holding Company Act of 1999; and 

An original bill to provide for improved monetary policy and regulatory
reform in financial institution management and activities, to streamline
financial D133regulatory agency actions, to provide for improved
consumer credit disclosure. 

                               [Page: D133]

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee ordered
favorably reported the following business items: 

The nominations of William Clyburn Jr., of South Carolina, and Wayne O.
Burkes, of Mississippi, each to be a Member of the Surface
Transportation Board, Department of Transportation; and routine
nominations for promotion in the United States Coast Guard; and 

S. 82, authorizing funds for the Federal Aviation Administration,
Department of Transportation, with amendments. 

EDUCATION BUDGET

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded
hearings on the proposed budget request for fiscal year 2000 for the
Department of Education, focusing on special education costs,
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, vocational-technical
education, career preparation programs, military children, and higher
education, after receiving testimony from Vermont State Representative
Albert J. Perry, Richford; Paul Marchand, Education Task
Force/Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities, Betsy Brand, American
Youth Policy Forum, Edward Kealy, Committee for Education Funding,
Anthony Samu, United States Student Association, and William D. Hansen,
Education Finance Council, all of Washington, D.C.; H. Allen Gilbert,
Worcester School Board, Worcester, Vermont; John F. Deegan, Bellevue
Public Schools, Bellevue, Nebraska, on behalf of the National Military
Impacted Schools Association; and Dunbar Brooks, Baltimore County Public
Schools, Towson, Maryland, on behalf of the National School Boards
Association. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/02/12
Daily Digest - Friday, February 12, 1999; pages D140 - D144

Committee Meetings

No Committee Meetings were held. 



1999/02/22
Daily Digest - Monday, February 22, 1999; pages D146 - D152

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

SUBCOMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS

Committee on Foreign Relations: On Friday, February 12, committee
approved their rules of procedure for the 106th Congress and announced
the following subcommittee assignments: Subcommittee on African Affairs:
Senators Frist (Chair), Grams, Brownback, Feingold, and Sarbanes.
Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific Affairs: Senators Thomas (Chair),
Helms, Coverdell, Hagel, Gordon Smith, Kerry, Feingold, Wellstone, and
Torricelli. Subcommittee on European Affairs: Senators Gordon Smith
(Chair), Lugar, Ashcroft, Coverdell, Hagel, Biden, Sarbanes, Dodd, and
Wellstone. Subcommittee on International Economic Policy, Export and
Trade Promotion: Senators Hagel (Chair), Thomas, Frist, Lugar, Sarbanes,
Kerry, and Boxer. Subcommittee on International Operations: Senators
Grams (Chair), Helms, Brownback, Frist, Boxer, Kerry, and Feingold.
Subcommittee on Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs: Senators Brownback
(Chair), Ashcroft, Gordon Smith, Grams, Thomas, Wellstone, Torricelli,
Sarbanes, and Dodd. Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere, Peace Corps,
Narcotics and Terrorism: Senators Coverdell (Chair), Helms, Lugar,
Ashcroft, Dodd, Boxer, and Torricelli. 

WOMEN AND SOCIAL SECURITY REFORM

Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded hearings to examine the
impact of certain individual D147accounts contained in Social Security
reform proposals on women's current Social Security benefits, after
receiving testimony from Olivia S. Mitchell, University of Pennsylvania
Wharton School of Business, Philadelphia; Alicia H. Munnell, Boston
College Carroll School of Management, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts;
Robert L. Clark, North Carolina State University College of Management,
Raleigh; C. Eugene Steuerle, Urban Institute, Washington, D.C.; and Mark
J. Warshawsky, Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association-College
Retirement Equities Fund Institute, New York, New York. 

No Joint hearings noted



1999/02/23
Daily Digest - Tuesday, February 23, 1999;  pages D154 - D162

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--HHS/NIH

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee Labor, Health and Human
Services, Education and Related Agencies held hearings on proposed
budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of Health and
Human Services, including the National Institutes of Health, receiving
testimony from Donna Shalala, Secretary of Health and Human Services;
and Harold Varmus, Director, National Institutes of Health, Department
of Health and Human Services, who was accompanied by several of his
associates. 

Subcommittee recessed subject to call. 

MONETARY POLICY/FINANCIAL SERVICES

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee held
oversight hearings on the Federal Reserve's semi-annual Humphrey-Hawkins
monetary policy report and on proposed legislation to enhance
competition in the financial services industry by providing a prudential
framework for the affiliation of banks, securities firms, and other
financial service providers, receiving testimony from Alan Greenspan,
Chairman, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. 

Hearings will continue tomorrow. 

SOCIAL SECURITY AND MEDICARE

Committee on the Budget: Committee concluded hearings on elements of the
framework for Social Security and Medicare in the President's proposed
budget for fiscal year 2000, including reform principles, program
structure, trust fund accounting, budget surpluses and debt reduction,
general revenue payments, private sector investments, demographics, and
Universal Savings Accounts, after receiving testimony from Dan L.
Crippen, Director, Congressional Budget Office; and David M. Walker,
Comptroller General, General Accounting Office. 

SATELLITE TV ACT

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded
hearings on S. 303, to amend the Communications Act of 1934 to enhance
the ability of direct broadcast satellite and other multichannel video
providers to compete effectively with cable television systems, after
receiving testimony from Andrew S. Fisher, Cox Broadcasting Company,
Atlanta, Georgia, on behalf of the National Association of Broadcasters;
Eddy W. Hartenstein, DIRECTV, Inc., El Segundo, California; and Gene
Kimmelman, Consumers Union, Washington, D.C. 

SUBCOMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: On Friday, February
12, committee announced the following subcommittee assignments:
Subcommittee on Aviation: Senators Gorton (Chairman), Stevens, Burns,
Lott, Hutchison, Ashcroft, Frist, Snowe, Brownback, Abraham,
Rockefeller, Hollings, Inouye, Bryan, Breaux, Dorgan, Wyden, and
Cleland. Subcommittee on Communications: Senators Burns (Chairman),
Stevens, Gorton, Lott, Ashcroft, Hutchison, Abraham, Frist, Brownback,
Hollings, Inouye, Kerry, Breaux, Rockefeller, Dorgan, Wyden, and
Cleland. Subcommittee on Consumer Affairs, Foreign Commerce and Tourism:
Senators Ashcroft (Chairman), Gorton, Abraham, Burns, Brownback, Bryan,
and Breaux. Subcommittee on Manufacturing and Competitiveness: Senators
Abraham (Chairman), Snowe, D156Ashcroft, Frist, Brownback, Dorgan,
Bryan, Hollings, and Rockefeller. Subcommittee on Oceans and Fisheries:
Senators Snowe (Chair), Stevens, Gorton, Hutchison, Kerry, Inouye, and
Breaux. Subcommittee on Science, Technology, and Space: Senators Frist
(Chairman), Burns, Hutchison, Stevens, Abraham, Breaux, Rockefeller,
Kerry, and Dorgan. Subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant
Marine: Senators Hutchison (Chair), Stevens, Burns, Snowe, Frist,
Abraham, Ashcroft, Brownback, Inouye, Breaux, Dorgan, Bryan, Wyden, and
Cleland. 

                               [Page: D156]

U.S. TRADE AGREEMENT COMPLIANCE

Committee on Finance: Committee concluded hearings to examine issues of
international dispute settlement and domestic enforcement measures
relating to United States trade agreement compliance, including the
World Trade Organization, bilateral agreements, U.S. trade laws, North
American Free Trade Agreement, and the beef, distilled spirits, and
banana industries, after receiving testimony from David L. Aaron, Under
Secretary of Commerce for International Trade; Susan G. Esserman,
General Counsel, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative; Jeffrey M.
Lange, Wilmer, Cutler and Pickering, former U.S. Deputy Trade
Representative, Charles D. Lambert, National Cattlemen's Beef
Association, Mark Z. Orr, Distilled Spirits Council of the United
States, Inc., and Ira Wolf, all of Washington, D.C.; and Dennis Doyle,
Chiquita Brands International, Cincinnati, Ohio. 

EDUCATION REFORM

Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions: Committee concluded
hearings on elementary and secondary education reform initiatives at the
state level and the view of state governors on the proper role of the
federal government in education, after receiving testimony from Senator
Voinovich; New Jersey Governor Christine Todd Whitman, Trenton; Michigan
Governor John Engler, Lansing; Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge,
Harrisburg; and Maryland Governor Parris N. Glendening, Annapolis. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/02/24
Daily Digest - Wednesday, February 24, 1999;  pages D163 - D174

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

AGRICULTURE BUDGET

Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Committee concluded
hearings on the President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2000
for the Department of Agriculture, focusing on crop insurance reform,
Russian food assistance, and certain Y2K issues, after receiving
testimony from Dan Glickman, Secretary of Agriculture. 

Y2K NATIONAL SECURITY IMPACT

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Readiness and Management
Support concluded hearings to examine the preparation and readiness for,
and the potential impact of, the Year 2000 computer problem on the
Department of Defense and the intelligence community, after receiving
testimony from Senators Dodd and Bennett; John J. Hamre, Deputy
Secretary, and Arthur L. Money, Assistant Secretary for Command,
Control, Communications, and Intelligence, both of the Department of
Defense; and John A. Gordon, USAF, Deputy Director of Central
Intelligence. 

AUTHORIZATION--DOD

Committee on Armed Services: Strategic Subcommittee concluded hearings
on proposed legislation authorizing funds for fiscal year 2000 for the
Department of Defense, focusing on national missile defense programs and
policies, and the future years defense program, after receiving
testimony from Lt. Gen. Lester L. Lyles, USAF, Director, Ballistic
Missile Defense Organization, Department of Defense; Rear Adm. Rodney P.
Rempt, USN, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Theater Combat
Systems; Gen. Larry D. Welch, USAF (Ret.), Institute for Defense
Analyses, Arlington, Virginia; and John B. Peller, The Boeing Company,
Seal Beach, California. 

                               [Page: D165]

AUTHORIZATION--DOD

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Personnel concluded
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for fiscal year 2000
for the Department of Defense, focusing on recruiting and retention
policies, and the future years defense program, after receiving
testimony from Mark Gebicke, Director, William Beusse, Assistant
Director, and Beverly Schladt, Senior Evaluator, all of Military
Operations and Capabilities Issues, General Accounting Office; SSG
Monica Duncan-Boney, USA; MM2 Jeffery P. McCinney, USN; SSG Robert A.
Austin, USAF; SSG Cari A. Baumer, USMC; Frank M. Rush, Jr., Acting
Assistant Secretary of Defense for Force Management Policy; Lt. Gen.
David H. Ohle, USA, Deputy Chief of Army Staff for Personnel; Vice Adm.
Daniel T. Oliver, USN, Chief of Naval Personnel; Lt. Gen. Jack W. Klimp,
USMC, Deputy Chief of Marine Corps Staff for Manpower and Reserve
Affairs; Lt. Gen. Donald L. Peterson, USAF, Deputy Chief of Air Force
Staff for Personnel; Maj. Gen. Evan R. Gaddis, USA, Commanding General,
US Army Recruiting Command; Rear Adm. Barbara E. McGann, USN, Commander,
Navy Recruiting Command; Maj. Gen. Garry L. Parks, USMC, Commanding
General, Marine Corps Recruiting Command; and Brig. Gen. Peter U.
Sutton, USAF, Commander, Air Force Recruiting Service. 

FINANCIAL SERVICES MODERNIZATION

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee continued
hearings on proposed legislation to enhance competition in the financial
services industry by providing framework for the affiliation of banks,
securities firms, and other financial service providers, receiving
testimony from Robert E. Rubin, Secretary of the Treasury, John D.
Hawke, Jr., Comptroller of the Currency, and Ellen S. Seidman, Director,
Office of Thrift Supervision, all of the Department of the Treasury;
Arthur Levitt, Jr., Chairman, Securities and Exchange Commission; Donna
A. Tanoue, Chairman, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation; Texas
Savings and Loan Commissioner James L. Pledger, on behalf of the
American Conference of State Savings Supervisors, and Texas Banking
Commissioner Catherine A. Ghiglieri, on behalf of the Conference of
State Bank Supervisors, both of Austin; Kentucky Commissioner of
Insurance George Nichols III, Frankfort, on behalf of the National
Association of Insurance Commissioners; and Thomas E. Geyer, Ohio
Division of Securities, Columbus, on behalf of the North American
Securities Administrators Association, Inc. 

Hearings will continue tomorrow. 

NATIONAL DEFENSE BUDGET

Committee on the Budget: Committee concluded hearings on national
security and defense budget issues, including defense strategy,
operational tempo, procurement budget, readiness, modernization, nuclear
forces, ballistic missile defense, waste and inefficiency, operation and
support, and Pentagon infrastructure, after receiving testimony from
James R. Schlesinger, former Secretary of Defense; and Robert B.
Zoellick, Center for Strategic and International Studies, and Lawrence
J. Korb, Council on Foreign Relations, both of Washington, D.C. 

COAST GUARD BUDGET

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on
Oceans and Fisheries concluded hearings on the President's proposed
budget request for fiscal year 2000 for the United States Coast Guard,
Department of Transportation, after receiving testimony from Admiral
James M. Loy, Commandant, U.S. Coast Guard, Department of
Transportation. 

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE BUDGET

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on National
Parks, Historic Preservation, and Recreation concluded hearings on the
President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2000 for National
Park Service programs and operations, focusing on visitor services,
maintenance and infrastructure repair, and cultural and natural resource
enhancement, after receiving testimony from Robert G. Stanton, Director,
National Park Service, Department of the Interior. 

EPA BUDGET

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded hearings
on the President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2000 for the
Environmental Protection Agency, after receiving testimony from Carol M.
Browner, Administrator, Environmental Protection Agency, who was
accompanied by several of her associates. 

Y2K/NUCLEAR INDUSTRY AND CHEMICAL SAFETY

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on Clean Air,
Wetlands, Private Property, and Nuclear Safety concluded hearings on
potential year 2000 computer problem issues relative to the nuclear
industry and chemical safety, after receiving testimony from Gerald V.
Poje, Board Member, Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board;
William D. Travers, Executive Director for Operations, Nuclear
Regulatory Commission; and David L. Swanson, Edison Electric Institute,
Washington, D.C. 

                               [Page: D166]

RETIREMENT SAVINGS

Committee on Finance: Committee concluded hearings on issues relating to
retirement savings and the current status, availability, and
effectiveness of tax-favored savings vehicles, and the proposed
Retirement Savings Opportunity Act, to expand the opportunities for
Americans to save for their retirement in IRAs, 401(k)s and other
retirement saving vehicles, after receiving testimony from Matthew Fink,
Investment Company Institute, and Paul J. Yakoboski, Employee Benefit
Research Institute, both of Washington, D.C.; Peter J. Smail, Fidelity
Investments Institutional Retirement Services Company, Boston,
Massachusetts, on behalf of the Association of Private Pension and
Welfare Plans; John J. McCormack, Teachers Insurance and Annuity
Association/College Retirement Equities Fund, New York, New York; Ray
Pool, Oklahoma State Deferred Compensation Plan, Oklahoma City, on
behalf of the National Association of Government Deferred Compensation
Administrators; G. Joseph Votava, Jr., Rochester, New York, on behalf of
the International Association for Financial Planning; and Paula A.
Calimafde, Paley, Rothman, Goldstein, Rosenberg & Cooper, Bethesda,
Maryland, on behalf of the Small Business Council of America and the
American Society of Pension Actuaries. 

FOREIGN AFFAIRS BUDGET

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded hearings to examine
the President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2000 for foreign
assistance programs, and to review the principles and practice of U.S.
foreign policy around the world, receiving testimony from Madeleine K.
Albright, Secretary of State. 

ANTI-SEMITISM IN RUSSIA

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded hearings on
anti-Semitism in Russia, focusing on historical background, the
Communist Party, Neo-Nazi movement, violence, public opinion, and
international dialogue, after receiving testimony from Mark B. Levin,
National Conference on Soviet Jewry, Washington, D.C.; David A. Harris,
American Jewish Committee, New York, New York; and Pinchas Goldschmidt,
Moscow Choral Synagogue, Moscow, Russia. 

INDEPENDENT COUNSEL ACT

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee held hearings on the future
of the Independent Counsel Act enacted in 1978 as part of the Watergate
reform and due to expire this year, receiving testimony from former
Senator Howard Baker; Griffin B. Bell, King and Spalding, Atlanta,
Georgia, former U.S. Attorney General; Arthur H. Christy, Christy and
Viener, New York, New York, former Special Prosecutor, Hamilton Jordan
Investigation; and Joseph E. diGenova, diGenova Toensing, former
Independent Counsel, Clinton Passport File Investigation, and Curtis
Emery von Kann, JAMS/ENDISPUTE, former Independent Counsel, Eli Segal
Investigation, Americorps Chief, both of Washington, D.C. 

Hearings were recessed subject to call. 

MEDICAL RESEARCH AND CONFIDENTIALITY

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded
hearings to examine issues involving balancing the needs of medical
research and confidentiality, including the General Accounting Office
report Medical Records Privacy, Common Rule, FDA regulations,
information technology, and the institutional review board system, after
receiving testimony from Gary B. Ellis, Director, Office for Protection
from Research Risks, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health
and Human Services; Bernice Steinhardt, Director, Health Services
Quality and Public Health Issues, Health, Education, and Human Services
Division, General Accounting Office; Brent C. James, Intermountain
Health Care Institute for Health Care Delivery Research, Salt Lake City,
Utah; Chai R. Feldblum, Georgetown University Law Center, Washington,
D.C., on behalf of the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities; and
Elizabeth B. Andrews, Glaxo Wellcome, Research Triangle, North Carolina,
on behalf of Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America. 

INDIAN PROGRAMS BUDGET

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on the
President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2000 for Indian
programs, focusing on health, housing, education, government, and law
enforcement, after receiving testimony from Kevin Gover, Assistant
Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs; Michel E. Lincoln, Deputy
Director, Indian Health Service, Department of Health and Human
Services; Jacqueline Johnson, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Housing and
Urban Development for Native American Programs, Office of Public and
Indian Housing; Thomas L. LeClaire, Director, Office of Tribal Justice,
Department of Justice; W. Ron Allen, National Congress of American
Indians, and Christopher D. Boesen, National American Indian Housing
Council, both of Washington, D.C.; Buford Rolin, National Indian Health
Board, Denver, Colorado; Janine Pease-Pretty on Top, Little Big Horn
College, Crow Agency, Montana, on behalf of the American Indian Higher
Education Consortium; and D167Jill E. Shibles, National American Indian
Court Judges Association, Mashantucket, Connecticut. 

                               [Page: D167]

NOMINATION

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee ordered favorably reported
the nomination of James M. Simon, Jr., of Alabama, to be Assistant
Director of Central Intelligence for Administration. 

U.S.-MEXICO COUNTER NARCOTICS

United States Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control: Caucus
concluded hearings to evaluate the future of U.S.-Mexico counter
narcotic relations, reviewing the degree and level of cooperation and
dedication from Mexico, focusing on the High Level Contact Group, Border
Task Forces, extradition, cartels, money laundering, Operation
Casablanca, and air and maritime efforts, after receiving testimony from
Raymond W. Kelley, Commissioner, U.S. Customs Service, Department of the
Treasury; Admiral James M. Loy, Commandant, U.S. Coast Guard, Department
of Transportation; Rand Beers, Assistant Secretary of State for
International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs; Thomas A.
Constantine, Administrator, Drug Enforcement Administration, Department
of Justice; Benjamin F. Nelson, Director, International Relations and
Trade Issues, National Security and International Affairs Division,
General Accounting Office; and John Bailey, Georgetown University School
for Foreign Service, Washington, D.C. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/02/25
Daily Digest - Thursday, February 25, 1999;  pages D175 - D186

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION MANAGEMENT

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Transportation concluded
oversight hearings on Department of Transportation management issues
raised in recent General Accounting Office and Inspector General
reports, focusing on the Federal Aviation Administration, aviation,
highway, and rail safety programs, Amtrak's financial condition, year
2000 computer problem, and the Coast Guard anti-drug efforts, after
receiving testimony from John H. Anderson, Jr., Director, Transportation
Issues, Resource, Community, and Economic Development Division, General
Accounting Office; and Kenneth M. Mead, Inspector General, and Peter J.
Basso, Chief Financial Officer/Assistant Secretary for Budget and
Programs, both of the Department of Transportation. 

APPROPRIATIONS--IRS

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Treasury and General
Government held hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year
2000 for the Internal Revenue Service, receiving testimony from Charles
O. Rossotti, Commissioner, Internal Revenue Service, Department of the
Treasury. 

Subcommittee will meet again on Thursday, March 4. 

U.S. KOSOVO POLICY

Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded hearings on United
States policy regarding Kosovo, focusing on diplomacy, NATO air strike
threats, a NATO-led implementation force, the Rambouillet negotiation,
the Kosovo Verification Mission, and U.S. military intervention, after
receiving testimony from Walter B. Slocombe, Under Secretary of Defense
for Policy; Thomas Pickering, Under Secretary of State for Political
Affairs; and Gen. Joseph W. Ralston, USAF, Vice Chairman, Joint Chiefs
of Staff. 

FINANCIAL SERVICES LEGISLATION

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded
hearings on proposed legislation to enhance competition in the financial
services industry by providing a prudential framework for the
affiliation of banks, securities firms, and other financial services
providers, after receiving testimony from Michael E. Patterson, J.P.
Morgan and Co. Inc., New York, New York, on behalf of the Financial
Services Council; E. Lee Beard, First Federal Bank, Hazelton,
Pennsylvania, on behalf of the America's Community Bankers; William L.
McQuillan, City National Bank, Greeley, Nebraska, on behalf of the
Independent Bankers Association of America; James D. Ericson,
Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on
behalf of the American Council of Life Insurance; Robert W. Gillespie,
KeyCorp, Cleveland , Ohio, on behalf of the Bankers Roundtable; Hjalma
Johnson, East Coast Bank Corp, Dade City, Florida, on behalf of the
American Bankers Association; John G. Finneran, Jr., Capital One
Financial Corporation, Falls Church, Virginia, on behalf of the
Association of Financial Services Holding Companies; Bart Harvey,
Enterprise Foundation, Columbia, Maryland; and Jeffrey A. Tassey,
American Financial Services Association, Marc E. Lackritz, Securities
Industry Association, Scott A. Sinder, on behalf of the Independent
Insurance Agents of America, Mary Griffin, Consumers Union, Deborah
Goldberg, Center for Community Change, Kathy Ozer, National Family Farm
Coalition, and John Taylor, National Community Investment Coalition, all
of Washington, D.C. 

NOMINATIONS

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee ordered favorably
reported the nominations of T.J. Glauthier, of California, to be Deputy
Secretary of Energy, and Rose Eilene Gottemoeller, of Virginia, to be
Assistant Secretary of Energy for Non-Proliferation and National
Security.  

                               [Page: D177]

ENERGY BUDGET

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded oversight
hearings on the President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2000
for the Department of Energy and the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, after receiving testimony from Bill Richardson, Secretary of
Energy. 

FOREST SERVICE BUDGET

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded oversight
hearings on the President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2000
for the Forest Service, Department of Agriculture, after receiving
testimony from Dan Glickman, Secretary of Agriculture, Jim Lyons, Under
Secretary of Agriculture, and Mike Dombeck, Chief, U.S. Forest Service,
who was accompanied by several of his associates, all of the Department
of Agriculture. 

SODA ASH EXPORTS

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific
Affairs concluded hearings to examine Asian trade barriers to United
States soda ash exports, after receiving testimony from Richard L.
Hogan, Solvay Minerals, Inc., Houston, Texas; John Andrews, American
Natural Soda Ash Corporation, Westport, Connecticut; and James Pearce,
FMC Wyoming Corporation, Green River. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported S. 247,
to amend title 17, United States Code, to reform the copyright law with
respect to satellite retransmissions of broadcast signals, with an
amendment. 

Also, committee adopted its rules of procedure for the 106th Congress,
and announced the following subcommittee assignments: Subcommittee on
Criminal Justice Oversight: Senators Thurmond (Chairman), DeWine,
Ashcroft, Abraham, Sessions, Schumer, Biden, Torricelli, and Leahy.
Subcommittee on Administrative Oversight and the Courts: Senators
Grassley (Chairman), Sessions, Thurmond, Abraham, Torricelli, Feingold,
and Schumer. Subcommittee on Technology, Terrorism, and Government
Information: Senators Kyl (Chairman), Hatch, Grassley, DeWine,
Feinstein, Biden, and Kohl. Subcommittee on Antitrust, Business Rights,
and Competition: Senators DeWine (Chairman), Hatch, Specter, Thurmond,
Kohl, Torricelli, and Leahy. Subcommittee on Constitution, Federalism,
and Property Rights: Senators Ashcroft (Chairman), Hatch, Bob Smith,
Specter, Thurmond, Feingold, Kennedy, and Leahy. Subcommittee on
Immigration: Senators Abraham (Chairman), Specter, Grassley, Kyl,
Kennedy, Feinstein, and Schumer. Subcommittee on Youth Violence:
Senators Sessions (Chairman), Bob Smith, Kyl, Ashcroft, Biden,
Feinstein, and Kohl. 

TELECOMMUNICATIONS ACT

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Antitrust, Business Rights,
and Competition concluded hearings to review competition and antitrust
issues relating to the Telecommunications Act, after receiving testimony
from former Senator Pressler; William E. Kennard, Chairman, Federal
Communications Commission; Joel I. Klein, Assistant Attorney General,
Antitrust Division, Department of Justice; and Reed E. Hundt,
Washington, D.C., former Chairman, Federal Communications Commission. 

ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Subcommittee on
Public Health concluded hearings to examine the public health problem of
antimicrobial resistance, or the ability of bacteria to become resistant
to antibiotics, after receiving testimony from David Satcher, Surgeon
General/Assistant Secretary for Health, James M. Hughes, Director,
National Center for Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, and Anthony S. Fauci, Director, National Institute of
Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, all of
the Department of Health and Human Services; Bernice Steinhardt,
Director, Health Services Quality and Public Health Issues, General
Accounting Office; Mary J.R. Gilchrist, University of Iowa Hygienic
Laboratory, Iowa City, Iowa, on behalf of the Association of Public
Health Laboratories; Diane M. Dwyer, Maryland Department of Health and
Mental Hygiene, Baltimore, on behalf of the Council of State and
Territorial Epidemiologists; Stuart B. Levy, Alliance for the Prudent
Use of Antibiotics, Boston, Massachusetts; and W. Gary Tarpley,
Pharmacia and Upjohn, Bridgewater, New Jersey. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Rules and Administration: Committee ordered reported the
following measures: 

S. Res. 51, providing for members on the part of the Senate of the Joint
Committee on Printing and the Joint Committee on the Library, without
recommendation; and 

                               [Page: D178]

S. Res. 52, to authorize the printing of a collection of the rules of
the committees of the Senate, without recommendation. 

Also, committee adopted its rules of procedure for the 106th Congress. 

Joint Meetings

VETERANS PROGRAMS

Joint Hearing: Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs and the House
Committee on Veterans' Affairs concluded joint hearings to review the
legislative recommendations of certain veteran's organizations, after
receiving testimony from Boyd Barclay, Military Order of the Purple
Heart, Washington, D.C.; Charles L. Calkins, Fleet Reserve Associations,
Alexandria, Virginia; Frederick P. Athans, Retired Enlisted Association,
Grand Rapid, South Dakota; Margaret M. Peterson, Gold Star Wives of
America, Inc., Vineland, New Jersey; and James D. Staton, Air Force
Sergeants Association, Suitland, Maryland. 


1999/03/01
Daily Digest - Monday, March 1, 1999;  pages D188 - D192

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

Y2K FAIRNESS AND RESPONSIBILITY ACT

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded hearings on S. 461, to
assure that innocent users and businesses gain access to solutions to
the year 2000 problem-related failures through fostering an incentive to
settle year 2000 lawsuits that may disrupt significant sectors of the
American economy, after receiving testimony from Senator Bennett;
Eleanor D. Acheson, Assistant Attorney General, Office of Policy
Development, Department of Justice; Harris N. Miller, Information
Technology Association of America, Arlington, Virginia; Mark Yarsike,
Produce Palace International, Warren, Michigan; B.R. McConnon, Democracy
Data and Communications, Alexandria, Virginia, on behalf of the National
Federation of Independent Business; Harris Pogust, Sherman, Silverstein,
Kohl, Rose and Podolsky, Pennasuken, New Jersey; Stirling Adams, Novell,
Inc., Orem, Utah; and Laurene West, Salt Lake City, Utah. 

SOCIAL SECURITY REFORM

Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded hearings to examine the
President's proposal to preserve the financial well-being of the Social
Security and Medicare programs, after receiving testimony from Lawrence
H. Summers, Deputy Secretary of the Treasury; and Rudolph G. Penner,
Urban Institute, M. Edith Rasell, Economic Policy Institute, Wendell
Primus, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, and Martha Phillips,
Concord Coalition, all of Washington, D.C. 

                               [Page: D189]

No Joint hearings noted.


1999/03/02
Daily Digest - Tuesday, March 2, 1999;  pages D194 - D202

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

CHILD NUTRITION PROGRAM

Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Committee concluded
hearings on proposed legislation, authorizing funds for federal child
nutrition programs, after receiving testimony from Martha Hill, Madison,
West Virginia, and Gayle Lynn MacDonald, Bellingham, Washington, both of
the American School Food Association; Barry Reese, Indiana School Food
Service Association, Auburn; James D. Weill, Food Research Action
Center, and Rhea F. Starr, YWCA of the U.S.A., both of Washington, D.C.;
and Nick Craft, on behalf of the National Child Care Association,
Conyers, Georgia. 

APPROPRIATIONS--AGRICULTURE

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural
Development, and Related Agencies concluded hearings on proposed budget
estimates for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of Agriculture,
focusing on assistance to producers and farm economy, after receiving
testimony from Keith Collins, Chief Economist, August Schumacher, Jr.,
Under Secretary for Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services, and Dennis
Kaplan, Deputy Director for Budget, Legislative and Regulatory Systems,
all of the Department of Agriculture. 

NOMINATIONS

Committee on Armed Services: Committee ordered favorably reported 2,131
military nominations in the Air Force, Army, Navy, and Marine Corps. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded hearings on proposed
legislation authorizing funds for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of
Defense, and the future years defense program, after receiving testimony
from Louis Caldera, Secretary of the Army; Richard Danzig, Secretary of
the Navy; and F. Whitten Peters, Acting Secretary of the Air Force. 

NATIONAL DEFENSE BUDGET

Committee on the Budget: Committee concluded hearings on the President's
proposed budget request for fiscal year 2000 for national defense, after
receiving testimony from William S. Cohen, Secretary, and John J. Hamre,
Deputy Secretary, both of the Department of Defense; and Gen. Henry H.
Shelton, Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff. 

                               [Page: D196]

AUTHORIZATION--SURFACE TRANSPORTATION BOARD

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on
Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine concluded hearings on
proposed legislation authorizing funds for the Surface Transportation
Board, Department of Transportation, after receiving testimony from
Linda J. Morgan, Chairman, Surface Transportation Board, Department of
Transportation; Edward M. Emmett, National Industrial Transportation
League, and William E. Harvey, Lyondell Petrochemical Company, on behalf
of the Rail Customer Coalition, both of Arlington, Virginia; John
Bratten, Central Soya Company, Inc., on behalf of the National Grain and
Feed Association, Edward Wytkind, Transportation Trades Department
(AFL-CIO), James M. Brunkenhoefer, United Transportation Union, and
Edward R. Hamberger, Association of American Railroads, all of
Washington, D.C.; and Timothy R. Murphy, Mercer Management Consulting,
Inc., Lexington, Massachusetts. 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR BUDGET

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded oversight
hearings on the President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2000
for the Department of the Interior, focusing on Minerals Management
Service, Lands Legacy Initiative, Payments in Lieu of Taxes, Mining Law,
National Park Service, Office of Insular Affairs, Bureau of Reclamation,
and Alaska issues, after receiving testimony from Bruce Babbitt,
Secretary of the Interior. 

HURRICANE MITCH RELIEF

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere,
Peace Corps, Narcotics and Terrorism concluded hearings on the United
States relief efforts in response to Hurricanes Mitch and Georges, after
receiving testimony from Mark S. Jaeger, Jockey International, Kenosha,
Wisconsin; Rene Fonseca, Consultants International, Tegucigalpa,
Honduras; James Kenneth Isaacs, Samaritan's Purse, Boone, North
Carolina; and James Chapman, World Vision, Washington, D.C. 

DETERMINING MEDICAL NECESSITY

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded
hearings to examine issues with regard to the delivery of necessary
health care in the United States, after receiving testimony from John E.
Wennberg, Dartmouth College Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire; Sara
Rosenbaum, George Washington University Medical Center, Washington,
D.C.; Linda A. Bergthold, Stanford University, Stanford, California;
Robert H. Brook, RAND Health, Santa Monica, California; Lee N. Newcomer,
UnitedHealth Group, Minneapolis, Minnesota; Woodrow A. Myers, Jr., Ford
Motor Company, Dearborn, Michigan; and Richard F. Corlin, American
Medical Association, Chicago, Illinois. 

Y2K IMPACT ON FOOD INDUSTRY

Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem: Committee
concluded hearings to examine Y2K-related problems within the food
industry, focusing on the manufacturing, distribution, and retail of
food products and recommendations relative to the status of food import,
export, preparation, and distribution, after receiving testimony from
Timothy M. Hammonds, Food Marketing Institute, and C. Manly Molpus,
Grocery Manufacturers of America, both of Washington, D.C.; Mike Wright,
SUPERVALU INC., Minneapolis, Minnesota; Michael S. Heschel, Kroger Co.,
Cincinnati, Ohio; James R. Kinney, Kraft Foods, Inc., New York, New
York; and Jeri Bender, Nestle USA, Glendale, California. 

                               [Page: D197]

Joint Meetings

VETERANS OF FOREIGN WARS

Joint Hearing: Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs and the House
Committee on Veterans' Affairs concluded joint hearings to review the
legislative recommendations of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, after
receiving testimony from Thomas A. Pouliot, Commander in Chief, Veterans
of Foreign Wars of the United States. 



1999/03/03
Daily Digest - Wednesday, March 3, 1999;  pages D203 - D212

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--EDUCATION

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human
Services, Education and Related Agencies concluded hearings on proposed
budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of Education,
after receiving testimony from Richard W. Riley, Secretary of Education. 

NATIONAL DEFENSE BUDGET

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense concluded hearings
on the President's proposed budget for fiscal year 2000 for the
Department of Defense, after receiving testimony from John J. Hamre,
Deputy Secretary, and William J. Lynn, III, Under Secretary
(Comptroller)/Chief Financial Officer, both of the Department of
Defense. 

APPROPRIATIONS--CAPITOL POLICE BOARD/ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Legislative Branch
concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for
the U.S. Capitol Police Board, after receiving testimony from James W.
Ziglar, Senate Sergeant at Arms, Alan M. Hantman, Architect of the
Capitol, and Gray L. Abrecht, Chief, U.S. Capitol Police, all on behalf
of the Capitol Police Board. 

Also, Subcommittee held hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal
year 2000 for the Office of the Architect of the Capitol, receiving
testimony from Alan M. Hantman, Architect of the Capitol, who was
accompanied by several of his associates. 

APPROPRIATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Personnel concluded
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for fiscal year 2000
for the Department of Defense, focusing on recommendations pertaining to
military retirement, pay and compensation, and the Future Years Defense
Program, and certain provisions of S. 4, to improve pay and retirement
equity for members of the Armed Forces (passed Senate on 2-24-99), after
receiving testimony from Christopher Jehn, Assistant Director, National
Security Division, Congressional Budget Office; Rudy deLeon, Under
Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness; Patrick T. Henry,
Assistant Secretary of the Army for Manpower and Reserve Affairs;
Carolyn H. Becraft, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Manpower and
Reserve Affairs; Ruby B. DeMesme, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force
for Manpower, Reserve Affairs, Installations, and Environment; James R.
Hosek and Beth J. Asch, both of the Rand Corporation, Washington D.C.;
and MCPO Joseph Barnes, USN (Ret), Fleet Reserve Association, COL Steven
P. Strobridge, USAF (Ret), Retired Officers Association, and Sydney T.
Hickey, National Military Family Association, all of Alexandria,
Virginia. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Subcommittee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Airland concluded
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for fiscal year 2000
for the Department of Defense, focusing on Army modernization, and the
future years defense programs, after receiving testimony from Richard
Armitage, and Gen. Robert W. Riscassi, USA (Ret.), both former Members,
National Defense Panel; Lt. Gen. Paul J. Kern, USA, Military Deputy,
Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition,
Logistics, and Technology; Lt. Gen. Randall L. Rigby, Jr., USA, Deputy
Commanding General, Army Training and Doctrine Command; Brig. Gen.
Michael J. Squires, USA, Deputy Director of the Army National Guard;
Thomas W. Rabaut, United Defense LP, Arlington, Virginia; and Arthur J.
Veitch, General Dynamics Land Systems, Warren, Michigan. 

SEAPOWER OVERVIEW

Committee on the Armed Services: Subcommittee on Seapower concluded
hearings on the 21st century seapower vision overview and maritime
implications of 21st century threats, after receiving testimony from
Richard Danzig, Secretary of the Navy; Paul M. Lowell, Deputy Director
of Naval Intelligence; D205Vice Admiral Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Jr.,
USN, Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Resources; and Lt. Gen. John
E. Rhodes, USMC, Commanding General, Marine Corps Combat Development
Command. 

                               [Page: D205]

YEAR 2000 BUDGET

Committee on the Budget: Committee concluded hearings to examine the
Congressional Budget Office's analysis of the President's proposed
budget for fiscal year 2000, after receiving testimony from Dan L.
Crippen, Director, Congressional Budget Office. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee ordered
favorably reported S. 96, to regulate commerce between and among the
several States by providing for the orderly resolution of disputes
arising out of computer-based problems related to processing data that
includes a 2-digit expression of that year's date, with an amendment in
the nature of a substitute. 

DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR BUDGET

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Water and
Power concluded hearings on the President's proposed budget request for
fiscal year 2000 for the Bureau of Reclamation and the Power Marketing
Administrations, after receiving testimony from Patricia J. Beneke,
Assistant Secretary for Water and Science, and Eluid L. Martinez,
Commissioner, Bureau of Reclamation, both of the Department of the
Interior; and Michael L. Telson, Chief Financial Officer, Charles A.
Borchardt, Administrator, Southeastern Power Administration, Michael A.
Deihl, Administrator, Southwestern Power Administration, Michael S.
Hacskaylo, Administrator, Western Area Power Administration, and Stephen
Wright, Senior Vice President, Bonneville Power Administration, all of
the Department of Energy. 

SAFE DRINKING WATER ACT

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on Fisheries,
Wildlife and Drinking Water concluded oversight hearings on the
Environmental Protection Agency's implementation of the 1996 amendments
to the Safe Drinking Water Act, after receiving testimony from J.
Charles Fox, Assistant Administrator, Office of Water, and Norine
Noonan, Assistant Administrator, Office of Research and Development,
both of the Environmental Protection Agency; Gerry C. Biberstine,
Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, Denver, on behalf
of the Association of State Drinking Water Administrators; Merril
Bingham, Provo City Water Resources, Provo, Utah, on behalf of the
American Water Works Association; Erik D. Olson, Natural Resources
Defense Council, Washington, D.C.; Gurnie Gunter, Kansas City Water
Services Department, Kansas City, Missouri, on behalf of the Association
of Metropolitan Water Agencies; Steven Levy, Atlantic State Rural Water
Association, Norwich, Connecticut, on behalf of the National Rural Water
Association; and Andrew M. Chapman, Elizabethtown Water Company,
Elizabethtown, New Jersey, on behalf of the National Association of
Water Companies. 

EDUCATION TAX PROPOSALS

Committee on Finance: Committee concluded hearings to examine education
savings incentives, education financing, school construction financing
proposals, and S. 211, to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to
make permanent the exclusion for employer-provided educational
assistance programs, after receiving testimony from Senators Coverdell,
Graham, Schumer, Sessions, and McConnell; Dennis Zimmerman, Specialist
in Public Finance, Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress;
Esthelda R. Parker Selby, Rehoboth Elementary School, Milton, Delaware;
James T. McCarthy, Merrill Lynch Pierce Fenner and Smith, Inc.,
Princeton, New Jersey; Alexis Garland, Hewlett Packard Company, New
Castle, Delaware; Shirley Hughes, Ceridian Corporation, Bloomington,
Minnesota, on behalf of the National Association of Manufacturers;
William E. Manning, Red Clay Consolidated School District Board of
Education, Wilmington, Delaware; and Octavio J. Visiedo, OV Education
Concepts, Miami, Florida. 

CASPIAN SEA EXPORT ENERGY PIPELINE

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on International Economic
Policy, Export and Trade Promotion concluded hearings on the commercial
viability of a Caspian Sea export energy pipeline, after receiving
testimony from Richard L. Morningstar, Special Advisor to the President
and Secretary of State for Caspian Basin Energy Diplomacy; Nancy E.
Frame, Deputy Director, Trade and Development Agency; Jeffrey L. Miller,
Group Manager, Structured Export Finance, Export-Import Bank of the
United States; Audrey Zuck, Regional Manager, New Independent States,
Overseas Private Investment Corporation; Edward M. Smith, Pipeline
Solutions Group International, London, England; J. Michael Stinson,
Conoco, Inc., Houston, Texas; and Maureen Greenwood, Amnesty
International, Washington, D.C. 

INDEPENDENT COUNSEL ACT

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on the
future of the Independent D206Counsel Act, after receiving testimony
from Robert S. Bennet, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher, and Flom; Nathan
Lewin, Miller, Cassidy, Larroca and Lewin; Henry Ruth, former Special
Prosecutor of the Watergate Special Prosecution Force; and Robert B.
Fiske, Jr., Davis, Polk, and Wardwell, all of Washington, D.C.; and
George Beall, Baltimore, Maryland, former United States Attorney for the
District of Maryland. 

                               [Page: D206]

OLDER AMERICANS ACT

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Subcommittee on
Aging concluded oversight hearings on the implementation of and proposed
authorizations for the Older Americans Act, after receiving testimony
from Jeanette C. Takamura, Assistant Secretary of Health and Human
Services for Aging; Ray Bramucci, Assistant Secretary of Labor for
Employment and Training; William D. Bechill, Maryland Commission on
Aging, Kensington; Geneva Shedd, Indiana Bureau of Aging and In Home
Services, Indianapolis, on behalf of the National Association of State
Units on Aging; Neetu Dhawan-Gray, Baltimore City Commission on Aging
Retirement Education, Baltimore, Maryland, on behalf of the National
Association of Area Agencies on Aging; and C. Susan Oliver, Meigs County
Council on Aging, Inc., Pomeroy, Ohio. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee completed its review of those
programs which fall within the committee's jurisdiction as contained in
the President's proposed budget for fiscal year 2000, and agreed on
recommendations it will make thereon to the Committee on the Budget. 

INDIAN TRUST MANAGEMENT

Committee on Indian Affairs/Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: 
Committee held joint oversight hearings to examine the Department of the
Interior's implementation of the Indian Trust Fund Management Reform
Act, receiving testimony from Bruce Babbitt, Secretary of the Interior;
Edward K. Thomas, Central Council of Tlingit and Haida Indians Tribes of
Alaska, Juneau, on behalf of the Advisory Board to the Special Trustee
for American Indians on Trust Fund Reform; Charles Tillman, Osage Nation
of Oklahoma, Tulsa, on behalf of the Inter-Tribal Monitoring Association
on Indian Trust Funds; and Paul M. Homan, Homan and Associates,
Washington, D.C., former Special Trustee for American Indians. 

Hearings recessed subject to the call. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/03/04
Daily Digest - Thursday, March 4, 1999;  pages D214 - D222

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--EMERGENCY SUPPLEMENTAL

Committee on Appropriations: Committee ordered favorably reported an
original bill (S. 544) making emergency supplemental appropriations and
rescissions for recovery from natural disasters, and foreign assistance,
for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1999. 

APPROPRIATIONS--TRANSPORTATION

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Transportation concluded
hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for the
Department of Transportation, after receiving testimony from Rodney E.
Slater, Secretary of Transportation. 

APPROPRIATIONS--NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL POLICY

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Treasury and General
Government concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal
year 2000 for the Office of National Drug Control Policy, after
receiving testimony from Barry R. McCaffrey, Director, Office of
National Drug Control Policy. 

APPROPRIATIONS--FEDERAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Veteran Affairs, Housing
and Urban Development and Independent Agencies concluded hearings on
proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for the Federal Emergency
Management Agency, after receiving testimony from James L. Witt,
Director, Mike Walker, Deputy Director, Gary Johnson, Chief Financial
Officer, and Carrye Brown, Administrator, U.S. Fire Administrator, all
of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded hearings on proposed
legislation authorizing funds for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of
Defense focusing on the military strategy and operational requirements
of the regional commands, and the future years defense program, after
receiving testimony from Adm. Dennis C. Blair, USN, Commander-in-Chief,
U.S. Pacific Command; Gen. Charles E. Wilhelm, USMC, Commander-in-Chief,
U.S. Southern Command; and Gen. John H. Tilelli, Jr., USA,
Commander-in-Chief, United Nations Command/U.S. Forces Korea/Combined
Forces Command Korea. 

BUSINESS MEETING: FINANCIAL SERVICES MODERNIZATION ACT

Committee on Banking: Committee ordered favorably reported an original
bill to enhance competition in the financial services industry by
providing a prudential framework for the affiliation of banks,
securities firms, insurance companies, and other financial service
providers. 

CHILDREN INTERNET PROTECTION

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded
hearings on S. 97, to require the installation and use by schools and
libraries of a technology for filtering or blocking material on the
Internet on computers with Internet access to be eligible to receive or
retain universal service assistance, after receiving testimony from
Janie Harris, Solace House, Shawnee Mission, Kansas; Mary Anne Layden,
University of Pennsylvania Department of Psychiatry, Philadelphia;
Candace Morgan, Fort Vancouver Regional Library, Vancouver, Washington;
Gordon Ross, Net Nanny Software International, Inc., Bellevue,
Washington; Bruce Taylor, National Law Center for Children and Families,
Fairfax, Virginia; Jay A. Sekulow, American Center for Law and Justice,
Virginia Beach, Virginia; Elliot M. Mincberg, People for the American
Way Foundation, Washington, D.C.; and Adrian Russell-Falla, RuleSpace,
Inc., Portland, Oregon. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee ordered favorably
reported the following business items: 

S. 278, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain lands
to the county of Rio Arriba, New Mexico; 

S. 291, to convey certain real property within the Carlsbad Project in
New Mexico to the Carlsbad Irrigation District; 

S. 292, to preserve the cultural resources of the Route 66 corridor and
to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to provide assistance; 

S. 293, to direct the Secretaries of Agriculture and Interior to convey
certain lands in San Juan County, New Mexico, to San Juan College; 

S. 243, to authorize the construction of the Perkins County Rural Water
System and authorize financial assistance to the Perkins County Rural
Water System, Inc., a nonprofit corporation, in the planning and
construction of the water supply system; 

S. 330, to promote the research, identification, assessment,
exploration, and development of methane hydrate resources; 

                               [Page: D216]

S. 334, to amend the Federal Power Act to remove the jurisdiction of the
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to license projects on fresh waters
in the State of Hawaii; 

S. 356, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain
works, facilities, and titles of the Gila Project, and designated lands
within or adjacent to the Gila Project, to the Wellton-Mohawk Irrigation
and Drainage District; 

S. 361, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to transfer to John R.
and Margaret J. Lowe of Big Horn County, Wyoming, certain land so as to
correct an error in the patent issued to their predecessors in interest; 

S. 366, to amend the National Trails System Act to designate El Camino
Real de Tierra Adentro as a National Historic Trail; 

S. 382, to establish the Minuteman Missile National Historic Site in the
State of South Dakota;  

S. 422, to provide for Alaska state jurisdiction over small
hydroelectric projects; 

S. 426, to amend the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, to provide for
a land exchange between the Secretary of Agriculture and the Huna Totem
Corporation; 

S. 430, to amend the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, to provide for
a land exchange between the Secretary of Agriculture and the Kake Tribal
Corporation; 

S. 449, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to transfer to the
personal representative of the estate of Fred Steffens of Big Horn
County, Wyoming, certain land comprising the Steffens family property; 

H.R. 171, to authorize appropriations for the Coastal Heritage Trail
Route in New Jersey; and  

H.R. 193, to designate a portion of the Sudbury, Assabet, and Concord
Rivers as a component of the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. 

Also, Committee completed its review of those programs which fall within
the committee's jurisdiction as contained in the President's proposed
budget for fiscal year 2000, and agreed on recommendations it will make
thereon to the Committee on the Budget. 

NOMINATION

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded hearings
on the nomination of Robert Wayne Gee, of Texas, to be the Assistant
Secretary of Energy for Fossil Energy, after the nominee testified and
answered questions in his own behalf. 

NOMINATIONS

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded hearings
on the nominations of Gary S. Guzy, of the District of Columbia, to be
an Assistant Administrator (Office of General Counsel) of the
Environmental Protection Agency, and Anne Jeannette Udall, of North
Carolina, to be a Member of the Board of Trustees of the Morris K. Udall
Scholarship and Excellence in National Environmental Policy Foundation,
after the nominees testified and answered questions in their own behalf.
Mr. Guzy was introduced by Senator Lautenberg and Dr. Udall was
introduced by Representative Udall. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Finance: Committee ordered favorably reported the following
bills: 

S. 331, bill to amend the Social Security Act to expand the availability
of health care coverage for working individuals with disabilities, to
establish a Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency Program in the Social
Security Administration to provide such individuals with meaningful
opportunities to work, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
and 

S. 494, to amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to prohibit
transfers or discharges of residents of nursing facilities as a result
of a voluntary withdrawal from participation in the Medicaid program.

FOREIGN AFFAIRS BUDGET

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on International Operations
concluded hearings on the President's proposed budget request for fiscal
year 2000 for the Department of State, after receiving testimony from
Bonnie R. Cohen, Under Secretary for Management, and Jacquelyn
Williams-Bridgers, Inspector General, both of the Department of State;
and Benjamin F. Nelson, Director, International Relations and Trade
Issues, National Security and International Affairs Division, General
Accounting Office. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee ordered favorably reported
the following measures: 

S. 380, to reauthorize the Congressional Award Act; 

S. 92, to provide for biennial budget process and a biennial
appropriations process and to enhance oversight and the performance of
the Federal Government, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute; 

An original bill to provide guidance for the designation of emergencies
as a part of the budget process. (As approved by the committee, the bill
incorporates the text of Title II of S. 93.); and 

An original bill to prevent the shutdown of the Government at the
beginning of a fiscal year if a new budget is not yet enacted. (As
approved by the committee, the bill incorporates the text of Title IV of
S. 93.) 

                               [Page: D217]

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported S. 249,
to provide funding for the National Center for Missing and Exploited
Children, and to reauthorize the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act, with an
amendment in the nature of a substitute. 

NEW SAFE ACT

Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions: Subcommittee on
Employment, Safety and Training concluded hearings on S. 385, to amend
the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 to further improve the
safety and health of working environments, after receiving testimony
from Charles N. Jeffress, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational
Safety and Health; Roslyn C. Wade, Minnesota Department of Labor and
Industry, Minneapolis; Harry C. Alford, Jr., National Black Chamber of
Commerce, Inc., and Margaret Seminario, Department of Occupational
Safety and Health (AFL-CIO), both of Washington, D.C.; Robert J.
Cornell, Mon Valley Petroleum, Inc., McKeesport, Pennsylvania, on behalf
of the National Association of Manufacturers; Edwin J. Foulke, Jr.,
Jackson, Lewis, Schnitzler and Krupman, Greenville, South Carolina, on
behalf of the United States Chamber of Commerce; Scott Hobbs, Hobbs,
Inc., New Canaan, Connecticut, on behalf of the Associated General
Contractors of America; Gayla McCluskey, American Industrial Hygiene
Association, Radnor, Pennsylvania; and Curtis McGuire, Redlegs Lumper
Service, Columbus, Ohio. 

Joint Meetings

TAX CUT PROPOSALS

Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded hearings on issues
relating to economic growth through tax cuts, focusing on the federal
budget surplus, small businesses, income tax, capital gains tax, tax
rates, tax system reform, retail sales tax, and the trade deficit, after
receiving testimony from Mayor Stephen Goldsmith, Indianapolis, Indiana;
Rebecca C. Matthias, Mothers Work, Inc., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania;
George Gilder, Gilder Technology Group, Inc., Tyringham, Massachusetts;
Wendell Primus, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, John G. Wilkins,
PricewaterhouseCoopers, and William G. Gale, Brookings Institution, all
of Washington, D.C.; Wayne D. Angell, Bear Stearns, New York, New York;
and James C. Miller III, Citizens for a Sound Economy, McLean, Virginia,
former Director, Office of Management and Budget. 

VETERANS PROGRAMS

Joint Hearing: Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs and the House
Committee on Veterans' Affairs concluded joint hearings to review the
legislative recommendations of certain veterans organizations, after
receiving testimony from Roger W. Putnam, Non Commissioned Officers
Association of the USA, Homer S. Townsend, Jr., Paralyzed Veterans of
America, Michael B. Berman, Jewish War Veterans of the USA, and
Elizabeth R. Carr, Blinded Veterans of America, all of Washington, D.C. 



1999/03/05
Daily Digest - Friday, March 5, 1999;  pages D223 - D230

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

NATIONAL SECURITY

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and
Capabilities concluded hearings on emerging threats to vital U.S.
national security interest, after receiving testimony from Jeane J.
Kirkpatrick, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations; Robert F.
Ellsworth, former Deputy Secretary of Defense; Gen. Charles G. Boyd,
USAF (ret.), Executive Director, National Security Study Group; and
Andrew F. Krepinevich, Jr., Center for Strategic and Budgetary
Assessments, Washington, D.C. 

                               [Page: D224]

INTERNATIONAL Y2K PROBLEM

Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem: Committee
concluded hearings to examine world-wide Y2K preparedness, the impact of
other counties' readiness on the United States, and the federal
government's position on foreign assistance for Y2K, after receiving
testimony from Bonnie R. Cohen, Under Secretary for Management, and
Jacquelyn L. Williams-Bridgers, Inspector General, both of the
Department of State; Michael J. Copps, Assistant Secretary of Commerce
for Trade Development/International Trade Administration; Lawrence K.
Gershwin, National Intelligence Officer for Science and Technology,
National Intelligence Council, Central Intelligence Agency; James
Woodward, Cap Gemini America, New York, New York; Lou Marcoccio, Gartner
Group, Boston, Massachusetts; and John Harmer, CPC Consulting, Salt Lake
City, Utah. 

                               [Page: D225]

Joint Meetings

EMPLOYMENT--UNEMPLOYMENT

Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded hearings on the
employment-unemployment situation for February, after receiving
testimony from Katharine G. Abraham, Commissioner, Bureau of Labor
Statistics, Department of Labor. 


1999/03/08
Daily Digest - Monday March 8, 1999;  pages D232 - D236

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

DECEPTIVE MAILINGS 

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Permanent Subcommittee on
Investigations held hearings to examine the nature and impact of
sweepstakes run by certain major companies, focusing on their
increasingly deceptive and aggressive marketing techniques, receiving
testimony from Maryland Attorney General J. Joseph Curran, Jr.,
Annapolis; Virginia L. Tierney, American Association of Retired Persons,
Washington, D.C.; Eustace A. Hall, Brandon, Florida; Angela Hall,
Tallahassee, Florida; Carol Gelinas, Bangor, Maine; Karol Carter, Troy,
Michigan; Patti McElligott, Tyler, Texas; Stephanie Beukema, Cambridge,
Massachusetts; and Charles Doolittle, Inverness, Florida. 

Hearings continue tomorrow. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/03/09
Daily Digest - Tuesday, March 9, 1999; pages D238 - D244

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--BUREAU OF RECLAMATION

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Energy and Water
Development concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal
year 2000 for the Bureau of Reclamation, after receiving testimony from
Patricia J. Beneke, Assistant Secretary for Water and Science, Eluid L.
Martinez, Commissioner, Bureau of Reclamation, both of the Department of
the Interior; and Joseph W. Westphal, Assistant Secretary for Civil
Works, Lt. Gen. Joe N. Ballard, Chief of Engineers, and Maj. Gen.
Russell L. Fuhrman, Director of Civil Works, all of the Department of
the Army Corps of Engineers. 

APPROPRIATIONS--DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, and
State, the Judiciary, and Related Agencies concluded hearings on
proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of
Justice, after receiving testimony from Janet Reno, Attorney General of
the United States, Department of Justice. 

U.S.-AFGHANISTAN POLICY

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Foreign Operations held
hearings on United States policy toward Afghanistan, focusing on
security, refugees, and women, receiving testimony from Karl F.
Inderfurth, Assistant Secretary for South Asian Affairs, and Julia V.
Taft, Assistant Secretary for Population, Refugees, and Migration
Affairs, both of the Department of State; Zohra Rasekh, and Holly
Burkhalter, both of Physicians for Human Rights, Boston, Massachusetts;
and Mavis Leno, Feminist Majority Foundation, Los Angeles, California. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

U.S. TERRORISM POLICY

Committee on Armed Services: Committee met in closed session to receive
a briefing on United States Government policies and programs to combat
terrorism from Richard A. Clark, Special Assistant to the President and
National Coordinator for Security, Infrastructure Protection and
Counterterrorism, National Security Council. 

Also, committee concluded hearings to examine United States Government
policies and programs to combat terrorism, after receiving testimony
from John J. Hamre, Deputy Secretary of Defense; and Gen. Joseph W.
Ralston, USAF, Vice Chairman, Joint Chiefs. 

INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on
International Trade and Finance concluded oversight hearings on
International Monetary Fund reform issues, focusing on transparency and
accountability, effectiveness, market-based terms for financial support,
the Treasury task force, and policy and program design in Brazil,
Indonesia, Korea, and Thailand, after receiving testimony from Timothy
F. Geithner, Under Secretary of the Treasury for International Affairs;
and Patrick A. Mulloy, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Market Access
and Compliance; and Catherine L. Mann, Institute for International
Economics, Gerald P. O'Driscoll, Jr., Heritage Foundation, Ian Vasquez,
Cato Institute, and Willard A. Workman, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, all of
Washington, D.C. 

POST ELECTION CAMBODIA

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific
Affairs concluded hearings on issues relating to post election Cambodia,
including national reconciliation, democratic development, rival
political parties, Khmer Rouge accountability, and U.S. consultation and
aid policy, after receiving testimony from Ralph L. Boyce, Deputy
Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs; and
Sichan Siv, International Republican Institute, and Andrew Wells, Asia
Pacific Center for Justice and Peace, both of Washington, D.C. 

U.S.-IRAQ POLICY

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on Near Eastern and South
Asian Affairs held hearings on the United States' policy toward Iraq,
receiving testimony from Beth Jones, Principal Assistant Secretary of
State for Near East Affairs. 

Hearings recessed subject to the call. 

DECEPTIVE MAILINGS

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Permanent Subcommittee on
Investigations continued hearings to examine the nature and impact of
sweepstakes run by certain major companies, focusing on their
increasingly deceptive and aggressive marketing techniques, receiving
testimony from Naomi Bernstein, American Family Enterprises, Tampa,
Florida; Deborah J. Holland, Publishers Clearing House, Port Washington,
New York; Elizabeth Valk Long, Time, Inc., New York, New York; and Peter
Davenport, Reader's Digest Association Inc., Marion, Ohio. 

Hearings recessed subject to the call. 

INTERSTATE ALCOHOL SALES

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee held hearings to examine issues
relating to interstate alcohol sales, including labeling, quality
control standards, consumer fraud, and access of alcohol by minors, as
well D240as proposed legislation that will permit the Attorney General
of a State to file an action in federal court for an injunction to stop
illegal shipment of alcohol, receiving testimony from Representatives
Ehrlich, Millender-McDonald, Radanovich, and Thompson; Utah Assistant
Attorney General Wayne Klein, Salt Lake City; Stephen Diamond,
University of Miami School of Law, Coral Gables, Florida; Brendan
Brogan, Ridgewood, New Jersey, on behalf of the Mothers Against Drunk
Drivers; John A. DeLuca, Wine Institute, San Francisco, California; and
Michael Ballard, Savannah-Chanel Vineyards, Saratoga, California. 

                               [Page: D240]

Hearings recessed subject to the call. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/03/10
Daily Digest - Wednesday, March 10, 1999;  pages D246 - D256

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

CROP INSURANCE

Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Committee held
hearings to examine the nature of risk management in agriculture and
federal crop insurance programs, receiving testimony from Senator Grams;
Joseph W. Glauber, Deputy Chief Economist, Department of Agriculture;
Jerry R. Skees, University of Kentucky Department of Agricultural
Economics, Lexington; Keith H. Coble, Mississippi State University,
University; William W. Biedermann, Allendale, Inc., McHenry, Illinois;
David A. Bossman, American Feed Industry Association, Arlington,
Virginia; Gregg Doud, World Perspectives, Inc., Washington, D.C.; and
Tom Coyle, Continental Grain, Chicago, Illinois, on behalf of the
National Grain and Feed Association. 

Hearings continue on Wednesday, March 17. 

APPROPRIATIONS--JOINT COMMITTEE ON TAXATION/JOINT ECONOMIC
COMMITTEE/OFFICE OF COMPLIANCE

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Legislative Branch
concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000,
after receiving testimony from Senator Roth, in behalf of funds for the
Joint Committee on Taxation; Senator Mack, in behalf of funds for the
Joint Economic Committee; and Ricky Silberman, in behalf of funds for
the Office of Compliance. 

APPROPRIATIONS--AMTRAK

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Transportation and Related
Agencies concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year
2000 for the National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak), focusing
on issues relating to Amtrak's short-and long-term financial health, and
the operational decisions which determine the railroad's present and
future status, after receiving testimony from Kenneth M. Mead, Inspector
General, Department of Transportation; George Warrington, President,
National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak); and Wisconsin Governor
Tommy Thompson, Madison, on behalf of the Amtrak Board of Directors. 

APPROPRIATIONS--NAVY/MARINE CORPS

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense concluded hearings
on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for Navy and Marine
Corps programs, after receiving testimony from Richard Danzig, Secretary
of the Navy; Adm. J.L. Johnson, USN, Chief of Naval Operations; and Gen.
C.C. Krulak, USMC, Commandant of the Marine Corps. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Readiness and Management
Support concluded hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for
fiscal year 2000 for the Department of Defense, focusing on military
installations and facilities, military construction, family housing,
homeowners assistance fund, reserve base realignment and closure, and
shore infrastructure, after receiving testimony from Randall A. Yim,
Acting Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Installations; Mahlon
Apgar, IV, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Installations and
Environment; Robert B. Pirie, Jr., Assistant Secretary of the Navy for
Installations and Environment; and Ruby B. DeMesme, Assistant Secretary
of the Air Force for Manpower, Reserve Affairs, Installations, and
Environment. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Airland concluded hearings
on proposed legislation authorizing funds for fiscal year 2000 for the
Department of Defense, focusing on tactical aviation modernization, and
the future years defense program, after receiving testimony from Gen.
Joseph W. Ralston, USAF, Vice Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff,
Department of Defense; Christopher Jehn, Assistant Director for National
Security, Congressional Budget Office; and Andrew F. Krepinevich, Jr.,
Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, Washington, D.C. 

STRATEGIC AND TACTICAL LIFT

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Seapower concluded hearings
to examine strategic and tactical lift requirements versus capabilities,
focusing on the environment of future conflicts, engagement and combat
employment, equipment requirements, and the Defense Transportation
System, after receiving testimony from Gen. Charles T. Robertson, Jr.,
USAF, Commander in Chief, United States Transportation Command; and Lt.
Gen. Martin R. Steele, USMC, Deputy Chief of Staff for Plans, Policies,
and Operations, Headquarters Marine Corps.  

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee ordered
favorably reported S. 303, to D249amend the Communications Act of 1934
to enhance the ability of direct broadcast satellite and other
multichannel video providers to compete effectively with cable
television systems, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. 

                               [Page: D249]

MEDICARE FINANCIAL STATUS

Committee on Finance: Committee held hearings to examine spending trends
in the Medicare program, the impact on those trends of Medicare savings
in the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, and the President's proposed budget
request for fiscal year 2000 for Medicare, including the fifteen-percent
surplus funding proposal, receiving testimony from Jacob J. Lew,
Director, Office of Management and Budget. 

Hearings continue on Thursday, March 18. 

HUMAN RIGHTS IN CUBA

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded hearings to examine
the current human rights situation in Cuba, focusing on Fidel Castro's
recent crackdown on Cubans and independent journalists, U.S. support for
dissidents, and the codification of the embargo, after receiving
testimony from Frank Calzon, Center for a Free Cuba, Washington, D.C.;
and Eloy Gutierrez-Menoyo, Cambio Cubano, Ruth Montaner, Internal
Dissident Working Group, on behalf of the Cuban Dissidence Task Group,
and Luis Zuniga, Foundation for Human Rights in Cuba, all of Miami,
Florida. 

INTELLIGENCE

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the
intelligence community. 

Committee will meet again on Thursday, March 18. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/03/11
Daily Digest - Thursday, March 11, 1999;  pages D258 - D270

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--COMMERCE

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, State,
and the Judiciary concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for
fiscal year 2000 for the Department of Commerce, focusing on decennial
census and other statistical programs, oceans and atmosphere, trade,
technology, and assisting distressed communities, after receiving
testimony from William M. Daley, Secretary of Commerce. 

APPROPRIATIONS--ENERGY

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Energy and Water
Development concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal
year 2000 for the Department of Energy, focusing on defense programs,
materials disposition, and non-proliferation, after receiving testimony
from Victor H. Reis, Assistant Secretary for Defense Programs, Rose E.
Gottemoeller, Director, Office of Nonproliferation and National
Security, and Laura S.H. Holgate, Director, Office of Fissile Materials
Disposition, all of the Department of Energy. 

APPROPRIATIONS--NATIONAL AND COMMUNITY SERVICE

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on VA, HUD, and Independent
Agencies concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year
2000 for the Corporation for National and Community Service, receiving
testimony form Harris Wofford, Chief Executive Officer, and Luise S.
Jordan, Inspector General, both of the Corporation for National and
Community Service; and Ellen Lazar, Director, Community Development
Financial Institutions Fund, Department of the Treasury. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Strategic Subcommittee concluded hearings
on proposed legislation authorizing funds for fiscal year 2000 for the
Department of Defense, focusing on ballistic missile defense programs
and management, and the future years defense program, after receiving
testimony from Jacques S. Gansler, Under Secretary of Defense for
Acquisition and Technology; Lt. Gen. Lester L. Lyles, USAF, Director,
Ballistic Missile Defense Organization; Lt. Gen. Gregory S. Martin,
USAF, Principal Deputy, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for
Acquisition; D260and Gen Robert T. Marsh, USAF (Ret.), Chairman,
Airborne Laser Independent Assessment Team. 

                               [Page: D260]

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE HEALTH PROGRAM

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Personnel concluded
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for fiscal year 2000
for the Department of Defense, focusing on the defense health program,
and the future years defense program, after receiving testimony from Sue
Bailey, Assistant Secretary for Health Affairs, and H. James T. Sears,
Executive Director, TRICARE Management Activity, both of the Department
of Defense; Maj. Gen. John S. Parker, USA, Commanding General, Medical
Research and Material Command and Fort Detrick; Vice Adm. Richard A.
Nelson, USN, Navy Surgeon General; Lt. Gen. Charles H. Roadman, II,
USAF, Air Force Surgeon General; David J. McIntyre, Jr., TriWest
Healthcare Alliance, Phoenix, Arizona; Robert E. Shields, Humana
Military Healthcare Services, Inc., Louisville; Virginia Torsch, Retired
Officers Association, Annandale, Virginia, and Sydney T. Hickey,
National Military Family Association, Alexandria, Virginia, both on
behalf of the Military Coalition; and Col. Charles C. Partridge, USA
(Ret.), National Association for Uniformed Services, Springfield,
Virginia, on behalf of the National Military and Veterans Alliance. 

AIRLINE PASSENGER FAIRNESS ACT

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee held
hearings on S. 383, to establish a national policy of basic consumer
fair treatment for airline passengers, receiving testimony from Nancy E.
McFadden, General Counsel, Department of Transportation; Darlene McCord,
Royale Renaissance, Pharmaceutical Research & Development, Glenbrook,
Nevada; Carol B. Hallett, Air Transport Association of America, and Mark
Silbergeld, Consumers Union, both of Washington D.C.; Lawton Roberts,
Uniglobe Country Place Travel, Lawrenceville, Georgia; Paul M. Ruden,
American Society of Travel Agents, Inc, Alexandria, Virginia; Darryl
Jenkins, Aviation Institute/George Washington University, Falls Church,
Virginia; and Jeannie Johanningmeirer, Kingston, Pennsylvania. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

WATER RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded hearings
on S. 507, to provide for the conservation and development of water and
related resources, and to authorize the Secretary of the Army to
construct various projects for improvements to rivers and harbors of the
United States, and the President's proposed budget request for fiscal
year 2000 for the Army Corps of Engineers, after receiving testimony
from Joseph W. Westphal, Assistant Secretary for Civil Works, and
Michael L. Davis, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Policy and Legislation,
both of the Department of the Army. 

INTERNATIONAL TAXATION

Committee on Finance: Committee held hearings to explore the
ramifications of the changing world economy and the reforms that are
needed in the international tax area, receiving testimony from Robin D.
Beran, Caterpillar, Inc., Peoria, Illinois; Julietta Guarino, ABB, Inc.,
Stamford, Connecticut, on behalf of the Organization for International
Investment; John L. Loffredo, DaimlerChrysler Corporation, Auburn Hills,
Michigan; Robert H. Perlman, Intel Corporation, Santa Clara, California;
John H. Mutti, Grinnell College Department of Economics, Grinnell, Iowa;
and Matthew J. Slaughter, Dartmouth College Department of Economics,
Hanover, New Hampshire. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

EMBASSY SECURITY

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee held hearings to examine
embassy security for a new millennium, focusing on the bombings in
Nairobi and Dar Es Salaam, the Bureau of Diplomatic Security's efforts
to protect American personnel, facilities, and national security
information, and the Accountability Review Board recommendations,
receiving testimony from Adm. William J. Crowe, Jr., USN (Ret.),
Chairman, Accountability Review Boards for the Embassy Bombings in
Nairobi and Dar Es Salaam, David G. Carpenter, Assistant Secretary for
Diplomatic Security, and Patrick F. Kennedy, Assistant Secretary for
Administration, all of the Department of State. 

Hearings recessed subject to the call. 

MANAGED HEALTH CARE

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded
hearings on proposals to enhance consumer protections for
privately-insured Americans who receive health coverage under managed
care arrangements, including S. 6, to amend the Public Health Service
Act, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, and the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to protect consumers in managed care plans
and other health coverage, and S. 300 and S. 326, bills to improve
access and choice of patients to quality, affordable health care, after
receiving testimony from William J. Scanlon, Director, Health Financing
and Public Health Issues, General Accounting Office; Kathleen Sebelius,
Kansas Insurance Department, Topeka, on behalf of the National
Association of Insurance Commissioners; Peter W. D261Thomas, former
Chair, Subcommittee on Consumer Rights, Protections and
Responsibilities, President's Advisory Commission on Consumer Protection
and Quality in the Health Care Industry; and Karen M. Ignagni, American
Association of Health Plans, Ronald F. Pollack, Families USA Foundation,
Beverly L. Malone, American Nurses Association, and Marcia L. Comstock,
U.S. Chamber of Commerce, all of Washington, D.C. 

                               [Page: D261]

Y2K COMPUTER PROBLEM

Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem: Committee
concluded hearings to explore claims that failures caused by the Y2K
computer glitch will result in a large number of lawsuits that could
negatively impact the courts and business community, after receiving
testimony from Senator Hatch; Michael C. Spencer, Milberg, Weiss,
Bershad, Hynes, and Lerach, New York, New York; Charles Rothfeld, Mayer,
Brown, and Platt, and William Frederick Lewis, Prospect Technologies,
both of Washington, D.C.; William Steel Sessions, FedNet, Inc.,
Cleveland, Ohio, former Chief Judge of the United States District Court
for the Southern District of Texas/former Director of the Federal Bureau
of Investigation, Department of Justice; George Scalise, Semiconductor
Industry Association, San Jose, California; and John H. McGuckin, Jr.,
Union Bank of California, San Francisco. 

Joint Meetings

BANKRUPTCY REFORM

Joint Meeting: Senate Committee on the Judiciary's Subcommittee on
Administrative Oversight and the Courts concluded joint hearings with
the House Committee on the Judiciary's Subcommittee on Commercial and
Administrative Law on bankruptcy reform issues, after receiving
testimony from Dean Sheaffer, Boscov's Department Store, Inc., Laurel
Dale, Pennsylvania, on behalf of the National Retail Federation; Bruce
L. Hammonds, MBNA America Bank, Wilmington, Delaware; Carol J. Kenner,
United States Bankruptcy Judge, for the District of Massachusetts, Gary
Klein, National Consumer Law Center, and Elizabeth Warren, Harvard Law
School, all of Boston, Massachusetts; Larry Nuss, Cedar Falls Community
Credit Union, Cedar Falls, Iowa, on behalf of the Credit Union National
Association, Inc.; Edith Hollan Jones, United States Court of Appeals
Judge for the Fifth Circuit, Houston, Texas, on behalf of the National
Bankruptcy Review Commission; Judith Greenstone Miller, Clark Hill,
Birmingham, Michigan, on behalf of the Commercial Law League of America;
and Todd Zywicki, George Mason University School of Law, Arlington,
Virginia. 



1999/03/15
Daily Digest - Monday, March 15, 1999;  pages D272 - D276

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

TOBACCO AND MEDICAID SETTLEMENTS

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human
Services, Education and Related Agencies concluded hearings to examine
the Health Care Financing Administration's obligation under D273current
law to recoup Federal taxpayers' share of Medicaid funds from State
tobacco settlements, after receiving testimony from Michael Hash, Deputy
Administrator, Health Care Financing Administration, Department of
Health and Human Services; Kentucky Governor Paul E. Patton, Frankfort,
on behalf of the National Governors' Association; Pennsylvania Attorney
General Mike Fisher, Harrisburg, on behalf of the National Association
of Attorney's General; Texas Attorney General John Cornyn, Austin; Iowa
Attorney General Tom Miller, Des Moines; and Matthew Myers, National
Center for Tobacco-Free Kids, Washington, D.C. 

                               [Page: D273]

FOREST SERVICE BUDGET

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: On Friday, March 12,
Subcommittee on Forests and Public Land Management held oversight
hearings on the President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2000
for the Forest Service, Department of Agriculture, receiving testimony
from Mike Dombeck, Chief, and Ronald E. Stewart, Deputy Chief for
Programs and Legislation, both of the Forest Service, Department of
Agriculture. 

Hearings continue on Tuesday, March 16. 

INTERNATIONAL AGRICULTURAL TRADE

Committee on Finance: Subcommittee on International Trade held hearings
on the status of agricultural trade issues and negotiations with the
People's Republic of China and the European Union, focusing on market
access, China's negotiations with the World Trade Organization, pork
import restrictions, the European Union's Common Agricultural Policy,
biotechnology issues, and approval process, beef import restrictions,
the oilseed industry trade, and labeling, receiving testimony from
Stuart E. Eizenstat, Under Secretary of State for Economic, Business,
and Agricultural Affairs; Peter L. Scher, Special Trade Negotiator,
Office of the United States Trade Representative; August Schumacher,
Jr., Under Secretary of Agriculture for Farm and Foreign Agricultural
Services; John Hardin, Jr., Danville, Indiana, on behalf of the National
Pork Producers Council; and Allen F. Johnson, National Oilseed
Processors Association, and Greg Mastel, Economic Strategy Institute,
both of Washington, D.C. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

JUSTICE BUDGET

Committee on the Judiciary: On Friday, March 12, Committee concluded
hearings on the President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2000
for the Department of Justice, after receiving testimony from Janet
Reno, Attorney General, Department of Justice. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/03/16
Daily Digest - Tuesday, March 16, 1999,  pages D278 - D286

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--INDEPENDENT AGENCIES

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on the Interior concluded
hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000, after
receiving testimony in behalf of funds for their respective activities
from Lawrence J. Wilker, President, John F. Kennedy Center for the
Performing Arts; Earl A. Powell, III, Director, National Gallery of Art;
I. Michael Heyman, Secretary, Smithsonian Institution; and Lee H.
Hamilton, Director, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. 

                               [Page: D279]

APPROPRIATIONS--IMMIGRATION AND NATURALIZATION

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, State,
and the Judiciary concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for
fiscal year 2000 for the Immigration and Naturalization, after receiving
testimony from Doris Meissner, Commissioner, Immigration and
Naturalization Service, Department of Justice. 

BIOTERRORISM

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human
Services, and Education, with the Committee on Veterans' Affairs
concluded hearings to assess the roles and preparedness of the
Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Veterans
Affairs to respond to a domestic chemical or biological weapons attack,
after receiving testimony from Kenneth W. Kizer, Under Secretary of
Veterans Affairs for Health; Margaret A. Hamburg, Assistant Secretary of
Health and Human Services for Planning and Evaluation; Henry L. Hinton,
Jr., Assistant Comptroller General, National Security and International
Affairs Division, General Accounting Office; Joshua Lederberg,
Rockefeller University, New York, New York; Donald A. Henderson, Johns
Hopkins University Center for Civilian Biodefense Studies, Baltimore,
Maryland; and Robert C. Myers, BioPort Corporation, Lansing, Michigan. 

APPROPRIATIONS--AGRICULTURE/HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural
Development, and Related Agencies concluded hearings on proposed budget
estimates for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of Agriculture and
Department of Health and Human Services food safety programs, after
receiving testimony in behalf of funds for their respective activities
from Catherine E. Woteki, Under Secretary for Food Safety, and Dennis
Kaplan, Deputy Director, Budget, Legislative and Regulatory Systems,
both of the Department of Agriculture; and Jane Henney, Commissioner,
Food and Drug Administration, and Jeffrey P. Koplan, Director, Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention, both of the Department of Health and
Human Services. 

APPROPRIATIONS--NAVY

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Military Construction
concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for
Navy shore infrastructure and military construction, after receiving
testimony from Robert B. Pirie, Jr., Assistant Secretary of the Navy for
Installations and Environment; Rear Adm. Ralph E. Suggs, Deputy
Commander in Chief, United States Special Operations Command; Rear Adm.
Thomas F. Carrato, Chief Operating Officer, Tricare Management Activity,
Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs;
Frederick N. Baillie, Executive Director of Resources, Planning, and
Performance, Defense Logistics Support Command, Defense Logistics
Agency; and Gail H. McGinn, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of
Defense, Personnel Support, Families and Education. 

ALLEGED CHINESE ESPIONAGE

Committee on Armed Services/Committee on Energy and Natural Resources:
Committees concluded joint closed hearings on alleged Chinese espionage
at the Department of Energy laboratories, after receiving testimony from
William B. Richardson, Secretary of Energy. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded hearings on proposed
legislation authorizing funds for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of
Defense, focusing on the Department of Energy national security
programs, and the future years defense program, after receiving
testimony from William B. Richardson, Secretary of Energy. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and
Capabilities concluded closed and open hearings on proposed legislation
authorizing funds for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of Defense,
focusing on information warfare and critical infrastructure protection,
and the future years defense program, after receiving testimony from
Gen. Robert T. Marsh, USAF (Ret.), Chairman, President's Commission on
Critical Infrastructure Protection; Michael A. Vatis, Deputy Assistant
Director and Chief, National Infrastructure Protection Center, Federal
Bureau of Investigation, Department of Justice; Arthur L. Money, Senior
Civilian Official, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense, for
Command, Control, Communications, and Intelligence; and Maj. Gen. John
Campbell, USAF, Director, Joint Task Force for Computer Network Defense. 

AUTHORIZATION--EXPORT ADMINISTRATION ACT

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on
International Trade and Finance concluded hearings on proposed
legislation authorizing funds for the Export Administration Act,
focusing on the globalization of technology, multilateral
nonproliferation, and current national security threats, after receiving
testimony from John P. Barker, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for
Export Controls; R. Roger Majak, Assistant Secretary of D280Commerce for
Export Administration; Patricia Dedik, Director, Nuclear Transfer and
Supplier Policy Division, Office of Arms Control and Nonproliferation,
Department of Energy; Dan Hoydysh, Unisys Corporation, on behalf of the
Computer Coalition for Responsible Exports, Paul Freedenberg, former
Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Trade Administration, on behalf of
the Association for Manufacturing Technology, and John W. Douglass,
Aerospace Industries Association, all of Washington, D.C.; and Stephen
D. Bryen, Silver Spring, Maryland, former Assistant Secretary of
Commerce for Export Administration.  

                               [Page: D280]

BUDGET 2000

Committee on the Budget: Committee met to mark up a proposed concurrent
resolution setting forth the fiscal year 2000 budget for the Federal
Government, but did not complete consideration thereon, and will meet
again tomorrow. 

FOREST SERVICE BUDGET

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Forests and
Public Land Management concluded oversight hearings on the President's
proposed budget request for fiscal year 2000 for the Forest Service,
focusing on fair market value, concession reform, recreation fees,
payments to states, and federal land usage, after receiving testimony
from Ronald E. Stewart, Deputy Chief, Forest Service, Department of
Agriculture. 

EPA'S RISK MANAGEMENT PLAN

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on Clean Air,
Wetlands, Private Property, and Nuclear Safety concluded oversight
hearings on the implementation of the Environmental Protection Agency's
Risk Management Plan Program of the Clean Air Act, after receiving
testimony from Timothy Fields, Jr., Acting Assistant Administrator for
Solid Waste and Emergency Response, Environmental Protection Agency;
Robert M. Burnham, Chief, Domestic Terrorism Section, National Security
Division, and Robert M. Blitzer, former Section Chief, Domestic
Terrorism/Counterterrorism Planning Section, both of the Federal Bureau
of Investigation, Department of Justice; Dean Kleckner, Rudd, Iowa on
behalf of the American Farm Bureau Federation; James E. Bertelsmeyer,
Heritage Propane, Tulsa, Oklahoma, on behalf of the National Propane Gas
Association; Thomas M. Susman, Ropes & Gray, and Thomas E. Natan, Jr.,
National Environmental Trust, both of Washington, D.C.; Paula R.
Littles, Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical and Energy Workers
International Union, Fairfax, Virginia; and Ben Laganga, Union County
Office of Emergency Management, Westfield, New Jersey. 

SOCIAL SECURITY REFORM: PERSONAL RETIREMENT ACCOUNTS

Committee on Finance: Committee held hearings on proposals to restore
the Social Security program's solvency, focusing on personal or
individual retirement accounts, including S. 263, to amend the Social
Security Act to establish the Personal Retirement Accounts Program, and
S. 21, to reduce social security payroll taxes, receiving testimony from
David M. Walker, Comptroller General of the United States, General
Accounting Office; Fred T. Goldberg, Jr., Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher
& Flom, former Commissioner, Internal Revenue Service, and former
Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Tax Policy, and Robert D.
Reischauer, Brookings Institution, former Director, Congressional Budget
Office, both of Washington, D.C.; Sam Beard, Economic Security 2000, New
Castle, Delaware; Martin S. Feldstein, Harvard University, Cambridge,
Massachusetts, on behalf of the National Bureau on Economic Research;
and Sylvester J. Schieber, Watson Wyatt Worldwide, Bethesda, Maryland. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

AUTHORIZATION--EDUCATING THE DISADVANTAGED

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for the Elementary
and Secondary Education Act, focusing on Title I, education programs for
the disadvantaged, after receiving testimony from Wayne Riddle,
Specialist in Education Finance, Domestic Social Policy Division,
Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress; David Baroudi,
State Director (Montpelier, Vermont), Title 1 Programs, Department of
Education; Lula M. Ford, Chicago Public Schools, Chicago, Illinois;
William L. Taylor, Citizens' Commission on Civil Rights, Washington,
D.C.; and Terry Bergeson, Washington State Superintendent of Public
Instruction, Olympia, on behalf of the Council of Chief State School
Officers. 

SBA BUDGET

Committee on Small Business: Committee held hearings on the President's
fiscal year 2000 budget request for the Small Business Administration,
including the HUBZone Empowerment Contracting program, receiving
testimony from Aida Alvarez, Administrator, Small Business
Administration; Mark Barbash, Columbus Countywide Development
Corporation, Columbus Ohio, on behalf of the National Association of
Development Companies; Agnes Noonan, Women's Economic Self-Sufficiency
Team, Albuquerque, New Mexico; Deryl K. Schuster, Mid-America Division,
Business Loan Center, Inc. Wichita, Kansas, on D281behalf of the
National Association of Government Guaranteed Lenders; and Max E.
Summers, Missouri Small Business Development Centers, Columbia, on
behalf of the Association of Small Business Development Centers. 

                               [Page: D281]

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/03/17
Daily Digest - Wednesday, March 17, 1999,  pages D288 - D298

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

CROP INSURANCE REFORM 

Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Committee concluded
hearings to examine the nature of risk management in agriculture and
federal crop insurance programs, after receiving testimony from Ken
Ackerman, Administrator, Risk Management Agency, Department of
Agriculture; Phil Cyre, Hazel, South Dakota, on behalf of the National
Farmers Union; Dean Kleckner, American Farm Bureau Federation, and Roger
Swartz, Crop Insurance Research Bureau, both of Park Ridge, Illinois;
Kyle Phillips, Iowa Corn Growers Association, Knoxville; Allen Helms,
American Cotton Producers, Clarkedale, Arkansas, on behalf of the
National Cotton Council; Marc Curtis, American Soybean Association,
Leland, Mississippi; Mike Miller, American Association of Crop Insurers,
Topeka, Kansas; and Ken Rulon, Cicero, Indiana. 

APPROPRIATIONS--AIR FORCE 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense concluded hearings
on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for Air Force
programs, focusing on airmen, infrastructure, and modernization, after
receiving testimony from F. Whitten Peters, Acting Secretary, and Gen.
Michael E. Ryan, Chief of Staff, both of the Air Force. 

APPROPRIATIONS--INDEPENDENT AGENCIES 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Legislative Branch
concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000,
after receiving testimony in behalf of funds for their respective
activities from James H. Billington, Librarian of Congress; Daniel P.
Mulhollan, Director, Congressional Research Service; David M. Walker,
Comptroller General of the United States, General Accounting Office;
Michael F. DiMario, Public Printer, Government Printing Office; and
Janet S. Zagorin, American Bar Association's Standing Committee on the
Law Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 

DEFENSE ACQUISITION REFORM 

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Readiness and Management
Support concluded hearings to examine the efforts to reform and
streamline the Department of Defense's acquisition process, after
receiving testimony from Paul J. Hoeper, Assistant Secretary of the Army
for Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology; H. Lee Buchanan, III,
Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development and
Acquisition; Darleen A. Druyun, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of
the Air Force for Acquisition and Management; and Lt. Gen. Henry T.
Glisson, USA, Director, Defense Logistics Agency, Department of Defense. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Airland concluded hearings
on proposed legislation authorizing funds for fiscal year 2000 for the
Department of Defense, focusing on tactical aviation modernization, and
the future years defense program, after receiving testimony from H. Lee
Buchanan, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research, Development, and
Acquisition; Darleen A. Druyun, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of
the Air Force for Acquisition and Management; Philip E. Coyle, Director,
Operational Test and Evaluation, Office of the Secretary of Defense; and
Louis J. Rodrigues, Director, Defense Acquisitions, Issues, National
Security and International Affairs Division, General Accounting Office. 

2000 BUDGET 

Committee on the Budget: Committee met to mark up a proposed concurrent
resolution setting forth the fiscal year 2000 budget for the Federal
Government, but did not complete consideration thereon, and will meet
again tomorrow. 

                               [Page: D291]

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee ordered favorably
reported the following business items: 

S. 507, to provide for the conservation and development of water and
related resources, to authorize the Secretary of the Army to construct
various projects for improvements to rivers and harbors of the United
States, with amendments; 

S. 148, to require the Secretary of the Interior to establish a program
to provide assistance in the conservation of neotropical migratory
birds; 

S. 574, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to make corrections to a
map relating to the Coastal Barrier Resources System; 

S. 67, to designate the headquarters building of the Department of
Housing and Urban Development in Washington, D.C., as the "Robert C.
Weaver Federal Building"; 

S. 272 and H.R. 396, bills to designate the Federal building located at
1301 Clay Street in Oakland, California, as the "Ronald V. Dellums
Federal Building"; 

S. 392, to designate the Federal building and United States courthouse
located at West 920 Riverside Avenue in Spokane, Washington, as the
"Thomas S. Foley Federal Building and United States Courthouse", and the
plaza at the south entrance of that building and courthouse as the
"Walter F. Horan Plaza"; 

S. 437, to designate the United States courthouse under construction at
338 Las Vegas Boulevard South in Las Vegas, Nevada, as the "Lloyd D.
George United States Courthouse"; 

S. 453, to designate the Federal building located at 709 West 9th Street
in Juneau, Alaska, as the "Hurff A. Saunders Federal Building"; 

S. 460, to designate the United States courthouse located at 401 South
Michigan Street in South Bend, Indiana, as the "Robert K. Rodibaugh
United States Bankruptcy Courthouse"; 

H.R. 92, to designate the Federal building and United States courthouse
located at 251 North Main Street in Winston Salem, North Carolina, as
the "Hiram H. Ward Federal Building and United States Courthouse"; 

H.R. 158, to designate the Federal Courthouse located at 316 North 26th
Street in Billings, Montana, as the "James F. Battin Federal
Courthouse"; 

H.R. 233, to designate the Federal building located at 700 East San
Antonio Street in El Paso, Texas, as the "Richard C. White Federal
Building"; and 

The nominations of Gary S. Guzy, of the District of Columbia, to be an
Assistant Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, and Anne
Jeannette Udall, of North Carolina, to be a Member of the Board of
Trustees of the Morris K. Udall Scholarship and Excellence in National
Environmental Policy Foundation. 

OPEN SPACE AND ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY 

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee held hearings to
examine the loss of open space and environmental quality, focusing on
sprawl and development, and related proposals, receiving testimony from
Mayor Paul Helmke, Fort Wayne, Indiana, on behalf of the United States
Conference of Mayors; Terry Kauffman, Board of Commissioners, Lancaster
County, Pennsylvania, on behalf of the National Association of Counties;
Richard Moe, National Trust for Historic Preservation, Kathryn Hohmann,
Sierra Club, and Gary Garczynski, National Association of Home Builders,
all of Washington, D.C.; and Nelson C. Rising, Catellus Development
Corporation, on behalf of the National Realty Committee, and Steven
Hayward, Pacific Research Institute for Public Policy, both of San
Francisco, California. 

Hearings will continue tomorrow. 

MEDICARE REFORM 

Committee on Finance: Committee concluded hearings to examine certain
Medicare provisions in the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 relating to
provider payment policies and the Medicare+Choice program, after
receiving testimony from Nancy-Ann DeParle, Administrator, Health Care
Financing Administration, Department of Health and Human Services;
William J. Scanlon, Director, Health Financing and Public Health Issues,
Health, Education, and Human Services Division, General Accounting
Office; and Gail R. Wilensky, Medicare Payment Advisory Commission,
Washington, D.C. 

U.S.-IRAQ POLICY 

Committee on Foreign Relations/Committee on Energy and Natural
Resources: Committee concluded joint hearings to examine the impact of
the United Nations' proposals to expand Iraqi oil for food on United
States policy toward Iraq, after receiving testimony from Bill
Richardson, Secretary of Energy; and Thomas R. Pickering, Under
Secretary of State for Political Affairs. 

NUCLEAR SAFETY TREATY 

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded hearings on the
Convention on Nuclear Safety, done at Vienna on September 20, 1994
(Treaty Doc. 104-6), after receiving testimony from Robert J. Einhorn,
Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Nonproliferation; Gary Jones,
Associate Director for D292Energy, Resources and Science Issues,
Resources, Community and Economic Development Division, General
Accounting Office; and Marvin Fertel, Nuclear Infrastructure, Support,
and International Programs, Nuclear Energy Institute, Washington, D.C. 

                               [Page: D292]

NOMINATION 

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded hearings on the
nomination of Robert A. Seiple, of Washington, to be Ambassador at Large
for International Religious Freedom after the nominee testified and
answered questions on his own behalf. 

INDEPENDENT COUNSEL ACT 

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee resumed hearings on the
future of the Independent Counsel Act, receiving testimony from Janet
Reno, Attorney General, Department of Justice; Charles G. La Bella, U.S.
Attorney for the Southern District of California, San Diego, former
Supervising Attorney, Campaign Financing Task Force; John Q. Barrett,
St. John's University School of Law, New York, New York, former
Associate Independent Counsel, Iran-Contra Investigation; and Philip B.
Heymann, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, former Associate
Watergate Special Prosecutor. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee began
markup on S. 326, to improve the access and choice of patients to
quality, affordable health care, but did not complete action thereon,
and will meet again tomorrow. 

NATIVE AMERICAN HOUSING ASSISTANCE 

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on S. 400, to
provide technical corrections to the Native American Housing Assistance
and Self-Determination Act of 1996, and to improve the delivery of
housing assistance to Indian tribes in a manner that recognizes the
right of tribal self-governance, after receiving testimony from
Jacqueline Johnson, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban
Development for Native American Programs; and Chester Carl, Window Rock,
Arizona, and John Williamson, Port Angeles, Washington, both on behalf
of the National American Indian Housing Council. 

INTELLIGENCE 

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials from the
intelligence community. 

Committee will meet again tomorrow. 

JOINT MEETINGS 

                               [Page: D296]

DISABLED AMERICAN VETERANS 

Joint Hearing: Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs and the House
Committee on Veterans Affairs concluded joint hearings to examine the
legislative recommendations of the Disabled American Veterans, after
receiving testimony from Andrew A. Kistler, Disabled American Veterans,
Washington, D.C. 



1999/03/18
Daily Digest - Thursday, March 18, 1999,  pages D299 - D308

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--CIVILIAN RADIOACTIVE WASTE/ENVIRONMENTAL
MANAGEMENT 


Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Energy and Water
Development concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal
year 2000 for the Department of Energy, after receiving testimony in
behalf of funds for their respective activities from Lake H. Barrett,
Acting Director, Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management; and
James M. Owendoff, Acting Assistant Secretary for Environmental
Management, both of the Department of Energy. 

APPROPRIATIONS--NASA 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on VA, HUD, and Independent
Agencies concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year
2000 for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, after
receiving testimony from Daniel S. Goldin, Administrator, National
Aeronautics and Space Administration. 

APPROPRIATIONS--ENERGY 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on the Interior and Related
Agencies concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year
2000 for the Department of Energy, focusing on energy conservation,
fossil energy research and development, and other related programs,
after receiving testimony from Bill Richardson, Secretary of Energy. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE 

Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded hearings on proposed
legislation authorizing funds for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of
Defense, and the future years defense program, after receiving testimony
from Gen. Dennis J. Reimer, USA, Chief of Staff of the Army; Adm. Jay L.
Johnson, USN, Chief of Naval Operations; Gen. Charles C. Krulak, USMC,
Commandant of the Marine Corps; and Gen. Michael E. Ryan, USAF, Chief of
Staff of the Air Force. 

AIR FORCE AND ARMY READINESS 

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Readiness and Management
Support concluded hearings to examine the readiness of the United States
Air Force and Army operating forces, after receiving testimony from Gen.
Richard E. Hawley, USAF, Commanding General, Air Combat Command; Gen.
Charles T. Robertson, USAF, Commanding General, Air Mobility Command;
Lt. Gen. George A. Crocker, USA, Commanding General, I Corps and Fort
Lewis; Lt. Gen. William F. Kernan, USA, Commanding General, XVIII
Airborne Corps and Fort Bragg; Lt. Gen. Leon J. LaPorte, USA, Commanding
General, III Corps and Fort Hood; Maj. Gen. Roger C. Schultz, ARNG,
Director, Army National Guard; and Maj. Gen. Thomas J. Plewes, USAR,
Chief, Army Reserve. 

2000 BUDGET 

Committee on the Budget: Committee ordered favorably reported an
original concurrent resolution setting forth the congressional budget
for the United States Government for fiscal years 2000 through 2009. 

OPEN SPACE AND ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY 

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded hearings
to examine the loss of open space and environmental quality, focusing on
sprawl and development, and related proposals, after receiving testimony
from Senators Landrieu, Feinstein, and Leahy; David Hayes, Counselor to
the Secretary of the Interior; Maryland Governor Parris N. Glendening,
Annapolis; Andrew Falender, Appalachian Mountain Club, Boston,
Massachusetts; Chris Montague, Montana Land Reliance, Billings; and R.
Max Peterson, International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies,
Roy Kienitz, Surface Transportation Policy Project, and Ralph Grossi,
American Farmland Trust, all of Washington, D.C. 

MEDICARE FINANCIAL STATUS 

Committee on Finance: Committee continued hearings to examine spending
and enrollment patterns in the Medicare program, the impact on those
patterns of Medicare savings in the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, the
Medicare+Choice Program, and the President's proposed budget request for
fiscal year 2000 for Medicare, including issues associated with
expanding coverage, fee-for-service spending reductions, trust fund
proposal, and prescription drug benefits, after receiving testimony from
Dan L. Crippen, Director, Congressional Budget Office; and David M.
Walker, Comptroller General of the United States, General Accounting
Office. 

INDONESIA ELECTIONS 

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific
Affairs held hearings to examine recent developments in Indonesia,
focusing on new election laws, the election schedule, disproportionate
government control, economic reform, and political stability, after
receiving testimony from Stanley O. Roth, Assistant Secretary of State
for East Asian and Pacific Affairs; and Edward E. Masters, United
States-Indonesia Society, Sidney Jones, Asia Division D303of the Human
Rights Watch, and R. Michael Gadbaw, United States-Indonesia Business
Committee, US-ASEAN Business Council, all of Washington, D.C. 

                               [Page: D303]

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

BUSINESS MEETING: PATIENTS' BILL OF RIGHTS ACT 

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee ordered
favorably reported, S. 326, to improve the access and choice of patients
to quality, affordable health care, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute. 

INTELLIGENCE 

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the
intelligence community. 

Committee will meet again on Wednesday, March 24. 

Joint Meetings 

HUMAN RIGHTS IN TURKEY 

Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (Helsinki Commission):
Commission concluded hearings to review United States policy and
strategy for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe
(OSCE) in preparation for the OSCE Summit Meeting scheduled to convene
in Istanbul this year, after receiving testimony from Marc Grossman,
Assistant Secretary for European Affairs, and Harold Koh, Assistant
Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, both of the Department
of State; Stephen Rickard, Amnesty International USA, Washington, D.C.;
Douglas A. Johnson, Center for Victims of Torture, Minneapolis,
Minnesota; and Neil Hicks, Middle East and North Africa Program, Lawyers
Committee for Human Rights, New York, New York. 



1999/03/19
Daily Digest - Friday, March 19, 1999,  pages D310 - D316

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC ADMINISTRATION

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, State,
the Judiciary, and Related Agencies concluded hearings on proposed
budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, after receiving testimony from D. James
Baker, Under Secretary of Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/03/22
Daily Digest - Monday, March 22, 1999,  pages D318 - D322

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, State,
and the Judiciary concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for
fiscal year 2000 for the Small Business Administration, after receiving
testimony from Aida Alvarez, Administrator, Small Business
Administration.  

ANTI-TERRORISM PROGRAMS

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and
Capabilities concluded closed and open hearings on Department of Defense
policies and programs to combat terrorism, after receiving testimony
from Brian E. Sheridan, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Special
Operations and Low Intensity Conflict, and Charles L. Cragin, Principal
Assistant Secretary for Reserve Affairs, both of the Department of
Defense; Brig. Gen. John F. Sattler, USMC, Deputy Director for
Operations Combating Terrorism, Joint Staff; and an official from the
intelligence community. 

INTERNET SECURITIES FRAUD

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Permanent Subcommittee on
Investigation held hearings to examine federal and state enforcement
efforts to combat securities fraud on the Internet, particularly penny
stock fraud, and the adequacy of federal and state consumer education
programs, receiving testimony from Richard J. Hillman, Associate
Director, Financial Institutions and Markets Issues, General Government
Division, General Accounting Office; Howard M. Friedman, University of
Toledo, Toledo, Ohio; Thomas M. Gardner, Motley Fool, Alexandria,
Virginia; Kristin Morris, Berryville, Virginia; and Galen O'Kane,
Ellsworth, Maine. 

Hearings continue tomorrow. 

JUSTICE DEPARTMENT FIREARM PROSECUTIONS

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Youth Violence and the
Subcommittee on Criminal Justice Oversight concluded joint oversight
hearings to review the Department of Justice firearm prosecution,
focusing on violent crime prosecution, firearm legislation, Project
Achilles, and Project Triggerlock, after receiving testimony from Andrew
L. Vita, Assistant Director of Field Operations, Washington Field
Division, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, Department of the
Treasury; Helen Fahey, United States Attorney for the Eastern District
of Virginia; Donald Stern, United States Attorney for the District of
Massachusetts; Thomas W. Corbett Jr., former United States Attorney,
Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency, Pittsburgh; Jerry A.
Oliver, Richmond Police Department, Richmond, Virginia, on behalf of the
Project Exile; and John F. Timoney, Philadelphia Police Department,
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 

NURSING HOME QUALITY

 Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded hearings to examine the
quality of care in nursing homes focusing on the federal-state survey
and certification system and complaint and enforcement practices, after
receiving testimony from George F. Grob, Deputy Inspector General for
Evaluation and Inspections, Office of Inspector General, Department of
Health and Human Services; William J. Scanlon, Director, Health
Financing and Public Health Issues, Health, Education, and Human
Services Division, General Accounting Office; Gloria Cruz, Millsboro,
Delaware; and Denise Bryant, Detroit, Michigan. 

                               [Page: D320]

No Joint Hearings noted



1999/03/23
Daily Digest - Tuesday, March 23, 1999,  pages D323 - D334

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--LABOR

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human
Services, and Education concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates
for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of Labor, after receiving
testimony from Alexis M. Herman, Secretary of Labor. 

APPROPRIATIONS--ARMY/AIR FORCE MILITARY CONSTRUCTION

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Military Construction
concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for
Army and Air Force military construction programs, after receiving
testimony from Mahlon Apgar, IV, Assistant Secretary of the Army for
Installations and Environment; and Ruby B. Demesme, Assistant Secretary
of the Air Force for Manpower, Reserve Affairs, Installations, and
Environment. 

APPROPRIATIONS--NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION/OFFICE OF SCIENCE AND
TECHNOLOGY POLICY

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on VA, HUD, and Independent
Agencies concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year
2000, after receiving testimony in behalf of funds for their respective
activities from Rita Colwell, Director, and Eamon M. Kelly, Chairman,
National Science Board, both of the National Science Foundation; and
Neal Lane, Director, Office of Science and Technology Policy. 

APPROPRIATIONS--FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Transportation concluded
hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for the
Federal Aviation Administration, after receiving testimony from Jane F.
Garvey, Administrator, Federal Aviation Administration, Department of
Transportation. 

PROLIFERATION THREATS

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and
Capabilities concluded hearings on the proliferation threat and the
programs and policies of the Department of Defense and Department of
Energy to counter this threat, after receiving testimony from Senator
Lugar; Rose E. Gottemoeller, Director, Office of Nonproliferation and
National Security, Department of Energy; Edward L. Warner, III,
Assistant Secretary for Strategy and Threat Reduction, Jay Davis,
Director, Defense Threat Reduction D326Agency, and Robert Joseph,
Director, Counterproliferation Center, National Defense University (Fort
McNair), all of the Department of Defense; Kenneth Alibek, Battelle
Memorial Institute, Arlington, Virginia; David A. Kay, Center for
Counterterrorism, Science Applications International Corporation,
McLean, Virginia; and Siegfried S. Hecker, Los Alamos National
Laboratories, Los Alamos, Texas. 

HUD MANAGEMENT

                               [Page: D326]

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on
Housing and Transportation concluded oversight hearings on management
challenges affecting the Department of Housing and Urban Development,
focusing on HUD's continued reclassification as a "high-risk" agency by
the General Accounting Office, after receiving testimony from Judy A.
England-Joseph, Director, Housing and Community Development Issues,
Resources, Community, and Economic Development Division, General
Accounting Office; and Susan M. Gaffney, Inspector General, and Saul N.
Ramirez, Jr., Deputy Secretary, both of the Department of Housing and
Urban Development. 

STEEL IMPORT IMPACT

Committee on Finance: Committee held hearings to examine the impact of
the steel import surge on the United States market and industry, the
Administration's response, and related measures, including H.R. 975, to
provide for a reduction in the volume of steel imports, and to establish
a steel import notification and monitoring program, H.R. 1120, to modify
the standards for responding to import surges under section 201 of the
Trade Act of 1974, to establish mechanisms for import monitoring and the
prevention of circumvention of United States trade laws, and to
strengthen the enforcement of United States trade remedy laws, S. 61, to
eliminate disincentives to fair trade conditions, S. 261, to repeal the
requirement that the cause of serious injury (or threat) be substantial
to the domestic industry producing an article like or directly
competitive with an article that is being imported into the United
States in such increased quantities with respect to the President taking
action to facilitate efforts by such industry to make a positive
adjustment to the import competition, S. 395, to ensure that the volume
of steel imports does not exceed the average monthly volume of such
imports during the 36-month period preceding July 1997, and S. 528, to
provide for a private right of action in the case of injury from the
importation of certain dumped and subsidized merchandise, receiving
testimony from Senators DeWine and Specter; Representatives Houghton and
Levin; Charlene Barshefsky, United States Trade Representative; William
M. Daley, Secretary of Commerce; Curtis H. Barnette, Bethlehem Steel
Corporation, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania; George Becker, United Steelworkers
of America, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Thomas G. Belot, Vollrath Company,
Sheboygan, Wisconsin, on behalf of the North American Association of
Food Equipment Manufacturers; Joseph A. Cannon, Geneva Steel
Corporation, Vineyard, Utah; David L. Daniel, Quality Tubing, Inc.,
Houston, Texas; and Jack B. Porter, Caterpillar Inc., Peoria, Illinois,
on behalf of the Emergency Committee for American Trade. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

SUDAN HUMANITARIAN CRISIS

Committee on Foreign Affairs: Subcommittee on African Affairs held
hearings on Sudan's humanitarian crisis and the United States response,
focusing on road repair, food distribution and self-reliance, health
care, expanding the cease-fire, and political recommendations, receiving
testimony from J. Brian Atwood, Administrator, Agency for International
Development; and Roger Winter, U.S. Committee for Refugees, Washington,
D.C. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

U.S.-CHINA POLICY

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific
Affairs held hearings to reexamine United States and China policy
issues, receiving testimony from Stanley O. Roth, Assistant Secretary of
State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following business items: 

S. 579, to amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to target assistance
to support the economic and political independence of the countries of
the South Caucasus and Central Asia; 

An original bill (S. 688) to amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to
reauthorize the Overseas Private Investment Corporation; 

S. Res. 26, relating to Taiwan's Participation in the World Health
Organization, with amendments; 

S. Res. 54, condemning the escalating violence, the gross violation of
human rights and attacks against civilians, and the attempt to overthrow
a democratically elected government in Sierra Leone; 

S. Res. 73, congratulating the Government and the people of the Republic
of El Salvador on successfully completing free and democratic elections
on March 7, 1999; 

S. Con. Res. 17, concerning the 20th Anniversary of the Taiwan Relations
Act, with amendments; 

H.R. 432, to designate the North/South Center as the Dante B. Fascell
North-South Center;D327 

H.R. 669, to amend the Peace Corps Act to authorize appropriations for
fiscal years 2000 through 2003 to carry out that Act; 

S. Res. 68, expressing the sense of the Senate regarding the treatment
of women and girls by the Taliban in Afghanistan; 

The Convention on Nuclear Safety done at Vienna on September 20, 1994
(Treaty Doc. 104-6), with six conditions and two understandings; 

Protocols to the 1980 Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the
Use of Certain Conventional Weapons Which May Be Deemed to Be
Excessively Injurious or to Have Indiscriminate Effects: the amended
Protocol on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Mines,
Booby-Traps and Other Devices (Protocol II or the Amended Mines
Protocol); the Protocol on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of
Incendiary Weapons (Protocol III or the Incendiary Weapons Protocol);
and the Protocol on Blinding Laser Weapons (Protocol IV) (Treaty Doc.
105-1) with one reservation, nine understandings and thirteen
conditions; and 

The nominations of Robert A. Seiple, of Washington, to be Ambassador at
Large for International Religious Freedom; William Lacy Swing, of North
Carolina, to be Ambassador to the Democratic Republic of the Congo;
Diane Edith Watson, of California, to be Ambassador to the Federal
States of Micronesia; Kent M. Wiedemann, of California, to be Ambassador
to the Kingdom of Cambodia; Mary A. Ryan for the personal rank of Career
Ambassador in recognition of especially distinguished service over a
sustained period; Richard L. Baltimore, III, for promotion to the Class
of Minister-Counselor, Senior Foreign Service of the Department of
State; and a foreign service officer promotion list received in the
Senate on March 2, 1999. 

INTERNET SECURITIES FRAUD

                               [Page: D327]

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Permanent Subcommittee on
Investigations continued hearings to examine federal and State
enforcement efforts to combat securities fraud on the Internet, focusing
on penny stock fraud, and the adequacy of federal and State consumer
education programs, receiving testimony from Richard H. Walker,
Director, Division of Enforcement, Securities and Exchange Commission;
Peter C. Hildreth, Concord, New Hampshire, on behalf of the North
American Securities Administrators Association, Inc.; and G. Philip
Rutledge, Pennsylvania Securities Commission, Harrisburg. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

INTERNET GAMBLING

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Technology, Terrorism, and
Government Information concluded hearings on issues relating to Internet
gambling, including youth gamblers, addiction, bankruptcy, unfair
payout, crime, the Wire Act, and the proposed Internet Gambling
Prohibition Act, after receiving testimony from Wisconsin Attorney
General James E. Doyle, Madison; Ohio Attorney General Betty Montgomery,
Columbus; James R. Hurley, New Jersey Casino Control Commission,
Atlantic City; Jeffrey Pash, National Football League, New York, New
York; Bill Saum, National Collegiate Athletic Association, Overland
Park, Kansas; and Marianne McGettigan, Major League Baseball Players
Association, Portland, Maine. 

AUTHORIZATION--ELDER ABUSE PREVENTION

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Subcommittee on
Aging concluded hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for
programs of the Older Americans Act, focusing on elder abuse prevention
provisions, the Preventing Elder Financial Exploitation project,
Medicaid Fraud Control Units, and the Long Term Care Ombudsman Program,
after receiving testimony from Senator Wyden; Stephen J. Schneider,
Oregon Department of Human Resources, Salem; Paul D. Hodge, National
Healthcare Law Enforcement Alliance, Providence, Rhode Island; Lisa
Heermans, Long Term Care Ombudsman Program, Joint Office of Citizen
Complaints, Dayton, Ohio; Bob Fuecker, Child Abuse Unit, Anne Arundel
County Police Department, Crownsville, Maryland; and Barbara Sue Faries
Sipos, Loveland, Colorado. 

FAMILY CAREGIVERS

Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded hearings to examine the
National Family Caregiver Support Program, a proposal to bolster support
for family caregivers who provide long-term care for relatives with
chronic illnesses or disabilities, after receiving testimony from Donna
E. Shalala, Secretary of Health and Human Services; Ohio State
Representative Barbara H. Boyd, Columbus; Pennsylvania Secretary of
Aging, Richard Browdie, Harrisburg; Donna K. Harvey, Hawkeye Valley Area
Agency on Aging, Waterloo, Iowa; and Stuart Awbrey, Westfield, New
Jersey. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/03/24
Daily Digest - Wednesday, March 24, 1999,  pages D335 - D346

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--FBI/DEA

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, State,
and the Judiciary concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for
fiscal year 2000, after receiving testimony in behalf of funds for their
respective activities from Louis J. Freeh, Director, Federal Bureau of
Investigation, and Thomas A. Constantine, Administrator, Drug
Enforcement Administration, both of the Department of Justice. 

APPROPRIATIONS--SECRETARY OF THE SENATE/SERGEANT AT ARMS/CBO

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on the Legislative Branch
concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000,
after receiving testimony in behalf of funds for their respective
activities from Gary Sisco, Secretary of the Senate; James W. Ziglar,
Senate Sergeant at Arms and Doorkeeper; and Dan L. Crippen, Director,
Congressional Budget Office. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Airland concluded hearings
on proposed legislation authorizing funds for fiscal year 2000 for the
Department of Defense, focusing on Army modernization, and the future
years defense program, after receiving testimony from Louis Caldera,
Secretary of the Army; Gen. Dennis J. Reimer, USA, Chief of Staff of the
Army; Maj. Gen. Thomas J. Plewes, USAR, Chief, Army Reserve; and Maj.
Gen. Roger C. Schultz, USARNG, Director, Army National Guard. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Personnel concluded
hearings on proposed legislation D338authorizing funds for fiscal year
2000 for the Department of Defense, focusing on active and reserve
military and civilian personnel programs, and the future years defense
program, receiving testimony from Rudy de Leon, Under Secretary of
Defense for Personnel and Readiness; Patrick T. Henry, Assistant
Secretary of the Army for Manpower and Reserve Affairs; Carolyn H.
Becraft, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Manpower and Reserve
Affairs; Ruby B. DeMesme, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for
Manpower, Reserve Affairs, Installations, and Environment; Lt. Gen.
David H. Ohle, USA, Deputy Chief of Army Staff for Personnel; Vice Adm.
Daniel T. Oliver, USN, Chief of Naval Personnel and Deputy Chief of
Naval Operations for Manpower and Personnel; Lt. Gen. Jack W. Klimp,
USMC, Deputy Chief of Staff for Manpower and Reserve Affairs; and Lt.
Gen. Donald L. Peterson, USAF, Deputy Chief of Air Force Staff for
Personnel. 

                               [Page: D338]

FORCE PROTECTION

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Seapower concluded hearings
to examine littoral force protection and power projection in the 21st
century, after receiving testimony from Rear Adm. John B. Nathman, USN,
Director, Air Warfare Division; Rear Adm. Michael G. Mullen, USN,
Director, Surface Warfare Division; Rear Adm. Robert C. Williamson, USN,
Director, Office of Program Appraisal; Maj. Gen. Dennis T. Krupp, USMC,
Director, Expeditionary Warfare Division; and Brig. Gen. Jan C. Huly,
USMC, Assistant Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations. 

SEC FEE COLLECTIONS

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on
Securities concluded hearings to examine the fee collections and funding
structure of the Securities and Exchange Commission pursuant to the
Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, focusing
on registration, transaction, and merger and tender offers fees, after
receiving testimony from Arthur Levitt, Chairman, Securities Exchange
Commission; Marc E. Lackritz, Securities Industry Association,
Washington, D.C.; and Lee Korins and Arthur Kearney, both of the
Security Traders Association, and Robert Seijas, Specialist Association
of the New York Stock Exchange, all of New York, New York. 

NUCLEAR WASTE STORAGE/DISPOSAL

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded hearings
to examine nuclear waste storage and disposal policy, including S. 608,
to direct the Secretary of Energy to develop an integrated management
system for spent nuclear fuel and high level nuclear waste, focusing on
a disposal management system, an interim storage facility, user fee
collection, and the geologic repository at Yucca Mountain, after
receiving testimony from Senators Grams, Reid, and Bryan;
Representatives Gibbons and Berkley; Shirley Ann Jackson, Chairman,
Nuclear Regulatory Commission; Lake H. Barrett, Acting Director, Office
of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, Department of Energy; John G.
Strand, Michigan Public Service Commission, Lansing, on behalf of the
National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners; Erle Nye,
Texas Utilities Company, Dallas, on behalf of the Nuclear Energy
Institute; and Michael Mariotte, Nuclear Information and Resource
Service, Washington, D.C. 

NATIONAL PARKS

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on National
Parks, Historic Preservation, and Recreation concluded hearings on S.
323, to redesignate the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Monument
as a national park and establish the Gunnison Gorge National
Conservation Area; S. 338, to provide for the collection of fees for the
making of motion pictures, television productions, and sound tracks in
units of the Department of the Interior; and S. 568, to allow the
Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture to
establish a fee system for commercial filming activities in a site or
resource under their jurisdictions, after receiving testimony from
Stephen Saunders, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Fish
and Wildlife and Parks; Jack Craven, Director of Lands, Forest Service,
Department of Agriculture; Philip H. Voorhees, National Parks and
Conservation Association, Clark Rector, Jr., American Advertising
Federation, and Daniel L. Jaffe, Association of National Advertisers,
Inc. all of Washington, D.C.; Matthew Miller, Association of Independent
Commercial Producers, Inc., New York, New York; Victor S. Perlman,
American Society of Media Photographers, Inc., Princeton Junction, New
Jersey, on behalf of the American Society of Media Photographers and
North American Nature Photography Association; and Marlene Zanetell,
Gunnison County, Colorado. 

VOLUNTARY GREENHOUSE GAS MITIGATION

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded hearings
to examine voluntary greenhouse gas mitigation activities issues,
including actions and programs in the United States, issues related to
the design of a voluntary action crediting program, and S. 547, to
authorize the President to enter into agreements to provide regulatory
credit for voluntary early action to mitigate potential environmental
impacts from greenhouse gas emissions, after receiving testimony from
Eileen Claussen, Pew D339Center on Global Climate Change, and Tia
Nelson, Nature Conservatory, both of Arlington, Virginia; Dale A.
Landgren, Wisconsin Electric Power Company, Milwaukee; Richard L.
Sandor, Environmental Financial Products, Chicago, Illinois; and John
Passacantando, Ozone Action, and Raymond Keating, Small Business
Survival Committee, both of Washington, D.C. 

                               [Page: D339]

COLOMBIA THREAT TO U.S. INTERESTS AND SECURITY

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere,
Peace Corps, Narcotics and Terrorism concluded hearings on Colombia's
threat to United States interests and regional security, focusing on
U.S.-Colombia counternarcotics efforts, after receiving testimony from
Rand Beers, Assistant Secretary for International Narcotics and Law
Enforcement Affairs, and Jack Leonard, Deputy Assistant Secretary for
the Western Hemisphere, both of the Department of State.

EUROPEAN UNION

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on European Affairs
concluded hearings on issues relating to the European Union, focusing on
internal reform, enlargement, and a common foreign policy, after
receiving testimony from E. Anthony Wayne, Principal Deputy Assistant
Secretary of State for European and Canadian Affairs; and Lily Gardner
Feldman, Georgetown University Center for German and European Studies,
Jeffrey Gedmin, American Enterprise Institute, and Peter W. Rodman,
Nixon Center for Peace and Freedom, all of Washington, D.C. 

INDEPENDENT COUNSEL ACT

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on the
future of the Independent Counsel Act, after receiving testimony from
Lawrence E. Walsh, Crowe and Dunlevy, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, former
Independent Counsel, Iran-Contra Investigation; Samuel Dash, former
Chief Counsel to the Senate Watergate Committee and former Ethics
Advisor to Whitewater Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr, and Julie R.
O'Sullivan, former Assistant Prosecutor--Whitewater Investigation, both
of the Georgetown University Law Center, Washington, D.C.; and Kenneth
G. Gormley, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 

CRIME VICTIMS PROTECTION

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded hearings on S.J. Res. 3,
proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States to
protect the rights of crime victims, after receiving testimony from Paul
G. Cassell, University of Utah College of Law, Salt Lake City; Steven J.
Twist, VIAD Corp., Scottsdale, Arizona; and Beth A. Wilkinson, Latham &
Watkins, Washington, D.C. 

STATE ETHICS RULES EFFECT ON FEDERAL LAW ENFORCEMENT

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Criminal Justice Oversight
concluded hearings on the effect of State ethics rules on federal law
enforcement, focusing on section 530B of title 28 of the United States
Code, which requires Department attorneys to comply with state laws and
rules, and local federal court rules, governing attorneys in each State
where such attorney engages in that attorney's duties, the Citizens
Protection Act, and potential abuse of power, after receiving testimony
from Eric H. Holder, Jr., Deputy Attorney General, Zachary W. Carter,
United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, P. Michael
Patterson, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida,
Richard L. Delonis, Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern
District of Michigan, on behalf of the National Association of Assistant
United States Attorneys, all of the Department of Justice; John
Smietanka, Law Office of John Smietanka, Grand Rapids, Michigan, former
Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General; John R. Justice, Chester,
South Carolina, on behalf of the National District Attorneys
Association; G. Andrew McKay, DSFX, International, Washington, DC, on
behalf of the American Corporate Counsel Association; and Geoffrey C.
Hazard, Jr., University of Pennsylvania American Law Institute,
Philadelphia. 

CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION LIMITS

Committee on Rules and Administration: Committee held hearings to
examine issues relating to the financing of federal election campaigns,
focusing on campaign costs and time, the Federal Election Campaign Act
of 1974, equitable competition for challengers, corruption, the costs of
television media, and negative campaigning, receiving testimony from
former Senator Dan Coats, Verner, Liipfert, Bernhard, McPherson, and
Hand, Washington, DC; Karen Sheridan, SMY Media, Inc., and John R. Lott,
Jr., University of Chicago School of Law, both of Chicago, Illinois; and
Demaris H. Miller, McLean, Virginia. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

INDIAN GAMBLING REGULATORY ACT

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on S. 399, to
amend the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, focusing on minimum standards
for Indian gaming nationwide, and fair fee assessments by the National
Indian Gaming Commission, after receiving testimony from Montie R. Deer,
National Indian Gaming Commission, Raymond C. D340Scheppach, National
Governors' Association, and Richard G. Hill, National Indian Gaming
Association, all of Washington, DC. 

                               [Page: D340]

INTELLIGENCE

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the
intelligence community. 

Committee will meet again tomorrow. 

Joint Meetings

VETERANS PROGRAMS

Joint Meeting: Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs concluded joint
hearings with the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs to review the
legislative recommendations of certain veterans organizations, after
receiving testimony from Cecil Aultman, AMVETS, Lanham, Maryland;
Richard M. Throckmorton, America Ex-Prisoners of War, Arvada, Colorado;
George C. Duggins, Vietnam Veterans of America, Washington, D.C.; and
Robert F. Norton, Retired Officers Association, Alexandria, Virginia. 



1999/03/25
Daily Digest - Thursday, March 25, 1999,  pages D347 - D360

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS: FCC/SEC 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, State,
and Judiciary concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal
year 2000, after receiving testimony in behalf of funds for their
respective activities from William E. Kennard, Chairman, Federal
Communications Commission; and Arthur Levitt, Chairman, Securities &
Exchange Commission. 

APPROPRIATIONS: COAST GUARD 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Transportation and Related
Agencies concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year
2000 for the United States Coast Guard, after receiving testimony from
Adm. James M. Loy, Commandant, United States Coast Guard, Department of
Transportation. 

APPROPRIATIONS: TREASURY 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Treasury and General
Government concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal
year 2000 for the Department of the Treasury, after receiving testimony
from Robert E. Rubin, Secretary of the Treasury. 

TERRORIST ATTACKS AGAINST U.S. CITIZENS 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Foreign Operations
concluded hearings to examine certain incidents of terrorist attacks
against U.S. citizens in Israel, and U.S. efforts to press for the
indictment and extradition of terrorists who have taken American lives,
after receiving testimony from Mark Richard, Deputy Assistant Attorney
General of the Criminal Division, Department of Justice; Martin S.
Indyk, Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs;
Jean-Claude Niddam, Head of the Legal Assistance between Israel and
Palestine Authority, Israeli Ministry of Justice; Hasan Abdel Rahman,
Chief Representative of the P.L.O. and the P.N.A. to the United States;
Nathan Lewin, Miller, Cassidy Larroca, & Lewin, Washington, D.C.;
Stephen Flatow, West Orange, New Jersey; Vicki Eisenfeld, West Hartford,
Connecticut; and Diana Campuzano, New York, New York. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Armed Services: Committee ordered favorably reported the
nomination of Rose Eilene Gottemoeller, of Virginia, to be an Assistant
Secretary of Energy (Non-Proliferation and National Security), and 671
military nominations in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force. 

Also, Committee approved its rules of procedure for the 106th Congress. 

CHINESE ESPIONAGE AT DOE LABORATORIES 

Committee on Armed Services: Committee resumed closed hearings to
examine alleged Chinese espionage at Department of Energy laboratories,
receiving testimony from Edward J. Curran, Director, Office of
Counterintelligence, and Notra Trulock, III, Acting Deputy Director,
Office of Intelligence, both of the Department of Energy; Neil J.
Gallagher, Assistant D354Director, NationalSecurity Division, Federal
Bureau of Investigation, Department of Justice; an d Elizabeth A. Moler,
former Deputy Secretary of Energy. 

                               [Page: D354]

Committee recessed subject to the call. 

BANKRUPTCY REFORM 

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded
hearings on proposed legislation on bankruptcy reform, focusing on
financial services, the Bankruptcy Code, Federal Deposit Insurance Act,
minimum payment disclosure, credit extensions to college students, debit
cards, mortgage and home equity loans, and convenience users, after
receiving testimony from Senators Torricelli and Durbin; Representatives
Gekas and Boucher; Edward M. Gramlich, Member, Board of Governors of the
Federal Reserve System; Douglas H. Jones, Senior Deputy General Counsel,
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation; Mark McClellan, Deputy Assistant
Secretary of the Treasury for Microeconomics Analysis, Office of
Economic Policy; Terry McCormick, Plains Bell Federal Credit Union,
Amarillo, Texas, on behalf of the Credit Union National Association;
Brian L. McDonnell, Navy Federal Credit Union, on behalf of the National
Association of Federal Credit Unions, Wright H. Andrews, Jr., Butera and
Andrews, on behalf of the National Home Equity Mortgage Association, and
David Warren, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter and Company, Inc., on behalf of
the Bond Market Association, all of Washington, D.C.; Ronald A. Prill,
Retailers National Bank, Dayton Hudson Corporation, Minneapolis,
Minnesota; Beth L. Climo, Financial Industry Affairs, New York, New
York, on behalf of the American Bankers Association; and Gary Klein,
National Consumer Law Center, Boston, Massachusetts. 

FHA SINGLE FAMILY INSURANCE FUND 

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on
Housing and Transportation concluded oversight hearings on challenges
facing the Federal Housing Administration Mutual Mortgage Insurance
Fund, which backs the single family insurance fund, after receiving
testimony from William C. Apgar, Assistant Secretary for Housing-Federal
Housing Commissioner, Department of Housing and Urban Development;
Stanley J. Czerwinski, Associate Director, Housing and Community
Development Issues, Resources, Community, and Economic Development
Division, General Accounting Office; and Timothy F. Kenny, KPMG,
Washington, D.C. 

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL MODERNIZATION 

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on
Aviation concluded hearings on proposed legislation to modernize air
traffic control programs, focusing on the National Airspace System,
infrastructure, safety features, increasing capacity and efficiency,
equipment age and maintenance, Free Flight, Data Link, and year 2000
computer efforts, after receiving testimony from Jane F. Garvey,
Administrator, Federal Aviation Administration, and Kenneth M. Mead,
Inspector General, both of the Department of Transportation; Robert W.
Baker, American Airlines, Dallas, Texas; and John E. O'Brien, Air Line
Pilots Association, International, Herndon, Virginia. 

GRADE CROSSING SAFETY 

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on
Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine concluded hearings on issues
relating to highway-rail grade crossing safety, including the Commercial
Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1986, Operation Lifesaver, warning sign
improvement, emergency telephone systems, passive crossings, driving
behavior, and enforcement, after receiving testimony from James E. Hall,
Chairman, National Transportation Safety Board; Jolene M. Molitoris,
Administrator, Federal Railroad Administration, and Kenneth R. Wykle,
Administrator, Federal Highway Administration, both of the Department of
Transportation; Billy Parker, Jacksonville, Florida, on behalf of the
Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, and Gerri L. Hall, Alexandria,
Virginia, both of Operation Lifesaver, Incorporated; Charles E.
Dettmann, Association of American Railroads, Washington, D.C., and Paul
C. Worley, North Carolina Department of Transportation, Raleigh. 

INTERNATIONAL SATELLITE REFORM 

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on
Communications concluded hearings on S. 376, to amend the Communications
Satellite Act of 1962 to promote competition and privatization in
satellite communications, after receiving testimony from Vonya B.
McCann, Coordinator for International Communications and Information
Policy, Department of State; Roderick Kelvin Porter, Acting Chief,
International Bureau, Federal Communications Commission; Betty C.
Alewine, COMSAT Corporation, and John Sponyoe, Lockheed Martin Global
Telecommunications, both of Bethesda, Maryland; James W. Cuminale,
PanAmSat Corporation, Greenwich, Connecticut; and Conny Kullman,
INTELSAT, Washington, D.C. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee ordered favorably
reported the nominations of Robert Wayne Gee, of Texas, to be an
Assistant Secretary of Energy (Fossil Energy), and the nomination of
Carolyn L. Huntoon, of Virginia, to be an Assistant Secretary of Energy
(Environmental Management). 

                               [Page: D355]

ECONOMIC EFFECTS OF KYOTO PROTOCOL 

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded oversight
hearings to examine the economic impact of the Kyoto Protocol, which
imposes legally binding emissions limits for greenhouse gasses on the
industrialized nations, to the United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change, after receiving testimony from Senator Hagel; Janet
Yellen, Chair, Council of Economic Advisers; Jay Hakes, Administrator,
Energy Information Administration, Department of Energy; Mary H. Novak,
WEFA, Inc., Burlington, Massachusetts; and Margo Thorning, American
Council for Capital Formation, and Cecil E. Roberts, United Mine Workers
of America, both of Washington, D.C. 

U.S.-TAIWAN RELATIONS 

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded hearings on issues
relating to United States-Taiwan relations, including the twentieth
anniversary of Taiwan Relations Act, Taiwan Strait security, defense
assistance, the engagement strategy with China, free market economy, and
protecting U.S. interests, after receiving testimony from Senator
Murkowski; Franklin D. Kramer, Assistant Secretary of Defense for
International Security Affairs; Stanley O. Roth, Assistant Secretary of
State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs; Harvey J. Feldman, Heritage
Foundation Asia Studies Center, Arlington, Virginia; and Carl W. Ford,
Jr., Ford and Associates, and David M. Lampton, Johns Hopkins University
Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, both of Washington, D.C. 

EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION 

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on Oversight of
Government Management, Restructuring, and the District of Columbia held
oversight hearings to examine multiple program coordination in early
childhood education, focusing on the Results Act 1993, which requires
executive agencies, in consultation with the Congress and other
stakeholders, to prepare strategic five-year plans, receiving testimony
from Marnie S. Shaul, Associate Director, Education, Workforce, and
Income Security Issues, Health, Education, and Human Services Division,
General Accounting Office, who was accompanied by several of her
associates. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following business items: 

S. 461, to assure that innocent users and businesses gain access to
solutions to the year 2000 problem-related failures through fostering an
incentive to settle year 2000 lawsuits that may disrupt significant
sectors of the American economy, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute; and 

The nominations of William J. Hibbler, to be United States District
Judge for the Northern District of Illinois, Matthew F. Kennelly, to be
United States District Judge for the Northern District of Illinois, Carl
Schnee, to be United States Attorney for the District of Delaware, and
Thomas Lee Strickland, to be United States Attorney for the District of
Colorado.  

JUSTICE BUDGET 


Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Youth Violence concluded
hearings on the President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2000
for the Office of Justice Programs and funding for state and local law
enforcement, focusing on Juvenile Justice Accountability Incentive Block
Grant, the Local Law Enforcement Block Grant, and the Truth in
Sentencing/Violent Offender Incarceration, after receiving testimony
from Laurie Robinson, Assistant Attorney General, Office of Justice
Programs, Department of Justice; John H. Wilson, Montgomery Police
Department, Montgomery, Alabama; Chet W. Vahle, Illinois Juvenile Court,
Quincy, on behalf of the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court
Judges; Patricia L. West, Virginia Beach Juvenile and Domestic Relations
District Court, Virginia Beach, Virginia; and Harry L. Shorstein, Fourth
Judicial Circuit Court, Jacksonville, Florida. 

BIOTERRORISM 

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Subcommittee on
Public Health concluded hearings on issues relating to bioterrorism,
including United States public health and medical readiness, biological
terrorism deterrence, outbreak containment and investigation, national
pharmaceutical stockpile, and research and development, after receiving
testimony from Margaret A. Hamburg, Assistant Secretary for Planning and
Evaluation, Jeffrey P. Koplan, Director, Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, and William E. Clark, Deputy Director, Office of Emergency
Preparedness, all of the Department of Health and Human Services; Donald
A. Henderson, Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public
Health, Richard L. Alcorta, Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical
Services Systems, and John G. Bartlett, Johns Hopkins University School
of Medicine, on behalf of the Infectious Diseases Society of America,
all of Baltimore, Maryland; Stephanie B.C. Bailey, Metropolitan Health
Department, Nashville, Tennessee, on behalf of the National Association
of County and City Health Officials; Jerome M. Hauer, Mayor's Office of
Emergency Management, New York, New York; and Michael T. Osterholm,
Infection Control Advisory Network, Inc., Eden Prairie, D356Minnesota,
on behalf of the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists, and
the Association of Public Health Laboratories. 

                               [Page: D356]

INTELLIGENCE 

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee met in closed sessions on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the
intelligence community. 

Committee recessed subject to call. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/04/12
Daily Digest - Monday, April 12, 1999,  pages D361 - D370

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

CHINESE ESPIONAGE AT DOE LABORATORIES

Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded open and closed
hearings to examine alleged Chinese espionage at Department of Energy
laboratories, after receiving testimony from Edward J. Curran, Director,
Office of Counterintelligence, and Notra Trulock, III, Acting Deputy
Director, Office of Intelligence, both of the Department of Energy;
Elizabeth A. Moler, former Deputy Secretary of Energy; John E.
Bloodsworth, former Deputy Director, Office of Intelligence, Department
of Energy; Paul Richanbach, former Senior Advisor to the Secretary of
Energy; and Charles B. Curtis, former Deputy Secretary of Energy. 

SMALL BUSINESS TAX FILING

Committee on Small Business: Committee held hearings on issues relating
to small business tax filing, reporting, and maintenance burdens,
receiving testimony from Margaret T. Wrightson, Associate Director,
General Accounting Office; Charles O. Rossotti, Commissioner, Internal
Revenue Service, Department of the Treasury; Brian Gloe, Rosse
Lithographing Company, Kansas City, Missouri; and Roger N. Harris,
Padgett Business Services, Athens, Georgia. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/04/13
Daily Digest - Tuesday, April 13, 1999,  p. D372 - 380

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--ENERGY

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Energy and Water
Development concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal
year 2000 for the Department of Energy, in behalf of funds for their
respective activities, after receiving testimony from Martha Krebs,
Director, Office of Science, Dan W. Reicher, Assistant Secretary for
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, and William D. Magwood, IV,
Director, Office of Nuclear Energy, Science and Technology, all of the
Department of Energy. 

DEATHS FROM PSYCHIATRIC FACILITY RESTRAINTS

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human
Services, and Education concluded hearings to examine deaths caused from
restraints used in psychiatric facilities, and proposed legislation to
extend existing nursing home standards on the use of restraints on
mental health patients and add a reporting requirement for deaths and
serious injuries, after receiving testimony from Senators Lieberman and
Dodd; Wanda K. Mohr, University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, on
behalf of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, and Joseph A.
Rogers, Mental Health Association of Southeastern Pennsylvania, on
behalf of the National Mental Health Association, both of Philadelphia;
Dennis O'Leary, Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare
Organizations, Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois; Thomas R. Harmon, New York
State Commission on Quality of Care for the Mentally Disabled, Albany;
and Catherine "Jean" Allen, Greensboro, North Carolina. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded hearings on proposed
legislation authorizing funds for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of
Defense, focusing on the military strategy and operational requirements
of the unified commands and future years defense program, and issues
regarding the current situation in Kosovo, after receiving testimony
from Gen. Anthony C. Zinni, USMC, Commander-in-Chief, U.S. Central
Command; Gen. Charles E. Wilhelm, USMC, Commander-in-Chief, U.S.
Southern Command; and Adm. Charles S. Abbot, USN, Deputy
Commander-in-Chief, U.S. European Command. 

SUBMARINE WARFARE

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Seapower concluded open and
closed hearings on submarine warfare in the 21st Century, after
receiving testimony from Rear Adm. Lowell E. Jacoby, USN, Director of
Naval Intelligence; Adm. Edmund P. Giambastiani, Jr., USN, Commander,
Submarine Force Atlantic Fleet; and Rear Adm. Malcolm I. Fages, USN,
Director, Submarine Warfare. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Readiness and Management
Support concluded hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for
fiscal year 2000 for the Department of Defense, focusing on land
withdrawals and environmental programs, and the future years defense
program, after receiving testimony from Sherri W. Goodman, Deputy Under
D374Secretary of Defense for Environmental Security; Elsie Munsell,
Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Environment and Safety;
Raymond J. Fatz, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Environment,
Safety and Occupational Health; Thomas W. McCall, Jr., Deputy Assistant
Secretary of the Air Force for Environment, Safety and Occupational
Health; Sylvia V. Baca, Acting Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals
Management, and Donald J. Barry, Assistant Secretary for Fish and
Wildlife and Parks, both of the Department of the Interior; Maj. Gen.
Dennis D. Cavin, USA, Commanding General, Fort Bliss, Texas; Rear Adm.
Timothy R. Beard, USN, Commander, Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center,
Fallon Naval Air Station; Maj. Gen. Robert Magnus, USMC, Commanding
General, Marine Corps Combat West; Brig. Gen. John L. Barry, USAF,
Commander, 56th Fighter Wing, Luke Air Force Base, Arizona; and Col.
Anthony M. Coroalles, USA, Alaska Garrison Commander. 

                               [Page: D374]

INTERNET ACCESS

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee held
hearings to examine how to facilitate the deployment of faster,
high-speed Internet access services and how to ensure that these
benefits are extended to all American consumers, and on proposed
legislation to prevent the Federal Communications Commission from
regulating or taxing Internet services, receiving testimony from Charles
M. Brewer, MindSpring Enterprises, Inc., and James O. Robbins, Cox
Communications, Inc., both of Atlanta, Georgia; Steve Case, America
Online, Inc., Dulles, Virginia; William L. Schrader, PSINet, Inc.,
Herndon, Virginia; and Solomon D. Trujillo, U S West Communications,
Inc., Denver, Colorado. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

CHINA APPLICATION TO WTO

Committee on Finance: Committee held hearings on issues related to
China's application for accession to the World Trade Organization,
focusing on agriculture, industrial goods, services, protocol, pacific
security, and human rights, receiving testimony from Charlene
Barshefsky, United States Trade Representative. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

NAFTA REVIEW

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded hearings on a five
year review of the effects of the North American Free Trade Agreement on
United States jobs, wage rates, and industry, after receiving testimony
from Richard W. Fisher, Deputy U.S. Trade Representative; Charles W.
McMillion, MBG Information Services, and Patrick J. Buchanan, both of
Washington, D.C.; and Vontella Dabbs, Catawba Plant of Delta Mills
Marketing Company, Maiden, North Carolina. 

ANTITRUST MERGER REVIEW ACT

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Antitrust, Business Rights,
and Competition concluded hearings on S. 467, to restate and improve
section 7A of the Clayton Act, which would impose time limits on the
Federal Communications Commission review of mergers, after receiving
testimony from Ronald J. Binz, Competition Policy Institute, H. Russell
Frisby, Jr., Competitive Telecommunications Association, and Roy M.
Neel, United States Telephone Association, all of Washington, D.C.; and
Richard Weening, Cumulus Media, Inc., Milwaukee, Wisconsin. 

OSHA REFORM: SAFE ACT

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Subcommittee on
Employment, Safety and Training concluded hearings on S. 385, to amend
the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 to further improve the
safety and health of working environments, and other related OSHA reform
issues, after receiving testimony from Ron Hayes, Fight Project,
Fairhope, Alabama; Joanne Royce, Government Accountability Project,
Washington, D.C.; William F. Alcarese, Baltimore, Maryland; and Charles
LeCroy, Tallahassee, Florida. 

VETERANS HEALTH ADMINISTRATION FORCE REDUCTION

Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on the
reduction in force in the Veterans Health Administration of the
Department of Veteran Affairs, after receiving testimony from Kenneth W.
Kizer, Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs for Health. 

MEDICARE MANAGED CARE MARKETING

Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded hearings to examine the
reliability of Medicare managed care plan information and the adequacy
of the Health Care Financing Administration's review of that
information, and whether the Medicare managed care appeals process
adequately protects beneficiaries' rights, after receiving testimony
from William J. Scanlon, Director, Health Financing and Public Health
Issues, Health, Education, and Human Services Division, General
Accounting Office; Carol Cronin, Director, Center for Beneficiary
Services, Health Care Financing Administration, Department of Health and
Human Services; Julie Schoen, Health Insurance Advocacy Program of
Orange County, Santa Ana, California, on behalf of the California Health
Advocates; Chris Mulholland, III, Marietta, Georgia, former Manager,
Managed Care D375Branch Manager (Atlanta Regional Office), Health Care
Financing Administration, Department of Health and Human Services;
William L. Stringer, Beavercreek, Ohio; and Lois D. Watts, Laguna Hills,
California. 

                               [Page: D375]

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/04/14
Daily Digest - Wednesday, April 14, 1999,  pages D381 - D388

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--INDIAN AFFAIRS

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Interior concluded hearings
on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of
the Interior, focusing on Indian programs, after receiving testimony
from Kevin Gover, Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs, and Thomas M.
Thompson, Acting Special Trustee for American Indians, both of the
Department of the Interior. 

APPROPRIATIONS--DEFENSE

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense concluded hearings
on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of
Defense, focusing on ballistic missile defense, after receiving
testimony from Lt. Gen. Lester L. Lyles, USAF, Director, Ballistic
Missile Defense Organization. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Strategic Subcommittee concluded hearings
on proposed legislation authorizing funds for fiscal year 2000 for the
Department of Defense, focusing on strategic nuclear forces and policy
and the future years defense program, after receiving testimony from
Edward L. Warner, III, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy and
Threat Reduction; and Adm. Richard W. Mies, USN, Commander-in-Chief,
United States Strategic Command. 

DEFENSE FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Readiness and Management
Support concluded hearings on the status of financial management within
the Department of Defense, after receiving testimony from Eleanor Hill,
Inspector General, and William J. Lynn, III, Under Secretary
(Comptroller/Chief Financial Officer), both of the Department of
Defense; and Gene L. Dodaro, Assistant Comptroller General, Account and
Information Management Division, General Accounting Office. 

EXPORT CONTROL PROCESS

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on
International Trade and Finance resumed hearings on proposed legislation
authorizing funds for programs of the Export Administration Act,
focusing on issues relating to the export control process, including
security, dual-use goods and technologies, administration and
enforcement, global business, technology trends, receiving testimony
from Roger R. Majak, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Export
Administration; David S. Tarbell, Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for
Technology Security Policy and Director, Defense Technology Security
Administration, Defense Threat Reduction Agency; James W. Jarrett,
Intel-China, Beijing; Larry E. Christensen, Vastera, Inc., Dulles,
Virginia, on behalf of the American Association of Exporters and
Importers; and Gary Milhollin, University of Wisconsin Law School,
Madison, on behalf of the Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

OLYMPIC SCANDAL INVESTIGATION

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee held
hearings to examine recent public controversies involving the selection
of host cities and related activities of members of the International
Olympic Committee, receiving testimony from Senator Campbell; former
Senator Mitchell, Verner, Lippfert, Bernhard, McPherson & Hand, and Ken
Duberstein, Duberstein Group, both of Washington, D.C., Donald Fehr,
Major League Baseball Players Association, New York, New York, Roberta
Cooper Ramo, Modrall, Sperling, Roehl, Harris & Sisk, Albuquerque, New
Mexico, and Jeffrey G. Benz, Coudert Brothers, San Francisco,
California, all on behalf of the Special Bid Oversight Commission of the
United States Olympic Committee; William Hybl and Scott A. Blackmun,
both of the United States Olympic Committee, Colorado Springs, Colorado;
Anita DeFrantz, International Olympic Committee, Los Angeles,
California; Jim Easton, James D. Easton, Inc., Van Nuys, California; and
Andrew Jennings, London, England. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

ALLEGED CHINESE ESPIONAGE AT DOE NUCLEAR WEAPONS LABORATORIES

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee held closed
oversight hearings to examine damage to the national security from
alleged Chinese espionage at the Department of Energy nuclear weapons
laboratories, after receiving testimony from Representative Christopher
Cox; and Hazel O'Leary, Charles Curtis, Federico Pena, and Elizabeth
Moler, each a former Secretary of Energy. 

IRS REFORM

Committee on Finance: Committee held oversight hearings on restructuring
and reform of the Internal Revenue Service, focusing on the
implementation of the IRS Restructuring and Reform Act (P.L. 105-206),
receiving testimony from Charles O. Rossotti, Commissioner, Internal
Revenue Service, Department of the Treasury. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

                               [Page: D383]

AFGHANISTAN

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on Near Eastern and South
Asian Affairs held hearings to examine the continuing crisis in
Afghanistan, focusing on human rights violations, receiving testimony
from Representative Rohrabacher; Karl F. Inderfurth, Assistant Secretary
of State for South Asia; T. Kumar, Amnesty International USA,
Washington, D.C.; and Barnett Rubin, Counsel on Foreign Relations, New
York, New York. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

INDEPENDENT COUNSEL ACT

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on the
future of the Independent Counsel Act, after receiving testimony from
Kenneth W. Starr, Independent Counsel; and David B. Sentelle, Presiding
Judge, Peter T. Fay, Member, and Richard D. Cudahy, Member, all of the
Special Division of the Court of Appeals. 

KOSOVO REFUGEE CRISIS

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Immigration concluded
hearings on the current Kosovo refugee situation and the scope and
adequacy of the response of the United States and the international
community, after receiving testimony from Julia V. Taft, Assistant
Secretary of State for Population, Refugees, and Migration; Vjosa
Dobruna, Center for Protection of Women and Children, Aferdita Kelmendi,
Radio/TV 21, and Mentor Nimani, Humanitarian Law Center, all of
Pristina, Kosovo; and Bill Frelick, U.S. Committee for Refugees, and
Maureen Greenwood, Amnesty International USA, both of Washington, D.C. 

EDUCATION RESEARCH

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded
hearings on education research issues, including research support,
vehicles for dissemination, education improvement, education policy and
practice, and the impact of education research on overall school and
student performance, after receiving testimony from Pascal D. Forgione,
Jr., Commissioner of Education Statistics, National Center for Education
Statistics, and C. Kent McGuire, Assistant Secretary, both of the Office
of Educational Research and Improvement, Department of Education; Diane
Ravitch, New York University, New York, on behalf of the Brookings
Institution; and Michael E. Ward, North Carolina State Superintendent of
Public Instruction, Raleigh. 

INDIAN WELFARE REFORM

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee on Indian Affairs concluded
oversight hearings on the implementation of the Personal Responsibility
and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (P.L. 104-193), after receiving
testimony from Olivia A. Golden, Assistant Secretary of Health and Human
Services for Children and Families; Andrew Grey, Sr., Sisseton-Wahpeton
Sioux Tribe, Agency Village, South Dakota; W. Ron Allen, National
Congress of American Indians, Washington, D.C.; Taylor McKenzie, Navajo
Nation, and Alex Yazza, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, both of
Window Rock, Arizona; and Eddie F. Brown, George Warren Brown School of
Social Work, and Shanta Pandey, Center for Social Development, both of
Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri. 

INTELLIGENCE

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the
intelligence community. 

Committee will meet again tomorrow. 

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT YEAR 2000 PREPAREDNESS

Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem: Committee
concluded hearings to examine the preparedness of the Federal Government
for the Year 2000, after receiving testimony from John Koskinen,
Chairman, President's Council on Year 2000 Conversion; Deidre A. Lee,
Acting Deputy Director for Management, Office of Management and Budget;
Gene L. Dodaro, Assistant Comptroller General, Accounting and
Information Management Division, General Accounting Office; Kevin L.
Thurm, Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services; Mortimer L.
Downey, Deputy Secretary of Transportation; Marvin Langston, Deputy
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Chief Information Officer Policy and
Implementation)/Deputy Chief Information Officer; and Richard C. Nygard,
Chief Information Officer, U.S. Agency for International Development. 

                               [Page: D384]

Joint Meetings

CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET

Conferees on Tuesday, April 13, agreed to file a conference report on H.
Con. Res 68, establishing the congressional budget for the United States
Government for fiscal year 2000 and setting forth appropriate budgetary
levels for each of fiscal years 2001 through 2009. 




1999/04/15
Daily Digest - Thursday, April 15, 1999,  pages D390 - D400

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--AGRICULTURE 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on the Interior concluded
hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for the
Forest Service of the Department of Agriculture, after receiving
testimony from James R. Lyons, Under Secretary for Natural Resources and
Environment, and Mike Dombeck, Chief, Forest Service, both of the
Department of Agriculture, who were accompanied by several of their
associates. 

APPROPRIATIONS--VETERANS AFFAIRS 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on VA, HUD, and Independent
Agencies concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year
2000 for the Department of Veterans Affairs, after receiving testimony
from Togo D. West, Jr., Secretary, D. Mark Catlett, Deputy Assistant
Secretary for Budget, Kenneth W. Kizer, Under Secretary for Health, and
Joseph Thompson, Under Secretary for Benefits, all of the Department of
Veterans Affairs. 

APPROPRIATIONS--TREASURY 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Treasury and General
Government concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal
year 2000 for the Department of the Treasury, after receiving testimony
in behalf of funds for their respective activities from James E.
Johnson, Under Secretary for Enforcement, Raymond W. Kelly, Commissioner
of the Customs Service, John W. Magaw, Director, Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco, and Firearms, Brian L. Stafford, Director, United States Secret
Service, W. Ralph Basham, Director, Federal Law Enforcement Training
Center, and James F. Sloan, Director, Financial Crimes Enforcement
Network, all of the Department of the Treasury. 

U.S.-KOSOVO POLICY 

Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded hearings on the United
States policy regarding Kosovo, and a revised strategic concept for
NATO, after receiving testimony from William S. Cohen, Secretary of
Defense; and Henry H. Shelton, USA, Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff. 

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT INVESTMENTS 

Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation: Subcommittee on
Science, Technology, and Space concluded hearings to examine the
President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2000 for research
and development, after receiving testimony from Neal Lane, Assistant to
the President for Science and Technology; C. Dan Brand, Federal
Laboratory Consortium, National Center for Toxicology Research,
Jefferson, Arkansas; Albert H. Teich, American Association for the
Advancement of Science, Washington, D.C.; and Teri F. Willey, ARCH
Development Corporation, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois. 

ALASKA LANDS 

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded hearings
on the following bills: 

S. 501, to address resource management issues in Glacier Bay National
Park, Alaska, after receiving testimony from Donald J. Barry, Assistant
Secretary of the Interior for Fish, Wildlife and Parks; Alaska State
Senator Robin Taylor, Robert W. Loescher, Sealaska Corporation, Frank
Rue, Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Buck Lindekugel, Southeast
Alaska Conservation Council, Dale Kelley, on behalf of the Alaska
Trollers Association and Allied Fishermen of Southeast Alaska, all of
Juneau, Alaska; Jack Hession, Sierra Club, Anchorage, Alaska; Marcia
D392Frenz-Argust, National Parks and Conservation Association,
Washington, D.C.; and Gerry Merrigan, Petersburg Vessel Owners
Association, Petersburg, Alaska; and 

                               [Page: D392]

S. 744, to provide for the continuation of higher education through the
conveyance of certain public lands in the State of Alaska to the
University of Alaska, after receiving testimony from Donald J. Barry,
Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Fish, Wildlife and Parks; Alaska
State Senator Robin Taylor, and Marc Wheeler, Southeast Alaska
Conservation Council, both of Juneau, Alaska; and Mark R. Hamilton,
University of Alaska, and Jack Hession, Sierra Club, both of Anchorage,
Alaska.

PARKS/HISTORIC PRESERVATION/RECREATION

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on National
Parks, Historic Preservation, and Recreation concluded hearings on S.
109, to improve protection and management of the Chattahoochee River
National Recreation Area in the State of Georgia, S. 340, to amend the
Cache La Poudre River Corridor Act to make technical corrections, S.
582, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to enter into an
agreement for the construction and operation of the Gateway Visitor
Center at Independence National Historical Park, S. 589, to require the
National Park Service to undertake a study of the Loess Hills area in
western Iowa to review options for the protection and interpretation of
the area's natural, cultural, and historical resources, S. 591, to
authorize a feasibility study for the preservation of the Loess Hills in
western Iowa, and H.R. 149, to make technical corrections to the Omnibus
Parks and Public Lands Management Act of 1996, after receiving testimony
from Patricia Beneke, Assistant Secretary for Water and Science, and
Katherine Stevenson, Associate Director, Cultural Resource Stewardship
and Partnerships, National Park Service, both of the Department of the
Interior; Roy Richards, Jr., Southwire Company, Carolton, Georgia;
William W. Moore, Gateway Visitor Center Corporation, Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania; Maurice Welte, Loess Hills Alliance, Sergeant Bluff, Iowa;
and Shirley Frederiksen, Golden Hills Resource Conservation and
Development, Oakland, Iowa. 

TRANSPORTATION EQUITY ACT 

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on
Transportation and Infrastructure held oversight hearings on the
Department of Transportation's implementation of the Transportation
Equity Act for the 21st century, receiving testimony from Kenneth R.
Wykle, Administrator, Federal Highway Administration, Gordon J. Linton,
Administrator, Federal Transit Administration, and Ricardo Martinez,
Administrator, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, all of
the Department of Transportation; Missouri State Representative Joan
Bray, St. Louis, on behalf of the National Conference of State
Legislatures; Jean Jacobson, Racine County, Wisconsin, on behalf of the
National Association of Counties; Mayor Kenneth L. Barr, Fort Worth,
Texas, on behalf of the U.S. Conference of Mayors; Mayor Robert T.
Bartlett, Monrovia, California, on behalf of the National League of
Cities; and Taylor R. Bowlden, American Highway Users Alliance, and Roy
Kienitz, Surface Transportation Policy Project, both of Washington, D.C. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

INDIVIDUAL INCOME TAX 

Committee on Finance: Committee concluded hearings on issues relating to
the complexity of the individual income tax, focusing on the impact of
changes to tax law, Alternative Minimum Tax, phase outs, education
savings incentives, child and child care credit, retirement plans, and
simplifications proposals, after receiving testimony from W. Val Oveson,
National Taxpayer Advocate, Internal Revenue Service, Department of the
Treasury; Kathy T. Burlison, H & R Block, Inc., Kansas City, Missouri;
David A. Lifson, American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, New
York, New York; Gregory L. Steinbis, Morgan Hill, California, on behalf
of the National Association of Enrolled Agents; and William J. Wilkins,
American Bar Association Section of Taxation, Washington, D.C. 

BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT 

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee held hearings on United States
vulnerability to ballistic missile attack, focusing on proposed
amendments to revive and expand the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty
(Treaty Doc. 92-24), after receiving testimony from Caspar Weinberger,
former Secretary of Defense. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee began mark-up of S. 625, to amend
title 11, United States Code, to amend title 11, United States Code, to
reform bankruptcy law, but did not complete consideration thereof, and
will meet again on Thursday, April 22. 

INTELLIGENCE 

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the
intelligence community. 

Committee will meet again on Wednesday, April 21. 

                               [Page: D393]

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/04/19
Daily Digest - Monday, April 19, 1999,  pages D401 - D404

Committee Meetings

( Committees not listed did not meet ) 

DRUG KINGPINS

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere,
Peace Corps, Narcotics and Terrorism met in closed session to receive a
briefing on issues relating to the targeting of assets of drug kingpins
from Mary Lee Warren, Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Criminal
Division, Department of Justice; and R. Richard Newcomb, Director,
Office of Foreign Assets Control, Department of the Treasury. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/04/20
Daily Digest - Tuesday, April 20, 1999,  pages D405 - D412

Committee Meetings

( Committees not listed did not meet ) 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and
Capabilities concluded hearings on proposed legislation authorizing
funds for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of Defense, focusing on
the science and technology program and the future years defense program,
after receiving testimony from Jacques S. Gansler, Under Secretary for
Acquisition and Technology, and Delores Etter, Deputy Under Secretary
for Science and Technology, both of the Department of Defense; Paul J.
Hoeper, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Research, Development and
Acquisition; H. Lee Buchanan III, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for
Research, Development and Acquisition; Lt. Gen. Gregory S. Martin, USAF,
Principal Deputy, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for
Acquisition; and Frank L. Fernandez, Director, Defense Advanced Research
Projects Agency. 

CONSERVATION/RESOURCES/PUBLIC LAND AND RECREATION

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee held hearings on S.
25, to provide Coastal Impact Assistance to State and local governments,
to amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act Amendments of 1978, the
Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965, the Urban Park and
Recreation Recovery Act, and the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act
(commonly referred to as the Pittman-Robertson Act) to establish a fund
to meet the outdoor conservation and recreation needs of the American
people; S. 446, to provide for the permanent protection of the resources
of the United States in the year 2000 and beyond; and S. 532, to provide
increased funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund and Urban
Parks and Recreation Recovery Programs, to resume the funding of the
State grants program of the Land and Water Conservation Fund, and to
provide for the acquisition and development of conservation and
recreation facilities and programs in urban areas, receiving testimony
from Mayor Victor Ashe, Knoxville, Tennessee, on behalf of the
Conference of Mayors; Terrell Davis, Denver Broncos, Denver, Colorado,
on behalf of the Pop-Warner Little Scholars and Sporting Goods
Manufacturers Association; Bernadette Castro, New York State Office of
Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, Albany; Dianne A. Curry,
Dallas Park and Recreation Board, Dallas, Texas, on behalf of the
National Recreation and Park Association; Hank Steinbrecher, United
States Soccer, Chicago, Illinois, on behalf of the U.S. Soccer
Federation and the U.S. Soccer Foundation; Chuck Cushman, American Land
Rights Association, Battle Ground, Washington; Alan Front, Trust for
Public Land, San Francisco, California; Bruce Vincent, People for the
USA, Libby, Montana, on behalf of the Alliance for America; Theodore R.
Roosevelt, IV, Lehman Brothers, New York, New York; Jane Hague,
Metropolitan King County Council, Seattle, Washington, on behalf of the
National Association of Counties; Robert J. Smith, Competitive
Enterprise Institute, Washington, D.C.; and Judith E. Bittner, Alaska
State Department of Natural Resources, Anchorage, on behalf of the
National Conference of State Historic Preservation Officers. 

Hearings continue on Tuesday, April 27. 

BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee resumed hearings on the United
States vulnerability to ballistic missile attack, receiving testimony
from James R. Schlesinger, former Secretary of Defense; William
Schneider, Jr., former Under Secretary of State for Security Assistance,
Science and Technology; and James R. Lilley, former U.S. Ambassador to
China. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

WAR IN KOSOVO

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee held hearings on issues
relating to the war in Kosovo, focusing on United States and NATO
policy, receiving testimony from Madeleine K. Albright, Secretary of
State. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

NOMINATIONS

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on the
nominations of Stephen H. Glickman and Eric T. Washington, each to be an
Associate Judge of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, and Hiram
E. Puig Lugo, to be an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of the
District of Columbia, after the nominees, who were introduced by
District of Columbia Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton, testified and
answered questions in their own behalf. 

FLAG PROTECTION AMENDMENT

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee held hearings on S.J. Res. 14,
proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States,
authorizing Congress to prohibit the physical desecration of the flag of
the United States, after receiving testimony from Richard D. Parker,
Harvard Law School, Cambridge, Massachusetts; Maj. Gen. Patrick H.
Brady, USA (Ret.), Sumner, Washington, on behalf of the Citizens Flag
Alliance, Inc.; Gary E. May, University of D407Southern Indiana,
Newburgh; Maribeth Seely, Sandystone-Walpack School, Branchville, New
Jersey; Nathan D. Wilson, West Virginia Council of Churches, Charleston;
and Lt. Gen. Edward Baca, USA (Ret.), Albuquerque, New Mexico, former
Chief, National Guard Bureau. 

                               [Page: D407]

Hearings continue on Wednesday, April 28. 

DOMESTIC PREPAREDNESS

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Youth Violence, with the
Subcommittee on Technology, Terrorism, and Government Information,
concluded joint hearings on domestic preparedness in the next
generation, after receiving testimony from Barabara Y. Martinez, Deputy
Director, National Domestic Preparedness Office, and Andy Mitchell,
Deputy Director, Office for State and Local Domestic Preparedness
Support, Office of Justice Programs, both of the Department of Justice;
James M. Hughes, Director, National Center for Infectious Diseases,
Centers for Disease Control, Department of Health and Human Services;
Charles L. Cragin, Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve
Affairs; Richard A. Dyer, Lee's Summit Fire Department, Lee's Summit,
Missouri, on behalf of the International Association of Fire Chiefs;
Patrick J. Sullivan, Jr., Arapahoe County Sheriff's Department,
Littleton, Colorado, on behalf of the National Sheriff's Association;
and Richard L. Alcorta, Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical
Services Systems, Baltimore, and Joseph F. Waeckerle, Leawood, Kansas,
both on behalf of the American College of Emergency Physicians. 

VETERANS CONTINGENCY PLAN

Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on the
Department of Veterans Affairs contingency plans for the year 2000,
after receiving testimony from Hershel W. Gober, Deputy Secretary,
Harold Gracey, Acting Assistant Secretary for Information and
Technology, Ernesto Castro, Y2K Program Manager, James Burress, Deputy
Chief Research and Development Officer, Thomas Garthwaite, Deputy Under
Secretary for Health, and Leonard Bourget, Y2K Program Manager, Veterans
Health Administration, all of the Department of Veterans Affairs; Thomas
Shope, Special Assistant to the Director for Science and Technology,
Food and Drug Administration, Department of Health and Human Services;
Joel C. Willemssen, Director, Civil Agencies Information Systems,
Accounting and Information Management Division, General Accounting
Office; Constance Craig, Chief Information Officer/Assistant
Commissioner for Information Resources, Financial Management Service,
Department of the Treasury; Kenneth Buckley, Assistant Director,
Division of Reserve Bank Operations and Payment Systems, Federal Reserve
System; and Nicholas F. Barranca, Vice President, Operations Planning,
United States Postal Service. 

NATIVE AMERICAN GRAVE PROTECTION AND REPATRIATION

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded oversight hearings on
the implementation of the Native American Graves Protection and
Repatriation Act (P.L. 101-601), after receiving testimony from Maricopa
County Superior Court Judge Sherry Hunt, Phoenix, Arizona; Rosita Worl,
Sealaska Heritage Foundation, Juneau, Alaska; Tex G. Hall, Three
Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Reservation, New Town, North
Dakota, on behalf of the Aberdeen Area Tribal Chairmen's Association;
Armand Minthorn, Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation,
Pendleton, Oregon; Robert P. Gough, Rosebud Sioux Tribe, Rosebud, South
Dakota, on behalf of the estate of Tasunke Witko; Ernie Stevens, Jr,
National Congress of American Indians, and Keith W. Kintigh, Society for
American Archaeology, both of Washington, D.C.; and W. Donald Duckworth,
Bishop Museum, Honolulu, Hawaii, on behalf of the American Association
of Museums. 

                               [Page: D408]

Joint Meetings

EDUCATION FLEXIBILITY PARTNERSHIP ACT

Conferees, on Thursday, April 15, agreed to file a conference report on
H.R. 800, to provide for education flexibility partnerships. 



1999/04/21
Daily Digest - Wednesday, April 21, 1999,  pages D414 - D422

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

FEDERAL CROP INSURANCE REFORM

Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Committee concluded
hearings to review the recent report on the Federal Crop Insurance
Program by the Office of Inspector General, Department of Agriculture,
after receiving testimony from Roger C. Viadero, Inspector General, and
Kenneth D. Ackerman, Administrator, Risk Management Agency, both of the
Department of Agriculture; Lawrence J. Dyckman, Director, Food and
Agriculture Issues, Resources, Community, and Economic Development
Division, General Accounting Office; and Ron Brichler, National Crop
Insurance Services, Overland Park, Kansas, on behalf of the American
Association of Crop Insurers. 

APPROPRIATIONS--DEFENSE HEALTH PROGRAM

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense concluded hearings
on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for the Defense Health
Program, focusing on service member care, comprehensive health coverage
for dependents, retirees, and for surviving family members, research,
health promotion, wartime support, and inter-service cooperation, after
receiving testimony from Sue Bailey, Assistant Secretary of Defense for
Health Affairs; Lt. Gen. Ronald R. Blanck, USA, Army Surgeon General;
Vice Adm. Richard A. Nelson, USN, Medical Corps, Navy Surgeon General;
Lt. Gen. Charles H. Roadman, II, USAF, Air Force Surgeon General; Brig.
Gen. Bettye H. Simmons, USA, Chief, Army Nurse Corps; Rear Adm. Kathleen
L. Martin, USN, Director, Navy Nurse Corps and Medical Inspector
General; and Brig. Gen. Linda J. Stierle, USAF, Director of Medical
Readiness and Nursing Services, Office of the Air Force Surgeon General. 

NAVY AND MARINE READINESS

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Readiness and Management
Support concluded hearings to review the readiness of the United States
Navy and Marines operating forces, after receiving testimony from Adm.
J. Paul Reason, USN, Commander-in-Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet; Adm.
Archie R. Clemins, USN, Commander-in-Chief, U.S. Pacific Fleet; Lt. Gen.
Bruce B. Knutson, Jr., USMC, Commanding General, I Marine Expeditionary
Force; Lt. Gen. Frank L. Libutti, USMC, Commanding General, III Marine
Expeditionary Force; and Lt. Gen. Carlton W. Fulford, Jr., USMC,
Commanding General, Fleet Marine Force Pacific. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Seapower concluded hearings
on proposed legislation authorizing funds for fiscal year 2000 for the
Department of Defense, focusing on ship acquisition programs and policy
and the future years defense program, after receiving testimony from H.
Lee Buchanan III, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Research,
Development and Acquisition; Vice Adm. Conrad C. Lautenbacher, Jr., USN
, Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Resources, Warfare Requirements
and Assessments; Lt. Gen. Martin R. Steele, USMC, Deputy Chief of Staff
for Plans, Policies, and Operations; Vice Adm. James F. Amerault, USN,
Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Logistics; Rear Adm. Albert T.
Church, III , USN, Director, Office of Budget, Office of Assistant
Secretary of the Navy for Financial Management and Comptroller; and
James F. Wiggins, Associate Director, General Accounting Office. 

TECHNOLOGY ADMINISTRATION BUDGET/FASTENER QUALITY ACT

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on
Science, Technology, and Space concluded hearings to examine the
Department of Commerce's Technology Administration fiscal year 2000
D416budget request, focusing on the global competitive environment, the
role of the Office of the Under Secretary and the Office of Technology,
and the National Institute of Standards and Technology plans for the
future, and S.795, to amend the Fastener Quality Act to strengthen the
protection against the sale of mis-marked, misrepresented, and
counterfeit fasteners and eliminate unnecessary requirements, after
receiving testimony from Gary Bachula, Acting Under Secretary for
Technology, and Raymond G. Kammer, Director, National Institute of
Standards and Technology, both of the Department of Commerce; Robert E.
Brunner, Illinois Tool Works, Inc., Elgin, on behalf of the Industrial
Fasteners Institute; Adrian Paul Cockman, Dearborn, Michigan, on behalf
of the Ford Motor Company, Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, and the
Association of International Automobile Manufacturers; and Steven
Schonholtz, Gardenbolt International, Inc., Sayreville, New Jersey, on
behalf of the National Fastener Distributors Association. 

                               [Page: D416]

NATURAL GAS SUPPLY AND INFRASTRUCTURE

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded oversight
hearings to examine whether the United States has the natural gas supply
and infrastructure necessary to meet projected demand, after receiving
testimony from Jay E. Hakes, Administrator, Energy Information
Administration, Department of Energy; Richard J. Sharples, Anadarko
Energy Services Company, on behalf of the Natural Gas Supply
Association, and Rafael Quijano, Latin American Petroleum Intelligence
Services, both of Washington, D.C.; Keith E. Bailey, Williams Company,
on behalf of the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America, and H.G.
Kleemeier, Kaiser-Francis Oil Company, on behalf of the Independent
Petroleum Association of America, both of Tulsa, Oklahoma; Paul A.
Elbert, Natural Gas Consumers Energy Company, Jackson, Michigan, on
behalf of the American Gas Association; and Greg Stringham, Canadian
Association of Petroleum Producers, Calgary, Alberta. 

LEWIS AND CLARK BICENTENNIAL

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Forests and
Public Land Management concluded oversight hearings to review the
interagency Memorandum of Understanding regarding the upcoming Lewis and
Clark bicentennial celebration, after receiving testimony from John
Berry, Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Policy, Management and
Budget/Chief Financial Officer. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee ordered favorably reported on
original bill to authorize appropriations for the Department of State
for fiscal years 2000 and 2001; to provide for enhanced security at
United States diplomatic facilities; to provide for certain arms
control, nonproliferation, and other national security measures; and to
provide for reform of the United Nations. 

NATO'S 50TH ANNIVERSARY SUMMIT

Committee of Foreign Relations: Committee concluded hearings to examine
the goals and initiatives of NATO's forthcoming 50th Anniversary Summit,
after receiving testimony from Senator Kyl; Marc Grossman, Assistant
Secretary of State for European Affairs; Franklin D. Kramer, Assistant
Secretary for International Security Affairs, and Stephen A. Cambone,
Research Director, Institute for National Strategic Studies, National
Defense University, both of the Department of Defense; Stephen Hadley,
Shea and Gardner, and F. Stephen Larrabee, RAND Corporation, both of
Washington, D.C. 

REGULATORY IMPROVEMENT ACT

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on S.
746,to provide for analysis of major rules, to promote the public's
right to know the costs and benefits of major rules, and to increase the
accountability of quality of Government, focusing on cost-benefit
analysis, risk assessment, peer review, judicial review, comparative
risk analysis, and the regulatory review process under the Office of
Management and Budget, after receiving testimony from Mayor Gregory S.
Lashutka, Columbus, Ohio, on behalf of the National League of Cities;
Robert E. Roberts, Environmental Council of the States, Lester M.
Crawford, Georgetown University Center for Food and Nutrition Policy,
Patricia G. Kenworthy, National Environmental Trust, and Franklin E.
Mirer, United Automobile, Aerospace, and Agricultural Implement Workers
of America, and David C. Vladeck, Public Citizen Litigation Group, all
of Washington, D.C.; Scott L. Holman, Bay Cast, Inc., Bay City,
Michigan, on behalf of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce; and Ronald A. Cass,
Boston University School of Law, and John D. Graham, Harvard School of
Public Health, both of Boston, Massachusetts. 

INTERNET PRIVACY

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded hearings on privacy
issues surrounding the Internet, focusing on Internet industry policy,
security, data D417protection, law enforcement, technology development,
and electronic commerce, after receiving testimony from Katherine
Borsecnik, America Online, Inc., Dulles, Virginia; Michael Sheridan,
Novell, Inc., Orem, Utah; Irving Wladawsky-Berger, IBM Corporation, and
Jerry Berman, Center for Democracy and Technology, both of Washington,
D.C.; Russell T. Bodoff, BBBOnline, Inc., Arlington, Virginia; and
Gregory Fischbach, Acclaim Entertainment, Inc., Glen Cove, New York. 

                               [Page: D417]

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Constitution, Federalism,
and Property Rights approved for full committee consideration S.J. Res.
14, proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States
authorizing Congress to prohibit the physical desecration of the flag of
the United States. 

NATIVE AMERICAN BUSINESS, TRADE, AND TOURISM

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on S. 401, to
provide for business development and trade promotion for native
Americans, focusing on physical infrastructure, skill development,
separation of powers and good governance, regulatory reform, access to
capital, and international trade and tourism, after receiving testimony
from Phillip A. Singerman, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic
Development; Tex G. Hall, Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold
Reservation, New Town, North Dakota; Gloria O'Neill, Cook Inlet Tribal
Council, Inc., Anchorage Alaska; John R. Sunchild, Sr., National Tribal
Development Association, Box Elder, Montana; and Michael A. Rouleau,
U.S. WEST Communications, Inc., Denver, Colorado. 

INTELLIGENCE

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the
intelligence community. 

Committee will meet again tomorrow. 

CORRUPTION THREAT ON THE SOUTHWEST BORDER

United States Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control: Caucus
concluded hearings on the threat of corruption to United States Law
Enforcement along the Southwest border, after receiving testimony from
Richard M. Stana, Associate Director, Administration of Justice Issues,
General Government Division, General Accounting Office; Raymond W.
Kelly, Commissioner, United States Customs Service, Department of the
Treasury; and Doris M. Meissner, Commissioner, Immigration and
Naturalization Service, Department of Justice. 

No Joint hearings noted



1999/04/22
Daily Digest - Thursday, April 22, 1999,  pages D423 - D432

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--INTERIOR 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Interior concluded hearings
on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for Department of the
Interior, after receiving testimony from Bruce Babbitt, Secretary of the
Interior. 

APPROPRIATIONS--HUD 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on VA, HUD, and Independent
Agencies concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year
2000 for the Department of Housing and Urban Development, after
receiving testimony from Andrew Cuomo, Secretary of Housing and Urban
Development. 

THREATS TO NATIONAL SECURITY 

Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded hearings on worldwide
threats to United States national security interests, after receiving
testimony from Henry A. Kissinger, former Secretary of State/National
Security Advisor. 

DOLLARIZATION IN EMERGING-MARKET COUNTRIES 

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on
International Trade and Finance, and the Subcommittee on Economic Policy
concluded joint hearings on issues relating to the official
dollarization in emerging-market countries, after receiving testimony
from Alan Greenspan, Chairman, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve
System; Lawrence H. Summers, Deputy Secretary of Treasury; Wayne D.
Angell, Bear, Stearns, and Company, Inc., Judy Shelton, Empower America,
and Catherine Mann, Institute for International Economics, all of
Washington, D.C.; and Guillermo A. Calvo, University of Maryland Center
of International Economics, College Park. 

MEDICARE REFORM 

Committee on the Budget: Committee concluded hearings to examine the
future of Medicare, focusing on the life of the Medicare Trust Fund and
the need to strengthen and modernize the Medicare program, after
receiving testimony from Donna E. Shalala, Secretary of Health and Human
Services. 

PROFESSIONAL BOXING REFORM 

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded
hearings on reform of the professional boxing industry, focusing on
contracting practices, restraints of trade, rating systems, legitimate
competition, private sector governing, sportsmanship, and S. 305, to
reform unfair and anti-competitive practices in the professional boxing
industry, after receiving testimony from Senator Reid; Muhammad Ali,
former World Heavyweight Champion, and Howard Bingham, both of Berrien
Springs, Michigan; New York State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, on
behalf of the National Association of Attorneys General, and Wallace
Matthews, The New York Post, both of New York, New York; Gregory P.
Sirb, Association of Boxing Commissions, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania;
Walter Stone, Adler, Pollock, and Sheehan, Providence, Rhode Island, on
behalf of the International Boxing Federation; Dan Goossen, America
Presents, Denver, Colorado; and Mills Lane, Reno, Nevada. 

ALLEGED CHINESE ESPIONAGE 

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee met in closed
session to receive a briefing on the damage to the national security
from Chinese espionage at the Department of Energy nuclear weapons
laboratories, from George Tenet, Director, and Bob Walpole, National
Security Officer for Strategic and Nuclear Programs, National
Intelligence Council, both of the Central Intelligence Agency. 

NATIONAL PARKS/HISTORIC PRESERVATION/RECREATION 

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on National
Parks, Historic Preservation, and Recreation concluded hearings on S.
441, to amend the National Trails System Act to designate the route of
the War of 1812 British invasion of Maryland and Washington, District of
Columbia, and the route of the American defense, for study for potential
addition to the national trails system, S. D425548, to establish the
Fallen Timbers Battlefield and Fort Miamis National Historical Site in
the State of Ohio, S. 581, to protect the Paoli and Brandywine
Battlefields in Pennsylvania, to authorize a Valley Forge Museum of the
American Revolution at Valley Forge National Historical Park, and S.
700, to amend the National Trails System Act to designate the Ala
Kahakai Trail as a National Historic Trail, after receiving testimony
from Katherine H. Stevenson, Associate Director, Cultural Resource
Stewardship and Partnerships, National Park Service, Department of the
Interior; Mayor Stephen J. Pauken, Maumee, Ohio; Kevin Collins, National
Parks and Conservation Association, Washington, D.C.; Deborah L. Chang,
Lihu'e, Hawaii, and Hugh R. Montgomery, Hono Ka'a, Hawaii, both of the E
Mau Na Ala Hele; Ralph E. Eshelman, Chesapeake Flotilla Project, Lusby,
Maryland; Patrick J. McGuigan, Jr., Borough of Malvern, Malvern,
Pennsylvania, on behalf of the Paoli Battlefield Preservation Fund;
Isidore C. Mineo, Chester County Parks and Recreation, West Chester,
Pennsylvania; and Jean-Pierre Bouvel, Valley Forge Historical Society,
Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. 

                               [Page: D425]

NORTH KOREAN PRISON CAMPS 

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific
Affairs concluded hearings to examine the human rights situation in
North Korea, focusing on political prison camp system and human rights
violations, after receiving testimony from Lee Soon-ok, Kang Chul-hwan,
and Ahn Myoung-chul, all of South Korea, and Suzanne Scholte, all on
behalf of the Defense Forum Foundation, Falls Church, Virginia. 

REGULATORY RIGHT-TO-KNOW ACT 

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on S.
59, to expand the current requirement that the Office of Management and
Budget prepare an annual report on the costs and benefits of Federal
regulations, and proposals to establish a Congressional Office of
Regulatory Analysis, after receiving testimony from Donald R. Arbuckle,
Acting Administrator and Deputy Administrator, Office of Information and
Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget; New York State
Senator Stephen M. Saland, Albany, on behalf of the National Conference
of State Legislatures; Arthur J. Dyer, Metal Products Company,
McMinnville, Tennessee, on behalf of the National Association of
Manufacturers; Robert E. Litan, Brookings Institution, on behalf of the
AEI-Brookings Joint Center for Regulatory Studies, and Gary D. Bass, OMB
Watch, both of Washington, D.C.; Murray Weidenbaum, Center for the Study
of American Business/Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri; and
Sidney A. Shapiro, Indiana University, Bloomington. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following measures: 

S. 322, to amend title 4, United States Code, to add the Martin Luther
King, Jr. holiday to the list of days on which the flag should
especially be displayed; 

S. 39, to provide a national medal for public safety officers who act
with extraordinary valor above the call of duty; 

S. Res. 22, commemorating and acknowledging the dedication and sacrifice
made by the men and women who have lost their lives serving as law
enforcement officers; and 

S. Res. 33, designating May 1999 as "National Military Appreciation
Month". 

Also, committee resumed markup of S. 625, to amend title 11, United
States Code, but did not complete action thereon, and will meet again on
Thursday, April 29. 

EDUCATION TECHNOLOGY 

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for the Elementary
Secondary Education Act, focusing on education technology programs,
after receiving testimony from Barbara Means, SRI International, Menlo
Park, California; Philip J. Hyjek, Vermont State Department of
Education/Vermont Institute for Science, Math and Technology, Waterbury
Center, Vermont; Ervin S. Duggan, Public Broadcasting Service,
Alexandria, Virginia; Inabeth Miller, The JASON Foundation for
Education, Waltham, Massachusetts; Michael Pitroff, Baltimore Learning
Community, Baltimore, Maryland; Carmen Gonzales, New Mexico State
University Regional Educational Technology Assistance Program, Las
Cruces; and Daniel Hogan, Cincinnati, Ohio. 

INTELLIGENCE 

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the
intelligence community. 

Committee will meet again on Wednesday, April 28. 

YEAR 2000 AND OIL IMPORTS 

Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem: Committee
concluded hearings on the Y2K readiness status of the international oil
industry, focusing on the effects of possible Y2K failures on the world
oil supply, after receiving testimony from Robert S. Kripowicz,
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of D426Energy for Fossil Energy;
Rear Adm. George N. Naccara, Director of Information and Technology,
United States Coast Guard, Department of Transportation; William C.
Ramsay, International Energy Agency, Paris, France; Phillip M. Davies,
Chevron Shipping Company, Pascagoula, Mississippi, and Red Cavaney,
Washington, D.C., both on behalf of the American Petroleum Institute;
Bob Malone, Alyeska Pipeline Service Company, Anchorage, Alaska; and
Michael J. Ingle, Service Station Dealers of America and Allied Trades,
Lanham, Maryland. 

                               [Page: D426]

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/04/26
Daily Digest - Monday, April 26, 1999,  pages D433 - 436

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

ASSISTED LIVING INDUSTRY

Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded hearings to examine the
state of the growing assisted living industry, focusing on consumer
protections and quality of care in assisted living, after receiving
testimony from Kathryn G. Allen, Associate Director, Health Financing
and Public Health Issues, Health, Education, and Human Services
Division, General Accounting Office; Catherine Hawes, Ohio State
Department of Health and Human Services, Columbus; Robert L. Mollica,
National Academy for State Health Policy, Portland, Maine; Cindy Hannum,
Senior and Disabled Services Division, Oregon State Department of Human
Resources, Salem; Philip J. Downey, Marriott Senior Living Services,
Bethesda, Maryland, on behalf of the American Seniors Housing
Association; Dean Painter, Eaton Terrace Group, Lakewood, Colorado, on
behalf of the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging;
William F. Lasky, Alternative Living Services, Brookfield, Wisconsin, on
behalf of the Assisted Living Federation of America; Robert Lohr,
Peridot Enterprises, Inc., Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on behalf of the
National Center for Assisted Living; Patricia Fleischmann Johnson,
Largo, Florida; and Collette Appolito, Cleveland, Ohio. 

                               [Page: D434]

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/04/27
Daily Digest - Tuesday, April 27, 1999,  pages D437 - D444

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--AGRICULTURE/FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural
Development, and Related Agencies concluded hearings on proposed budget
estimates for fiscal year 2000, after receiving testimony on behalf of
the Department of Agriculture's nutrition assistance programs from
Shirley R. Watkins, Under Secretary for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer
Services, Rajen Anand, Executive Director, Center for Nutrition Policy
and Promotion, and Dennis Kaplan, Deputy Director, Office of Budget and
Program Analysis, all of the Department of Agriculture; and after
receiving testimony on behalf of the Food and Drug Administration from
Jane E. Henney, Commissioner, Michael A. Friedman, Deputy Commissioner
for Operations, Robert J. Byrd, Deputy Commissioner for Management and
Systems/Chief Financial Officer, all of the Food and Drug
Administration, and Dennis P. Williams, Deputy Assistant Secretary for
Budget, all of the Department of Health and Human Services. 

APPROPRIATIONS--KOSOVO

Committee on Appropriations: Committee concluded hearings on the
President's proposed supplemental budget estimates to finance military
and humanitarian operations related to Kosovo, after receiving testimony
from Jacob J. Lew, Director, Office of Management and Budget; John J.
Hamre, Deputy Secretary of Defense; and J. Brian Atwood, Administrator,
Agency for International Development. 

NOMINATIONS

Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded hearings on the
nominations of Brian E. Sheridan, of Virginia, to be Assistant Secretary
of Defense for Special Operations and Low Intensity Conflict, Lawrence
J. Delaney, of Maryland, to be Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for
Acquisition, and Carolyn L. Huntoon, of Virginia, to be Assistant
Secretary of Energy for Environmental Management, after the nominees,
who were introduced by Senator Warner, testified and answered questions
in their own behalf. 

INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS-TRAFFICKING

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and
Capabilities concluded hearings on the threat of international
narcotics-trafficking and the role of the Department of Defense in the
Nation's war on drugs, after receiving testimony from Gen. Barry R.
McCaffrey, USA (Ret.), Director, Office of National Drug Control Policy;
Brian E. Sheridan, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for
Special Operations and Low Intensity Conflict; and Gen. Charles E.
Wilhelm, USMC, Commander-in-Chief, U.S. Southern Command. 

MOTOR CARRIER SAFETY PROGRAM

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded
hearings on the effectiveness of the Motor Carrier Safety Programs and
the organizational structure of the Department of Transportation, after
receiving testimony from Kenneth M. Mead, Inspector General, Barbara
Cobble, Program Director, Surface Transportation, and Eugene A. Conti,
Jr., Assistant Secretary for Transportation Policy, all of the
Department of Transportation; James E. Hall, Chairman, and Joseph E.
Osterman, Director, Office of Highway Safety, both of the National
Transportation Safety Board; Joan Claybrook, Public Citizen, on behalf
of the Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, and John F. Murphy,
International Brotherhood of Teamsters, both of Washington, D.C.; Walter
B. McCormick, Jr., American Trucking Associations, Inc., Alexandria,
Virginia; Peter D. Worthington, DATTCO, Inc., New Britain, Connecticut,
on behalf of the American Bus Association; and Stephen F. Campbell,
Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance, Bethesda, Maryland. 

OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF REVENUES

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee held hearings on S.
25, to provide Coastal Impact Assistance to State and local governments,
to amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act Amendments of 1978, the
Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965, the Urban Park and
Recreation Recovery Act, and the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act
(commonly referred to as the Pittman-Robertson Act) to establish a fund
to meet the outdoor conservation and recreation needs of the American
people, S. 446, to provide for the permanent protection of the resources
of the United States in the year D4392000 and beyond, S. 532, to provide
increased funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund and Urban
Parks and Recreation Recovery Programs, to resume the funding of the
State grants program of the Land and Water Conservation Fund, and to
provide for the acquisition and development of conservation and
recreation facilities and programs in urban areas, S. 819, to provide
funding for the National Park System from outer Continental Shelf
revenues, and the Administration's Lands Legacy Initiative, receiving
testimony from Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber, Salem; New Jersey
Governor Christine Todd Whitman, Trenton; Alaska State Senator Robin L.
Taylor, Juneau; J. Allison DeFoor, II, Office of the Governor of
Florida, Tallahassee; Leon E. Panetta, Panetta Institute, California
State University-Monterey Bay, Seaside, California; Mark Davis,
Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana, Baton Rouge; Lisa Speer, Natural
Resources Defense Council, New York, New York; Paul L. Kelly, Rowan
Companies, Inc., Houston, Texas; Ralph Grossi, American Farmland Trust,
Washington, D.C.; and Elliot L. Marks, The Nature Conservancy, Seattle,
Washington. 

                               [Page: D439]

Hearings continue on Tuesday, May 4. 

REVENUE RAISING PROPOSALS

Committee on Finance: Committee held hearings to examine revenue raising
proposals as contained in the Administration's fiscal year 2000 budget,
focusing on corporate tax shelters, life insurance taxation, and
taxation of investment income of trade associations, receiving testimony
from Donald C. Lubick, Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Tax
Policy; Harold R. Handler, Simpson, Thacher and Bartlett, on behalf of
the New York State Bar Association, David A. Lifson, American Institute
of Certified Public Accountants, and Edward D. Kleinbard, Clearly,
Gottlieb, Steen, and Hamilton, on behalf of the Securities Industry
Association, all of New York, New York; Stefan F. Tucker, American Bar
Association, and Jeanne E. Hoenicke, American Council of Life Insurance,
both of Washington, D.C.; Lester D. Ezrati, Hewlett-Packard Company,
Palo Alto, California, on behalf of the Tax Executives' Institute, Inc.;
and Nancy H. Worman, KeyCorp, Cleveland, Ohio, on behalf of the American
Bankers Association. 

Hearings recessed subject to the call. 

NONPROLIFERATION/ARMS CONTROL/POLITICAL MILITARY ISSUES

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee held hearings on
nonproliferation, arms control, and political military issues, receiving
testimony from Eric D. Newsom, Assistant Secretary of State for
Political-Military Affairs; and Rose E. Gottemoeller, Assistant
Secretary of Energy for Nonproliferation and National Security. 

Hearings recessed subject to the call. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported S. 625,
to amend title 11, United States Code, relating to bankruptcy reform,
with amendments. 

NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN BORDER PATROLS

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Immigration concluded
hearings on the need for additional border patrol at the northern and
southern borders of the U.S. to further deter illegal immigration and
drug smuggling, after receiving testimony from Gus De la Vina, Chief,
Ron Sanders, Chief Patrol Agent, Tucson, Arizona Sector, on behalf of
the Chief Patrol Agent's Association, and Robert E. Lindemann, Senior
Patrol Agent, Detroit, Michigan Sector, on behalf of the National Border
Patrol Council, all of the United States Border Patrol, Immigration and
Naturalization Service, Department of Justice; and Arizona State
Representative Gail Griffin, Sierra Vista. 

MEDICAL RECORDS PRIVACY

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded
hearings on issues relating to medical records confidentiality in a
changing health care environment, and related measures including S.881
and S. 578, bills to ensure confidentiality with respect to medical
records and health care-related information, to ensure confidentiality
with respect to medical records and health care-related information,
after receiving testimony from Senators Bennett and Leahy; John
Bentivoglio, Special Counsel for Health Care Fraud, Office of the Deputy
Attorney General, Department of Justice; Ronald H. Weich, Zuckerman,
Spaeder, Goldstein, Taylor & Kolker, Washington, D.C., on behalf of the
American Civil Liberties Union; Robyn S. Shapiro, Medical College of
Wisconsin, Milwaukee, on behalf of the American Bar Association; LaDonna
Shedor, Centra Health, Lynchburg, Virginia, on behalf of the Healthcare
Leadership Council; Paul Appelbaum, University of Massachusetts Medical
School, Worcester, on behalf of the American Psychiatric Association;
John G. Curd, Genentech, Inc., San Francisco, California; and Chris
Koyanagi, Judge David L. Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law,
Washington, D.C., on behalf of the Consumer Coalition for Health
Privacy. 

                               [Page: D440]

Joint Meetings

ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING

Joint Committee on Printing: Committee approved its rules of procedure
for the 106th Congress. 

BELARUS

Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Commission concluded
hearings on the political and economic situation in Belarus, focusing on
authoritarian rule, human rights repression, democratic opposition, and
the upcoming presidential elections, after receiving testimony from Ross
L. Wilson, Principal Deputy to the Ambassador-at-Large/Special Advisor
to the Secretary of State for the New Independent States, and Arkady M.
Cherepansky, Charge D'Affairs, Embassy of the Republic of Belarus, both
of Washington, D.C.; Ambassador Hans-Georg Wieck, Head of OSCE Advisory
and Monitoring Group, and Ambassador Andrei Sannikov, former Deputy
Foreign Minister of Belarus, both of Miensk, Belarus; and Rachel Denber,
Deputy Director, European and Central Asia Division of Human Rights
Watch, and Catherine A. Fitzpatrick, Executive Director, International
League for Human Rights/Representative of the ILHR at the United
Nations, both of New York, New York. 



1999/04/28
Daily Digest - Wednesday, April 28, 1999,  pages D446 - D454

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--NATIONAL GUARD BUREAU

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense concluded hearings
on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for the National Guard
Bureau, after receiving testimony from Lt. Gen. Russell C. Davis, Chief,
National Guard Bureau; Maj. Gen. Roger C. Schultz, Director, Army
National Guard; and Maj. Gen. Paul A. Weaver, Jr., Director, Air
National Guard. 

ALLEGED CHINESE ESPIONAGE

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded closed
hearings on the damage to the national security from alleged Chinese
espionage at the Department of Energy nuclear weapons laboratories,
after receiving testimony from Notra Trulock, Acting Deputy Director,
Office of Intelligence, and Ed Curran, Director, Office of
Counterintelligence, both of the Department of Energy; Bob Walpole,
National Intelligence Officer for Strategic and Nuclear Programs,
National Intelligence Council, Central Intelligence Agency; and Neil
Gallagher, Assistant Director, National Security Division, Federal
Bureau of Investigation, Department of Justice. 

ARIZONA TRUST FUNDS/GEOLOGIC MAPPING/SEWAGE TREATMENT

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Forests and
Public Land Management concluded hearings on the following bills: 

S. 415, to protect the permanent trust funds of the State of Arizona
from erosion due to inflation and modify the basis on which
distributions are made from those funds, after receiving testimony from
Scott K. Celley, Arizona Governor's Office, Phoenix; 

S. 607, to reauthorize and amend the National Geologic Mapping Act of
1992, after receiving testimony from P. Patrick Leahy, Chief Geologist,
U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior; and D448Larry D.
Woodfork, Association of American State Geologists, Morgantown, West
Virginia; and 

                               [Page: D448]

S. 416, to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to convey the city of
Sisters, Oregon, a certain parcel of land for use in connection with a
sewage treatment facility, after receiving testimony from Jack Craven,
Director of Lands, Forest Service, Department of Agriculture; and Mayor
Steve Wilson, Sisters, Oregon. 

NOMINATION

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded hearings
on the nomination of George T. Frampton, Jr., of the District of
Columbia, to be a Member of the Council on Environmental Quality, after
the nominee testified and answered questions in his own behalf. 

MEDICARE REFORM

Committee on Finance: Committee held hearings to examine the context and
evolution of Medicare, focusing on medical research, teaching hospitals,
cost reduction, effective treatments, medical education trust funds,
aging Baby Boomers, and privatization, receiving testimony from Herbert
Pardes, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New
York, New York; Uwe E. Reinhardt, Princeton University School of Public
and International Affairs, Princeton, New Jersey; William L. Roper,
University of North Carolina School of Public Health, Chapel Hill; and
John E. Wennberg, Dartmouth College Center for Evaluative and Clinical
Sciences, Hanover, New Hampshire. 

Hearings continue tomorrow. 

ANTI-BALLISTIC MISSILE TREATY

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on International
Security, Proliferation and Federal Services concluded hearings on
issues involving the future of the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, after
receiving testimony from Jeane J. Kirkpatrick, Georgetown
University/American Enterprise Institute/former U.S. Ambassador to the
United Nations, and John B. Rhinelander, Shaw, Pittman, Potts, and
Trowbridge/former Legal Advisor for U.S. SALT Delegation, both of
Washington, D.C.; and Robert G. Joseph, Director, National Defense
University Center for Counter Proliferation Research, Department of
Defense, former U.S. Commissioner for the Standing Consultive
Commission. 

U.S. FLAG DESECRATION PROHIBITION

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded hearings on S.J. Res.
14, proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States
authorizing Congress to prohibit the physical desecration of the flag of
the United States, after receiving testimony from Senators Chafee,
McCain, Kerrey, Cleland, and Hagel; and former Senator Glenn; and
Randolph D. Moss, Acting Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legal
Counsel, Department of Justice. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee met and
began markup of S. 385, to amend the Occupational Safety and Health Act
of 1970 to further improve the safety and health of working
environments, but did not complete action thereon, and will continue
tomorrow. 

BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded oversight hearings on
the capacity and mission of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, focusing on
funding, trust management, accountability, policy development and
coordination, scientific expertise availability, economic development,
law enforcement, education, Safety of Dams Program, irrigation programs,
resource allocation, Tribal Priority Allocation, and transportation,
after receiving testimony from Kevin Gover, Assistant Secretary of the
Interior for Indian Affairs; Ross O. Swimmer, Tulsa, Oklahoma, former
Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs; Bernie Teba,
Eight Northern Indian Pueblos Council, San Juan, New Mexico; Tim Martin,
United South and Eastern Tribes, Nashville, Tennessee; and Jack Jackson,
National Congress of American Indians, Washington, D.C. 

INTELLIGENCE

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the
intelligence community. 

Committee will meet again tomorrow. 

                               [Page: D449]

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/04/29
Daily Digest - Thursday, April 29, 1999,  pages D455 - D462

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--AID

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Foreign Operations
concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for
the Agency for International Development, after receiving testimony from
J. Brian Atwood, Administrator, United States Agency for International
Development. 

APPROPRIATIONS--EPA

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on VA-HUD and Independent
Agencies concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year
2000 for the Environmental Protection Agency, after receiving testimony
from Carol M. Browner, Administrator, Environmental Protection Agency;
and George T. Frampton, Jr., Acting Chairman, Council on Environmental
Quality. 

NOMINATIONS

Committee on the Armed Services: Committee ordered favorably reported
the nominations of Brian E. Sheridan, of Virginia, to be an Assistant
Secretary of Defense, Lawrence J. Delaney, of Maryland, to be an
Assistant Secretary of the Air Force, and 2,273 military nominations in
the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and the Air Force. 

                               [Page: D457]

HUD GRANT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on
Housing and Transportation concluded oversight hearings on the
management of the Department of Housing and Urban Development's Grants
Management System, after receiving testimony form Cardell Cooper,
Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development for Community
Planning and Development; Stanley J. Czerwinski, Associate Director of
Housing and Community Development Issues, Resources, Community, and
Economic Development Division, General Accounting Office; Susan Elkins,
Louisiana State Division of Community Development, Baton Rouge, on
behalf of the Council of State Community Development Agencies; and David
Robinson, Lake County Planning and Development Department, Waukegan,
Illinois, on behalf of the National Community Development Association
and the National Association for County Community Economic Development. 

NASA BUDGET

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on
Science, Technology, and Space concluded hearings on the President's
proposed budget request for fiscal year 2000 for the National
Aeronautics and Space Administration, after receiving testimony from
Daniel S. Goldin, Administrator, and Roberta L. Gross, Inspector
General, both of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration; and
Allen Li, Associate Director, National Security and International
Affairs Division, General Accounting Office. 

SOUTH FLORIDA ECOSYSTEM RESTORATION

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on National
Parks, Historic Preservation, and Recreation, and the Committee on
Appropriations' Subcommittee on Interior concluded joint oversight
hearings to review the GAO report on the Everglades National Park
Restoration Project, after receiving testimony form Victor S. Rezendes,
Director, Energy, Resources, and Science Issues, Resources, Community,
and Economic Development Division, General Accounting Office; Patricia
J. Beneke, Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Water and Science;
Michael Davis, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works;
and Michael Collins, South Florida Water Management District, West Palm
Beach, Florida. 

TRANSPORTATION EQUITY ACT

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on
Transportation and Infrastructure held oversight hearings on the
implementation of the project delivery and streamlining provisions of
the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century, testimony from
Delaware Governor Thomas R. Carper, Dover, on behalf of the National
Governors' Association; Charles Thompson, Wisconsin Department of
Transportation, Madison, on behalf of the American Association of State
Highway and Transportation Officials; Brian A. Mills, Cass County,
Missouri, on behalf of the Association of Metropolitan Planning
Organizations; Jerry W. Alb, Washington State Department of
Transportation, Olympia; Tim Stowe, Anderson and Associates, Inc.,
Blacksburg, Virginia, on behalf of the American Consulting Engineers
Council; Roy Kienitz, Surface Transportation Policy Project, Washington,
D.C.; Brian R. Holmes, Connecticut Road Builders Association,
Wethersfield, on behalf of the American Road and Transportation Builders
Association; and Mitch Leslie, Montana Contractors' Association,
Billings, on behalf of the Associated General Contractors. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

STATE CHILDREN'S HEALTH INSURANCE PROGRAM

Committee on Finance: Committee concluded hearings on the implementation
of the State Children's Health Insurance Program, after receiving
testimony from Nancy-Ann DeParle, Administrator, Health Care Financing
Administration, Department of Health and Human Services; Judith A.
Arnold, New York State Department of Health Division of Planning, Policy
and Resource Development, Albany; Janet M. Corrigan, National Academy of
Sciences Institute of Medicine, and Cindy Mann, Center on Budget and
Policy Priorities, both of Washington, D.C.; and Barbara C. Edwards,
Ohio Department of Human Services Office of Medicaid, Columbus. 

INTERNATIONAL SOFTWARE PIRACY

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on International Economic
Policy, Export and Trade Promotion concluded hearings to examine the
impact of international software piracy on the software industry and the
American economy, focusing on the World Intellectual Property
Organization copyright treaties, Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual
Property Rights agreement, special 301 procedures, enforcement resources
and willingness to enforce the laws, and the effect of the Asian
economic crisis, after receiving testimony from Stuart E. Eizenstat,
Under Secretary of State for Economic, Business and Agricultural
Affairs; Richard W. Fisher, Deputy United States Trade Representative;
Colleen M. Pouliot, Adobe Systems, Inc., San Jose, California, and
Bradford L. Smith, Microsoft Corporation, D458Redmond, Washington, both
on behalf of the Business Software Alliance; and Robert E. Lohfeld, High
Technology Council of Maryland, Greenbelt. 

                               [Page: D458]

NOMINATION

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on the
nomination of John T. Spotila, of New Jersey, to be Administrator of the
Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and
Budget, after the nominee, who was introduced by Senator Lautenberg,
testified and answered questions in his own behalf. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following business items: 

S.J. Res. 14, proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United
States authorizing Congress to prohibit the physical desecration of the
flag of the United States; 

S. 704, to amend title 18, United States Code, to combat the
overutilization of prison health care services and control rising
prisoner health care costs, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute; 

S. Res. 29, to designate the week of May 2, 1999, as "National
Correctional Officers and Employees Week"; and 

S. Res. 72, designating the month of May in 1999 and 2000 as "National
ALS Awareness Month." 

RETENTION AND SOCIAL PROMOTION

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for programs of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act, focusing on retention and social
promotion, after receiving testimony from Milton Goldberg, National
Alliance of Business, Washington, D.C.; Robert M. Hauser, University of
Wisconsin--Madison Department of Sociology; and Gary D. Estes, WestEd,
San Francisco, California. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee ordered
favorably reported the following business items: 

S. 385, to amend the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 to
further improve the safety and health of working environments, with
amendments; and 

The nominations of Joseph Bordogna, of Pennsylvania, to be Deputy
Director of the National Science Foundation, Kenneth Bresnahan, of
Virginia, to be Chief Financial Officer, Department of Labor, Lorraine
Pratt Lewis, of the District of Columbia, to be Inspector General,
Department of Education, Arthur Naparstek, of Ohio, to be a Member of
the Board of Directors of the Corporation for National and Community
Service, Ruth Tumura, of Hawaii, to be a Member of the National Museum
Services Board, Chang-lin Tien, of California, to be a Member of the
National Science Board, National Science Foundation, and Gary Visscher,
of Maryland, to be a Member of the Occupational Safety and Health Review
Commission. 

INTELLIGENCE

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the
intelligence community. 

Committee is recessed subject to call. 

911/LAW ENFORCEMENT Y2K READINESS.

Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem: Committee
concluded the 911 emergency systems and local law enforcement, after
receiving testimony from Jack L. Brock, Jr.  Director, Governmentwide
and Defense Information Systems, Accounting and Information Management
Division, General Accounting Office; Michael K. Powell, Commissioner,
Federal Communications Commission; Stephen R. Colgate, Assistant
Attorney General, Justice Management Division, and Harlin R. McEwen,
Deputy Assistant Director, Criminal Justice Information Services
Division, Federal Bureau of Investigation, both of the Department of
Justice; John S. Karangekis, Wethersfield Police Department,
Wethersfield, Connecticut; and James N. Brown, Hudson Police Department,
Hudson, Ohio. 

                               [Page: D459]

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/04/30
Daily Digest - Friday, April 30, 1999,  pages D463 - D468

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee ordered reported S.J. Res. 20,
concerning the deployment of the United States Armed Forces to the
Kosovo region in Yugoslavia, without recommendation. 

OLDER AMERICANS ACT 

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Subcommittee on
Aging concluded hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for
programs of the Older Americans Act, focusing on title three's and title
six's nutrition programs, transportation, home-based care, and similar
services provided to Native Americans, after receiving testimony from
John Barbour, Champlain Valley Agency on Aging, Inc., Burlington,
Vermont; Roland Hornbostel, Ohio Department of Aging, and Marleen
McCage, LifeCare Alliance, both of Columbus, Ohio; Dale J. Marsico,
Community Transportation Association of America, Washington, D.C.; Holly
Sestric Staley, and Leona Thomas, both of the Area Agency on Aging at
Intertribal Council of Arizona, Phoenix, Arizona; Rose Lewis Glaser,
Jewish Community Center, Rockville, Maryland; and Sue Fryer Ward,
Maryland Department of Aging, Baltimore. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/05/03
Daily Digest - Monday, May 3, 1999,  pages D470 - D474

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA MANAGEMENT REFORM

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on Oversight of
Government Management, Restructuring, and the District of Columbia
concluded hearings to examine the District of Columbia's efforts to
improve the delivery of public services, focusing on the District of
Columbia government's system for measuring the progress and performance
of management reform in programs and agencies, after receiving testimony
from Mayor Anthony Williams, Linda W. Cropp, Chairman, Council of the
District of Columbia, and Alice M. Rivlin, Chairman, District of
Columbia Financial Responsibility and Management Assistance Authority,
all of Washington, D.C. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/05/04
Daily Digest - Tuesday, May 4, 1999, pages D476 - D482

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

NOMINATION

Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded hearings on the
nomination of Carolyn L. Huntoon, of Virginia, to be Assistant Secretary
of Energy for Environmental Management, after the nominee further
testified and answered questions in her own behalf. 

U.S. AGRICULTURAL EXPORTS

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on
International Trade and Finance concluded oversight hearings on the
effects of international institutions on United States agricultural
exports, focusing on upcoming World Trade Organization negotiations,
International Monetary Fund funding holds, the World Bank, "fast track
authority", tariff-rate quotas, export subsidies, state trading
enterprises, domestic subsidies rules, trade restricting technical
barriers, and scientific innovation, after receiving testimony from
Peter L. Scher, Special Trade Negotiator, Office of the United States
Trade Representative; August Schumacher, Jr., Under Secretary of
Agriculture for Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services; Keith Kinzer,
Idaho Grain Producers Association, Genesee; Nels J. Smith, Wyoming Stock
Growers Association, Sundance; Dennis Jones, AGP Inc./CoBank, Bath,
South Dakota; and Bryce Neidig, D477Nebraska Farm Bureau Federation,
Madison, on behalf of the American Farm Bureau Federation. 

YOUTH VIOLENCE

                               [Page: D477]

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee held
hearings on how the violence that is marketed to children through media
and toys is harming children's development, learning, play, and
behavior, and measures that help to reduce children's exposure to
entertainment violence, receiving testimony from Senators Hatch and
Lieberman; William J. Bennett, Empower America, former Secretary of
Education, Jack Valenti, Motion Picture Association of America, and Doug
Lowenstein, Interactive Digital Software Association, all of Washington,
D.C.; Most Rev. Charles J. Chaput, Archbishop of Denver, Colorado; Dave
A. Grossman, Arkansas State University, Jonesboro; Daphne White, The
Lion & Lamb Project, Bethesda, Maryland; Henry Jenkins, Massachusetts
Institute of Technology, Cambridge; L. Rowell Huesmann, University of
Michigan, Ann Arbor; and Diane Levin, Wheelock College, Boston,
Massachusetts. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF REVENUES

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee resumed hearings on
S. 25, to provide Coastal Impact Assistance to State and local
governments, to amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act Amendments
of 1978, the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965, the Urban
Park and Recreation Recovery Act, and the Federal Aid in Wildlife
Restoration Act (commonly referred to a the Pittman-Robertson Act) to
establish a fund to meet the outdoor conservation and recreation needs
of the American people, S. 446, to provide for the permanent protection
of the resources of the United States in the year 2000 and beyond, S.
532, to provide increased funding for the Land and Water Conservation
Fund and Urban Parks and Recreation Recovery Programs, to resume the
funding of the State grants program of the Land and Water Conservation
Fund, and to provide for the acquisition and development of conservation
and recreation facilities and programs in urban areas, S. 819, to
provide funding for the National Park System from outer Continental
Shelf revenues, and the Administration's Lands Legacy Initiative,
receiving testimony from Senators Feinstein and Boxer; former Senator
Malcolm Wallop, on behalf of the Frontiers of Freedom; Ron Marlenee,
Safari Club International, Fairfax, Virginia; Thomas C. Kiernan,
National Parks and Conservation Association, and Mark L. Shaffer,
Defenders of Wildlife, both of Washington, D.C.; David Waller, Georgia
Wildlife Resources Division, Social Circle, on behalf of the
International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies; Mark Van
Putten, National Wildlife Federation, Vienna, Virginia; and Dennis J.
Foster, Leesburg, Virginia, on behalf of the Masters of Foxhounds
Association of America, and the Wildlife Legislative Fund of America. 

Hearings continue on Tuesday, May 11. 

MEDICARE/DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE SUBVENTION

Committee on Finance: Committee held hearings on the status of the
participation of the Department of Defense in a Medicare subvention
demonstration project established under the Balanced Budget Act of 1997,
and a related measure S. 445, to amend title XVIII of the Social
Security Act to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the
Secretary of Health and Human Services to carry out a demonstration
project to provide the Department of Veterans Affairs with Medicare
reimbursement for Medicare healthcare services provided to certain
Medicare-eligible veterans, receiving testimony from Senator Specter;
Togo D. West, Jr., Secretary, and Kenneth W. Kizer, Under Secretary for
Health, both of the Department of Veterans Affairs; Robert A. Berenson,
Director, Center for Health Plans and Providers, Health Care Financing
Administration, Department of Health and Human Services; Rear Adm.
Thomas F. Carrato, Director, Military Health System Operations, Tricare
Management Activity, Department of Defense; William J. Scanlon,
Director, Health Financing and Public Health Issues, and Stephen P.
Backhus, Director, Veterans' Affairs and Military Health Care Issues,
both of the Health, Education, and Human Services Division, General
Accounting Office; James E. Woys, Foundation Health Federal Services,
Inc., Rancho Cordova, California; and Jo Ann K. Webb, Paralyzed Veterans
of America, Washington, D.C. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

BALLISTIC MISSILE DEFENSE TECHNOLOGY

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee resumed hearings on issues
relating to the 1972 Antiballistic Missile Treaty, focusing on the
technological feasibility of the United States ballistic missile
defense, receiving testimony from Senator Shelby; William Robert Graham,
National Security Research, Inc., Fairfax, Virginia, former Director of
White House Office of Science and Technology Policy; Gen. John
Piotrowski, Colorado Springs, Colorado, former Commander in Chief of
Space Command; Richard L. Garwin, Council on Foreign Relations, New
York, New York; and David Wright, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Security Studies Program, Cambridge. 

Hearings continue tomorrow.D478 

INTERNATIONAL ANTITRUST ENFORCEMENT

                               [Page: D478]

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Antitrust, Business Rights,
and Competition concluded oversight hearings on issues relating to
international antitrust cooperation and enforcement, including positive
comity agreements, the flat glass industry, and problems with the
Japanese market, after receiving testimony from Joel I. Klein, Assistant
Attorney General, Antitrust Division, Department of Justice; Robert
Pitofsky, Chairman, Federal Trade Commission; Gorton M. Evans,
Consolidated Papers, Inc., Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin; John C.
Reichenbach, Jr., Pittsburgh Plate and Glass Industries, Inc.,
Washington, D.C.; and Peter S. Walters, Guardian Industries Corporation;
Auburn Hills, Michigan. 

CLASS ACTION REFORM

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Administrative Oversight and
the Courts concluded hearings on S. 353, to provide for class action
reform, after receiving testimony from Senator Kohl; Eleanor D. Acheson,
Assistant Attorney General, Office of Policy Development, Department of
Justice; John P. Frank, Lewis and Roca, Phoenix, Arizona; E. Donald
Elliott, Yale Law School, New Haven, Connecticut; Stephen G. Morrison,
Nelson, Mullins, Riley and Scarborough, Columbia, South Carolina;
Richard A. Daynard, Northeastern University School of Law, Boston,
Massachusetts; and John H. Beisner, O'Melveny and Myers, Washington,
D.C. 

INDIAN CENSUS 2000

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded oversight hearings to
examine the Bureau of the Census Year 2000 plans for testing and
developing enumeration procedures and methods for American Indian tribes
and Alaska Native villages, after receiving testimony from Kenneth
Prewitt, Director, and Belva Morrison, Team Leader, Tribal Partnership
Program, Denver Region, both of the Bureau of the Census, Department of
Commerce; Curtis Zunigha, Delaware Tribe of Indians, Bartlesville,
Oklahoma, Robert Wayne Nygaard, Sault Ste. Marie Chippewa Tribe, Sault
Ste. Marie, Michigan, Gregory A. Richardson, North Carolina State
Commission of Indian Affairs, Hollister, and Glenda Ahhaitty, Los
Angeles, California, all on behalf of the U.S. Census Bureau Advisory
Committee on American Indians and Alaska Native Populations; Taylor
McKenzie, Navajo Nation, Window Rock, Arizona; JoAnn K. Chase, National
Congress of American Indians, Washington, D.C.; and Edna L. Paisano, Nez
Perce Nation, Idaho. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/05/05
Daily Digest - Wednesday, May 5, 1999,  pages D483 - D490

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

NOMINATION

Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Committee concluded
hearings on the nomination of Thomas J. Erickson, of the District of
Columbia, to be a Commissioner of the Commodity Futures Trading
Commission after the nominee, who was introduced by Senator Daschle,
testified and answered questions in his own behalf. 

COMMODITY EXCHANGE ACT

Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Committee concluded
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for programs of the
Commodity Exchange Act, focusing on the Commodity Futures Trading
Commission's pilot program for agricultural trade options, after
receiving testimony from David D. Spears, Commissioner, Commodity
Futures Trading Commission; Kenneth Ackerman, Administrator, Risk
Management Agency, Department of Agriculture; Jerry Slocum, North
Mississippi Grain Company, Cold Water; Dan Dye, Cargill, Inc.,
Minneapolis Minnesota; Scott W. Stewart, Stewart-Peterson Group, Inc.,
West Bend, Wisconsin, on behalf of the National Introducing Brokers
Association; Steven Manaster, Virginia Tech University Pamplin College
of Business, Falls Church; David Rempe, Kansas State University
Department of Agricultural Economics, Manhattan. 

INTELLIGENCE PROGRAMS

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense concluded closed
hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for defense
related intelligence programs, after receiving testimony from George J.
Tenet, Director, Central Intelligence Agency. 

FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS INSOLVENCY IMPROVEMENT ACT

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on
Financial Institutions concluded hearings on S. 958, to amend certain
banking and securities laws with respect to financial contract, after
receiving testimony from William F. Kroener, III, General Counsel,
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation; and Paul G. Scheufele, Credit
Suisse First Boston, on behalf of the Bond Market Association, Don
Thompson, J.P. Morgan and Company, Inc., on behalf of the American
Bankers Association and the ABA Securities Association, and Marjorie E.
Gross, Chase Manhattan Bank, on behalf of the Financial Services
Roundtable, all of New York, New York. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee ordered
favorably reported the following business items: 

S. 376, to amend the Communications Satellite Act of 1962 to promote
competition and privatization in satellite communications, with an
amendment in the nature of a substitute; 

S. 305, to reform unfair and anticompetitive practices in the
professional boxing industry, with amendments; 

S. 296, to provide for continuation of the Federal research investment
in a fiscally sustainable way, with amendments; 

S. 342, to authorize appropriations for the National Aeronautics and
Space Administration for fiscal years 2000, 2001, and 2002, with
amendments; 

S. 795, to amend the Fastener Quality Act to strengthen the protection
against the sale of mismarked, misrepresented, and counterfeit fasteners
and eliminate unnecessary requirements, with amendments; 

S. 920, to authorize appropriations for the Federal Maritime Commission
for fiscal years 2000 and 2001, with an amendment; 

H.R. 1034, to declare a portion of the James River and Kanawha Canal in
Richmond, Virginia, to be nonnavigable waters of the United States for
purposes of title 46, United States Code, and the other maritime laws of
the United States; and 

The nominations of Rear Adm. John E. Shkor of the United States Coast
Guard to be Commander, Atlantic Area, with the Grade of Vice Admiral,
Capt. Evelyn J. Fields of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration to be Director, Office of NOAA Corp Operations, with the
Grade of Rear Admiral; Capt. Nicholas A. Prahl of the National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration to be Director, Atlantic and Pacific
Marine Centers, with the Grade of Rear Admiral, and nominations for
promotion in the United States Coast Guard. 

CHINESE ESPIONAGE AT DOE LABORATORIES

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee resumed hearings to
examine the damage to the national security from alleged Chinese
espionage at Department of Energy nuclear weapons laboratories,
receiving testimony from John C. Browne, Director, Los Alamos National
Laboratory, C. Paul Robinson, Director, Sandia National Laboratories,
and C. Bruce Tarter, Director, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory,
all of the Department of Energy. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

                               [Page: D485]

NOMINATION

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded hearings
on the nomination of Timothy Fields, Jr., of Virginia, to be Assistant
Administrator, Office of Solid Waste, Environmental Protection Agency,
after the nominee testified and answered questions in his own behalf. 

MEDICARE REFORM

Committee on Finance: Committee concluded hearings on Medicare reform
issues, focusing on the financial outlook for the Medicare program,
including implications of Medicare financing for the Federal budget and
the United States economy, and the role of Medicare in meeting the
health needs of the elderly and disabled Americans, after receiving
testimony from Dan L. Crippen, Director, Congressional Budget Office;
Richard Foster, Chief Actuary, Health Care Financing Administration,
Department of Health and Human Services; Massachusetts Governor Argeo
Paul Cellucci, Boston, on behalf of the National Governors' Association;
H.E. Frech III, University of California, Santa Barbara; and Diane
Rowland, Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation/Kaiser Commission on Medicaid
and the Uninsured, Washington, D.C. 

ANTIBALLISTIC MISSILE TREATY

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee resumed hearings on issues
relating to the 1972 Antiballistic Missile Treaty, focusing on the
United States strategic and arms control objectives, receiving testimony
from Ronald F. Lehman, former Director of the U.S. Arms Control and
Disarmament Agency; R. James Woolsey, former Director of the Central
Intelligence Agency; Keith B. Payne, National Institute for Public
Policy/Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, Washington,
D.C.; and Gen. Eugene E. Habiger, Omaha, Nebraska, former
Commander-in-Chief, U.S. Strategic Command. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

STATE OF FEDERALISM

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on the
current state of Federal and State relations, after receiving testimony
from Utah Governor Michael O. Leavitt, Salt Lake City, on behalf of the
National Governors' Association; Wisconsin Governor Tommy G. Thompson,
Madison, on behalf of the Council of State Governments; Mayor Clarence
E. Anthony, South Bay, Florida, on behalf of the National League of
Cities; North Carolina State Representative Daniel T. Blue, Jr.,
Raleigh, on behalf of the National Conference of State Legislatures;
William A. Galston, University of Maryland at College Park; and John O.
McGinnis, Yeshiva University Cardozo School of Law, New York, New York. 

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded oversight hearings on
activities of the Department of Justice, after receiving testimony from
Janet Reno, Attorney General, Department of Justice. 

AUTHORIZATION--INTELLIGENCE

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee ordered favorably reported
an original bill authorizing funds for fiscal year 2000 for intelligence
and intelligence-related activities of the United States Government, the
Community Management Account, and the Central Intelligence Agency
Retirement and Disability System. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/05/06
Daily Digest - Thursday, May 6, 1999;  pages D491 - D500

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human
Services, and Education concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates
for fiscal year 2000 for the National Institutes of Health, Department
of Health and Human Services, focusing on disease research, after
receiving testimony from Harold Varmus, Director, National Institutes of
Health, Department of Health and Human Services; Mary Hendrix,
University of Iowa, Iowa City, on behalf of the Federation of American
Societies for Experimental Biology; Brad Margus, Ataxia-Telangiectasia
Children's Project, Boca Raton, Florida; Stephen H Smith, American
Diabetes Association, Columbia, South Carolina; Stephen Spector, AIDS
Policy Center for Children, Youth and Families, San Diego, California;
and Purnell Choppin, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Chevy Chase,
Maryland. 

                               [Page: D493]

NOMINATIONS

Committee on Armed Services: Committee ordered favorably reported the
nomination of Brig. Gen. Harry D. Gatanas, for appointment in the United
States Army to the grade of Major General, and 15 nominations for
appointment in the Marine Corps to the grade of Brigadier General. 

COASTAL ZONE MANAGEMENT ACT

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on
Oceans and Fisheries concluded hearings on proposed legislation
authorizing funds for programs of the Coastal Zone Management Act,
focusing on the President's Lands Legacy Initiative, state coastal
programs, coastal community assistance, coastal resource conservation,
and the Coastal Nonpoint Pollution Control Program, after receiving
testimony from Terry D. Garcia, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for
Oceans and Atmosphere, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration;
Sarah W. Cooksey, Delaware Coastal Management Programs, Dover, on behalf
of the Coastal States Organization; Tim Eichenberg, Center for Marine
Conservation, Washington, D.C.; David Keeley, Maine Coastal Program,
Augusta; and Sylvia A. Earle, National Geographic Society, Oakland,
California. 

PUERTO RICO POLITICAL STATUS

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded hearings
to examine the results of the December 1998 political status plebiscite
on Puerto Rico, after receiving testimony form Puerto Rico Governor
Pedro Rossello, Anibal Acevedo-Vila, President, Popular Democratic
Party, Ruben Berrios Martinez, President, Puerto Rican Independence
Party, Luis Vega-Ramos, President, PROELA, and Zoraida F. Fonalledas,
New Progressive Party, all of San Juan, Puerto Rico. 

BIOLOGICAL WEAPONS THREAT

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded closed hearings to
examine the growing threat of biological weapons, after receiving
testimony from John Lauder, Special Assistant to the Director of Central
Intelligence for Nonproliferation. 

FEDERALISM AND CRIME CONTROL

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on
Federalism and crime control, focusing on the increasing Federalization
of criminal law and its impact on crime control and the criminal justice
system, after receiving testimony from Gilbert S. Merritt, Circuit
Judge, United States Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit, Nashville,
Tennessee; North Dakota State Representative John M. Dorso, Bismark, on
behalf of the National Conference of State Legislatures; Edwin Meese
III, Heritage Foundation and the ABA Task Force on the Federalization of
Criminal Law, Washington, D.C., former Attorney General of the United
States; John S. Baker, Jr., Louisiana State University Paul M. Hebert
Law Center, Baton Rouge; and Gerald B. Lefcourt, National Association of
Criminal Defense Lawyers, New York, New York. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Antitrust, Business Rights,
and Competition approved for full committee consideration S. 467, to
restate and improve section 7A of the Clayton Act, which would establish
time limits on FCC review of telecommunications mergers, with an
amendment in the nature of a substitute. 

SCHOOL SAFETY

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee resumed
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for programs of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act, focusing on safety programs,
after receiving testimony from Senator Campbell; Denise C. Gottfredson,
University of Maryland Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice,
College Park; James A. Fox, Northeastern University College of Criminal
Justice, and Paul F. Evans, Boston Police Department, both of Boston,
Massachusetts; Karen L. Bierman, Pennsylvania State University,
University Park, on behalf of the Fast Track Program; Jan Kuhl, Des
Moines Independent School District, Des Moines, Iowa; Kenneth S. Trump,
National School Safety and Security Services, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio;
Robert Eagan, Sandia National Laboratories, Albuquerque, New Mexico; and
William Strauss, McLean, Virginia.  

KAZAKHSTAN  [Heading supplied]

Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Commission concluded
hearings on the state of democratization and human rights in Kazakhstan,
after receiving testimony from Ross Wilson, Principal Deputy to the
Ambassador-at-Large/Special Advisor to the Secretary of State for New
Independent States; Bolat Nurgaliev, Republic of Kazakhstan Ambassador
to the United States; Akezhan Kazhegeldin, Republican People's Party of
Kazakhstan, Pyotr Svoik, Kazakhstan's Socialist Party, and Evgeni
Zhovtis, Kazakhstan International Bureau for Human Rights and Justice,
all of Almaty; and Martha Brill Olcott, Colgate University/Carnegie
Endowment for International Peace, Washington, D.C. 

                               [Page: D494]

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/05/10
Daily Digest - Monday, May 10, 1999;  pages D501 - D504

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Personnel met in closed
session and approved for full committee consideration those provisions
which fall within the subcommittee's jurisdiction S. 974, to authorize
appropriations for fiscal years 2000 and 2001 for military activities of
the Department of Defense, and to prescribe military personnel strengths
for fiscal years 2000 and 2001. 

TWA FLIGHT #800

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Administrative Oversight and
the Courts concluded oversight hearings on the investigation of TWA
Flight #800, after receiving testimony from Hank Hughes, Senior Accident
Investigator, Frank Zakar, Metallurgist, and Michael Marks, former
Metallurgist, all of the National Transportation Safety Board; Donald M.
Kerr, Assistant Director, Laboratory Division, Lewis D. Schiliro,
Assistant Director-In-Charge, New York Division, and William Tobin,
former Supervisory Special Agent (Chief Forensic Metallurgist), all of
the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Justice; and Andrew
Vita, Assistant Director, Field Operations, Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco
and Firearms, Department of the Treasury. 

                               [Page: D502]

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/05/11
Daily Digest - Tuesday, May 11, 1999;  pages D505 - D512

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

AGRICULTURAL TRADE SANCTIONS

Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Committee concluded
hearings on issues relating to agricultural trade sanctions, and S. 566,
to amend the Agricultural Trade Act of 1978 to exempt agricultural
commodities, livestock, and value-added products from unilateral
economic sanctions, to prepare for future bilateral and multilateral
trade negotiations affecting United States agriculture, after receiving
testimony from Stuart E. Eizenstat, Under Secretary of State for
Economic, Business, and Agricultural Affairs; August Schumacher, Jr.,
Under Secretary of Agriculture for Farm and Foreign Agricultural
Services; Charles J. O'Mara, O'Mara and Associates, Paul A. Drazek,
Powell, Goldstein, Frazer and Murphy, Dean Kleckner, American Farm
Bureau Federation, and James H. Matlack, American Friends Service
Committee, all of Washington, D.C.; Gary Turner, Idaho Farmers Union,
Burley, on behalf of the National Farmers Union; Richard E. Bell,
Riceland Foods, Inc., Stuttgart, Arkansas, on behalf of the USA Rice
Federation; Mike Yost, Murdock, Minnesota, on behalf of the American
Soybean Association,; and Jack Pettus, Sunburst, Montana, on behalf of
the National Barley Growers Association. 

APPROPRIATIONS--DEFENSE

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense concluded hearings
on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of
Defense, focusing on military pay and retirement benefits, readiness
protection, and weapons modernization, after receiving testimony from
William S. Cohen, Secretary of Defense; and Gen. Henry H. Shelton, USA,
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Readiness and Management
Support met in closed session and approved for full committee
consideration those provisions, which fall within the jurisdiction of
the subcommittee, of S. 974, to authorize appropriations for fiscal
years 2000 and 2001 for military activities of the Department of
Defense, and to prescribe military personnel strengths for fiscal years
2000 and 2001. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and
Capabilities met in closed session and approved for full committee
consideration those provisions, which fall within the jurisdiction of
the subcommittee, of S. 974, to authorize appropriations for fiscal
years 2000 and 2001 for military activities of the Department of
Defense, and to prescribe military personnel strengths for fiscal years
2000 and 2001. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Strategic Subcommittee met in closed
session and approved for full committee consideration those provisions,
which fall within the jurisdiction of the subcommittee, of S. 974, to
authorize appropriations for fiscal years 2000 and 2001 for military
activities of the Department of Defense, and to prescribe military
personnel strengths for fiscal years 2000 and 2001. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Seapower met in closed
session and approved for full committee consideration those provisions,
which fall within the jurisdiction of the subcommittee, of S. 974, to
authorize appropriations for fiscal years 2000 and 2001 for military
activities of the Department of Defense, and to prescribe military
personnel strengths for fiscal years 2000 and 2001. 

                               [Page: D507]

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Airland met in closed
session and approved for full committee consideration those provisions,
which fall within the jurisdiction of the subcommittee, of S. 974, to
authorize appropriations for fiscal years 2000 and 2001 for military
activities of the Department of Defense, and to prescribe military
personnel strengths for fiscal years 2000 and 2001. 

OUTER CONTINENTAL SHELF/LAND LEGACY INITIATIVE

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded hearings
on S. 25, to provide Coastal Impact Assistance to State and local
governments, to amend the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act Amendments
of 1978, the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act of 1965, the Urban
Park and Recreation Recovery Act, and the Federal Aid in Wildlife
Restoration Act (commonly referred to as the Pittman-Robertson Act) to
establish a fund to meet the outdoor conservation and recreation needs
of the American people, S. 446, to provide for the permanent protection
of the resources of the United States in the year 2000 and beyond, S.
532, to provide increased funding for the Land and Water Conservation
Fund and Urban Parks and Recreation Recovery Programs, to resume the
funding of the State grants program of the Land and Water Conservation
Fund, and to provide for the acquisition and development of conservation
and recreation facilities and programs in urban areas, S. 819, to
provide funding for the National Park System from outer Continental
Shelf revenues, the Lands Legacy Initiative, which would fund the Land
and Water Conservation Fund, and the role of the Council on
Environmental Quality and its involvement with the Federal land
managements agencies, after receiving testimony from George T. Frampton,
Jr., Acting Chairman, Council on Environmental Quality. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee ordered favorably
reported the following business items: 

S. 880, to amend the Clean Air Act to remove flammable fuels from the
list of substances with respect to which reporting and other activities
are required under the risk management plan program, with amendments; 

S. 559, to designate the Federal building located at 33 East 8th Street
in Austin, Texas, as the "J.J. `Jake' Pickle Federal Building"; 

S. 858, to designate the Federal building and United States courthouse
located at 18 Greenville Street in Newnan, Georgia, as the "Lewis R.
Morgan Federal Building and United States Courthouse"; and 

The nomination of George T. Frampton, Jr., of the District of Columbia,
to be a Member of the Council on Environmental Quality. 

AGRICULTURAL SANCTIONS POLICY

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded hearings on United
States agriculture sanctions policy for the 21st century, after
receiving testimony from Dan Glickman, Secretary, and Gus Schumacher,
Under Secretary for Farm and Foreign Agricultural Service, both of the
Department of Agriculture; William A. Reinsch, Under Secretary of
Commerce for Export Administration; Gary Hall, Kansas Farm Bureau,
Manhattan; Max Thornsberry, Missouri Cattlemen's Association, Columbia,
on behalf of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association; Mike Yost,
Murdock, Minnesota, on behalf of the American Soybean Association; and
Robert W. Kohlmeyer, World Perspectives, Inc., Washington, D.C. 

EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on Oversight of
Government Management, Restructuring and the District of Columbia
concluded hearings on multiple program coordination in early childhood
education, focusing on Head Start, Early Head Start, the Government
Performance and Results Act, the Family and Child Experiences Survey,
funding strategies, federal policy, rules and regulations, collaboration
between federal, state, and local governments in research, services, and
performance measurement, after receiving testimony from Olivia A.
Golden, Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Services for Children
and Families; and Judith Johnson, Acting Assistant Secretary of
Education for Elementary and Secondary Education. 

HATE CRIMES PREVENTION

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded hearings to examine how
to promote a responsive and responsible role for the Federal Government
on combating hate crimes, focusing on the relationship between the
federal government and the states in combating hate crime, analysis of
states' prosecution of hate crimes, development of a hate crime
legislation model, and existing federal hate crime law, after receiving
testimony from Eric H. Holder, Jr., Deputy Attorney General, Department
of Justice; Westchester County District Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro,
White Plains, New York; Kenneth T. Brown, Albany County Courthouse,
Laramie, Wyoming; Robert H. Knight, Family Research Council, Washington,
D.C.; Burt Neuborne, New York University Law School, New York; Akhil
Reed Amar, Yale Law School, New Haven, Connecticut; and Judy Shepard,
Casper, Wyoming. 

                               [Page: D508]

Joint Meetings

SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS

Conferees continued in evening session to resolve the differences
between the Senate and House passed D510versions of H.R. 1141, making
emergency supplemental appropriations for the fiscal year ending
September 30, 1999. 

                               [Page: D510]

FORMER YUGOSLAVIA INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL TRIBUNAL

Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Committee concluded
hearings to examine the status of the International Criminal Tribunal
for the former Yugoslavia, after receiving testimony from Nina
Bang-Jensen, Coalition for International Justice, and Paul Williams,
American University, both of Washington, D.C.; and Jennifer Green,
Center for Constitutional Law, New York, New York. 



1999/05/12
Daily Digest - Wednesday, May 12, 1999;  pages D514 - D522

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE

Committee on Armed Services: Committee met in closed session and began
markup of S. 974, to authorize appropriations for fiscal years 2000 and
2001 for military activities of the Department of Defense, and to
prescribe military personnel strengths for fiscal years 2000 and 2001,
but did not complete action thereon, and will meet again tomorrow. 

LOW-INCOME HOUSING TAX CREDIT

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on
Housing and Transportation concluded hearings to examine the
effectiveness of the low income housing tax credit provisions of Section
42 of the Internal Revenue Code in producing affordable housing and
revitalizing neighborhoods, after receiving testimony from Senators
Graham and Mack; David W. Herlinger, Colorado Housing and Finance
Authority, Denver; Richard K. Barnhart, Pennrose Properties, Inc., and
Rita Alice Brown, both of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Patrick A.
Barbolla, Fountainhead Companies, Fort Worth, Texas, on behalf of the
Rural Rental Housing Association of Texas, Inc.; Richard J. Ferrara,
Housing Opportunities Commission of Montgomery County, Kensington,
Maryland; and Howard Earl Cohen, Beacon Residential Properties Limited
Partnership, Boston, Massachusetts. 

WIRELESS COMMUNICATION AND PUBLIC SAFETY

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on
Communications concluded hearings on S. 800, to promote and enhance
public safety through the use of 9-1-1 as the universal emergency
assistance number, further deployment of wireless 9-1-1 service, support
of States in upgrading 9-1-1 capabilities and related functions,
encouragement of construction and operation of seamless, ubiquitous, and
reliable networks for personal wireless services, after receiving
testimony from George Heinrichs, SCC Communications Corporation,
Boulder, Colorado; Thomas E. Wheeler, Cellular Telecommunications
Industry Association, Washington, D.C.; and Mark Wildey, West Metro Fire
Protection District, Lakewood, Colorado. 

EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on
Science, Technology, and Space concluded hearings to examine incentives
and barriers created by the federal government in bringing new
technologies to the marketplace, after receiving testimony from Terry
Douglass, Knoxville, Tennessee, and Don Jenkins, Columbia, South
Carolina, both of Conversion Technologies Industries, Inc.; Ralph
Hutcheson, Scientific Materials Corporation, Bozeman, Montana; Timothy
Hammond, Tulane University Medical Center Environmental Astrobiology
Center, New Orleans, Louisiana; Richard E. Smalley, Rice University,
Houston, Texas; and Helena Wisniewski, ANSER, Arlington, Virginia. 

ALLEGED CHINESE ESPIONAGE

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee held open and
closed hearings to examine damage to the national security from alleged
Chinese espionage at the Department of Energy nuclear weapons
laboratories, receiving testimony from Mary Anne Sullivan, General
Counsel, Department of Energy; and Neil Gallagher, Assistant Director,
National Security Division, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and James
Baker, Deputy Counsel for Intelligence Operations, Office of
Intelligence Policy and Review, both of the Department of Justice. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

MEDICARE REFORM

Committee on Finance: Committee resumed hearings on Medicare reform
issues, focusing on the key differences between Medicare and other group
health D516insurance programs, receiving testimony from Harry P. Cain
II, Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, Chicago, Illinois; P.
Anthony Hammond, Institute for Health Policy Solutions, Paul B.
Ginsburg, Center for Studying Health System Change, and Murray N. Ross,
Medicare Payment Advisory Commission, all of Washington, D.C.; Christine
C. Ferguson, Rhode Island Department of Human Services, Providence;
Keith J. Mueller, University of Nebraska Center for Rural Health
Research, Omaha; John W. Rowe, Mount Sinai-New York University Medical
Center and Health System, New York; and David Blumenthal, Massachusetts
General Hospital/Partners HealthCare System, Boston, on behalf of the
Commonwealth Fund Task Force on Academic Health Centers. 

                               [Page: D516]

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

DEMOCRACY/RULE OF LAW IN THE AMERICAS

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere,
Peace Corps, Narcotics and Terrorism concluded hearings on the state of
democracy and the rule of law in the Americas, focusing on Latin America
and the Caribbean, after receiving testimony from Elliott Abrams, Ethics
and Public Policy Center, former Assistant Secretary of State of
Inter-American Affairs, Luigi R. Aeneid, Inter-American Dialogue, former
U.S. Ambassador to the Organization of American States, and John P.
Sweeney, Heritage Foundation, all of Washington, D.C. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Technology, Terrorism, and
Government Information approved for full committee consideration S.692,
to prohibit Internet gambling, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute. 

FARM WORKER PROGRAMS

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Immigration concluded
hearings to examine workforce needs of American agriculture, farm
workers, and the United States economy, focusing on illegal migrant farm
workers, H-2A reform, AgJOBS, collective bargaining agreements,
sanitation, and farm worker unemployment and wages, after receiving
testimony from Senators Graham, McConnell, Gorton, and Gordon Smith;
Representatives Berman and Bishop; Joshua Wunsch, Michigan Farm Bureau,
Traverse City, on behalf of the American Farm Bureau; James S. Holt,
McGuiness and Williams, on behalf of the National Council of
Agricultural Employers, Demetri Papademetriou, Carnegie Endowment for
International Peace, and Cecilia Munoz, National Council of La Raza, all
of Washington, D.C.; Dolores C. Huerta, United Farm Workers of America,
AFL-CIO, Keene, California; and Manuel Cunha, Jr., Nisei Farmers League,
Fresno, California. 

AUTHORIZATION: ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for programs of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act, focusing on the Title 1 program,
Helping Disadvantaged Children Meet High Standards, including issues as
accountability, targeting assistance to low-income students, allocating
resources for early childhood initiatives, and making Title One a
portable entitlement, after receiving testimony from Christopher T.
Cross, Independent Review Panel/Council for Basic Education, Washington,
D.C.; Lisa Graham Keegan, Arizona Department of Education, Phoenix; and
Iris T. Metts, Delaware Department of Education, Dover. 

HUBZONES

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded oversight hearings on
the implementation of the Small Business Administration's HUBZone
Empowerment Contracting Program, SBA's initiatives to promote economic
development opportunities for Native Americans and within Indian
reservation communities, and other SBA programs that support economic
development on Indian reservations, after receiving testimony from
Richard L. Hayes, Associate Deputy Administrator, Office of Government
Contracting and Minority Enterprise Development, Small Business
Administration; Stanley Pino, All Indian Pueblo Council, Albuquerque,
New Mexico; Sophie Minich, Cook Inlet Regional, Inc., Anchorage, Alaska;
and Pete Homer, National Indian Business Association, Washington, D.C. 

INTELLIGENCE

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the
intelligence community. 

Committee will meet again Wednesday, May 19. 

                               [Page: D517]

Joint Meetings

SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS

Conferees continued in evening session to resolve the differences
between the Senate and House passed versions of H.R. 1141, making
emergency supplemental appropriations for the fiscal year ending
September 30, 1999. 



1999/05/13
Daily Digest - Thursday, May 13, 1999;  pages D523 - D530

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Armed Services: Committee continued in evening session to
mark up S. 974, to authorize appropriations for fiscal years 2000 and
2001 for military activities of the Department of Defense, and to
prescribe military personnel strengths for fiscal years 2000 and 2001. 

ALASKAN NATIONAL PARKS/OIL SPILL SETTLEMENT/NATIVE HIRING 

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded hearings
on S. 698, to review the suitability and feasibility of recovering costs
of high altitude rescues at Denali National Park and Preserve in the
state of Alaska, S. 711, to allow for the investment of joint Federal
and State funds from the civil settlement of damages from the Exxon
Valdez oil spill, and S. 748, to improve Native hiring and contracting
by the Federal Government within the State of Alaska, after receiving
testimony from Stephen C. Saunders, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the
Interior for Fish and Wildlife and Parks; Molly McCammon, Exxon Valdez
Oil Spill Trustee Council, and Boris Merculief, St. George Traditional
Council and Aleutian/Pribilof Islands Association, Inc., both of
Anchorage, Alaska; Charlie Curtis, NANA Regional Corporation, Inc., and
Dennis J. Tiepelman, Maniilaq Association, both of Kotzebue, Alaska; and
Loretta Bullard, Kawerak, Inc., Nome, Alaska.

CLEAN WATER ACTION PLAN 

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded hearings
on issues relating to the President's Clean Water Action Plan, after
receiving testimony from Dan Glickman, Secretary of Agriculture; Carol
M. Browner, Administrator, Environmental Protection Agency; Gary G.
Beach, Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality, Cheyenne; John
Godbee, International Paper Company, Washington, DC, on behalf of the
American Forest and Paper Association; Daniel F. Heilig, Wyoming Outdoor
Council, Lander, on behalf of the Clean Water Network; Ross Wilson,
Texas Cattle Feeder's Association, Amarillo, on behalf of the National
Cattlemen's Beef Association; and Jane Nishida, Maryland Department of
the Environment, Baltimore. 

U.S. CUSTOMS SERVICE 

Committee on Finance: Committee held oversight hearings on activities of
the United States Customs Service, focusing on commercial operations,
international trade, law enforcement, and the Automated Commercial
Environment, receiving testimony from James E. Johnson, Under Secretary
for Enforcement, Nancy Killefer, Assistant Secretary for Financial
Management, and Raymond W. Kelly, Commissioner, United States Customs
Service, all of the Department of the Treasury; Randolph C. Hite,
Associate Director, Governmentwide and Defense Information Systems,
Accounting and Information Management Division, General Accounting
Office; George Bardos and Ty Bordner, both of Vastera, Inc., Dulles,
Virginia; Kevin Smith, General Motors D525Corporation, Detroit,
Michigan; Charles Morgan Kinghorn, PricewaterhouseCoopers, Fairfax
Virginia; Malcolm E. McLouth, Canaveral Port Authority, Cape Canaveral,
Florida; James D. Phillips, Canadian/American Border Trade Alliance,
Lewiston, New York; and Sam F. Vale, Border Trade Alliance, Rio Grande
City, Texas.  

                               [Page: D525]

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

ANTI-BALLISTIC MISSILE TREATY 

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee resumed hearings on issues
relating to the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, focusing on its impact on
Start II and National Missile Defense, receiving testimony from Stephen
J. Hadley, Shea and Gardner, former Assistant Secretary of Defense, and
Robert G. Joseph, National Defense University Center for Counter
Proliferation Research, former Ambassador to the ABM Treaty's Standing
Consultative Commission, both of Washington, DC; David J. Smith, Global
Horizons Incorporated, Annandale, Virginia, former Chief U.S. Negotiator
to the Defense and Space Talks; and William T. Lee, Center for Strategic
and International Studies, Alexandria Virginia, former Analyst for the
Defense Intelligence Agency. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

VOLUNTARY CONFESSIONS 

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Criminal Justice Oversight
concluded hearings to examine the Department of Justice's decision
regarding the enforce of Federal statute 18 U.S.C. 3501, which governs
the admissibility of voluntary confessions in Federal court, and the
impact on the Miranda rights, after receiving testimony from Stephen J.
Markman, Lansing, Michigan, former United States Attorney for the
Eastern District of Michigan/former Assistant Attorney General for the
Office of Legal Policy; Maricopa County District Attorney Richard M.
Romley, Phoenix, Arizona; Gilbert G. Gallegos, Fraternal Order of
Police, Washington, DC; Daniel C. Richman, Fordham University School of
Law, New York, New York, former Chief Appellate Attorney for the
Southern District of New York; George Thomas, Rutgers University School
of Law, Newark, New Jersey; and Paul G. Cassell, University of Utah
College of Law, Salt Lake City, former Associate Deputy Attorney General 
of Labor, after the nominee testified and answered questions in his own
behalf. 

NOMINATION

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded
hearings on the nomination of Richard M. McGahey, of the District of
Columbia, to be an Assistant Secretary of Labor, after the nominee
testified and answered questions in is own behalf. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/05/14
Daily Digest - Friday, May 14, 1999;  pages D532 - D538

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--DEFENSE 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense resumed hearings on
proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of
Defense, receiving testimony from numerous public witness. 

Subcommittee will meet again on Wednesday, May 19. 

AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE 

Committee on Armed Services: On Thursday, May 13, committee ordered
favorably reported the following bills: 

An original bill entitled "National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal
Year 2000"; 

An original bill entitled "Department of Defense Authorization Act for
Fiscal Year 2000"; 

An original bill entitled "Military Construction Act for Fiscal Year
2000"; and 

An original bill entitled "Department of Energy National Security Act
for Fiscal Year 2000". 

Joint Meetings 

SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS 

Conferees on Thursday, May 13, agreed to file a conference report on the
differences between the Senate and House passed versions of H.R. 1141,
making D534emergency supplemental appropriations for the fiscal year
ending September 20, 1999. 



1999/05/17
Daily Digest - Monday, May 17, 1999;  pages D539 - D542

Committee Meetings

No Committee meetings were held. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/05/18
Daily Digest - Tuesday, May 18, 1999;  pages D543 - 550

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

NOXIOUS WEEDS AND PLANT PESTS 

Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Subcommittee on
Forestry, Conservation, and Rural Revitalization concluded hearings on
S. 910, to streamline, modernize, and enhance the authority of the
Secretary of Agriculture relating to plant protection and quarantine,
after receiving testimony from Senator Akaka; Craig A. Reed,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, and Robert
Lewis, Deputy Chief for Research and Development, Forest Service, both
of the Department of Agriculture; William Brown, Secretary's Science
Advisor, Office of the Secretary, Department of the Interior; Virginia
State Senator John C. Watkins III, Midlothian, on behalf of the American
Nursery and Landscape Association; Frank Priestley, Idaho Farm Bureau
Federation, Boise, on behalf of the American Farm Bureau Federation;
Elizabeth A. Chornesky, The Nature Conservancy, Arlington, Virginia; and
Gene B. Cross, North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer
Services, Raleigh, on behalf of the Weed Science Society of America. 

TELEVISION VIOLENCE 

Committee on Commerce: Committee concluded hearings on issues relating
to the effects of violence in mass media programming, and S. 876, to
amend the Communications Act of 1934 to require that the broadcast of
violent video programming be limited to hours when children are not
reasonably likely to comprise a substantial portion of the audience,
after receiving testimony from Leonard D. Eron, University of Michigan
Institute for Social Research, Ann Arbor; William S. Abbott, National
Foundation to Improve Television, Boston, Massachusetts; Robert L.
Corn-Revere, Hogan and Hartson/Catholic University of America Columbus
School of Law, Washington, D.C.; James T. Hamilton, Duke University,
Durham, North Carolina; and Dale Kunkel, University of California, Santa
Barbara. 

FEDERAL ROYALTY CERTAINTY ACT 

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Energy
Research, Development, Production and Regulation concluded hearings on
S. 924, entitled the "Federal Royalty Certainty Act", to codify that
royalty value is the value of oil and gas D545at the lease, after
receiving testimony from Thomas R. Kitsos, Deputy Director, Minerals
Management Service, Department of the Interior; Stephen A. Reynolds,
Wyoming Office of State Lands and Investments, Cheyenne; James N.
McCabe, City of Long Beach, Long Beach, California; and David Blackmon,
on behalf of the Independent Petroleum Association of America, Larry E.
Wooden, Shell Exploration and Production Company, and Al Poe Leggette,
Fulbright and Jaworski, all of Washington, D.C. 

                               [Page: D545]

GASOLINE SULFUR STANDARDS 

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on Clean Air,
Wetlands, Private Property, and Nuclear Safety held hearings on the
Environmental Protection Agency's proposed sulfur standard for gasoline
as contained in the proposed Tier Two standards for automobiles,
receiving testimony from Nettie H. Myers, South Dakota Department of
Environment and Natural Resources, Pierre; James D. Austin, New York
State Department of Environmental Conservation, Albany; J. Louis Frank,
Marathon Ashland Petroleum, Findlay, Ohio; Loren K. Beard,
DaimlerChrysler Corporation, Auburn Hills, Michigan, on behalf of the
Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers; Rebecca D. Stanfield, U.S. Public
Interest Research Group, Washington, D.C.; Clint W. Ensign, Sinclair Oil
Corporation, Salt Lake City, Utah; and William E. Nasser, Energy
BioSystems Corporation, The Woodlands, Texas. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

CUSTOMS OPERATIONS EFFECTIVENESS 

Committee on Finance: Committee resumed oversight hearings on the
enforcement activities of the United States Customs Service, focusing on
commercial operations, after receiving testimony from Norman J. Rabkin,
Director, Administration of Justice Issues, General Government Division,
General Accounting Office; Lawrence W. Sherman, University of Maryland,
College Park; Michael Chertoff, Latham and Watkins, Newark, New Jersey;
and a protected witness. 

Hearings will continue Tuesday, May 25. 

AUTHORIZATION--ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION ACT 

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee resumed
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for programs of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act, receiving testimony from Samuel
Halperin, American Youth Policy Forum, and Courtney Adams, Lincoln
Multi-Cultural Middle School, both of Washington, D.C.; James E. Fish,
Sherwood High School, Sandy Spring, Maryland; and Hamid Ebrahimi,
Project Seed, Inc., Dallas, Texas. 

Hearings will continue on Thursday, May 20. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/05/19
Daily Digest - Wednesday, May 19, 1999;  pages D552 - D560

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--DEFENSE

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense concluded hearings
on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for the Department of
Defense, focusing on the budget and posture of the United States Army,
after receiving testimony from Louis Caldera, Secretary of the Army; and
Gen. Dennis J. Reimer, USA, Chief of Staff. 

APPROPRIATIONS--FOREIGN ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Foreign Operations held
hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for foreign
assistance programs, receiving testimony from Robert E. Rubin, Secretary
of the Treasury. 

Subcommittee will meet again tomorrow. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee ordered favorably
reported the following business items: 

S. 109, to improve protection and management of the Chattahoochee River
National Recreation Area in the State of Georgia, with an amendment; 

S. 323, to redesignate the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National
Monument as a national park and establish the Gunnison National
Conservation Area, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;

S. 415, to protect the permanent trust funds of the State of Arizona
from erosion due to inflation and modify the basis on which
distributions are made from those funds; 

S. 416, to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to convey the city of
Sisters, Oregon, a certain parcel of land for use in connection with a
sewage treatment facility, with an amendment; 

S. 441, to amend the National Trails System Act to designate the route
of the War of 1812 British invasion of Maryland and Washington, District
of Columbia, and the route of the American defense, for study for
potential addition to the national trails system, with an amendment; 

S. 548, to establish the Fallen Timbers Battlefield and Fort Miamis
National Historical Site in the State of Ohio, with an amendment in the
nature of a substitute; 

S. 607, to reauthorize and amend the National Geologic Mapping Act of
1992; 

S. 698, to review the suitability and feasibility of recovering costs of
high altitude rescues at Denali National Park and Preserve in the State
of Alaska; 

S. 700, to amend the National Trails System Act to designate the Ala
Kahakai Trail as a National Historic Trail, with an amendment; 

S. 744, to provide for the continuation of higher education through the
conveyance of certain public lands in the State of Alaska to the
University of Alaska, with an amendment; 

S. 748, to improve Native hiring and contracting by the Federal
Government within the State of Alaska, with an amendment; 

                               [Page: D554]

S. 776, to authorize the National Park Service to conduct a feasibility
study for the preservation of the Loess Hills in western Iowa, with an
amendment; 

H.R. 154, to provide for the collection of fees for the making of motion
pictures, television productions, and sound tracks in National Park
System and National Wildlife Refuge System units, with an amendment in
the nature of a substitute; and 

H.R. 449, to authorize the Gateway Visitor Center at Independence
National Historical Park. 

Also, Committee began mark up of S. 608, to amend the Nuclear Waste
Policy Act of 1982, but did not complete consideration thereon, and
recessed subject to call. 

YOUTH CONSERVATION CORPS

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on National
Parks, Historic Preservation, and Recreation concluded oversight
hearings on the status of the Youth Conservation Corps and other service
and job training programs conducted by the National Park Service, Bureau
of Land Management, Forest Service, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, after receiving testimony from Robert G. Stanton, Director,
National Park Service, Department of the Interior; Mike Dombeck, Chief,
Forest Service, Department of Agriculture; Dale M. Penny, Arlington,
Virginia, and Katorra C. Wright, Washington, D.C., both on behalf of the
Student Conservation Association; Andrew O. Moore, National Association
of Service and Conservation Corps, Washington, D.C.; and Dwayne
Lefthand, Rocky Mountain Youth Corps, Ranchos de Taos, New Mexico. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Finance: Committee met in closed and open session and
ordered favorably reported an original bill, The Affordable Education
Act of 1999. 

INDIAN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on S. 613, to
encourage Indian economic development, to provide for the disclosure of
Indian tribal sovereign immunity in contracts involving Indian tribes,
and S. 614, to provide for regulatory reform in order to encourage
investment, business, and economic development with respect to
activities conducted on Indian lands, after receiving testimony from
Jonathan M. Orszag, Assistant Secretary and Director of Policy and
Strategic Planning, Department of Commerce; Michael J. Anderson, Deputy
Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs; David Tovey,
Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, Pendleton,
Oregon; and Dennis Horn, Holland and Knight, Washington, D.C. 

INTELLIGENCE

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the
intelligence community. 

Committee will meet again on Wednesday, May 26. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/05/20
Daily Digest - Thursday, May 20, 1999;  pages D561 - 572

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--FOREIGN ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Foreign Operations
concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for
foreign assistance programs, after receiving testimony from Madeleine K.
Albright, Secretary of State. 

CHILDREN'S INTERNET PROTECTION ACT

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded
hearings on S. 97, to require the installation and use by schools and
libraries of a technology for filtering or blocking material on the
Internet on computers with Internet access to be eligible to receive or
retain universal service assistance, after receiving testimony from Mark
James, Deputy Director, Intelligence Division, Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco, and Firearms, Department of the Treasury; Howard P. Berkowitz,
Anti-Defamation League, Washington, D.C.; Peter H. Nickerson, N2H2,
Seattle, Washington; and Mark Potok, Southern Poverty Law Center,
Montgomery, Alabama. 

COMMERCIAL SPACE LAUNCH INDUSTRY

Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation: Subcommittee on
Science, Technology, and Space concluded hearings on issues relating to
the commercial space launch industry, after receiving testimony from
Maj. Gen. Robert C. Hinson, Commander, 14th Air Force/Component
Commander, United States Air Force Space Command; Keith Calhoun-Senghor,
Director, Office of Space Commercialization, Technology Administration,
Department of Commerce; Lori Garver, Associate Administrator for Policy
and Plans, National Aeronautics and Space Administration; Patricia Grace
Smith, Associate Administrator for Commercial Space Transportation,
Federal Aviation Administration, Department of Transportation; D. Andrew
Beal, Beal Aerospace Technologies, Inc., Frisco, Texas; Hoyt Davidson,
Donaldson, Lufkin, and Jenrette Securities Corporation, New York, New
York; John W. Douglass, Aerospace Industries Association of America,
Inc, Washington, D.C.; Gale Schluter, Boeing Company, Arlington,
Virginia; Peter B. Teets, Lockheed Martin Corporation, Bethesda,
Maryland; and Stephen G. Wurst, Space Access, Palmdale, California. 

ALLEGED CHINESE ESPIONAGE

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee held open and
closed hearings to examine damage to the national security from alleged
Chinese espionage at the Department of Energy nuclear weapons
laboratories, receiving testimony from Notra Trulock, III, Acting Deputy
Director, Office of Intelligence, and Edward Curran, Director, Office of
Counterintelligence, both of the Department of Energy; Neil Gallagher,
Assistant Director, National Security Division, Federal Bureau of
Investigation, and James Baker, Deputy Counsel for Intelligence
Operations, Office of Intelligence Policy and Review, both of the
Department of Justice. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

NATIONAL OILHEAT RESEARCH ALLIANCE ACT

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Energy
Research, Development, Production and Regulation concluded hearings on
S. 348, to authorize and facilitate a program to enhance training,
research and development, energy conservation and efficiency, and
consumer education in the oilheat industry for the benefit of oilheat
consumers and the public, after receiving testimony from Donald Allen,
E.T. Lawson, Hampton, Virginia, on behalf of the National Oilheat
Research Alliance; and John Huber, Petroleum Marketers Association of
America, Arlington, Virginia. 

GASOLINE SULFUR STANDARDS

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on Clean Air,
Wetlands, Private Property, and Nuclear Safety concluded hearings on the
Environmental Protection Agency's proposed sulfur standard for gasoline
as contained in the proposed Tier Two standards for automobiles, after
receiving testimony from Carol M. Browner, Administrator, and Robert
Perciasepe, Assistant Administrator for Air and Radiation, both of the
Environmental Protection Agency. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee ordered favorably reported
the following business items: 

S. 746, to provide for analysis of major rules, to promote the public's
right to know the costs and benefits of major rules, and to increase the
accountability of quality of Government, with an amendment; 

S. 468, to improve the effectiveness and performance of Federal
financial assistance programs, simplify Federal financial assistance
application and reporting requirements, and improve the delivery of
services to the public, with amendments; 

                               [Page: D564]

S. 712, to amend title 39, United States Code, to allow postal patrons
to contribute to funding for highway-rail grade crossing safety through
the voluntary purchase of certain specially issued United States postage
stamps; 

H.R. 858, to amend title 11, District of Columbia Code, to extend
coverage under the whistleblower protection provisions of the District
of Columbia Comprehensive Merit Personnel Act of 1978 to personnel of
the courts of the District of Columbia, with an amendment; 

S. 1072, to make certain technical and other corrections relating to the
Centennial of Flight Commemoration Act (36 U.S.C. 143 note; 112 Stat.
3486 et seq.); 

S. 335, to amend chapter 30 of title 39, United States Code, to provide
for the nonmailability of certain deceptive matter relating to games of
chance, administrative procedures, orders, and civil penalties relating
to such matter, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute; and 

The nominations of Stephen H. Glickman and Eric T. Washington, each to
be an Associate Judge of the District of Columbia Court of Appeals,
Hiram E. Puig Lugo, to be an Associate Judge of the Superior Court of
the District of Columbia, and John T. Spotila, of New Jersey, to be
Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs,
Office of Management and Budget. 

ESPIONAGE INVESTIGATION

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded closed oversight
hearings on the national security methods and processes relating to the
Wen-Ho Lee espionage investigation, after receiving testimony from
certain protected witnesses. 

AUTHORIZATION--ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee resumed
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for programs of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act, receiving testimony from
Senators Cochran and Shelby; Cassandra D. Washington, Mississippi
Educational Network, Jackson; Robert T. Coonrod, Corporation for Public
Broadcasting, Ralph Nadar, Commercial Alert, and Father Peter Weigand,
St. Anselm's Abbey School, all of Washington, D.C.; Linda Wood, South
Kingston High School, Wakefield, Rhode Island; Arthur White, Stamford,
Connecticut, and Nedra Whitted, Chicago, Illinois, both on behalf of
Reading Is Fundamental, Inc.; Diane Berreth, Association for Supervision
and Curriculum Development, Alexandria, Virginia; Phyllis Schlafly,
Eagle Forum, St. Louis, Missouri; and Paul Folkemer, Channel One
Network, New York, New York.  

VETERANS PROGRAMS

Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on S. 555,
to amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs to continue payment of monthly educational assistance
benefits to veterans enrolled at educational institutions during periods
between terms if the interval between such periods does not exceed eight
weeks, S. 695, to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish
a national cemetery for veterans in the Atlanta, Georgia, metropolitan
area, S. 940, to provide a temporary authority for the use of voluntary
separation incentives by the Department of Veterans Affairs to reduce
employment levels, restructure staff, and S. 1076, to amend title 38,
United States Code, to provide a cost-of-living adjustment in rates of
compensation paid to veterans with service-connected disabilities, to
enhance programs providing health care, education, and other benefits
for veterans, to authorize major medical facility projects, to reform
eligibility for burial in Arlington National Cemetery, after receiving
testimony from Senator Conrad; Togo D. West, Jr., Secretary, Kenneth W.
Kizer, Under Secretary of Health, Veterans Health Administration, Nora
Egan, Deputy Under Secretary for Management, Veterans Benefits
Administration, and Roger R. Rapp, Acting Under Secretary for Memorial
Affairs, National Cemetery Administration, all of the Department of
Veterans Affairs; Patrick T. Henry, Assistant Secretary for Manpower and
Reserve Affairs, and John C. Metzler, Superintendent, Arlington National
Cemetery, both of the Department of the Army; Jacqueline Garrick,
American Legion, Dennis M. Cullinan, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Joseph A.
Violante, Disabled American Veterans, Harley Thomas, Paralyzed Veterans
of America, and Rick Weidman, Vietnam Veterans of America, all of
Washington, D.C.; and Peter S. Gaytan, AMVETS, Lanham, Maryland. 

                               [Page: D565]

Joint Meetings

GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE

Joint Hearing: Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources'
Subcommittee on Energy Research, Development, Production and Regulation
concluded joint oversight hearings with the House Committee on
Government Reform's Subcommittee on National Economic Growth, Natural
Resources and Regulatory Affairs on the Administration's fiscal year
2000 budget request for climate change programs and compliance with
various statutory provisions in fiscal year 1999 appropriations acts
requiring detailed accounting of climate change spending and performance
measures for each requested increase in funding, after receiving
testimony from Representative Knollenberg; Deidre A. Lee, Acting Deputy
Director for Management, Office of Management and Budget; Peter F.
Guerrero, Director, Environmental Protection Issues, Resources,
Community, and Economic Development Division, General Accounting
D568Office; T.J. Glauthier, Deputy Secretary of Energy; David M.
Gardiner, Assistant Administrator for Policy, Environmental Protection
Agency; Jerry Taylor, Cato Institute, and David M. Nemtzow, Alliance to
Save Energy, both of Washington, D.C.; and William H. Lash, III, George
Mason University, Arlington, Virginia. 



1999/05/24
Daily Digest - Monday, May 24, 1999;  pages D573 - D578

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense approved for full
committee consideration an original bill, making appropriations for
fiscal year 2000 for the Department of Defense. 

FEDERAL PRISON INDUSTRIES

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Criminal Justice Oversight
concluded hearings on the Bureau of Prisons oversight of the role and
importance of the Federal Prison Industries, after receiving testimony
from Kathleen Hawk Sawyer, Director, Bureau of Prisons, and Chief
Executive Officer, Federal Prison Industries, Steve Schwalb, Assistant
Director, Bureau of Prisons, and Chief Operating Officer, Federal Prison
Industries, and Joseph M. Aragon, Chairman, Federal Prison Industries,
all of the Department of Justice; David R. Oliver, Principal Deputy
Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Technology; Phil W.
Glover, Council of Prison Locals, American Federation of Government
Employees, Johnston, Pennsylvania; and Ann F. Hoffman, Union of
Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees, Washington, D.C. 

HOME HEALTH CARE ASSESSMENT

Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded hearings to examine the
impact of the Health Care Financing Administration's Outcome and
Assessment Information Set on access to home health care, after
receiving testimony from Jeffrey Kang, Director, Office of Clinical
Standards and Quality, Health Care Financing Administration, Department
of Health and Human Services; Cynthia L. Kail, Greene County Medical
Center, Jefferson, Iowa; Kristy Wright, Visiting Nurses Association,
Butler, Pennsylvania; Judith A. Conlin, Iowa Department of Elder
Affairs, Des Moines; Peter W. Shaughnessy, University of Colorado Health
Sciences Center, Denver; James C. Pyles, Washington, D.C., on behalf of
the Home Health Services and Staffing Association and the American
Psychoanalytic Association; and George Taler, American Academy of Home
Care Physicians, Baltimore, Maryland. 

                               [Page: D575]

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/05/25
Daily Digest - Tuesday, May 25, 1999;  pages D580 - D588

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--ENERGY AND WATER DEVELOPMENT

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Energy and Water
Development approved for full committee consideration an original bill
making appropriations for fiscal year 2000 for energy and water
development programs. 

APPROPRIATIONS--TRANSPORTATION

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Transportation approved for
full committee consideration an original bill making appropriations for
fiscal year 2000 for the Department of Transportation and related
agencies. 

APPROPRIATIONS--DEFENSE/EMERGENCY SUPPLEMENTAL

Committee on Appropriations: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following bills: 

An original bill (S. 1122) making appropriations for fiscal year 2000
for the Department of Defense; and 

H.R. 1664, making emergency supplemental appropriations for military
operations, refugee relief, and humanitarian assistance relating to the
conflict in Kosovo, and for military operations in Southwest Asia for
the fiscal year ending September 30, 1999, with amendments. 

Also, committee completed its review of subcommittee allocations of
budget outlays and new budget authority allocated to the committee in H.
Con. Res. 68, establishing the congressional budget for the United
States Government for fiscal year 2000 and setting forth appropriate
budgetary levels for each of fiscal years 2001 through 2009. 

NOMINATIONS

Committee on the Armed Services: Committee ordered favorably reported
the nomination of Ikram U. Khan, of Nevada, to be a Member of the Board
of Regents of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences,
and 224 military nominations in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air
Force. 

RETAIL ELECTRICITY COMPETITION

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee held oversight
hearings on State progress in retail electricity competition, receiving
testimony from Marsha H. Smith, Idaho Public Utilities Commission,
Boise, on behalf of the National Association of Regulatory Utility
Commissioners; B.J. Helton, Kentucky Public Service Commission,
Frankfort, on behalf of the Low Cost Electricity States Initiative;
Roger Hamilton, Oregon Public Utility Commission, Salem; Maureen O.
Helmer, New York Public Utility Commission, Albany; Benjamin F. Montoya,
Public Service Company of New Mexico, Albuquerque, on behalf of the
Edison Electric Institute and Alliance for Competitive Electricity; P.
Chrisman Iribe, U.S. Generating Company, Bethesda, Maryland; Jan Schori,
Sacramento Municipal Utility District, Sacramento, California; and Irwin
A. Popowsky, Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocate, Harrisburg. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

NATIONAL PARKS/HISTORIC PRESERVATION/RECREATION

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on National
Parks, Historic Preservation, and Recreation concluded hearings on S.
140, to establish the Thomas Cole National Historic Site in the State of
New York as an affiliated area of the National Park System, S. 734,
entitled the "National Discovery Trails Act of 1999", S. 762, to direct
the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a feasibility D582study on the
inclusion of the Miami Circle in Biscayne National Park, S. 938, to
eliminate restrictions on the acquisition of certain land contiguous to
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, S. 939, to correct spelling errors in
the statutory designations of Hawaiian National Parks, S. 946, to
authorize the Secretary of the Interior to transfer administrative
jurisdiction over land within the boundaries of the Home of Franklin D.
Roosevelt National Historic Site to the Archivist of the United States
for the construction of a visitor center, and S. 955, to allow the
National Park Service to acquire certain land for addition to the
Wilderness Battlefield in Virginia, as previously authorized by law, by
purchase or exchange as well as by donation, after receiving testimony
from Katherine Stevenson, Associate Director, Cultural Resource
Stewardship and Partnerships, National Park Service, Department of the
Interior; Lewis J. Bellardo, Deputy Archivist, National Archives and
Record Administration; Robert S. Carr, Miami Circle Discovery, Miami,
Florida; and Reese F. Lukei, American Discovery Trail Society, Virginia
Beach, Virginia. 

AUTHORIZATION--SUPERFUND

                               [Page: D582]

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee held hearings on S.
1090, to reauthorize and amend the Comprehensive Environmental Response,
Liability, and Compensation Act of 1980, receiving testimony from Mayor
Jim Marshall, Macon, Georgia, on behalf of the U.S. Conference of
Mayors; Mayor Thomas Suozzi, Glen Cove, New York, on behalf of the
American Communities for Cleanup Equity; Tom Curtis, National Governors'
Association, Karen Florini, Environmental Defense Fund, and Red Cavaney,
American Petroleum Institute, all of Washington, D.C.; Claudia Kerbawy,
Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, Lansing, on behalf of the
Association of State and Territorial Solid Waste Management Officials;
Gordon J. Johnson, New York State Assistant Attorney General, Albany, on
behalf of the National Association of Attorneys General; Bernard J.
Reilly, Du Pont De Nemours E.I. & Co., Wilmington, Delaware, on behalf
of the Chemical Manufacturers Association; Mark Gregor, Rochester, New
York, on behalf of the National Association of Local Government
Environmental Professionals; Mike Nobis, J. K. Creative Printers,
Quincy, Illinois, on behalf of the National Federation of Independent
Business; Mike Ford, Mike Ford Agency, Clark, New Jersey, on behalf of
the National Association of Realtors; and Wilma Subra, Subra Company,
New Iberia, Louisiana. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

U.S. CUSTOMS OPERATIONS

Committee on Finance: Committee resumed hearings on the enforcement
activities of the U.S. Customs Service, focusing on how the Custom
Services is ensuring effectiveness, integrity, and accountability in
customs operations, receiving testimony from Michael C. Tarr, Acting
Assistant Inspector General, William A. Keefer, Assistant Commissioner,
and Vincent J. Parolisi, Director, Narcotics and Currency Inspection,
both of the Office of Internal Affairs, U.S. Customs Service, all of the
Department of the Treasury; Milton Mollen, Graubard, Mollen and Miller,
New York, New York; Jack O. Bradshaw, Motorola, Inc., Schaumburg,
Illinois; John S. Moore, Siecor Corp., Hickory, North Carolina; and
Jerry Cook, Sara Lee Branded Apparel, Winston-Salem, North Carolina. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

POLITICAL AND MILITARY DEVELOPMENTS IN INDIA

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on Near Eastern and South
Asian Affairs concluded hearings on political and military developments
in India and their implications for American policy, after receiving
testimony from Karl Frederick Inderfurth, Assistant Secretary of State
for South Asian Affairs; Frank G. Wisner, American International Group,
Inc., New York, New York; and Stephen P. Cohen, Brookings Institution,
Washington, D.C. 

ANTI-BALLISTIC MISSILE TREATY

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee held hearings to examine the
legal status of the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, receiving testimony
from Douglas J. Feith, former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for
Negotiation Policy, and George Miron, both of Feith and Zell, and David
B. Rivkin, Jr., and Lee A. Casey, both of Hunton and Williams, all of
Washington, D.C.; and Michael J. Glennon, University of California
School of Law, Davis. 

Hearings continue tomorrow. 

COPYRIGHT AND DIGITAL DISTANCE EDUCATION

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded hearings to review the
Library of Congress Copyright Office report on copyright and digital
distance education, after receiving testimony from Marybeth Peters,
Register of Copyrights/Associate Librarian for Copyright Services,
United States Copyright Office, Library of Congress. 

EDUCATION AND BUSINESS SUCCESS

Committee on Small Business: Committee held hearings to examine the
effect of the level of academic competence achieved by high school
graduates on the D583success of future entrepreneurs, small businesses,
and the workforce, receiving testimony from Eric Rolfe Greenberg,
American Management Association, International, New York, New York;
Carol L. Ball, Ball Publishing, Inc., Greenville, Ohio, on behalf of the
U.S. Chamber of Commerce; Barbara Seisler Goodling, Albert Seisler
Machine Corporation, Mohnton, Pennsylvania, on behalf of the National
Federation of Independent Business; Edward B. Rust, Jr., State Farm
Insurance Companies, Bloomington, Illinois, on behalf of the National
Alliance of Business and the Business Roundtable; and Kelly Fujiwara,
Lexington/Rockbridge Chamber of Commerce, Lexington, Virginia. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

COMMUNITY Y2K PREPAREDNESS

                               [Page: D583]

Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem: Committee
concluded hearings to explore individual and community Y2K preparedness,
and the media's role in providing Y2K information, after receiving
testimony from Edward Yourdon, Cutter Consortium, Taos, New Mexico;
Paloma O'Riley, Cassandra Project, Louiseville, Colorado; Liza K.
Christian, Rogue Valley Y2K Task Force, Ashland, Oregon; Michael Nolan,
City of Norfolk, Nebraska; Cathy Hotka, National Retail Federation, and
Barbara Cochran, Radio-Television News Directors Association, both of
Washington, D.C.; Lawrence T. McGill and Kerry Brock, both of the Media
Studies Center, New York, New York; James Adams, Infrastructure Defense,
Inc., Alexandria, Virginia; and Rich Jaroslovsky, Wall Street Journal
Interactive Edition, New York, New York, on behalf of the Online News
Association. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/05/26
Daily Digest - Wednesday, May 26, 1999;  pages D589 - D598

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

LIVESTOCK INDUSTRY

Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Committee concluded
hearings to examine the livestock industry, including mandatory pricing
and country of origin labeling, receiving testimony from Representative
Chenoweth; Dan Glickman, Secretary of Agriculture; George Swan, House
Creek Ranch, Rogerson, Idaho, on behalf of the National Cattlemen's Beef
Association; John McNutt, Iowa City, Iowa, on behalf of the National
Pork Producers Council; Frank Moore, Douglas, Wyoming, on behalf of the
American Sheep Industry Association, Inc.; Harry L. Pearson, Indiana
Farm Bureau, Hartford City, on behalf of the American Farm Bureau
Federation; Phillip Klutts, Oklahoma Farmers Union, Oklahoma City, on
behalf of the National Farmers Union; Robert P. Mack, Mack Farms,
Watertown, South Dakota; Bruce Bass, IBP, Inc., Dakota Dunes, South
Dakota; Rosemary Mucklow, National Meat Association, Oakland,
California; Steven C. Anderson, American Frozen Food Institute, McLean,
Virginia; Raymond M. Stewart, Hy-Vee, Inc., West Des Moines, Iowa, on
behalf of the Food Marketing Institute; and J. Patrick Boyle, American
Meat Institute, Arlington, Virginia. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Committee ordered
favorably reported the following business items: 

S. 566, to amend the Agricultural Trade Act of 1978 to exempt
agricultural commodities, livestock, and value-added products from
unilateral economic sanctions, to prepare for future bilateral and
multilateral trade negotiations affecting United States agriculture,
with an amendment in the nature of a substitute; 

S. 604, to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to complete a land
exchange with Georgia Power Company; 

The nomination of Thomas J. Erickson, of the District of Columbia, to be
a Commissioner of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. 

CORPORATE BOND PRICE TRANSPARENCY

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on
Securities concluded hearings to examine the private sector's voluntary
corporate bond price transparency initiative coordinated by the Bond
Market Association (Corporate Trades 1), after receiving testimony from
Nelson D. Civello, Bond Market Association, Minneapolis, Minnesota. 

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded
oversight hearings on the activities of the Federal Communications
Commission, after receiving testimony from William E. Kennard, Chairman,
and Susan Ness, Harold W. Furchtgott-Roth, Michael K. Powell, and Gloria
Tristani, each a Commissioner, all of the Federal Communications
Commission. 

AMERICAN LAND SOVEREIGNTY ACT

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Forests and
Public Land Management concluded hearings on S. 510, to preserve the
sovereignty of the United States over public lands and acquired lands
owned by the United States, and to preserve State sovereignty and
private property rights in non-Federal lands surrounding those public
lands and acquired lands, after receiving testimony from Representative
Chenoweth; Melinda L. Kimble, Acting Assistant Secretary of State for
Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs; Donald J.
Barry, Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Fish and Wildlife and
Parks; Steven C. Borell, Alaska Miners Association, Anchorage, Alaska;
Jeremy Rabkin, Cornell University Department of Government, Ithica, New
York; Carol W. LaGrasse, Property Rights Foundation of America, Stony
Creek, New York; and Kathleen Benedetto, National Wilderness Institute,
Washington, D.C. 

MEDICARE REFORM

Committee on Finance: Committee held hearings on Medicare reform issues,
focusing on the work of the National Bipartisan Commission on the Future
of Medicare, receiving testimony from Senator Breaux; Representative
Thomas; William J. Scanlon, Director, Health Financing and Public Health
Issues, D592Health, Education, and Human Services Division, General
Accounting Office; Dan L Crippen, Director, Congressional Budget Office;
Bruce C. Vladeck, Mt. Sinai School of Medicine, New York, New York,
former Administrator, Health Care Financing Administration, Department
of Health and Human Services; Deborah Steelman, Steelman Health
Strategies, and David B. Kendall, Progressive Policy Institute, both of
Washington, D.C.; and Kenneth E. Thorpe, Tulane University Institute of
Health Services Research, New Orleans, Louisiana. 

                               [Page: D592]

Hearings continue tomorrow. 

ANTI-BALLISTIC MISSILE TREATY

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded hearings to examine
a protocol to reconstitute the Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty with
four new partners, after receiving testimony from Henry A. Kissinger,
Kissinger and Associates, New York, New York, former Secretary of State. 

NATIONAL SECURITY AND MILITARY COMMERCIAL CONCERNS WITH CHINA

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on International
Security, Proliferation and Federal Services concluded hearings to
examine the unclassified report of the House Select Committee on United
States National Security and Military/Commercial concerns with the
People's Republic of China, after receiving testimony from
Representatives Cox and Dicks. 

IMMIGRANT'S CONTRIBUTION TO ARMED FORCES

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Immigration concluded
hearings to examine immigrant American's contribution to the Armed
Forces and national defense, after receiving testimony from Erick A.
Mogollon, Groton, Connecticut, Senior Chief Petty Officer, U.S. Navy;
Charles MacGillivary, Braintree, Massachusetts, former Army Sergeant,
Company I, 71st Infantry, 44th Infantry Division; and Elmer R. Compton,
Evansville, Indiana, former Army Sergeant, and Alfred Rascon, Laurel,
Maryland, former Army Specialist Four, both of the 173rd Airborne
Brigade, 1st Battalion Recon Platoon. 

FEDERAL MINE SAFETY AND HEALTH ACT

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Subcommittee on
Employment, Safety and Training held hearings on issues relating to mine
safety and proposed legislation to amend the Federal Mine Safety and
Health Act of 1977, to establish a more cooperative and effective method
for rulemaking that takes into account the special needs and concerns of
smaller miners, receiving testimony from J. Davitt McAteer, Assistant
Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety and Health; Tom Thorson, Black Hills
Bentonite, Mills, Wyoming; Steve Minshall, Ash Grove Cement Company,
Overland Park, Kansas, on behalf of the American Portland Cement
Alliance; Joseph A. Main, United Mine Workers of America, and Bruce H.
Watzman, National Mining Association, both of Washington, D.C.; and Kim
Snyder, Eastern Industries, Inc., Center Valley, Pennsylvania, on behalf
of the National Stone Association. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

NATIVE AMERICAN YOUTH ACTIVITIES

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded oversight hearings to
discuss Native American youth activities and initiatives within the
Bureau of Indian Affairs, after receiving testimony from Dominic Nessi,
Acting Director, Office of Economic Development, Bureau of Indian
Affairs, Department of the Interior; Manne Lasiloo, United National
Indian Tribal Youth (UNITY), Inc., Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Delwyn
Holthusen, Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians, Red Lake, Minnesota; Paula
Healy, Fort Belknap, Montana, on behalf of the National American Indian
Business Leaders Board; Daniel N. Lewis, Bank of America, Phoenix,
Arizona, on behalf of the Boys and Girls Clubs of America; and Notah
Begay, Albuquerque, New Mexico. 

INTELLIGENCE

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the
intelligence community. 

Committee recessed subject to call. 

                               [Page: D593]

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/05/27
Daily Digest - Thursday, May 27, 1999;  pages D600 - D614

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

NATIONAL SUSTAINABLE FUELS AND CHEMICALS ACT

Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Committee concluded
hearings on S. 935, to amend the National Agricultural Research,
Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 to authorize research to
promote the conversion of biomass into biobased industrial products,
after receiving testimony from Dan Glickman, Secretary of Agriculture;
Dan W. Reicher, Assistant Secretary of Energy for Energy Efficiency and
Renewable Energy; Dean Kleckner, Rudd, Iowa, on behalf of the American
Farm Bureau Federation; Bruce E. Dale, Michigan State University
Department of Chemical Engineering, East Lansing; Mike Shuter, Frankton,
Indiana, on behalf of the American Soybean Association and the National
Corn Growers Association; John Sellers, Corydon, Iowa, on behalf of the
Chariton Valley RC and D Council; Lee R. Lynd, Dartmouth College Thayer
School of Engineering, Hanover, New Hampshire; Jeff Fiedler, Natural
Resources Defense Council, Washington, D.C.; Steve Clemmer, Union of
Concerned Scientists, Cambridge, Massachusetts; Karl J. Sanford,
Genencor International, Inc., Palo Alto, California; and Robert R.
Dorsch, DuPont Company, Wilmington, Delaware. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Appropriations: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following bills: 

An original bill making appropriations for fiscal year 2000 for Energy
and Water Development programs; and 

An original bill (S. 1143) making appropriations for fiscal year 2000
for the Department of Transportation and related agencies. 

MILLENNIUM DIGITAL COMMERCE ACT

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded
hearings on S. 761, to regulate interstate commerce by electronic means
by permitting and encouraging the continued expansion of electronic
commerce through the operation of free market forces, after receiving
testimony from Ray A. Campbell, III, Commonwealth of Massachusetts
Information Technology Division, Boston; Harris N. Miller, World
Information Technology and Services Alliance, Arlington, Virginia, on
behalf of the Information Technology Association of America; W. Hardy
Callcott, Charles Schwab and Company, Inc., San Francisco, California;
and Ira H. Parker, GTE Internetworking, Burlington, Massachusetts. 

NOMINATIONS

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded hearings
on the nominations of David L. Goldwyn, of the District of Columbia, to
be an Assistant Secretary of Energy (International Affairs), and James
B. Lewis, of New Mexico, to be Director of the Office of Minority
Economic Impact, Department of Energy, after the nominees testified in
their own behalf. Mr. Lewis was introduced by Senator Bingaman. 

WATER AND POWER RESOURCE ACTS

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Water and
Power concluded hearings on the following bills: 

S. 1027, to reauthorize the participation of the Bureau of Reclamation
in the Deschutes Resources Conservancy, after receiving testimony from
Charles Calica, Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs Reservation,
Oregon, on behalf of the Deschutes Basin Resource Conservancy; 

S. 769, to provide a final settlement on certain debt owed by the city
of Dickinson, North Dakota, for the construction of the bascule gates on
the D609Dickinson Dam, after receiving testimony from Fred Gengler,
Dickinson City Commission, Dickinson, North Dakota; 

                               [Page: D609]

S. 244, to authorize the construction of the Lewis and Clark Rural Water
System and to authorize assistance to the Lewis and Clark Rural Water
System, Inc., a nonprofit corporation, for the planning and construction
of the water supply system, after receiving testimony from Senators
Daschle, Grams, and Grassley; Representative Thune; and Mayor Gary
Hanson, and Pamela A. Bonrud, Lewis and Clark Rural Water System, both
of Sioux Falls, South Dakota; 

S. 623, to amend Public Law 89-108 to increase authorization levels for
State and Indian tribal, municipal, rural, and industrial water
supplies, to meet current and future water quantity and quality needs of
the Red River Valley, to deauthorize certain project features and
irrigation service areas, to enhance natural resources and fish and
wildlife habitat, after receiving testimony from Senator Conrad;
Representative Pomeroy; North Dakota Governor Edward T. Schafer, North
Dakota State Representative John Dorso, North Dakota State Senator Aaron
Krauter, Mike Dwyer, North Dakota Water Users Association, and William
B. Bicknell, North Dakota Chapter of the Wildlife Society, all of
Bismark; Tex G. Hall, Three Affiliated Tribes, Fort Berthold
Reservation, North Dakota; Mayor Bruce W. Furness, Fargo, North Dakota;
Norman Haak, Garrison Diversion Conservancy District, Carrington, North
Dakota; and Daniel P. Beard, National Audubon Society, Washington, D.C.;
and 

H.R. 459, to extend the deadline under the Federal Power Act for FERC
Project No. 9401, the Mt. Hope Waterpower Project. 

Testimony was also received on S. 1027, S. 769, S. 244, and S. 623
(listed above) from Patricia J. Beneke, Assistant Secretary for Water
and Science, and Steve Richardson, Chief of Staff, Bureau of
Reclamation, both of the Department of the Interior. 

ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on Fisheries,
Wildlife, and Drinking Water concluded hearings on S. 1100, to amend the
Endangered Species Act of 1973 to provide that the designation of
critical habitat for endangered and threatened species be required as
part of the development of recovery plans for those species, after
receiving testimony from Senator Domenici; Jamie Rappaport Clark,
Director, Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of the Interior; William
R. Murray, American Forest and Paper Association, and John F. Kostyack,
National Wildlife Federation, both of Washington, D.C.; and Charles T.
DuMars, University of New Mexico School of Law, Albuquerque, on behalf
of the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District. 

MEDICARE REFORM

Committee on Finance: Committee concluded hearings on Medicare reform
issues, focusing on the work of the National Bipartisan Commission on
the Future of Medicare, after receiving testimony from Gail R. Wilensky,
Project HOPE, Bethesda, Maryland, former Administrator, Health Care
Financing Administration, Department of Health and Human Services;
Marilyn Moon, Urban Institute, Stuart M. Butler, Heritage Foundation,
Raymond C. Scheppach, National Governors' Association, and Martha H.
Phillips, Concord Coalition, all of Washington, D.C.; and Esther Canja,
Port Charlotte, Florida, on behalf of the American Association of
Retired Persons. 

CHINESE EMBASSY BOMBING

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific
Affairs concluded hearings to examine the Chinese Embassy bombing and
its effects on United States-China relations, after receiving testimony
from Stanley O. Roth, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and
Pacific Affairs; and Frank Kramer, Assistant Secretary of Defense for
International Security Affairs. 

NOMINATIONS

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded hearings on the
nominations of David B. Sandalow, of the District of Columbia, to be
Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and International Environmental
and Scientific Affairs, and Lawrence Harrington, of Tennessee, to be
United States Executive Director of the Inter-American Development Bank,
after they testified and answered questions in their own behalf. Mr.
Sandalow was introduced by Senator Levin, and Mr. Harrington was
introduced by Senator Frist. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on the Judiciary: On Wednesday, May 26, Subcommittee on
Constitution, Federalism, and Property Rights approved for full
committee consideration S.J. Res. 3, proposing an amendment to the
Constitution of the United States to protect the rights of crime
victims, with an amendment. 

                               [Page: D610]

NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS/HUMANITIES

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for the National
Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities,
after receiving testimony from Bill Ivey, Chairman, National Endowment
for the Arts; William R. Ferris, Chairman, Endowment for the Humanities;
Alexander L. Aldrich, Vermont Arts Council, and Barbara Floersch,
Washington County Youth Service Bureau, both of Montpelier, Vermont;
Jacques d'Amboise, National Dance Institute, New York, New York; and
Charlene B. Bickford, George Washington University First Federal
Congress Project, Washington, D.C. 

OLDER AMERICANS ACT

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Subcommittee on
Aging concluded hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for
the Older Americans Act, focusing on Title V, the Senior Community
Service Employment Program, after receiving testimony from Raymond J.
Uhalde, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employment and Training;
Andrea J. Wooten, Arlington, Virginia, and Sarah K. Sawyer, Toledo,
Ohio, both on behalf of the Green Thumb, Inc.; Donald L. Davis, National
Council on the Aging, Inc., Washington, D.C.; Herb A. Sanderson,
Arkansas Department of Human Services' Division of Aging and Adult
Services, Little Rock; and Gema G. Hernandez, Florida Department of
Elder Affairs, Tallahassee. 

                               [Page: D611]

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/06/07
Daily Digest - Monday, June 7, 1999;  pages D615 - D622

Committee Meetings

No committee meetings were held. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/06/08
Daily Digest - Tuesday, June 8, 1999;  pages D623 - D632

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Armed Services: Committee ordered favorably reported S.
1009, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2000 for intelligence
and intelligence-related activities of the United States Government, the
Community Management Account, and the Central Intelligence Agency
Retirement and Disability System. 

NOMINATIONS 

Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded hearings on the
nominations of General Eric K. Shinseki, USA, for reappointment to the
grade of general and for appointment as Chief of Staff, United States
Army, and Lieutenant General James L. Jones, Jr., USMC, to be general
and for appointment as Commandant of the Marine Corps, after the
nominees testified and answered questions on their own behalf. Gen.
Shinseki was introduced by Senator Inouye and Lt. Gen. Jones was
introduced by Senator Warner. 

CENTRAL AFRICAN WARS 

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on African Affairs
concluded hearings to examine the Central African Wars and the future of
United States-Africa policy, after receiving testimony from Susan E.
Rice, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs; I. William
Zartman, Johns Hopkins University School for Advanced International
Studies, and Marina Ottaway, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace,
both of Washington, DC; and William Reno, Florida International
University, Miami. 

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE 

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded closed oversight
hearings on certain activities of the Department of Justice, after
receiving testimony from Janet Reno, Attorney General, Department of
Justice. 

NOMINATIONS 

Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on the
nominations of Kenneth W. Kizer, of California, to be Under Secretary of
Veterans Affairs for Health, and John T. Hanson, of Virginia, to be
Assistant Secretary of Veterans Affairs for Public and Intergovernmental
Affairs, after the nominees testified and answered questions in their
own behalf. 

Joint Meetings 

WESTERN EUROPEAN RELIGIOUS FREEDOM 

Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Committee concluded
hearings to examine religious freedom issues in Western Europe, focusing
on religious minorities and growing government intolerance, after
receiving testimony from Willy Fautre, Human Rights Without Frontiers,
Brussels, Belgium; Louis DeMeo, Grace Church of Nimes, Nimes, France;
and Alain Garay, on behalf of the Jehovah's Witnesses, Paris, France. 



1999/06/09
Daily Digest - Wednesday, June 9, 1999;  pages D634 - D642

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

APPROPRIATIONS--DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on the District of Columbia
concluded hearings on proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2000 for
the government of the District of Columbia, after receiving testimony
from Mayor Anthony A. Williams, Linda W. Cropp, Council of the District
of Columbia, and Darius Mans, Financial Responsibility and Management
Assistance Authority, all of the District of Columbia. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, State,
and the Judiciary approved for full committee consideration an original
bill making appropriations for the Departments of Commerce, Justice and
State, the Judiciary, and related agencies for the fiscal year 2000. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Armed Services: Committee ordered favorably reported the
nominations of General Eric K. Shinseki, USA, for reappointment to the
grade of general and for appointment as Chief of Staff, United States
Army, and Lieutenant General James L. Jones, Jr., USMC, to be general
and for appointment as Commandant of the Marine Corps. 

FINANCIAL PRIVACY 

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded
hearings on S. 187, to give customers notice and choice about how their
financial institutions share or sell their personally identifiable
sensitive financial information, and other financial privacy issues,
after receiving testimony from Senators Kyl and Leahy; and
Representatives Inslee, Markey, and Paul. 

AUTO INSURANCE REFORM 

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded
hearings on S. 837, to enable drivers to choose a more affordable form
of auto insurance that also provides for more adequate and timely
compensation for accident victims, after receiving testimony from
Senators Lieberman, McConnell, and Moynihan; Representative Stupak;
former Massachusetts Governor Michael S. Dukakis, Boston; Ralph Nader,
Center for Responsive Law, Washington, D.C.; Fletcher Dal Handley, Jr.,
Fogg, Fogg and Handley, El Reno, Oklahoma, on behalf of the American Bar
Association; Jeffrey O'Connell, University of Virginia Law School,
Charlottesville; New York State Senator Neil Breslin, Albany, on behalf
of the National Conference of Insurance Legislators; Gerald T. Noce,
Missouri Organization of Defense Lawyers, St. Louis, on behalf of the
Defense Research Institute, Inc.; Peter Kinzler, Coalition for
Auto-Insurance Reform, Alexandria, Virginia; and Robert L. Maril,
Oklahoma State University Department of Sociology, Stillwater. 

SNAKE RIVER DAMS/NORTHWEST POWER PLANNING 

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Water and
Power held oversight hearings on the process to determine the future of
the four lower Snake River dams and conduct oversight on the Northwest
Power Planning Council's Framework Process, receiving testimony from
Stephen J. Wright, Senior Vice President, Corporate, Bonneville Power
Administration, Department of Energy; Donna Darm, Assistant Regional
Administrator for Protected Resources, Northwest Region, National Marine
Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,
Department of Commerce; David W. Welch, High Seas Salmon Research,
Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada; Donald Sampson, Columbia River
Inter-Tribal Fish Commission, Roy Sampsel, Columbia River Basin
Multi-Species Framework Project, John Saven, Northwest Irrigation
Utilities, C. Clarke Leone, Public Power Council, all of Portland,
Oregon; Glen Spain, Pacific D636Coast Federation of Fishermen's
Associations, Eugene, Oregon; and Don Swartz, Northwest Sportfishing
Industry Association, Oregon City, Oregon. 

                               [Page: D636]

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

TRANSPORTATION EQUITY ACT 

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on
Transportation and Infrastructure resumed hearings on the project
delivery and streamlining provisions of the Transportation Equity Act
for the 21st Century, receiving testimony from George T. Frampton, Jr.,
Acting Chairman, Council on Environmental Quality; and Eugene A. Conti,
Jr., Assistant Secretary of Transportation for Transportation Policy. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

MEDICARE REFORM 

Committee on Finance: Committee resumed oversight hearings to examine
risk adjustment methodology, and enrollment, payment, and other
implementation issues relating to Medicare+Choice, receiving testimony
from Michael Hash, Deputy Administrator, Health Care Financing
Administration, Department of Health and Human Services; Steven M.
Lieberman, Executive Associate Director, Congressional Budget Office;
William J. Scanlon, Director, Health Financing and Public Health Issues,
Health, Education, and Human Services Division, General Accounting
Office; Peter Smith, Ralin Medical, Inc., Buffalo Grove, Illinois;
Robert B. Cumming, Milliman and Robertson, Inc., Minneapolis, Minnesota,
on behalf of the American Academy of Actuaries; and Stephen J.
deMontmollin, AvMed Health Plan, Gainesville, Florida, on behalf of the
American Association of Health Plans. 

Hearings continue tomorrow. 

NOMINATIONS 

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded hearings on the
nominations of Donald K. Bandler, of Pennsylvania, to be Ambassador to
the Republic of Cyprus, M. Michael Einik, of Virginia, to be Ambassador
to The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Donald W. Keyser, of
Virginia, for Rank of Ambassador during tenure of service as Special
Representative of the Secretary of State for Nagorno-Karabakh and New
Independent States Regional Conflicts, Joseph Limprecht, of Virginia, to
be Ambassador to the Republic of Albania, Thomas J. Miller, of Virginia,
to be Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina, Richard L. Morningstar, of
Massachusetts, to be the Representative of the United States to the
European Union with the rank and status of Ambassador, Larry C. Napper,
of Texas, for Rank of Ambassador during tenure of service as Coordinator
of the Support for East European Democracy (SEED) Program, and Donald
Lee Pressley, of Virginia, to be an Assistant Administrator of the
Agency for International Development, after the nominees testified and
answered questions in their own behalf. Mr. Bandler was introduced by
Senator Sarbanes, Mr. Limprecht was introduced by Senator Hagel, and Mr.
Miller was introduced by Senators Sarbanes and Biden. 

NOMINATIONS

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded hearings on the
nominations of Oliver P. Garza, of Texas, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of Nicaragua, Frank Almaguer, of Virginia, to be Ambassador to
the Republic of Honduras, John R. Hamilton, of Virginia, to be
Ambassador to the Republic of Peru, and Prudence Bushnell, of Virginia,
to be Ambassador to the Republic of Guatemala, after the nominees
testified and answered questions in their own behalf. 

ESPIONAGE INVESTIGATION 

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded oversight
hearings in closed session on the national security methods and
processes relating to the Wen-Ho Lee espionage investigation, after
receiving testimony from officials from the intelligence and national
security community. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Small Business: Committee ordered favorably reported S.
918, to authorize the Small Business Administration to provide financial
and business development assistance to military reservists' small
business, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. 

INTERNET GAMBLING 

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on issues
involving Indian gaming and related provisions of S. 692, to prohibit
Internet gambling, after receiving testimony from Kevin V. DiGregory,
Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, Department of
Justice; Montie R. Deer, National Indian Gaming Commission, and Richard
Hill, National Indian Gaming Commission, both of Washington, D.C.;
Richard Williams, Lac Vieux Desert Band of Lake Superior Chippewa
Indians, Watersmeet, Michigan; Ernest L. Stensgar, Coeur d'Alene Indian
Tribe, Plummer, Idaho; and Frank Miller, Washington State Gaming
Commission, Seattle. 

                               [Page: D637]

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY REORGANIZATION 

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee concluded hearings on issues
relating to the Department of Energy reorganization, focusing on
improvements in security and management of the nuclear weapons complex,
after receiving testimony from Senators Domenici, Kyl and Murkowski; and
Bill Richardson, Secretary of Energy. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/06/10
Daily Digest - Thursday, June 10, 1999; pages D644 - D654

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Appropriations: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following bills: 

An original bill (S. 1205) making appropriations for military
construction, family housing, and base realignment and closure for the
Department of Defense for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2000; 

An original bill (S. 1206) making appropriations for the Legislative
Branch for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2000; and 

An original bill making appropriations for the Departments of Commerce,
Justice, and State, the Judiciary, and related agencies for fiscal year
ending September 30, 2000. 

ESPIONAGE AND EXPORT CONTROLS 

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded
oversight hearings on espionage and export control issues in the House
Cox Report, after receiving testimony from Representatives Cox and
Dicks. 

INTERSTATE COMMERCE ENCRYPTION 

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded
hearings on S. 798, to promote electronic commerce by encouraging and
facilitating the use of encryption in interstate commerce consistent
with the protection of national security, after receiving testimony from
Representative Goodlatte; William A. Reinsch, Under Secretary of
Commerce for Export Administration; James K. Robinson, Assistant
Attorney General, Criminal Division, Department of Justice; Barbara A.
McNamara, Deputy Director, National Security Agency, Department of
Defense; David Aucsmith, Intel Corporation, and Lance J. Hoffman, George
Washington University School of Engineering and Applied Science, both of
Washington, D.C.; and D. James Bizdos, Security Dynamics Technologies,
Inc., Vienna, Virginia. 

NATIONAL RECREATION LAKES STUDY 

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded oversight
hearings on the report and recommendations of the National Recreation
Lakes Study Commission, after receiving testimony from Richard W.
Davies, Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism, Little Rock, on behalf
of the National Recreation Lakes Study Commission; and William W.
Anderson, Westrec Marina Management, Inc., Encino, California, on behalf
of the Recreation Roundtable. 

MEDICARE REFORM 

Committee on Finance: Committee held hearings on the impact of the 1997
Balanced Budget Act provisions on the Medicare fee-for-service
beneficiaries and providers program, receiving testimony from Robert A.
Berenson, Director, Center for Health Plans and Providers, Health Care
Financing Administration, Department of Health and Human Services; Paul
N. Van de Water, Assistant Director for Budget Analysis, Congressional
Budget Office; William J. Scanlon, Director, Health Financing and Public
Health Issues, Health, Education and Human Services Division, General
Accounting Office; Gail R. Wilensky, Medicare Payment Advisory
Commission, and Thomas A. Scully, Federation of American Health Systems,
both of Washington, D.C.; Charles M. Smith, Christiana Care Corporation,
Wilmington, Delaware, on behalf of the American Hospital Association; D.
Ted Lewers, Easton, Maryland, on behalf of the American Medical
Association; Susan S. Bailis, Solomont Bailis Ventures, Boston,
Massachusetts, on behalf of the American Health Care Association; and
Mary Suther, Visiting Nurse Association of Texas, Dallas, on behalf of
the National Association for Home Care. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

ENERGY DEPARTMENT EXPORT CONTROL 

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on
national security and economic issues related to the dual-use and
munitions list export control processes and implementation at the
Department of Energy, after receiving testimony from Gregory H.
Friedman, Inspector General, Sandra L. Schneider, Assistant Inspector
General for Inspections, and Alfred K. Walter, Director, Office of
Management Operations, Office of the Inspector General, all of the
Department of Energy. D647 

                                          [Page: D647]

MEDICARE INTERIM PAYMENT SYSTEM 

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Permanent Subcommittee on
Investigations held hearings to examine the impact of the new Medicare
Interim Payment System on certain home health agencies, receiving
testimony from Kathleen A. Buto, Deputy Director, Center for Health
Plans and Providers, and Mary R. Vienna, Director, Clinical Standards
Group, both of the Health Care Financing Administration, Department of
Health and Human Services; Maryanna Arsenault, Visiting Nurse Service,
Saco, Maine, on behalf of the Visiting Nurse Associations of America;
Mary Suther, Visiting Nurse Association of Texas, Dallas, on behalf of
the National Association of Home Care; Rosalind L. Stock, Home Health
Outreach, Rochester Hills, Michigan; Barbara Markham Smith, George
Washington University Center for Health Services Research and Policy,
Washington, D.C.  

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following measures: 

S. 606, for the relief of Global Exploration and Development
Corporation, Kerr-Mcgee Corporation, and Kerr-Mcgee Chemical, LLC
(successor to Kerr-McGee Chemical Corporation), with an amendment in the
nature of a substitute; 

S. Res. 98, designating the week beginning October 17, 1999, and the
week beginning October 15, 2000, as  "National Character Counts Week "; 

S.J. Res. 21, to designate September 29, 1999, as  "Veterans of Foreign
Wars of the United States Day "; 

S. Res. 114, designating June 22, 1999, as  "National Pediatric AIDS
Awareness Day "; 

S. Res. 81, designating the year of 1999 as  "The Year of Safe Drinking
Water " and commemorating the 25th anniversary of the enactment of the
Safe Drinking Water Act; and 

S. Res. 34, designating the week beginning April 30, 1999, as  "National
Youth Fitness Week ", with an amendment. 

B.F. GOODRICH/COLTEC MERGER 

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Antitrust, Business Rights,
and Competition concluded hearings to examine the competitive and
national security implications of the proposed merger between B.F.
Goodrich/Coltec Industries, after receiving testimony from
Representatives Kucinich and McIntosh; David R. Oliver, Principal Deputy
Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisitions and Technology; Einer
Elhauge, Harvard Law School, Boston, Massachusetts; Terrence G. Linnert,
B.F.Goodrich, Cleveland, Ohio; Carl R. Montalbine, AlliedSignal
Aerospace, South Bend, Indiana; Alan Reuther, United Automobile,
Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America Union,
Washington, D.C. 

AUTHORIZATION--ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION ACT 

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee resumed
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for programs of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act, focusing on special populations,
and S.505, to give gifted and talented students the opportunity to
develop their capabilities, receiving testimony from Senator Grassley;
John W. Cheek, National Indian Education Association, Alexandria,
Virginia; Melody McCoy, Native American Rights Fund, Boulder, Colorado;
Nancy Croce, New York State Department of Education, Albany; Joel Gomez,
George Washington University Institute for Education Policy Studies, and
Nancy Zirkin, American Association of University Women and the National
Coalition for Women and Girls in Education, both of Washington, D.C.;
and Hisela Perez, Orrtanna, Pennsylvania. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

INTELLIGENCE 

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the
intelligence community. 

Committee will meet again on Thursday, June 17. 

Y2K AND HEALTHCARE 

Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem: Committee
concluded hearings to examine Y2K compliance issues within the health
care industry, after receiving testimony from Kevin Thurm, Deputy
Secretary of Health and Human Services; Joel C. Willemssen, Director,
Civil Agencies Information Systems, Accounting and Information
Management Division, General Accounting Office; Philip L. Roberts, Utah
Physicians Care Center, Sandy; Randy S. Musick, Integrated Health
Services, Inc., Moore, Oklahoma; Mark R. Stoddard, Rural Health
Management Corporation, Nephi, Utah; and Karen Bolin, Atlanta Medical
Center, Atlanta, Georgia, on behalf of the Federation of American Health
Systems. 

                                          [Page: D648]

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/06/14
Daily Digest - Monday, June 14, 1999; pages D656 - D660

Committee Meetings

No Committee hearings were held. 

Joint Meetings

HIGH-TECHNOLOGY NATIONAL SUMMIT

Joint Economic Committee: Committee held hearings to highlight issues
relating to the High-Technology National Summit, focusing on the impact
of recent breakthroughs in computers, software and information networks
on the U.S. economy and society, receiving testimony from Alan
Greenspan, Chairman, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System;
Louis V. Gerstner, Jr., IBM Corporation, Armonk, New York; Robert Katz,
Technology Network, Palo Alto, California; Craig R. Barrett, Intel
Corporation, Santa Clara, California; Edward J. Nicoll, Datek Online
Holdings Corporation, Iselin, New Jersey; Judy G. Carter, Softworks,
Inc., Alexandria, Virginia; James L. Barksdale, Barksdale Group,
Mountain View, California; and Sara Horowitz, Working Today, New York,
New York. 

Hearings continue tomorrow. 



1999/06/15
Daily Digest - Tuesday, June 15, 1999; pages D661 - D668

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural
Development, and Related Agencies approved for full committee
consideration H.R. 1906, making appropriations for Agriculture, Rural
Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies for the
fiscal year ending September 30, 2000. 

CROWN JEWEL MINE DECISION

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Forests and
Public Land Management concluded oversight hearings on issues related to
vacating the Record of Decision and denial of a plan of operations for
the Crown Jewel Mine in Okanogan County, Washington, after receiving
testimony from John D. Leshy, Solicitor, Department of the Interior;
Roger Flynn, Western Mining Action Project, Boulder, Colorado; Roger W.
Jeppson, Hale, Lane, Peek, Dennison, Howard and Anderson, Reno, Nevada;
Stephen D. Alfers, Alfers and Carver, Denver, Colorado; Danny E.
Robertson, Battle Mountain Gold Company, and Mayor Jim Walker, both of
Oroville, Washington; David Kliegman, Okanogan Highlands Alliance,
Tonafhit, Washington; Joseph A. Pakootas, Colville Business Council,
Nespelum, Washington; Gerald L. Shaheen, Caterpillar, Inc., Peoria,
Illinois; and Stephen D'Esposito, Mineral Policy Center, and Patrick J.
Garver, Barrick Resources, (USA) Inc., on behalf of the National Mining
Association, both of Washington, D.C. 

STADIUM FINANCING AND FRANCHISE RELOCATION ACT

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded hearings on S. 952, to
expand an antitrust exemption applicable to professional sports leagues
and to require, as a condition of such an exemption, participation by
professional football and major league baseball sports leagues in the
financing of certain stadium construction activities, after receiving
testimony from Massachusetts State Representative Thomas M. Finneran,
Boston; Connecticut State Senator Edith G. Prague, Columbia; Maryland
State Delegate Jean B. Cryor, Annapolis; former Maryland State Delegate
D. Bruce Poole, Poole and Poole, Hagerstown; John Moag, Jr., Legg Mason
Wood Walker, Inc., Baltimore, Maryland; Andrew Zimbalist, Smith College,
Northampton, Massachusetts; and Mark S. Rosentraub, Indiana University
School of Public and Environmental Affairs, Indianapolis. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee met and
began consideration of the proposed Health Information Confidentiality
Act, but did not complete consideration thereon, and will meet again
tomorrow. 

Joint Meetings

HIGH-TECHNOLOGY NATIONAL SUMMIT

Joint Economic Committee: Committee held hearings to explore issues
relating to the High-Technology National Summit, focusing on the impact
of recent breakthroughs in computers, software and information networks
on the U.S. economy and society, receiving testimony from Richard P.
Riley, Secretary of Education; William H. Gates, Microsoft Corporation,
Redmond, Washington; Robert Holleyman, Business Software Alliance,
Washington, D.C.; William Larson, Network Associates, Santa Clara,
California; Eric Schmidt, Novell, Inc., San Jose, California; Jeff
Papows, Lotus Development Corporations, and Charles Vest, Massachusetts
Institute of Technology, both of Cambridge; Jeremy Jaech, Visio
Corporation, Seattle, Washington; Ariel Kleckner, RedGorilla.com, San
Francisco, California; John F. Keane, Keane, Inc., Boston,
Massachusetts; Michael J. Durham, SABRE Group, Inc., Fort Worth, Texas;
and Gene Hoffman, EMusic.com, Redwood City, California. 

Hearings continue tomorrow. 



1999/06/16
Daily Digest - Wednesday, June 16, 1999; pages D669 - D678

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

PROSTATE CANCER RESEARCH

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human
Services, and Education concluded hearings on issues relating to
prostate cancer research activities, after receiving testimony from
Harold E. Varmus, Director, and Richard D. Klausner, Director, National
Cancer Institute, both of the National Institutes of Health, Department
of Health and Human Services; former Senator Dole; Christopher J.
Logothetis, University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston;
Michael Milken, Association for the Cure of Cancer of the Prostate,
Santa Monica, California; and Joe Torre, New York Yankees, New York, New
York. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee ordered favorably
reported the following bills: 

S. 762, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a feasibility
study on the inclusion of the Miami Circle in Biscayne National Park,
with an amendment in the nature of a substitute; 

                                          [Page: D672]

S. 140, to establish the Thomas Cole National Historic Site in the State
of New York as an affiliated area of the National Park System, with
amendments; 

S. 734, the  "National Discovery Trails Act of 1999 ", with amendments; 

S. 938, to eliminate restrictions on the acquisition of certain land
contiguous to Hawaii Volcanoes National Park; 

S. 939, to correct spelling errors in the statutory designations of
Hawaiian National Parks, with amendments; 

S. 946, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to transfer
administrative jurisdiction over land within the boundaries of the Home
of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site to the Archivist of the
United States for the construction of a visitor center, with an
amendment; 

S. 955, to allow the National Park Service to acquire certain land for
addition to the Wilderness Battlefield in Virginia, as previously
authorized by law, by purchase or exchange as well as by donation, with
amendments; 

H.R. 459, to extend the deadline under the Federal Power Act for FERC
Project No. 9401, the Mt. Hope Waterpower Project; 

S. 1027, to reauthorize the participation of the Bureau of Reclamation
in the Deschutes Resources Conservancy; and 

An original bill to provide for the storage of spent nuclear fuel
pending completion of the nuclear waste repository, in lieu of S. 608. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Finance: Committee ordered favorably reported the following
bills: 

H.R. 1833, to authorize appropriations for fiscal years 2000 and 2001
for the United States Customs Service for drug interdiction and other
operations, for the Office of the United States Trade Representative,
for the United States International Trade Commission, with an amendment
in the nature of a substitute; and  An original bill to eradicate the
overcapacity in the global steel industry caused by factors such as
market barriers overseas, anticompetitive behavior, subsidization and
unstable currency management. 

NOMINATIONS

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded hearings on the
nominations of Mark Wylea Erwin, of North Carolina, to be Ambassador to
the Republic of Mauritius, and to serve concurrently and without
additional compensation as Ambassador to the Federal Islamic Republic of
the Comoros and as Ambassador to the Republic of Seychelles, Johnnie
Carson, of Illinois, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Kenya,
Christopher E. Goldthwait, of Florida, to be Ambassador to the Republic
of Chad, Joyce E. Leader, of the District of Columbia, to be Ambassador
to the Republic of Guinea, Bismarck Myrick, of Virginia, to be
Ambassador to the Republic of Liberia, David B. Dunn, of California, to
be Ambassador to the Republic of Zambia, and Michael D. Metelits, of
California, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Cape Verde, after the
nominees testified and answered questions in their own behalf. Mr. Erwin
was introduced by Senator Helms and Mr. Goldthwait was introduced by
Representative Fowler. 

NOMINATIONS

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded hearings on the
nominations of Marsha L. Berzon, of California, to be United States
Circuit Judge for the Ninth Circuit, Robert A. Katzmann, of New York, to
be United States Circuit Judge for the Second Circuit, Keith P. Ellison,
to be United States District Judge for the Southern District of Texas,
Gary Allen Feess, to be United States District Judge for the Central
District of California, W. Allen Pepper Jr., to be United States
District Judge for the Northern District of Mississippi, Karen E.
Schreier, to be United States District Judge for the District of South
Dakota, Stefan R. Underhill, to be United States District Judge for the
District of Connecticut, and T. John Ward, to be United States District
Judge for the Eastern District of Texas, after the nominees testified
and answered questions in their own behalf. Ms. Berzon was introduced by
Senators Feinstein, Boxer, Schumer, and Moynihan, Mr. Katzmann was
introduced by Senators Schumer and Moynihan, Mr. Ellison and Mr. Ward
were introduced by Senator Hutchison, Mr. Feess was introduced by
Senators Feinstein and Boxer, Mr. Pepper was introduced by Senators Lott
and Cochran, Ms. Schreier was introduced by Senators Daschle and
Johnson, and Mr. Underhill was introduced by Senators Dodd and
Lieberman. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following bills: 

S. 28, to authorize an interpretive center and related visitor
facilities within the Four Corners Monument Tribal Park, with an
amendment in the nature of a substitute; 

S. 400, to provide technical corrections to the Native American Housing
Assistance and Self-Determination Act of 1996, to improve the delivery
of housing assistance to Indian tribes in a manner that recognizes the
right of tribal self-governance, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute; 

                                          [Page: D673]

S. 401, to provide for business development and trade promotion for
native Americans, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute; 

S. 613, to encourage Indian economic development, to provide for the
disclosure of Indian tribal sovereign immunity in contracts involving
Indian tribes, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute; 

S. 614, to provide for regulatory reform in order to encourage
investment, business, and economic development with respect to
activities conducted on Indian lands, with an amendment in the nature of
a substitute; and 

S. 944, to amend Public Law 105-188 to provide for the mineral leasing
of certain Indian lands in Oklahoma. 

Joint Meetings

HIGH-TECHNOLOGY NATIONAL SUMMIT

Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded hearings to advance issues
relating to the High-Technology National Summit, focusing on the impact
of recent breakthroughs in computers, software and information networks
on the U.S. economy and society, after receiving testimony from Scott G.
McNealy, Sun Microsystems, Inc., Palo Alto, California; Marc Andreessen,
America Online, Inc., Mountain View, California; Alfred R. Berkeley III,
NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc., Baltimore, Maryland; Frank C. Carlucci,
Nortel Networks, and Morton Bahr, Communications Workers of America,
both of Washington, D.C.; John W. Sidgmore, UUNET Technologies, Fairfax,
Virginia; Lester C. Thurow, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sloan
School of Management, Boston; Gordon M. Binder, Amgen, Inc., Malibu,
California; James C. Morgan, Applied Materials, Inc., Santa Clara,
California; Esther Dyson, EDventure Holdings, Inc., New York, New York;
and Mark Benerofe, Priceline.com, Stanford, Connecticut. 



1999/06/17
Daily Digest - Thursday, June 17, 1999; pages D680 - D686

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Appropriations: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following bills: 

An original bill (S. 1233) making appropriations for Agriculture, Rural
Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies for the
fiscal year ending September 30, 2000; and 

An original bill (S. 1234) making appropriations for foreign operations,
export financing, and related programs for the fiscal year ending
September 30, 2000. 

EXPORT ADMINISTRATION ACT

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for programs of the
Export Administration Act, focusing on emerging technologies, after
receiving testimony from Michael C. Maibach, Intel Corporation, Frank
Carlucci, Nortel Networks, Eric L. Hirschhorn, Industry Coalition on
Technology Transfer, and Rhett Dawson, Information Technology Industry
Council, all of Washington, D.C.; and Thomas Arnold, CyberSource
Corporation, San Jose, California, on behalf of the Software and
Information Industry Association. 

NOMINATIONS

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded
hearings on the nominations of Johnnie E. Frazier, of Maryland, to be
Inspector General, Department of Commerce, Cheryl Shavers, of
California, to be Under Secretary of Commerce for Technology, Kelly H.
Carnes, of the District of Columbia, to be Assistant Secretary of
Commerce for Technology Policy, Ann Brown, of Florida, and Mary Sheila
Gall, of Virginia, each to be a Commissioner of the Consumer Product
Safety Commission, and Albert S. Jacquez, of California, to be
Administrator of the Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation,
after the nominees testified and answered questions in their own behalf. 

MUNICIPAL WASTE CONTROL

Committee on Environmental and Public Works: Committee concluded
hearings on S. 533, to amend the Solid Waste Disposal Act to authorize
local governments and Governors to restrict receipt of out-of-State
municipal solid waste, S. 663, to impose certain limitations on the
receipt of out-of-State municipal solid waste, to authorize State and
local controls over the flow of municipal solid waste, and S. 872, to
impose certain limits on the receipt of out-of-State municipal solid
waste, to authorize State and local controls over the flow of municipal
solid waste, after receiving testimony from Senators Specter, Warner,
Robb and Bayh; Indiana Lt. Governor Joseph E. Kernan, Indianapolis;
James M. Seif, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection,
Harrisburg; Gary Sondermeyer, New Jersey Department of Environmental
Protection, Trenton; Floyd H. Miles, Sr., Charles City County Board of
Supervisors, Providence Forge, Virginia; Dewey R. Stokes, D682Franklin
County Board of Commissioners, Columbus, Ohio, on behalf of the National
Association of Counties; and Grover G. Norquist, Americans for Tax
Reform, and Robert Eisenbud, Waste Management, Inc., both of Washington,
D.C. 

                                          [Page: D682]

NOMINATION

Committee on Finance: Committee held hearings on the nomination of
Lawrence H. Summers, of Maryland, to be Secretary of the Treasury, where
the nominee testified and answered questions in his own behalf. 

Hearings will continue on Tuesday, June 22. 

MEDICAID COVERAGE AND SCHOOL-BASED SERVICES

Committee on Finance: Committee concluded hearings to examine Medicaid
funding for school-based services, focusing on the school-based services
play in assuring that children receive needed health care, after
receiving testimony from Sally Richardson, Center for Medicaid and State
Operations, Health Care Financing Administration, Department of Health
and Human Services; William J. Scanlon, Director, Health Financing and
Public Health Issues, Health, Education, and Human Services Division,
General Accounting Office; Vernon K. Smith, Health Management
Associates, Lansing, Michigan; Gregory A. Vadner, Missouri Department of
Social Services, Jefferson City; and Sue Gamm, Chicago Public Schools,
Chicago, Illinois.

NOMINATION

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee held hearings on the
nomination of Richard C. Holbrooke, of New York, to be the United States
Representative to the United Nations with the rank and status of
Ambassador, and the United States Representative in the Security Council
of the United Nations, where the nominee, who was introduced by Senators
Warner and Moynihan, testified and answered questions in his own behalf. 

Hearings will continue on Tuesday, June 22. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported S. 692,
to prohibit Internet gambling, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute. 

INTELLIGENCE

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the
intelligence community. 

Committee will meet again on Wednesday, June 23. 

INCOME SECURITY

Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded hearings on issues
relating to income security, focusing on financial preparation and
retirement education , after receiving testimony from Senator Graham;
Leslie B. Kramerich, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Labor for Policy,
Pension and Welfare Benefits Administration; Don M. Blandin, American
Savings Education Council, and Dallas L. Salisbury, Employee Benefit
Research Institute, both of Washington, D.C.; Elizabeth Kiss, Iowa State
University, Ames; Dan Houston, Principal Financial Group, Des Moines,
Iowa; and Barbara Culpepper, Waterloo, Iowa. 

Joint Meetings

MONETARY POLICY

Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded hearings on monetary
policy and the economic outlook, after receiving testimony from Alan
Greenspan, Chairman, Board of Governors, Federal Reserve System. 

ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION ACT

Joint Meeting: Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and
Pensions held joint hearings with the House Committee on Education and
Work Force on proposed legislation authorizing funds for programs of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act, focusing on research and
evaluation, receiving testimony from Christopher T. Cross, Council For
Basic Education, and Alexandra K. Wigdor, National Academy of Sciences
National Research Council, both of Washington, D.C.; Maris A. Vinovskis,
University of Michigan Institute for Social Research, Ann Arbor; Edward
K. Pedersen, Prince William County Public Schools, Manassas, Virginia;
and Ruth Miles, Richmond Public Schools, Richmond, Virginia. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 



1999/06/18
Daily Digest - Friday, June 18, 1999; pages D688 - D694

Committee Meetings

No committee meetings were held. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/06/21
Daily Digest - Monday, June 21, 1999; pages D696 - D700

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

BLACK MARKET PESO EXCHANGE 

United States Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control:
Committee concluded hearings to examine the black market peso exchange,
focusing on how U.S. companies are used to launder money, after
receiving testimony from James E. Johnson, Under Secretary for
Enforcement, Bonni G. Tischler, Assistant Commissioner, U.S. Customs
Service, and Alvin C. James, Senior Policy Advisor for Money Laundering
Enforcement, Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, all of the Department
of the Treasury; Fanny Kertzman, Government of Columbia, Bogota; Michael
Skol, Skol and Associates, Washington, D.C., on behalf of the Decision
Strategies/Fairfax International; and an anonymous witness. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/06/22
Daily Digest - Tuesday, June 22, 1999; pages D702 - D710

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

FEDERAL Y2K SPENDING 

Committee on Appropriations/Special Committee on the Year 2000
Technology Problem: Committees concluded joint hearings to examine the
allocation and use of funds for Federal Y2K remediation, repair, and
contingency planning, after receiving testimony from David M. Walker,
Comptroller General of the United States, General Accounting Office; and
Jacob J. Lew, Director, Office of Management and Budget. 

JUVENILE DIABETES 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human
Services, and Education concluded hearings on the National Institutes of
Health proposed budget increase for the treatment and prevention of
juvenile diabetes, after receiving testimony from Senator Thurmond;
Harold Varmus, Director, and Phillip Gorden, Director, National
Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, both of the
National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services;
and Mary Tyler Moore, New York, New York, on behalf of the Juvenile
Diabetes Foundation. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Interior approved for full
committee consideration an original bill to make appropriations for the
Department of the Interior and related agencies for the fiscal year
ending September 30, 2000. 

NOMINATION 

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded
hearings on the nomination of Lawrence H. Summers, of Maryland, to be
Secretary of the Treasury, after the nominee, who was introduced by
Senator Santorum, testified and answered questions in his own behalf. 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY SECURITY 

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources/Committee on Armed
Services/Committee on Governmental Affairs/Select Committee on
Intelligence: Committees concluded joint hearings on the President's
Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board's report on security problems at the
Department of Energy, after receiving testimony from Bill Richardson,
Secretary of Energy; and former Senator Rudman, Chairman, President's
Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board. 

DISTRIBUTED GENERATION TECHNOLOGIES 

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded hearings
to explore the effectiveness of existing Federal and industry efforts to
promote distributed generating technologies, including solar, wind, fuel
cells and microturbines, as well as regulatory and other barriers to
their widespread use, after receiving testimony from Dan W. Reicher,
Assistant Secretary of Energy for Energy Efficiency and Renewable
Energy; Meera Kohler, Anchorage Municipal Light and Power, and Matthew
Nicolai, Calista Corporation, both of Anchorage, Alaska; Tony Prophet,
AlliedSignal Power Systems, Inc., Albuquerque, New Mexico; George C.
McNamee, Plug Power, Latham, New York; Thomas R. Schneider, Institute of
Electrical and Electronic Engineers, Inc., Portola Valley, California;
and Beverly E. Jones, Consolidated Natural Gas Company, Washington,
D.C., on behalf of the American Gas Association. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

                                          [Page: D705]

Committee on Finance: Committee ordered favorably reported the following
business items: 

The nomination of Lawrence H. Summers, of Maryland, to be Secretary of
the Treasury; 

An original bill to extend the Generalized System of Preferences program
from June 30, 1999 to June 30, 2004; 

An original bill authorizing funds through fiscal year 2001 for trade
adjustment assistance programs for the purpose of providing assistance
to individual workers and firms that are adversely affected by the
import competition; 

An original bill to extend preferential treatment to certain products
imported from Caribbean Basin countries; and 

An original bill to provide eligible sub-Saharan African countries with
enhanced benefits under the Generalized System of Preferences program,
to provide quota-free access to the United States for apparel products
produced in eligible sub-Saharan African countries using U.S. fabric, to
direct the President to begin plans for implementing a United
States-Sub-Saharan Africa free trade area, and to create a United
States-Sub-Saharan Africa Trade and Economic Cooperation Forum. 

NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL 

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere,
Peace Corps, Narcotics and Terrorism concluded hearings to examine
counter-drug efforts in the United States Southern Command's Area of
Responsibility, after receiving testimony from Gen. Charles E. Wilhelm,
USMC, Commander in Chief, U.S. Southern Command. 

NOMINATION 

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee resumed hearings on the
nomination of Richard Holbrooke, of New York, to be the Representative
of the United States of America to the United Nations with the rank and
status of Ambassador, and the Representative of the United States of
America in the Security Council of the United Nations, where the nominee
further testified and answered questions in his own behalf. Testimony
was also received from Harold Jim Johnson, Associate Director,
International Relations and Trade Division, General Accounting Office. 

Hearings continue on Thursday, June 24. 

NOMINATION 

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded hearings on the
nomination of Gwen C. Clare, of South Carolina, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of Ecuador, after the nominee testified and answered questions
in her own behalf. 

STADIUM FINANCING AND FRANCHISE RELOCATION ACT 

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded hearings on S. 952, to
expand an antitrust exemption applicable to professional sports leagues
and to require, as a condition of such an exemption, participation by
professional football and major league baseball sports leagues in the
financing of certain stadium construction activities, after receiving
testimony from Jerry Richardson, Carolina Panthers, Charlotte, North
Carolina; Benjamin Klein, University of California Los Angeles
Department of Economics, Los Angeles; Gene Upshaw, National Football
League Players Association, Washington, D.C.; Paul Tagliabue, National
Football League, New York, New York; and Richard Horrow, Horrow Sports
Ventures, Miami, Florida. 

ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION ACT 

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee resumed
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for programs of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act, focusing on professional
development opportunities for teachers, after receiving testimony from
William Badders, Cleveland Municipal School District, Cleveland, Ohio;
Barbara Schneider, Community School District 2, and Randi Weingarten,
United Federation of Teachers, on behalf of the American Federation of
Teachers, both of New York, New York; Stephen L. Bedford, Col. E. Brooke
Lee Middle School, Silver Spring, Maryland; and C. Emily Feistritzer,
National Center for Education Information, Washington, D.C. 

Hearings continue tomorrow. 

OLDER AMERICANS ACT 

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Subcommittee on
Aging concluded hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for
programs of the Older Americans Act, focusing on the need for a National
Family Caregiver Support Program, after receiving testimony from Senator
Grassley; Donna M. Butts, Generations United, Washington, D.C.; and
Carolyn Erwin-Johnson, Baltimore, Maryland. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/06/23
Daily Digest - Wednesday, June 23, 1999; pages D712 - D720

Committee Meetings

( Committees not listed did not meet ) 

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY NATIONAL SECURITY PROGRAMS 

Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded hearings to examine the
findings and recommendations of the Special Investigative Panel of the
President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board to reorganize Department
of Energy National Security Programs in response to espionage threats,
after receiving testimony from Senators Kyl and Domenici; William B.
Richardson, Secretary of Energy; Adm. Henry G. Chiles, Jr., USN, Ret.
former Commander-in-Chief, United States Strategic Command; and Sidney
D. Drell, Member, President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board. 

EXPORT ADMINISTRATION ACT 

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee resumed
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for programs of the
Export Administration Act, receiving testimony from William A. Reinsch,
Under Secretary of Commerce for Export Administration; John Hamre,
Deputy Secretary of Defense; James Schroeder, Deputy Under Secretary of
Agriculture for Farm and Foreign Agricultural Services; Rose
Gottemoeller, Assistant Secretary of Energy for Nonproliferation and
National Security; and John Barker, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State
for Nonproliferation Controls. 

Hearings continue tomorrow. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee ordered
favorably reported the following business items: 

S. 383, to establish a national policy of basic consumer fair treatment
for airline passengers, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute; 

S. 97, to require the installation and use by schools and libraries of a
technology for filtering or blocking material on the Internet on
computers with Internet access to be eligible to receive or retain
universal service assistance, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute; 

S. 798, to promote electronic commerce by encouraging and facilitating
the use of encryption in interstate commerce consistent with the
protection of national security; 

S. 761, to regulate interstate commerce by electronic means by
permitting and encouraging the continued expansion of electronic
commerce through the operation of free market forces, with an amendment
in the nature of a substitute; 

S. 800, to promote and enhance public safety through the use of 9-1-1 as
the universal emergency assistance number, further deployment of
wireless 9-1-1 service, support of States in upgrading 9-1-1
capabilities and related functions, encouragement of construction and
operation of seamless, ubiquitous, and reliable networks for personal
wireless services, with amendments; 

S. 655, to establish nationally uniform requirements regarding the
titling and registration of salvage, nonrepairable, and rebuilt
vehicles; 

S. 1248, to correct errors in the authorizations of certain programs
administered by the National Highway Traffic Administration; 

S. 937, to authorize appropriations for fiscal years 2000 and 2001 for
certain maritime programs of the D714Department of Transportation, with
an amendment in the nature of a substitute; 

                                          [Page: D714]

S. 832, to extend the commercial space launch damage indemnification
provisions of section 70113 of title 49, United States Code; 

And the nominations of Johnnie E. Frazier, of Maryland, to be Inspector
General, Department of Commerce, Cheryl Shavers, of California, to be
Under Secretary of Commerce for Technology, Kelly H. Carnes, of the
District of Columbia, to be Assistant Secretary of Commerce for
Technology Policy, Ann Brown, of Florida, to be a Commissioner and
Chairman of the Consumer Product Safety Commission, Mary Sheila Gall, of
Virginia, to be a Commissioner of the Consumer Product Safety
Commission, Albert S. Jacquez, of California, to be Administrator of the
Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation, Sylvia de Leon, of Texas,
to be a Member of the Reform Board (Amtrak), and a nomination for
promotion in the United States Coast Guard. 

LAND CONVEYANCE AND WILDERNESS DESIGNATION BILLS

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Forests and
Public Land Management concluded hearings on S. 503, designating certain
land in the San Isabel National Forest in the State of Colorado as the 
"Spanish Peaks Wilderness ", S. 953, to direct the Secretary of
Agriculture to convey certain land in the State of South Dakota to the
Terry Peak Ski Area, S. 977, to provide for the conveyance by the Bureau
of Land Management to Douglas County, Oregon, of a county park and
certain adjacent land, S. 1088, to authorize the Secretary of
Agriculture to convey certain administrative sites in national forests
in the State of Arizona, to convey certain land to the City of Sedona,
Arizona for a wastewater treatment facility, and H.R. 15 and S. 848,
bills to designate a portion of the Otay Mountain region of California
as wilderness, after receiving testimony from Senators Allard and Kyl;
Representative Bilbray; Denny Bschor, Director, Recreation, Heritage and
Wilderness Resources, Forest Service, Department of Agriculture; Tom
Fry, Acting Director, Bureau of Land Management, Department of the
Interior; and Douglas Robertson, Douglas County, Roseburg, Oregon. 

COLUMBIA RIVER BASIN SALMON RECOVERY

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on Fisheries,
Wildlife, and Drinking Water concluded hearings on issues relating to
the Columbia River Basin salmon recovery, focusing on the activities of
the Federal Caucus and the Four-H Paper, and the status of the 99
Decision, after receiving testimony from Senator Craig; George T.
Frampton, Jr., Acting Chairman, Council on Environmental Quality; Idaho
Governor Dirk Kempthorne, and Mark Dunn, J.R. Simplot Company, on behalf
of the Northwest Food Processors Association, both of Boise, Idaho;
Donald Sampson, Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission, Portland,
Oregon; Scott Faber, American Rivers, Washington, D.C.; Owen C. Squires,
Pulp and Paperworkers Resource Council, Lewiston, Idaho, on behalf of
the Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical, and Energy Workers International
Union Local 712; Tim Stearns, Save Our Wild Salmon, Seattle, Washington;
and Lynn Ausman, Waitsburg, Washington, on behalf of the Washington
Association of Wheat Growers and the Washington Barley Commission. 

MEDICARE PRESCRIPTION DRUG BENEFIT

Committee on Finance: Committee held hearings on proposals to add a
prescription drug benefit to the Medicare program, receiving testimony
from Laura A. Dummit, Associate Director, Health Financing and Public
Health Issues, Health, Education, and Human Services Division, General
Accounting Office; Michael E. Gluck, National Academy of Social
Insurance, Alan F. Holmer, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of
America, J. Leighton Read, Aviron, on behalf of the Biotechnology
Industry Organization, and Martha A. McSteen, National Committee to
Preserve Social Security and Medicare, all of Washington, D.C.; Kevin W.
Concannon, Maine Department of Human Services, Augusta; Morris B.
Mellion, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska, Omaha, on behalf of the
Blue Cross Blue Shield Association; and Jeff Sanders, PCS Health
Systems, Inc., Scottsdale, Arizona. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

U.S. POLICY TOWARD IRAQ

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on Near Eastern and South
Asian Affairs concluded hearings to examine United States policy towards
Iraq, after receiving testimony from A. Elizabeth Jones, Principal
Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs; Ahmad
Chalabi, Iraqi National Congress, London, England; and Patrick Clawson,
Washington Institute for Near East Policy, and Rend Rahim Francke, Iraq
Foundation, both of Washington, D.C. 

NOMINATION

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded hearings on the
nomination of David B. Sandalow, of the District of Columbia, to be
Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and International Environmental
and Scientific Affairs, after the nominee testified and answered
questions in his own behalf. 

                                          [Page: D715]

EXPORT CONTROL PROCESS

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on
interagency Inspectors General report on the export control process for
dual-use and munitions list commodities, after receiving testimony from
Johnnie E. Frazier, Acting Inspector General, Department of Commerce;
Gregory H. Friedman, Inspector General, Department of Energy; Donald
Mancuso, Acting Inspector General, Department of Defense; John C. Payne,
Deputy Inspector General, Department of State; Lawrence W. Rogers,
Acting Inspector General, Department of the Treasury; and L. Britt
Snider, Inspector General, Central Intelligence Agency. 

RELIGIOUS LIBERTY 

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded hearings on issues
relating to religious liberty protection, after receiving testimony from
Texas State Representative Scott Hochburg, Houston; Steven T. McFarland,
Christian Legal Society's Center for Law and Religious Freedom,
Annandale, Virginia; Nathan J. Diament, Union of Orthodox Jewish
Congregations of America, Elliot M. Mincberg, People for the American
Way, and Christopher E. Anders, American Civil Liberties Union, all of
Washington, D.C.; Manuel A. Miranda, Cardinal Newman Society for
Catholic Higher Education, Fairfax, Virginia; and Michael P. Farris,
Home School Legal Defense Association, Purcellville, Virginia, [sic]

ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION ACT 

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee resumed
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for programs of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act, focusing on Title VI, Innovative
Education Program Strategies, receiving testimony from Earin M. Martin,
Texas Education Agency, Austin, on behalf of the Title VI National
Steering Committee; Robert McNamara, Vermont Department of Education,
Montpelier; Sandra J. Erickson, Howard County Public School System,
Ellicott City, Maryland; Eric A. Hanushek, University of Rochester W.
Allen Wallis Institute of Political Economy, Rochester, New York; Randy
Ross, Los Angeles Annenberg Metropolitan Project, Los Angeles,
California; and Lynn Winters, Grassland Middle School, Franklin,
Tennessee, on behalf of the National Education Association. 

Hearings continue on Tuesday, June 29. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following bills: 

S. 695, to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish a
national cemetery for veterans in the Atlanta, Georgia, metropolitan
area, with amendments; 

S. 1076, to amend title 38, United States Code, to provide a
cost-of-living adjustment in rates of compensation paid to veterans with
service-connected disabilities, to enhance programs providing health
care, education, and other benefits for veterans, to authorize major
medical facility projects, to reform eligibility for burial in Arlington
National Cemetery, with amendments; 

An original bill to direct VA to provide cost-of-living adjustments in
compensation and other benefits for calendar year 2000, and would codify
cost-of-living adjustments provided by VA for calendar year 1999; 

An original bill to enhance veterans' educational assistance benefits
programs; and 

The nomination of John T. Hanson, of Virginia, to be Assistant Secretary
of Veterans Affairs for Public and Intergovernmental Affairs. 

NATIONAL GAMBLING IMPACT STUDY COMMISSION FINAL REPORT 

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded oversight hearings on
the National Gambling Impact Study Commission final report on the status
of tribal governmental sponsored gaming in the United States, after
receiving testimony from Robert W. Loescher, Sealaska Corporation,
Juneau, Alaska, on behalf of the National Gambling Impact Study
Commission; Montie R. Deer, National Indian Gaming Commission, Raymond
C. Scheppach, National Governors' Association, and Richard G. Hill,
National Indian Gaming Association, all of Washington, D.C.; and Deborah
Doxtator, Oneida Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin,
Oneida. 

INTELLIGENCE 

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the
intelligence community. 

Committee meets again tomorrow. 

                                          [Page: D716]

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/06/24
Daily Digest - Thursday, June 24, 1999; pages D722 - D730

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

AGRICULTURAL TRADE POLICY 

Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry: Committee concluded
hearings to examine United States D724agricultural trade goals and
related objectives of the forthcoming round of global trade
negotiations, after receiving testimony from Charlene Barshefsky, United
States Trade Representative; and Dan Glickman, Secretary of Agriculture. 

                                          [Page: D724]

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Appropriations: Committee ordered favorably the following
bills: 

An original bill (S. 1282) making appropriations for the Treasury
Department, the United States Postal Service, the Executive Office of
the President, and certain Independent Agencies, for the fiscal year
ending September 30, 2000; 

An original bill (S. 1283) making appropriations for the government of
the District of Columbia and other activities chargeable in whole or in
part against revenues of said District for the fiscal year ending
September 30, 2000; and 

An original bill making appropriations for the Department of the
Interior and related agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30,
2000. 

EXPORT ADMINISTRATION ACT 

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for programs of the
Export Administration Act, after receiving testimony from Craig Elwell,
Specialist in Macroeconomics, Government and Finance Division,
Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress; Stephen Bryen,
former Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Export Administration; John
W. Douglass, Aerospace Industries Association, and Richard T. Cupitt,
University of Georgia/Center for International Trade and Security, both
of Washington, D.C.; Kyle H. Seymour, Cincinnati Machine/UNOVA Company,
Cincinnati, Ohio, on behalf of the Association for Manufacturing
Technology; Andrew Whisenhunt, Arkansas Farm Bureau Federation, Little
Rock, on behalf of the American Farm Bureau Federation; and Karen
Murphy, Applied Materials, Inc., Santa Clara, California, on behalf of
the Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International. 

PROPOSED BP AMOCO/ATLANTIC RICHFIELD COMPANY MERGER 

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded oversight
hearings to examine the implications of the proposed acquisition of the
Atlantic Richfield Company by BP Amoco, PLC, after receiving testimony
from Jay Hakes, Administrator, Energy Information Administration,
Department of Energy; Alaska State Senator Bruce Botelho, Juneau; Andrew
E. Aubertine, Oregon Department of Justice, Salem; Alaska State Senator
Drue Pearce, and Bill Allen, VECO Corporation, both of Anchorage,
Alaska; Mike R. Bowlin, Atlantic Richfield Company, Los Angeles,
California; Richard L. Olver, BP Amoco, London, United Kingdom; John H.
Lichtblau, Petroleum Industry Research Foundation, Inc., New York, New
York; Robert E. Ebel, Center for Strategic and International Studies,
Washington, D.C.; Dale R. Lindsey, Harbor Enterprises, Inc., Petersburg,
Alaska, on behalf of the Petersburg Energy; and James W. Winters, United
Energy, Inc., Portland, Oregon. 

NO T2X K EMISSION REDUCTION 

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on Clean Air,
Wetlands, Private Property, and Nuclear Safety concluded hearings on the
Environmental Protection Agency's NO T2X K 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Finance: Committee ordered favorably reported an original
bill to extend the allowance of Medicare-eligible military retirees to
receive Medicare-covered services under the Department of Defense health
plan until December 31, 2001, and to authorize a fee-for-service model
under the subvention demonstration for military retirees. 

NOMINATIONS 

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded hearings on the
nomination of Richard C. Holbrooke, of New York, to be the
Representative of the United States to the United Nations with the rank
and status of Ambassador, and the Representative of the United States in
the Security Council of the United Nations, after the nominee further
testified and answered questions on his own behalf. 

SATELLITE EXPORT CONTROL/DOMESTIC PRODUCTION AND LAUNCH
CAPABILITIES 

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on International Economic
Policy, Export and Trade Promotion concluded hearings to examine U.S.
satellite export control policy and the domestic production/launch
capability, after receiving testimony from Eric D. Newsom, Assistant
Secretary of State for Political Military Affairs; William A. Reinsch,
Under Secretary of Commerce for Export Administration; D725Franklin C.
Miller, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy and
Threat Reduction; Thomas A. Corcoran, Lockheed Martin Corporation,
Bethesda, Maryland; and Thomas W. Watts, Merrill Lynch, New York, New
York. 

                                          [Page: D725]

DC COLLEGE ACCESS ACT/HIGHER EDUCATION FOR DC STUDENTS ACT 

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on Oversight of
Government Management, Restructuring and the District of Columbia
concluded hearings on H.R. 974, to establish a program to afford high
school graduates from the District of Columbia the benefits of in-State
tuition at State colleges and universities outside the District of
Columbia, and S. 856, to provide greater options for District of
Columbia students in higher education, after receiving testimony from
Senator Jeffords; Representative Thomas Davis; District of Columbia
Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton; Maureen A. McLaughlin, Deputy Assistant
Secretary of Education for Policy, Planning, and Innovation, Office of
Post-Secondary Education; and Mayor Anthony A. Williams, Lucio A. Noto,
Mobil Corporation, on behalf of the District of Columbia College Access
Program, Julius F. Nimmons, Jr., University of the District of Columbia,
and Patricia A. McGuire, Consortium of Universities of the Metropolitan
Washington Area, all of Washington, D.C. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following business items: 

H.R. 441, to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act with respect to
the requirements for the admission of nonimmigrant nurses who will
practice in health professional shortage areas; 

S. 768, to establish court-martial jurisdiction over civilians serving
with the Armed Forces during contingency operations, and to establish
Federal jurisdiction over crimes committed outside the United States by
former members of the Armed Forces and civilians accompanying the Armed
Forces outside the United States, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute; and 

The nominations of Keith P. Ellison, to be United States District Judge
for the Southern District of Texas, Gary Allen Feess, to be United
States District Judge for the Central District of California, W. Allen
Pepper, Jr., to be United States District Judge for the Northern
District of Mississippi, Karen E. Schreier, to be United States District
Judge for the District of South Dakota, and Stefan R. Underhill, to be
United States District Judge for the District of Connecticut. 

INTELLIGENCE 

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the
intelligence community. 

Committee will meet again on Thursday, July 1. 

Joint Meetings 

Y2K ACT 

Conferees met to resolve the differences between the Senate and House
passed versions of H.R. 775, to establish certain procedures for civil
actions brought for damages relating to the failure of any device or
system to process or otherwise deal with the transition from the year
1999 to the year 2000, but did not complete action thereon, and will
meet again on Tuesday, June 29. 



1999/06/25
Daily Digest - Friday, June 25, 1999; pages D731 - D736

Committee Meetings 

No committee meetings were held. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/06/28
Daily Digest - Monday, June 28, 1999; pages D737 - D740

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

NOMINATIONS

Committee on Armed Services: Committee ordered favorably reported 4,657
military nominations in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force. 

NOMINATION

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded hearings on the
nomination of John David Holum, of Maryland, to be Under Secretary of
State for Arms Control and International Security, after the nominee,
who was introduced by Senator Johnson, testified and answered questions
in his own behalf. 

Joint Meetings

TRAFFICKING OF HUMAN BEINGS

Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Commission concluded
hearings on issues relating to the trafficking of women and children in
Europe and the United States, focusing on the causes and extent of the
problem in OSCE participating states, the situation in Kosovo, and the
involvement of international criminal networks and the efforts by the
United States, foreign governments and NGO's to address the issue, after
receiving testimony from Anita Botti, Deputy Director/Senior Advisor on
Trafficking, Office of the Senior Coordinator for International Women's
Issues, Department of State; Steven Galster, Global Survival Network,
Louise Shelley, American University School of International Service,
Wendy Young, International Rescue Committee, and Laura Lederer, Harvard
University John F. Kennedy School of Government, all of Washington, D.C. 



1999/06/29
Daily Digest - Tuesday, June 29, 1999; pages D742 - D750

Committee Meetings

( Committees not listed did not meet ) 

PUBLIC SAFETY SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on
Science, Technology, and Space concluded hearings on proposed
legislation authorizing funds for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration, United States Fire Administration, and the National
Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program, after receiving testimony from D.
James Baker, Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere, and
Administrator, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and
Raymond G. Kammer, Director, National Institute of Standards and
Technology, both of the Department of Commerce; Michael J. Armstrong, U.
S. Associate Director for Mitigation, and Richard A. Marinucci, Acting
Chief Operating Officer, Fire Administration, both of the Federal
Emergency Management Agency; P. Patrick Leahy, Chief Geologist, U. S.
Geological Survey, Department of the Interior; and Eugene Wong,
Assistant Director for Engineering, National Science Foundation. 

ELECTRIC UTILITY DEREGULATION

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee held hearings on S.
161, to provide for a transition to market-based rates for power sold by
the Federal Power Marketing Administrations and the Tennessee Valley
Authority, S. 282, to provide that no electric utility shall be required
to enter into a new contract or obligation to purchase or to sell
electricity or capacity under section 210 of the Public Utility
Regulatory Policies Act of 1978, S. 516, to benefit consumers by
promoting competition in the electric power industry, S. 1047, to
provide for a more competitive electric power industry, S. 1273, to
amend the Federal Power Act, to facilitate the transition to more
competitive and efficient electric power markets, and S. 1284, to amend
the Federal Power Act to ensure that no State may establish, maintain,
or enforce on behalf of any electric utility an exclusive right to sell
electric energy or otherwise unduly discriminate against any consumer
who seeks to purchase electric energy in interstate commerce from any
supplier, receiving testimony from Senator Schumer; Bill Richardson,
Secretary, and James J. Hoecker, Chairman, Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission, both of the Department of Energy; and Nebraska Governor Mike
Johanns, Lincoln, on behalf of the Governors' Public Power Alliance. 

Hearings continue on Thursday, July 15. 

WILDLAND FIRE PREPAREDNESS

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Forests and
Public Land Management concluded oversight hearings on the federal
government's state of preparedness for this year's wildland fire season,
including fire fighting budgets, availability and retention of trained
fire fighters, and cooperative programs outside the federal government
to enhance fire suppression capabilities, after receiving testimony from
Les Rosenkrance, Director, and Dennis Pendleton, Assistant Director,
both of the Office of Fire and Aviation, Ron Dunton, Fire Program
Manager, all of the Bureau of Land Management, and Arch Wells, Chief
Forester, Bureau of Indian Affairs, all of the Department of the
Interior; Larry Payne, Assistant Deputy Chief for State and Private
Forestry, Forest Service, Department of Agriculture; and Ron Burnham,
Fire Chief, Red River, New Mexico; and Toby Martinez, Santa Fe, New
Mexico. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee ordered favorably
reported the following business items: 

S. 1100, to amend the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to provide that the
designation of critical habitat for endangered and threatened species be
required as part of the development of recovery plans for those species,
with an amendment in the nature of a substitute; 

An original resolution authorizing expenditures by the Committee on
Environment and Public Works; and 

The nomination of Timothy Fields, Jr., of Virginia, to be Assistant
Administrator, Office of Solid Waste, Environmental Protection Agency. 

NOMINATIONS

Committee on Finance: Committee concluded hearings on the nominations of
Stuart E. Eizenstat, of Maryland, to be Deputy Secretary of the
Treasury, Jeffrey Rush, Jr., of Virginia, to be Inspector General,
Department of the Treasury, and Lewis Andrew Sachs, of Connecticut, to
be Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Financial Markets, after the
nominees testified and answered questions in their own behalf. Mr.
Eizenstat was introduced by Senators Sarbanes and Coverdell. 

                                          [Page: D744]

ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION ACT

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee resumed
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for programs of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act, focusing on arts education and
magnet schools, receiving testimony from John Sykes, VH1, New York, New
York; John D. Kemp, VSA arts, and Derek Gordon, John F. Kennedy Center
for the Performing Arts, both of Washington, D.C.; Tom Durante,
Arlington County Public Schools, Arlington, Virginia; Benjamin O.
Canada, Portland Public Schools, Portland, Oregon, on behalf of the
Americans for the Arts; Danielle Rice, Philadelphia Museum of Art,
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Sandra B. Burks, Roanoke City Public
Schools, Roanoke, Virginia. 

Hearings continue tomorrow. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/06/30
Daily Digest - Wednesday, June 30, 1999; pages D752 - D764

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

GAMBLING ADDICTION

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human
Services, and Education concluded hearings on gambling addiction issues,
focusing on the health research recommendations of the National Gambling
Impact Study Commission, after receiving testimony from Representative
Wolf; Steven E. Hyman, Director, National Institute of Mental Health,
National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services;
and Leo T. McCarthy, Commissioner, and Timothy A. Kelly, Executive
Director, both of the National Gambling Impact Study Commission; Ken
Winters, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis; and Leo Tose,
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 

NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARIES ACT/CORAL REEF CONSERVATION ACT

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for programs of the
National Marine Sanctuaries Act, and S. 725, to preserve and protect
coral reefs, after receiving testimony from Sally Yozell, Deputy
Assistant Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere, Michael Crosby, Executive
Director, Science Advisory Board, and Ed Lindloff, Acting Manager,
Stellwagen Bank, National Marine Sanctuary, all of National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce; C. Renee Cooper,
Caribbean Marine Research Center, West Palm Beach, Florida, on behalf of
the Perry Institute of Marine Science; Cynthia Hunter, Waikiki Aquarium,
Honolulu, Hawaii; Phillip Dustan, Cousteau Society, Alexandria,
Virginia; Michael Connor, New England Aquarium, Boston, Massachusetts;
and Michael Collins, Islamorada, Florida. 

                                          [Page: D757]

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee ordered favorably
reported the following business items:   S. 501, to address resource
management issues in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska, with an
amendment in the nature of a substitute; 

S. 581, to protect the Paoli and Brandywine Battlefields in
Pennsylvania, to authorize a Valley Forge Museum of the American
Revolution at Valley Forge National Historical Park, with an amendment
in the nature of a substitute; 

H.R.149, to make technical corrections to the Omnibus Parks and Public
Lands Management Act of 1996, with amendments; 

S. 711, to allow for the investment of joint Federal and State funds
from the civil settlement of damages from the Exxon Valdez oil spill,
with an amendment in the nature of a substitute; 

S. 348, to authorize and facilitate a program to enhance training,
research and development, energy conservation and efficiency, and
consumer education in the oilheat industry for the benefit of oilheat
consumers and the public, with an amendment; 

S. 953, to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to convey certain land in
the State of South Dakota to the Terry Peak Ski Area, with an amendment
in the nature of a substitute; 

S. 1088, to authorize the Secretary of Agriculture to convey certain
administrative sites in national forests in the State of Arizona, to
convey certain land to the City of Sedona, Arizona for a wastewater
treatment facility; 

H.R. 15, to designate a portion of the Otay Mountain region of
California as wilderness; and 

An original resolution authorizing expenditures by the Committee on
Energy and Natural Resources. 

U.S. FOREST SERVICE ECONOMIC ACTION PROGRAMS

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Forests and
Public Land Management concluded oversight hearings on the United States
Forest Service Economic Action programs, focusing on community based
approaches to natural resource management, after receiving testimony
from Michael T. Rains, Director, Northeastern Area for State and Private
Forestry, Forest Service, Department of Agriculture; Michael Preston,
Montezuma County Federal Lands Program, Cortez, Colorado; Bob Moore,
Catron County Citizens Group, Glenwood, New Mexico; James Enote, Pueblo
of Zuni Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, Zuni, New Mexico;
Carl L. Myers, Wood Center, Medford, Oregon; Eric S. Howard, Maine Wood
Products Association, South Portland; Betty Riley, Sierra Economic
Development District, Auburn, California; Tom Brumm, Oregon Economic
Development Department, Salem; Stephen S. Madrone, Redwood Community
Action Agency, Eureka, California; and Toby Martinez, New Mexico
Forestry and Resources Conservation Division, Santa Fe, on behalf of the
National Association of State Foresters. 

PENSION REFORM

Committee on Finance: Committee held hearings on S. 646, to amend the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide increased retirement savings
opportunities, S. 741, to provide for pension reform, S. 659, to amend
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to require pension plans to provide
adequate notice to individuals whose future benefit accruals are being
significantly reduced, and S. 60, to amend the Internal Revenue Code of
1986 to provide equitable treatment for contributions by employees to
pension plans, receiving testimony from Senator Harkin; Patrick J.
Purcell, Specialist in Social Legislation, Domestic Social Policy
Division, Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress; Rita D.
Metras, Eastman Kodak Company, Rochester, New York, on behalf of the
Association of Private Pension and Welfare Plans; Scott J. Macey,
AT&T/ASA, Inc., Somerset, New Jersey, on behalf of the ERISA Industry
Committee; Richard D. Pearce, Alliance Benefit Group of Delaware, Inc.,
Wilmington, on behalf of the American Society of Pension Actuaries; Ann
Combs, American Council of Life Insurance, Washington, D.C.; Lou
Valentino, Watson Wyatt Worldwide, New York, New York, on behalf of the
National Defined Contribution Council; and Robert F. Hill, Denver,
Colorado. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following business items: 

An original resolution authorizing expenditures by the Committee on
Foreign Relations; 

S. Res. 109, relating to the activities of the National Islamic Front
government in Sudan, with amendments; 

S. Res. 119, expressing the sense of the Senate with respect to United
Nations General Assembly Resolution ES-10/6; 

S. Con. Res. 36, condemning Palestinian efforts to revive the original
Palestine partition plan of November 29, 1947, and condemning the United
Nations Commission on Human Rights for its April 27, 1999, resolution
endorsing Palestinian self-determination on the basis of the original
Palestine partition plan; 

H. R. 1175, to locate and secure the return of Zachary Baumel, an
American citizen, and other D758Israeli soldiers missing in action, with
an amendment; 

                                          [Page: D758]

H. Con. Res. 35, congratulating the State of Qatar and its citizens for
their commitment to democratic ideals and women's suffrage on the
occasion of Qatar's historic elections of a central municipal council on
March 8, 1999; and 

The nominations of Frank Almaguer, of Virginia, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of Honduras, Donald Keith Bandler, of Pennsylvania, to be
Ambassador to the Republic of Cyprus, Prudence Bushnell, of Virginia, to
be Ambassador to the Republic of Guatemala, Johnnie Carson, of Illinois,
to be Ambassador to the Republic of Kenya, Gwen C. Clare, of South
Carolina, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Ecuador, Melvin E. Clark,
Jr., of the District of Columbia, to be a Member of the Board of
Directors of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, David B. Dunn,
of California, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Zambia, M. Michael
Einik, of Virginia, to be Ambassador to The Former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia, Mark Wylea Erwin, of North Carolina, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of Mauritius, and to serve concurrently and without additional
compensation as Ambassador to the Federal Islamic Republic of Comoros
and as Ambassador to the Republic of Seychelles, Oliver P. Garza, of
Texas, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Nicaragua, Christopher E.
Goldthwait, of Florida, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Chad, John
R. Hamilton, of Virginia, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Peru,
Lawrence Harrington, of Tennessee, to be United States Executive
Director of the Inter-American Development Bank, Richard Holbrooke, of
New York, to be the Representative of the United States of America to
the United Nations with the rank and status of Ambassador, and the
Representative of the United States of America in the Security Council
of the United Nations, as well as to be a Representative of the United
States of America to the Sessions of the General Assembly of the United
Nations, John David Holum, of Maryland, to the Under Secretary of State
for Arms Control and International Security, Donald W. Keyser, of
Virginia, for rank of Ambassador during tenure of service as Special
Representative of the Secretary of State for Nagorno-Karabakh and New
Independent States Regional Conflicts, Joyce E. Leader, of the District
of Columbia, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Guinea, Joseph
Limprecht, of Virginia, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Albania,
Michael D. Metelits, of California, to be Ambassador to the Republic of
Cape Verde, Thomas J. Miller, of Virginia, to be Ambassador to Bosnia
and Herzegovina, Bismarck Myrick, of Virginia, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of Liberia, Larry C. Napper, of Texas, for rank of Ambassador
during tenure of service as Coordinator of the Support for East European
Democracy (SEED) Program, Donald Lee Pressley, of Virginia, to be
Assistant Administrator for Europe and the New Independent States of the
Agency for International Development, David B. Sandalow, of the District
of Columbia, to be Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and
International Environmental and Scientific Affairs, Peter S. Wood, of
California, for promotion to the Class of Counselor, Senior Foreign
Service, and Stephen A. Dodson, of Texas, for appointment as a Foreign
Service Officer of Class Four, Consular Officer and Secretary in the
Diplomatic Service, both of the Department of State, and certain Foreign
Service Officer Promotions lists. 

ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION ACT

Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions: Committee continued
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for programs of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act, focusing on school facilities,
receiving testimony from Dennis Zimmerman, Specialist in Public Finance,
Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress; Starla
Jewell-Kelly, National Community Education Association, Fairfax,
Virginia; Sarah Sinnott, Visiting Nurse Association, H.O. Wheeler
Community School, Burlington, Vermont; Ede Valiquette, University of
Connecticut Cooperative Extension System, Danbury; and Idella Harter,
Maine Education Association, Augusta, on behalf of the National
Education Association. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

INDIAN RESERVED WATER RIGHTS SETTLEMENT ACT

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on S. 438, to
provide for the settlement of the water rights claims of the Chippewa
Cree Tribe of the Rocky Boy's Reservation, after receiving testimony
from David J. Hayes, Acting Deputy Secretary of the Interior; Jim
Morsette, Chippewa Cree Tribe of the Rocky Boy's Reservation, Box Elder,
Montana; and Chris D. Tweeten, Montana Reserved Water Rights Compact
Commission, Helena. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following bills: 

S. 438, to provide for the settlement of the water rights claims of the
Chippewa Cree Tribe of the Rocky Boy's Reservation; and 

S. 225, to provide Federal housing assistance to Native Hawaiians. 

                                          [Page: D759]

NURSING HOME CARE

Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded hearings to examine the
Health Care Financing Administration's implementation of their nursing
home improvement initiative, after receiving testimony from Rachel
Block, Deputy Director, Center for Medicaid and State Operations, Health
Care Financing Administration, Department of Health and Human Services;
William J. Scanlon, Director, Health Financing and Public Health Issues,
Health, Education, and Human Services Division, General Accounting
Office; Catherine G. Morris, New Jersey Department of Health, Trenton,
on behalf of the Association of Health Facility Survey Agencies; David
R. Zimmerman, University of Wisconsin Center for Health Systems
Research, Madison; Andrew Kramer, University of Colorado Health Sciences
Center, Denver; and Charlene Harrington, University of California School
of Nursing, San Francisco. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/07/01
Daily Digest - Thursday, July 1, 1999; pages D766 - D780

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

MILITARY OPERATIONS IN KOSOVO

Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded hearings on issues
relating to military operations in Kosovo, after receiving testimony
from Gen. Wesley K. Clark, USA, Commander in Chief, European Command,
Supreme Allied Commander, Europe. 

LOW-INCOME HOUSING AVAILABILITY

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on
Housing and Transportation concluded hearings on S. 1318, to authorize
the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to award grants to States
to supplement State and local assistance for the preservation and
promotion of affordable housing opportunities for low-income families,
and S. 1319, to authorize the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
to renew project-based contracts for assistance under section 8 of the
United States Housing Act of 1937 at up to market rent levels, in order
to preserve these projects as affordable low-income housing, after
receiving testimony from Senators Grams, Kerry, Bond, and Jeffords;
Representatives Lazio and Frank; and William C. Apgar, Assistant
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development for Housing/Federal Housing
Commissioner. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee ordered favorably
reported the nominations of David L. Goldwyn, of the District of
Columbia, to be Assistant Secretary of Energy for International Affairs,
and James B. Lewis, of New Mexico, to be Director of the Office Of
Minority Economic Impact, Department of Energy. 

SANCTIONS IN U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY POLICY

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee held hearings on the role of
sanctions in United States national security policy, receiving testimony
from Stuart E. Eizenstat, Under Secretary of State for Economic,
Business and Agricultural Affairs. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

U.S. POLICY ON HONG KONG

Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific
Affairs concluded hearings to examine United States policy towards Hong
Kong, after receiving testimony from Stanley O. Roth, Assistant
Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs; Margaret Ng
Negoi-yee, Representative for the Legal Functional Constituency,
Legislative Council, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, People's
Republic of China; Stephen J. Yates, Heritage Foundation, Washington,
D.C.; and Jerome A. Cohen, Council on Foreign Relations, New York, New
York. 

EGG SAFETY

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on Oversight of
Government Management, Restructuring and the District of Columbia
concluded hearings to examine the federal food safety system, focusing
on the safety of eggs and egg products, after receiving testimony from
Lawrence J. Dyckman, Director, Food and Agriculture Issues, Resources,
Community, and Economic Development Division, General Accounting Office;
Morris E. Potter, Director, Food Safety Initiatives, Center for Food
Safety and Applied Nutrition, Food and Drug Administration, Department
of Health and Human Services; Margaret Glavin, Associate Administrator,
Food Safety and Inspection Service, Department of Agriculture; Michael
F. Jacobson, Center for Science in the Public Interest, and Jill A.
Snowdon, Egg Nutrition Center, both of Washington, D.C.; Keith Mussman,
Mussman's Back Acres, Grant Park, Illinois, on behalf of the United Egg
Producers; and Harold DeVries, Jr., Mallquist Butter and Egg Company,
Rockford, Illinois. 

BUSINESS MEETING

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following business items: 

S. 467, to restate and improve section 7A of the Clayton Act, with an
amendment in the nature of a substitute; 

S. 1257, to amend statutory damages provisions of title 17, United
States Code; 

S. 1258, to authorize funds for the payment of salaries and expenses of
the Patent and Trademark Office; 

                                          [Page: D773]

S. 1259, to amend the Trademark Act of 1946 relating to dilution of
famous marks; 

S. 1260, to make technical corrections in title 17, United States Code,
and other laws, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute; 

S. Res. 59, designating both July 2, 1999, and July 2, 2000, as 
"National Literacy Day "; and 

The nominations of Marsha L. Berzon, of California, to be United States
Circuit Judge for the Ninth Circuit, Robert A. Katzmann, of New York, to
be United States Circuit Judge for the Second Circuit, and T. John Ward,
to be United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Texas. 

WORKFORCE INVESTMENT ACT

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Subcommittee on
Employment, Safety and Training concluded oversight hearings on the
implementation of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998, after receiving
testimony from Senator DeWine; Raymond L. Bramucci, Assistant Secretary
of Labor for Employment and Training; Steven M. Gold, Vermont Department
of Employment and Training, Montpelier; Terry W. Hudson, Houston Works,
Houston, Texas; Earl Wilson, Minnesota Department of Economic Security,
St. Paul; and Roberts T. Jones, National Alliance of Business,
Washington, D.C.

AMERICAN INDIAN EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATION

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on S. 1290, to
amend title 36 of the United States Code to establish the American
Indian Education Foundation, after receiving testimony from
Representatives Kildee and Patrick Kennedy; Michael J. Anderson, Deputy
Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs; John W. Cheek,
National Indian Education Association, Alexandria, Virginia; Roger
Bordeaux, Association of Community Tribal Schools, Inc., Sisseton, South
Dakota; Gerald Monette, Turtle Mountain Community College, Belcourt,
North Dakota, on behalf of the American Indian Higher Education
Consortium; Kathryn Benally, Navajo Area School Board Association,
Window Rock, Arizona. 

Joint Meetings

Y2K ACT

Conferees, on Tuesday, June 29, agreed to file a conference report on
the differences between the Senate and House passed versions of H.R.
775, to establish certain procedures for civil actions brought for
damages relating to the failure of any device or system to process or
otherwise deal with the transition from the year 1999 to the year 2000. 



1999/07/12
Daily Digest - Monday, July 12, 1999; pages D782 - D788

Committee Meetings 

No committee meetings were held. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/07/13
Daily Digest - Tuesday, July 13, 1999; pages D790 - D796

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

NEVADA LAND CONVEYANCES 

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Forests and
Public Land Management concluded hearings on S. 1330, to give the city
of Mesquite, Nevada, the right to purchase at fair market value certain
parcels of public land in the city; and S. 1329, to direct the Secretary
of the Interior to convey certain land to Nye County, Nevada, after
receiving testimony from Senator Reid; Larry Finfer, Assistant Director
for Communications, Bureau of Land Management, Department of the
Interior; Bryan Montgomery, City of Mesquite, Nevada; and Stephen
Bradhurst, Nevada Science and Technology Center, Reno, Nevada. 

NOMINATIONS 

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded hearings on the
nominations of Charles R. Wilson, of Florida, to be United States
Circuit Judge for the Eleventh Circuit, William Haskell Alsup, to be
United States District Judge for the Northern District of California,
Adalberto Jose Jordan, to be United States District Judge for the
Southern District of Florida, Carlos Murguia, to be United States
District Judge for the District of Kansas, and Marsha J. Pechman, to be
United States District Judge for the Western District of Washington,
after the nominees testified and answered questions in their own behalf.
Mr. Wilson and Mr. Jordan were introduced by Senators Graham and Mack,
Mr. Alsup was introduced by Senator Boxer, Mr. Murguia was introduced by
Senators Brownback and Roberts, and Ms. Pechman was introduced by
Senators Gorton and Murray. 

ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION ACT 

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee resumed
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for programs of the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act, focusing on safe and drug free
schools, receiving testimony from Barry R. McCaffrey, Director, Office
of National Drug Control Policy; William Modzeleski, Director, Safe and
Drug-Free Schools Program, Department of Education; David S. Wolk,
Rutland Public Schools, Rutland, Vermont; Rosalind Brannigan, Drug
Strategies, Washington, D.C.; and Hope Taft, Columbus, Ohio. 

Hearings continue on Tuesday, July 20. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/07/14
Daily Digest - Wednesday, July 14, 1999; pages D798 - D806

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

COUNTERDRUG OPERATIONS 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittees on Defense and Military
Construction concluded joint hearings on Department of Defense forward
operating locations for counterdrug operations, focusing on Panama,
after receiving testimony from Walter B. Slocombe, Under Secretary of
Defense for Policy; and Gen. Charles E. Wilhelm, USMC, Commander in
Chief, United States Southern Command. 

RURAL HOSPITAL CARE COSTS 

Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural
Development, and Related Agencies concluded hearings on health care cost
issues affecting rural hospitals, focusing on the effects of the passage
of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 and Medicare's payment policies,
after receiving testimony from Robert A. Berinson, Director, Center for
Health Plans and Providers, and Roland E. King, former Chief Actuary,
both of the Health Care Financing Administration, and Claude Earl Fox,
Administrator, Health Resources and Services Administration, all of the
Department of Health and Human Services; Gail R. Wilensky, Chair,
Medicare Payment Advisory Commission; G. Douglas Higginbotham, South
Central Regional Medical Center, Laurel, Mississippi; Anne Klawiter,
Southwest Health Center, Platteville, Wisconsin, on behalf of the
Federation of American Health Systems; and Debra L. Griffin, Humphreys
County Memorial Hospital, Belzoni, Mississippi. 

TRANSPORTATION CONFORMITY 

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded hearings
to examine transportation conformity activities under the Clean Air Act
and the effect recent litigation may have on this program, and S. 1053,
to amend the Clean Air Act to incorporate certain provisions of the
transportation conformity regulations, as in effect on March 1, 1999,
after receiving testimony from Robert Perciasepe, Assistant
Administrator, Office of Air and Radiation, Environmental Protection
Agency; Kenneth R. Wykle, Administrator, Federal Highway Administration,
and Gordon J. Linton, Administrator, Federal Transit Administration,
both of the Department of Transportation; E. Dean Carlson, Kansas
Department of Transportation, Topeka, on behalf of the American
Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials; Jack L.
Stephens, Jr., Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority, Atlanta,
Georgia; Jacob L. Snow, Clark County Regional Transportation Commission,
Las Vegas, Nevada; Mark Pisano, Southern California Association of
Governments, Los Angeles; Michael A. Replogle, Environmental Defense
Fund, Washington, D.C.; and Jack Kinstlinger, KCI Technologies, Inc.,
Hunt Valley, Maryland, on behalf of the American Road and Transportation
Builders Association. 

                                          [Page: D800]

GLOBAL AND REGIONAL TRADE POLICY 

Committee on Finance: Subcommittee on International Trade concluded
hearings on managing global and regional trade policy without fast track
negotiating authority, after receiving testimony from former
Representative Sam M. Gibbons; Richard W. Fisher, Deputy United States
Trade Representative; David L. Aaron, Under Secretary of Commerce for
International Trade; Robert D. Hormats, Goldman Sachs, International,
New York, New York; and William T. Pryce, Council of the Americas,
Washington, D.C., former U.S. Ambassador to Honduras. 

FEDERALISM ACCOUNTABILITY ACT 

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded hearings on S.
1214, to ensure the liberties of the people by promoting federalism, to
protect the reserved powers of the States, to impose accountability for
Federal preemption of State and local laws, after receiving testimony
from John Spotila, Administrator, Office of Information and Regulatory
Affairs, Office of Management and Budget; Randy Moss, Acting Assistant
Attorney General, Office of Legal Counsel, Department of Justice;
Delaware Governor Thomas R. Carper, Dover, on behalf of the National
Governors' Association; North Dakota State Representative John Dorso,
Bismarck, on behalf of the National Conference of State Legislatures;
Mayor Alexander G. Fekete, Pembroke Pines, Florida, on behalf of the
National League of Cities; Ernest Gellhorn, George Mason University,
Fairfax, Virginia; Caleb Nelson, University of Virginia,
Charlottesville; and Rena Steinzor, University of Maryland School of
Law, Baltimore. 

HIGH-SPEED INTERNET SERVICES AND TECHNOLOGIES 

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded hearings to examine
competition and consumer choice in broadband, high-speed Internet
services and technologies, focusing on the impact of recent
consolidation in the communications industry, after receiving testimony
from C. Michael Armstrong, AT&T Corporation, and Gene Kimmelman,
Consumers Union, both of Washington, D.C.; Ivan G. Seidenberg, Bell
Atlantic Corporation, New York, New York; Alex J. Mandl, Teligent, Inc.,
Vienna, Virginia; William L. Schrader, PSINet, Inc., Herndon, Virginia;
Anna-Maria Kovacs, Janney Montgomery Scott, Inc., Boston, Massachusetts;
and Kevin M. Moore, Deutsche Banc Alex. Brown, Baltimore, Maryland. 

FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT 

Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions: Subcommittee on
Children and Families concluded oversight hearings on the implementation
of the Family and Medical Leave Act and to discuss the President's
proposals to extend the Act's benefits and fund research to provide
information on the Act's impact on American families, after receiving
testimony from John R. Fraser, Deputy Administrator, Wage and Hour
Division, Employment Standards Administration, Department of Labor;
Edward F. Harold, McCalla, Thompson, Pyburn, Hymowitz, and Shapiro, New
Orleans, Louisiana; Deanna R. Gelak, Society for Human Resource
Management, Alexandria, Virginia, on behalf of the Family and Medical
Leave Act Technical Corrections Coalition; Kimberley K. Hostetler,
Connecticut Hospital Association, Wallingford, on behalf of the Greater
Bristol Chamber of Commerce; Ellen Bravo, 9 to 5, National Association
of Working Women, Milwaukee, Wisconsin; and Eric J. Oxfeld,
UWC--Strategic Services on Unemployment and Workers' Compensation,
Washington, D.C. 

INDIAN TRUST FUND REFORM 

Committee on Indian Affairs/Committee on Energy and Natural Resources:
Committees concluded joint oversight hearings on the General Accounting
Office report on Interior Department's planned trust fund reform, after
receiving testimony from Keith A. Rhodes, Director, Office of Computer
and Information Technology Assessment, Accounting and Information
Management Division, General Accounting Office; Mark Fox, Three
Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Reservation, New Town, North
Dakota, on behalf of the Intertribal Monitoring Association on Indian
Trust Funds; and Donald T. Gray, Lillick and Charles, San Francisco,
California. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee ordered favorably reported
an original resolution (S. Res. 139) authorizing expenditures by the
Select Committee on Intelligence. 

INTELLIGENCE 

Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the
intelligence community. 

Committee will meet again on Wednesday, July 21. 

                                          [Page: D801]

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/07/15
Daily Digest - Thursday, July 15, 1999; pages D807 - D814

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Armed Services: Committee ordered favorably reported an
original resolution (S. Res. 143) authorizing expenditures by the
Committee on Armed Services. 

OFFICIAL DOLLARIZATION IN LATIN AMERICA 

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on
International Trade and Finance and the Subcommittee on Economic Policy
concluded joint hearings on issues relating to the official
dollarization in Latin America, receiving testimony from Manuel E.
Hinds, San Salvador, El Salvador, former Republic of El Salvador
Minister of Finance; Michael Gavin, Warburg Dillon Read, Stamford,
Connecticut; and David R. Malpass, Bear, Stearns and Company, Inc., and
Liliana Rojas-Suarez, Deutsche Bank Securities, Inc., both of New York,
New York. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: On Wednesday, July 14,
Committee ordered favorably reported an original resolution (S. Res.
147) authorizing expenditures by the Committee on Banking, Housing, and
Urban Affairs. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on the Budget: On Wednesday, July 14, Committee ordered
favorably reported an original resolution (S. Res. 149) authorizing
expenditures by the Committee on the Budget. 

NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD 

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded
hearings on proposed legislation authorizing funds for the National
Transportation Safety Board, after receiving testimony from James E.
Hall, Chairman, Peter Goelz, Managing Director, Daniel Campbell, General
Counsel, Craig Keller, Chief Financial Officer, Bernard S. Loeb,
Director, Office of Aviation Safety, and Claude Harris, Deputy Director,
Office of Highway Safety, all of the National Transportation Safety
Board. 

                                          [Page: D809]

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee ordered
favorably reported an original resolution (S. Res. 145) authorizing
funds by the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. 

ELECTRIC COMPANY COMPETITION 

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded hearings
on S. 161, to provide for a transition to market-based rates for power
sold by the Federal Power Marketing Administrations and the Tennessee
Valley Authority, S. 282, to provide that no electric utility shall be
required to enter into a new contract or obligation to purchase or to
sell electricity or capacity under section 210 of the Public Utility
Regulatory Policies Act of 1978, S. 516, to benefit consumers by
promoting competition in the electric power industry, S. 1047, to
provide for a more competitive electric power industry, S. 1273, to
amend the Federal Power Act, to facilitate the transition to more
competitive and efficient electric power markets, and S. 1284, to amend
the Federal Power Act to ensure that no State may establish, maintain,
or enforce on behalf of any electric utility an exclusive right to sell
electric energy or otherwise unduly discriminate against any consumer
who seeks to purchase electric energy in interstate commerce from any
supplier, after receiving testimony from John W. Rowe, Unicom
Corporation, Chicago, Illinois; Susan F. Clark, Florida Public Service
Commission, Tallahassee, on behalf of the National Association of
Regulatory Utility Commissioners; John Anderson, Electricity Consumers
Resource Council, Washington, D.C.; Billy Jack Gregg, Public Service
Commission of West Virginia, Charleston, on behalf of the National
Association of State Utility Consumer Advocates; Steven J. Kean, ENRON
Corporation, Houston, Texas, on behalf of the Electric Power Supply
Association; Ralph Cavanagh, Natural Resources Defense Council, San
Francisco, California; George Fraser, Northern California Power Agency,
San Diego, on behalf of the American Public Power Association; Glenn
English, National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, Arlington,
Virginia; and David R. Nevius, North American Electric Reliability
Council, Princeton, New Jersey. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Finance: Committee ordered favorably reported an original
resolution (S. Res. 150) authorizing expenditures by the Committee on
Finance. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Governmental Affairs: Committee ordered favorably reported
an original resolution (S. Res. 154) authorizing expenditures by the
Committee on Governmental Affairs. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported an
original resolution (S. Res. 144) authorizing expenditures by the
Committee on the Judiciary. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: On Wednesday, July
14, Committee ordered favorably reported an original resolution (S. Res.
138) authorizing expenditures by the Committee on Health, Education,
Labor, and Pensions. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committees on Rules and Administration: Committee ordered favorably
reported an original resolution (S. Res. 152) authorizing expenditures
by the Committee on Rules and Administration. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Small Business: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following business items: 

An original resolution (S. Res. 142) authorizing expenditures by the
Committee on Small Business; 

S. 1156, to amend provisions of law enacted by the Small Business
Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 to ensure full analysis of
potential impacts on small entities of rules proposed by certain
agencies, with amendments; 

S. 1346, to ensure the independence and nonpartisan operation of the
Office of Advocacy of the Small Business Administration, with
amendments; and 

H.R. 1568, to provide technical, financial, and procurement assistance
to veteran owned small businesses, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute.

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Veterans Affairs: Committee approved for reporting an
original resolution (S. Res. 151) authorizing expenditures by the
Committee on Veterans Affairs. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee ordered favorably reported an
original resolution authorizing expenditures by the Committee on Indian
Affairs. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Special Committee on Aging: Committee ordered favorably reported an
original resolution (S. Res. 155) authorizing expenditures by the
Special Committee on Aging. 

                                          [Page: D810]

STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT Y2K PREPAREDNESS 

Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem: Committee
concluded hearings on state and local government preparedness for the
year 2000 computer problem, after receiving testimony from Joel C.
Willemssen, Director, Civil Agencies Information System, Accounting and
Information Management Division, General Accounting Office; Mike
Benzene, State of Missouri, Jefferson City, on behalf of NASIRE; Indiana
State Auditor Connie Kay Nass, and Patrick R. Ralston, Indiana State
Emergency Management Agency, both of Indianapolis; Brian O'Neil, City of
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on behalf of the National League of Cities;
Suzanne J. Peck, Government of the District of Columbia; Mayor James E.
Trobaugh, Kokomo, Indiana, on behalf of the Conference of Mayors; James
O'Brien, City of West Hartford, Connecticut; Randy Johnson, Hennepin
County, Minneapolis, Minnesota, on behalf of the National Association of
Counties; and Robert D. Browder, Shannon, Gracey, Ratliff, and Miller,
Fort Worth, Texas. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/07/16
Daily Digest - Friday, July 16, 1999; pages D816 - D822

Committee Meetings

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

ALLEGED CHINESE ESPIONAGE

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee resumed oversight
hearings to examine damage to the national security from alleged Chinese
espionage at the Department of Energy nuclear weapons laboratories,
receiving testimony from Victor H. Reis, Assistant Secretary of Energy
for Defense Programs; and Burt Richter, Stanford Linear Accelerator
Center, Stanford, California. 

Hearings recessed subject to call. 

NINTH CIRCUIT COURT OF APPEALS REORGANIZATION

Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Administrative Oversight and
the Courts concluded hearings on the Commission on Structural
Alternatives for the Federal Courts of Appeals report regarding the
Ninth Circuit and S. 253, to provide for the reorganization of the Ninth
Circuit Court of Appeals, after receiving testimony from Senators Kyl,
Murkowski, Reid, Gorton, and Bryan; Procter Hug, Jr., Chief Judge,
Pamela Ann Rymer, Circuit Judge, Andrew J. Kleinfeld, Circuit Judge,
Diarmuid D817O'Scannlain, Circuit Judge, and Charles E. Wiggins, Senior
Judge, all of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals of California; William
D. Browning, District Court Judge for the District of Arizona; and
Ronald L. Olson, Munger, Tolles, and Olson, Los Angeles, California. 

                                          [Page: D817]

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/07/19
Daily Digest - Monday, July 19, 1999; pages D823 - D828

Committee Meetings

No committee meetings were held. 

No Joint hearings noted.



1999/07/20
Daily Digest - Tuesday, July 20, 1999; pages D830 - D838

Committee Meetings 

(Committees not listed did not meet) 

U.S.-KOSOVO POLICY AND OPERATIONS 

Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded hearings on the United
States policy and military operations regarding Kosovo, focusing on
Operation Allied Force and NATO's actions, after receiving testimony
from William S. Cohen, Secretary of Defense; and Gen. Henry H. Shelton,
USA, Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff. 

NATIONAL MONUMENTS DECLARATIONS PARTICIPATION 

Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Forests and
Public Land Management concluded hearings on S. 729, to ensure that
Congress and the public have the right to participate in the declaration
of national monuments on Federal land, after receiving testimony from
Representative Cannon; George Frampton, Acting Chair, Council on
Environmental Quality; Idaho State Representative Charles D. Cuddy,
Orofino; John F. Shepherd, Holland and Hart, Denver, Colorado; William
P. Horn, Birch, Horton, Bittner, and Cherot, former Assistant Secretary
of the Interior for Fish, Wildlife and Parks, and Marcia F. Argust,
National Parks and Conservation Association, both of Washington, D.C.;
and Louise Liston, Garfield County, Escalante, Utah. 

HABITAT CONSERVATION PLANS

Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on Fisheries,
Wildlife, and Drinking Water held hearings to examine the extent and
quality of the science of the Endangered Species Act's habitat
conservation plans, receiving testimony from Peter Kareiva, Senior
Ecologist, National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce; Stuart Pimm,
University of Tennessee, Knoxville; and Dennis D. Murphy, University of
Nevada, Reno. 

Hearings continue tomorrow. 

BUSINESS MEETING 

Committee on Finance: Committee began markup of the proposed Taxpayer
Refund Act of 1999, but did not complete action thereon, and will meet
again tomorrow. 

NOMINATIONS

Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded hearings on the
nominations of A. Peter Burleigh, of California, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of the Philippines and to serve concurrently and without
additional compensation as Ambassador to the Republic of Palau, Robert
S. Gelbard, of Washington, to be Ambassador to the Republic of
Indonesia, M. Osman Siddique, of Virginia, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of Fiji, and to serve concurrently and without additional
compensation as Ambassador to the Republic of Nauru, Ambassador to the
Kingdom of Tonga, and Ambassador to Tuvalu, and Sylvia Gaye Stanfield,
of Texas, to be Ambassador to Brunei Darussalam, after the nominees
testifie