110th Congress (2007 - 2008)
January 3 - December 31, 2008
Senate Committee Meetings by Date
Compiled from the Congressional Record's Daily Digests via Thomas at
thomas.loc.gov
2008/01/03
Daily Digest - Thursday, January 3, 2008; pages D1 - D2
Committee Meetings
No committee meetings were held.
[Page: D2]
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/01/07
Daily Digest - Monday, January 7, 2008; pages D3 - D4
Committee Meetings
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/01/09
Daily Digest - Wednesday, January 9, 2008; pages D5 - D6
Committee Meetings
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/01/11
Daily Digest - Friday, January 11, 2008; pages D7 - D8
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/01/15
Daily Digest - Tuesday, January 15, 2008; pages D9 - D12
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/01/16
Daily Digest - Wednesday, January 16, 2008; pages D14 - D18
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
Joint Meetings
RECESSION AVOIDANCE
Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded a hearing to examine potential
efforts by the federal government to avoid a recession, after receiving
testimony from Lawrence H. Summers, Harvard University, Cambridge,
Massachusetts; and Lawrence Mishel, Economic Policy Institute, and William W.
Beach, Heritage Foundation, both of Washington, D.C.
2008/01/17
Daily Digest - Thursday, January 17, 2008; pages D20 - D24
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/01/18
Daily Digest - Friday, January 18, 2008; pages D25 - D26
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/01/22
Daily Digest - Tuesday, January 22, 2008; pages D27 - D32
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
STRENGTHENING AMERICA'S ECONOMY
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine legislative
action aimed at providing stimulus relating to strengthening America's
economy, after receiving testimony from Peter R. Orszag, Director,
Congressional Budget Office.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of Kevin J. O'Connor, of Connecticut, to be Associate Attorney
General, who was introduced by Representative Larson, and Gregory G. Katsas,
of Massachusetts, to be an Assistant Attorney General, both of the Department
of Justice, after the nominees testified and answered questions in their own
behalf.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/01/23
Daily Digest - Wednesday, January 23, 2008; pages D33 - D38
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
JUSTICE FOR ALL ACT
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to
examine the Justice for All Act (Public Law 108-405), focusing on the
administration of the Bloodsworth and Coverdell DNA Grant Programs by the
Department of Justice, after receiving testimony from Glenn A. Fine, Inspector
General, and John Morgan, Deputy Director, National Institute of Justice,
Office of Justice Programs, both of the Department of Justice; Peter M.
Marone, Virginia Department of Forensic Science, Richmond, on behalf of the
Consortium of Forensic Science Organizations; Larry A. Hammond, Osborn
Maledon, Phoenix, Arizona; and Peter Neufeld, Cardozo School of Law Innocence
Project, New York, New York.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/01/24
Daily Digest - Thursday, January 24, 2008; pages D39 - D42
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
NOMINATION
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the nomination of Ed Schafer, of North Dakota, to be
Secretary of Agriculture, after the nominee, who was introduced by Senators
Conrad and Dorgan, and Representative Pomeroy, testified and answered
questions in his own behalf.
BUDGET AND ECONOMIC OUTLOOK
Committee on the Budget: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
Congressional Budget Office budget and economic outlook, focusing on fiscal
years 2008 to 2018, after receiving testimony from Peter R. Orszag, Director,
Congressional Budget Office.
MINING LAW OF 1872 REFORM
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded an oversight
hearing to examine ways to reform the Mining Law of 1872, after receiving
testimony from Henri Bisson, Deputy Director, Bureau of Land Management, and
Deborah Gibbs Tschudy, Deputy Associate Director, Minerals Revenue Management,
Minerals Management Service, both of the Department of the Interior; Mayor
Alan Bernholtz, Crested Butte, Colorado; William E. Cobb, Freeport McMoran
Mining Company, Phoenix, Arizona, on behalf of the National Mining
Association; Randy Wanamaker, BBC Human Resource Development Corporation,
Juneau, Alaska; Michael P. Dombeck, University of Wisconsin College of Natural
Resources, Stevens Point, on behalf of Trout Unlimited, and sundry
organizations; James F. Cress, Holme Roberts and Owen LLP, Denver, Colorado;
Ryan Alexander, Taxpayers for Common Sense, Washington, D.C.; and James M.
Otto, Boulder, Colorado.
CALIFORNIA WAVIER
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded an oversight
hearing to examine the Environmental Protection Agency's decision to deny a
wavier to the state of California, after receiving testimony from Stephen L.
Johnson, Administrator, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA); Maryland
Governor Martin O'Malley, Annapolis; Vermont Governor James Douglas,
Montpelier; Pennsylvania Governor Edward G. Rendell, Harrisburg; Michigan
Attorney General Mike Cox, Lansing; Douglas Haaland, Assembly Republican
Caucus, Sacramento, California; David Doniger, Natural Resources Defense
Council (NRDC), New York, New York; and Jeffrey R. Holmstead, Bracewell and
Giuliani, Washington, D.C.
STRENGTHENING AMERICA'S ECONOMY
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded hearings to examine legislative
options aimed at stimulus relating to strengthening America's economy, after
receiving testimony from Martin Feldstein, Harvard University Department of
Economics, Cambridge, Massachusetts; and Jason Furman, Brookings Institution,
Washington, D.C.
CLIMATE TREATY
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
international climate change negotiation, focusing on Bali and the path toward
a post-2012 climate treaty, after receiving testimony from James L.
Connaughton, Chairman, Council on Environmental Quality, Executive Office of
the President; James R. Lyons, Oxfam America, Glenn T. Prickett, Conservation
International, and John J. Castellani, Business Roundtable, all of Washington,
D.C.; and Elliot Diringer, Pew Center on Global Climate Change, Arlington,
Virginia.
NORTH KOREA UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Permanent
Subcommittee on Investigations concluded a hearing to examine the United
Nations Development Program in North Korea, including management reform
efforts at the United Nations (UN) Secretariat since 2006, oversight and
accountability in selected UN organizations, and UN and other international
organization activities in Burma, after receiving testimony from Zalmay
Khalilzad, Ambassador to the United Nations, and Mark D. Wallace, Ambassador
for United Nations Management and Reform, both of the Department of State;
Thomas Melito, Director, International Affairs and Trade, Government
Accountability Office; and Frederick Tipson, Washington, D.C., and David
Lockwood, David Morrison, and Robert Benson, all of New York, New York, all of
the United Nations.
CONTRACTING IN HOSTILE ZONES
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services, and
International Security concluded a joint hearing with the Subcommittee on
Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of
Columbia to examine management and oversight of contingency contracting in
hostile zones, after receiving testimony from Stuart W. Bowen, Jr., Special
Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction, William M. Solis, Director, Carole
F. Coffey, Assistant Director, both of the Defense Capabilities and Management
Team, Government Accountability Office; P. Jackson Bell, Deputy Under
Secretary for Logistics and Materiel Readiness, and General David M. Maddox,
USA (Ret.), Member, Commission on Army Acquisition and Program, Management in
Expeditionary Operations, both of the Department of Defense; John E. Herbst,
Coordinator for Reconstruction and Stabilization, and William H. Moser, Deputy
Assistant Secretary for Logistics Management, both of the Department of State;
James R. Kunder, Acting Deputy Assistant Administrator, United States Agency
for International Development; First Sergeant Perry Jefferies, USA (Ret.),
Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, Waco, Texas; and Dina L. Rasor and
Robert H. Bauman, both of San Jose, California.
[Page: D41]
FAIR PAY RESTORATION ACT
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine S. 1843, to amend title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 to clarify that an
unlawful practice occurs each time compensation is paid pursuant to a
discriminatory compensation decision or other practice, after receiving
testimony from Margot Dorfman, United States Women's Chamber of Commerce, and
Eric Dreiband, Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer and Feld, both of Washington, D.C.;
Samuel R. Bagenstos, Washington University in Saint Louis School of Law, Saint
Louis, Missouri; and Lilly Ledbetter, Jacksonville, Alabama.
VETERANS DISABILITY COMPENSATION
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
report of the Veterans' Disability Benefits Commission, focusing on veterans
disability compensation, after receiving testimony from Todd Bowers, Iraq and
Afghanistan Veterans of America, New York, New York; Gerald T. Manar, Veterans
of Foreign Wars of the United States, Washington, D.C.; and Steve Smithson,
American Legion, Indianapolis, Indiana.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/01/25
Daily Digest - Friday, January 25, 2008; pages D44 - D48
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: On Thursday, January 24, 2008, Committee
announced the following membership:
Senators Akaka (Chair), Rockefeller, Murray, Obama, Sanders, Brown, Webb,
Tester, Burr, Specter, Craig, Isakson, Graham, Hutchison, and Wicker.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/01/28
Daily Digest - Monday, January 28, 2008; pages D50 - D54
[Committee Meetings
No committee meetings were held.]
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/01/29
Daily Digest - Tuesday, January 29, 2008; pages D55 - D62
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
LONG-TERM BUDGET OUTLOOK
Committee on the Budget: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
long-term federal budget outlook, focusing on action that is needed to avoid
the possibility of a serious economic disruption in the future, after
receiving testimony from David M. Walker, Comptroller General, Government
Accountability Office.
[Page: D56]
NOMINATION
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the nomination
of Douglas H. Shulman, of the District of Columbia, to be Commissioner of
Internal Revenue, Department of the Treasury, after the nominee testified and
answered questions in his own behalf.
Joint Meetings
COMBATING ANTI-SEMITISM
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Commission concluded a
hearing to examine anti-Semitism in the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) region, focusing on initiatives, lessons learned,
and the way forward in monitoring and combating anti-Semitism, after receiving
testimony from Gert Weisskirchen, Personal Representative on Combating
Anti-Semitism, and Kathrin Meyer, Office for Democratic Institutions and Human
Rights, both of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe,
Vienna, Austria.
2008/01/30
Daily Digest - Wednesday, January 30, 2008; pages D64 - D68
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
ECONOMIC STIMULUS PACKAGE
Committee on the Budget: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the economic
stimulus options, focusing on budget policy for a strong economy over the
short- and long-term future, after receiving testimony from Alan S. Blinder,
Princeton University Department of Economics Center for Economic Policy
Studies, Princeton, New Jersey; Mark Zandi, Moody's Economy.com, Inc., West
Chester, Pennsylvania; and Daniel Mitchell, Cato Institute, Washington, D.C.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee ordered favorably
reported the following:
S. 86, to designate segments of Fossil Creek, a tributary to the Verde River
in the State of Arizona, as wild and scenic rivers, with an amendment in the
nature of a substitute;
S. 127, to amend the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve Act of 2000
to explain the purpose and provide for the administration of the Baca National
Wildlife Refuge, with an amendment;
S. 128, to amend the Cache La Poudre River Corridor Act to designate a new
management entity, make certain technical and conforming amendments, enhance
private property protections, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 189, to decrease the matching funds requirements and authorize additional
appropriations for Keweenaw National Historical Park in the State of Michigan;
S. 327, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special
resource study of sites associated with the life of Cesar Estrada Chavez and
the farm labor movement;
[Page: D65]
S. 1039, to extend the authorization for the Coastal Heritage Trail in the
State of New Jersey, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 1143, to designate the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse and the surrounding Federal
land in the State of Florida as an Outstanding Natural Area and as a unit of
the National Landscape System, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
S. 1247, to amend the Weir Farm National Historic Site Establishment Act of
1990 to limit the development of any property acquired by the Secretary of the
Interior for the development of visitor and administrative facilities for the
Weir Farm National Historic Site, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
S. 1304, to amend the National Trails System Act to designate the Arizona
National Scenic Trail, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 1329, to extend the Acadia National Park Advisory Commission, to provide
improved visitor services at the park, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
S. 1341, to provide for the exchange of certain Bureau of Land Management land
in Pima County, Arizona, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 1365, to amend the Omnibus Parks and Public Lands Management Act of 1996 to
authorize the Secretary of the Interior to enter into cooperative agreements
with any of the management partners of the Boston Harbor Islands National
Recreation Area, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 1377, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to convey to the City of
Henderson, Nevada, certain Federal land located in the City;
S. 1433, to amend the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act to
provide competitive status to certain Federal employees in the State of
Alaska, with an amendment;
S. 1476, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special
resources study of the Tule Lake Segregation Center in Modoc County,
California, to determine suitability and feasibility of establishing a unit of
the National Park System, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 1522, to amend the Bonneville Power Administration portions of the
Fisheries Restoration and Irrigation Mitigation Act of 2000 to authorize
appropriations for fiscal years 2008 through 2014, with amendments;
S. 1634, to implement further the Act approving the Covenant to Establish a
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in Political Union with the
United States of America;
S. 1740, to amend the Act of February 22, 1889, and the Act of July 2, 1862,
to provide for the management of public land trust funds in the State of North
Dakota;
S. 1802, to adjust the boundaries of the Frank Church River of No Return
Wilderness in the State of Idaho, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
S. 1921, to amend the American Battlefield Protection Act of 1996 to extend
the authorization for that Act, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
S. 1939, to provide for the conveyance of certain land in the Santa Fe
National Forest, New Mexico, with amendments;
S. 1940, to reauthorize the Rio Puerco Watershed Management Program, with an
amendment;
S. 1941, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to study the suitability and
feasibility of designating the Wolf House, located in Norfolk, Arkansas, as a
unit of the National Park System, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
S. 1961, to expand the boundaries of the Little River Canyon National Preserve
in the State of Alabama, with an amendment;
S. 1969, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special
resource study to determine the suitability and feasibility of designating
Estate Grange and other sites related to Alexander Hamilton's life on the
island of St. Croix in the United States Virgin Islands as a unit of the
National Park System, with amendments;
S. 1991, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study to
determine the suitability and feasibility of extending the Lewis and Clark
National Historic Trail to include additional sites associated with the
preparation and return phases of the expedition, with amendments;
S. 2034, to amend the Oregon Wilderness Act of 1984 to designate the Copper
Salmon Wilderness and to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate
segments of the North and South Forks of the Elk River in the State of Oregon
as wild or scenic rivers, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 2098, to establish the Northern Plains Heritage Area in the State of North
Dakota, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 2220, to amend the Outdoor Recreation Act of 1963 to authorize certain
appropriations, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
H.R. 30, to amend the Reclamation Wastewater and Groundwater Study and
Facilities Act to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to participate in
the Eastern Municipal Water District Recycled Water System Pressurization and
Expansion Project;
H.R. 299, to adjust the boundary of Lowell National Historical Park;
[Page: D66]
H.R. 759, to redesignate the Ellis Island Library on the third floor of the
Ellis Island Immigration Museum, located on Ellis Island in New York Harbor,
as the "Bob Hope Memorial Library";
H.R. 807, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special
resource study to determine the feasibility and suitability of establishing a
memorial to the Space Shuttle Columbia in the State of Texas and for its
inclusion as a unit of the National Park System;
H.R. 815, to provide for the conveyance of certain land in Clark County,
Nevada, for use by the Nevada National Guard, with an amendment in the nature
of a substitute;
H.R. 830, to authorize the exchange of certain interests in land in Denali
National Park in the State of Alaska;
H.R. 1021, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special
resources study regarding the suitability and feasibility of designating
certain historic buildings and areas in Taunton, Massachusetts, as a unit of
the National Park System;
H.R. 1025, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study to
determine the feasibility of implementing a water supply and conservation
project to improve water supply reliability, increase the capacity of water
storage, and improve water management efficiency in the Republican River Basin
between Harlan County Lake in Nebraska and Milford Lake in Kansas;
H.R. 1191, to authorize the National Park Service to pay for services rendered
by subcontractors under a General Services Administration Indefinite Deliver
Indefinite Quantity Contract issued for work to be completed at the Grand
Canyon National Park;
H.R. 1239, to amend the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Act
of 1998 to authorize additional funding to carry out the Act;
H.R. 1462, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to participate in the
implementation of the Platte River Recovery Implementation Program for
Endangered Species in the Central and Lower Platte River Basin and to modify
the Pathfinder Dam and Reservoir, with amendments;
H.R. 1526, to amend the Reclamation Wastewater and Groundwater Study and
Facilities Act to authorize the Bay Area Regional Water Recycling Program; and
H.R. 1662, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to seek limited
reimbursement for site security activities.
POLAR BEAR THREATS AND PROTECTIONS
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the threats and protections for the polar bear, focusing on the status
of and legal protections for the polar bear, including the Endangered Species
Act, and the status of listing the species under that Act, after receiving
testimony from H. Dale Hall, Director, United States Fish and Wildlife
Service, Department of the Interior; Margaret Williams, World Wildlife Fund,
Anchorage, Alaska; Andrew E. Wetzler, Natural Resources Defense Council,
Worthington, Ohio; Brendan P. Kelly, University of Alaska, Juneau; J. Scott
Armstrong, University of Pennsylvania Wharton School, Philadelphia; and
Richard Glenn, Barrow, Alaska.
MEDICARE ADVANTAGE PROGRAM
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine private
fee-for-service plans in the Medicare Advantage program, after receiving
testimony from Mark E. Miller, Executive Director, Medicare Payment Advisory
Commission (MEDPAC); Elyse Politi, New River Valley Agency on Aging, Pulaski,
Virginia; Albert Fisk, Everett Clinic, Everett, Washington; David R. Fillman,
American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME),
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania; and Daryl Weaver, National Rural Health Association,
Yazoo City, Mississippi.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Finance: Committee ordered favorably reported an original bill
entitled, "The Economic Stimulus Act of 2008".
Also, committee rules of procedures for the 110th Congress were amended.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of James K. Glassman, of Connecticut, to be Under Secretary for
Public Diplomacy with the rank of Ambassador, Goli Ameri, of Oregon, to be
Assistant Secretary for Educational and Cultural Affairs, and David J. Kramer,
of Massachusetts, to be Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights, and
Labor, all of the Department of State, after the nominees testified and
answered questions in their own behalf.
AFGHANISTAN UPDATE
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee met in closed session to receive a
briefing to examine the current conditions and circumstances in Afghanistan
from members of the intelligence community.
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE OVERSIGHT
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to
examine the Department of Justice, after receiving testimony from Michael B.
Mukasey, Attorney General, Department of Justice.
[Page: D67]
WOMEN'S CONTRACTING AND LENDER OVERSIGHT
Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the Small Business Administration's accountability,
focusing on the efficacy of women-owned small business contracting and lender
oversight, after receiving testimony from Steven C. Preston, Administrator,
Small Business Administration.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/01/31
Daily Digest - Thursday, January 31, 2008; pages D70 - D76
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
MILITARY RECRUITING
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Personnel concluded an oversight
hearing to examine military recruiting, after receiving testimony from Major
General Thomas P. Bostick, USA, Commanding General, U.S. Army Recruiting
Command, Rear Admiral Joseph F. Kilkenny, USN, Commander, Navy Recruiting
Command, Brigadier General Suzanne M. Vautrinot, USAF, Commander, Air Force
Recruiting Service, Major General Richard T. Tryon, USMC, Commanding General,
Marine Corps Recruiting Command, and Sergeant First Class Ricky Lee Webb, USA,
Master Chief Petty Officer Travis P. Brummer, USN, Master Sergeant David B.
White, USAF, and Staff Sergeant James M. Britton, USMC, all Active Duty
Recruiters, all of the Department of Defense.
FORECLOSURE PREVENTION AND NEIGHBORHOOD PRESERVATION
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine strengthening our economy, focusing on foreclosure
prevention and neighborhood preservation, after receiving testimony from
Sheila C. Bair, Chairman, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation; Robert K.
Steel, Under Secretary of the Treasury for Domestic Finance; Michael S. Barr,
Center for American Progress, Ann Arbor, Michigan; Alex J. Pollock, American
Enterprise Institute, and Wade Henderson, Leadership Conference on Civil
Rights, both of Washington, D.C.; and Doris W. Koo, Enterprise Community
Partners, Inc., Seattle, Washington.
HEALTH CARE SPENDING
Committee on the Budget: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
long-term federal budget outlook and sources of growth in health care
spending, after receiving testimony from Peter R. Orszag, Director,
Congressional Budget Office.
PIPELINES AND CARBON CAPTURE
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine S. 2323, to provide for the conduct of carbon capture and storage
technology research, development, and demonstration projects, and S. 2144, to
require the Secretary of Energy to conduct a study of feasibility relating to
the construction and operation of pipelines and carbon dioxide sequestration
facilities, after receiving testimony from Senators Kerry and Coleman; Joseph
T. Kelliher, Chairman, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Benjamin H.
Grumbles, Assistant Administrator for Water, Environmental Protection Agency;
James Slutz, Acting Prinicipal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Energy for Fossil
Energy; Krista L. Edwards, Deputy Administrator, Pipeline and Hazardous
Materials Safety Administration, Department of Transportation; C. Stephen
Allred, Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Land and Minerals Management;
Lawrence E. Bengal, Arkansas Oil and Gas Commission, Little Rock, on behalf of
the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission Task Force on Carbon Capture and
Geologic Storage; Ronald T. Evans, Denbury Resources, Inc., Plano, Texas; and
Scott Anderson, Environmental Defense, Austin, Texas.
[Page: D72]
NATIONAL SURFACE TRANSPORTATION POLICY AND REVENUE STUDY COMMISSION
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine a report of the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue
Study Commission, after receiving testimony from Frank Busalacchi, Wisconsin
Department of Transportation, Madison; Jack L. Schenendorf, Covington and
Burling LLP, Washington, D.C.; Matthew K. Rose, BNSF Railway Company, Fort
Worth, Texas; and Tom Skancke, Skancke Company, Las Vegas, Nevada.
AFGHANISTAN
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
counternarcotics strategy and police training for Afghanistan, after receiving
testimony from Richard A. Boucher, Assistant Secretary for South and Central
Asian Affairs, David T. Johnson, Assistant Secretary for International
Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, Thomas R. Pickering, former Under
Secretary for Political Affairs, and Richard Holbrooke, former U.S. Permanent
Representative to the United Nations, all of the Department of State; and
General James L. Jones, Jr., USMC (Ret.), former Commander, European Command
and Supreme Allied Commander Europe, Department of Defense.
ELIMINATING AGENCY PAYMENT ERRORS
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services, and
International Security concluded a hearing to examine eliminating agency
payment errors, after receiving testimony from McCoy Williams, Managing
Director, Financial Management and Assurance, Government Accountability
Office; Daniel I. Werfel, Acting Controller, Office of Management and Budget;
Charles R. Christopherson, Jr., Chief Financial Officer, Department of
Agriculture; Anthony J. Dale, Managing Director, Federal Communications
Commission; Charles E. Johnson, Assistant Secretary of Health and Human
Services for Resources and Technology and Chief Financial Officer; and David
A. Rust, Acting Deputy Commissioner for Disability and Income Security
Programs, Social Security Administration.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
S. 1638, to adjust the salaries of Federal justices and judges, with
amendments;
S. 2450, to amend the Federal Rules of Evidence to address the waiver of the
attorney-client privilege and the work product doctrine; and
The nominations of Mark R. Filip, of Illinois, to be Deputy Attorney General,
Ondray T. Harris, of Virginia, to be Director, Community Relations Service,
and David W. Hagy, of Texas, to be Director of the National Institute of
Justice, all of the Department of Justice.
ELDERLY VOTERS
Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded a hearing to examine elderly
voters, focusing on opportunities and challenges for the 2008 election, after
receiving testimony from Barbara D. Bovbjerg, Director, Education, Workforce,
and Income Security, Government Accountability Office; Deb Markowitz, Vermont
Secretary of State, Montpelier; Michael E. Waterstone, Loyola Law School, Los
Angeles, California; Jason Karlawish, University of Pennsylvania Department of
Medicine, Philadelphia; and Wendy R. Weiser, New York University School of Law
Brennan Center for Justice, New York.
[Page: 73]
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/02/04
Daily Digest - Monday, February 4, 2008; pages D77 - D82
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
SUBCOMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: On January 24, 2008,
Committee announced the following subcommittee assignments:
Subcommittee on Aviation Operations, Safety, and Security: Senators
Rockefeller (Chairman), Kerry, Dorgan, Boxer, Nelson (FL), Cantwell,
Lautenberg, Pryor, Carper, McCaskill, Klobuchar, Hutchison, McCain, Snowe,
Smith, Ensign, Sununu, DeMint, Vitter, Thune, and Wicker;
Subcommittee on Space, Aeronautics, and Related Agencies: Senators Nelson (FL)
(Chairman), Kerry, Dorgan, Pryor, Vitter, Sununu, and Wicker;
Subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries, and Coast Guard: Senators
Cantwell (Chairman), Kerry, Boxer, Nelson (FL), Lautenberg, Carper, Klobuchar,
Snowe, Smith, Sununu, DeMint, Vitter, and Wicker;
Subcommittee on Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure,
Safety and Security: Senators Lautenberg (Chairman), Rockefeller, Kerry,
Dorgan, Cantwell, Pryor, Carper, McCaskill, Klobuchar, Smith, McCain,
Hutchison, Snowe, DeMint, Vitter, Thune, and Wicker;
Subcommittee on Consumer Affairs, Insurance, and Automotive Safety: Senators
Pryor (Chairman), Rockefeller, Nelson (FL), Cantwell, Lautenberg, Carper,
McCaskill, Klobuchar, Sununu, McCain, Snowe, Smith, Vitter, Thune, and Wicker.
Senators Inouye and Stevens are ex-officio members of each of the
Subcommittees.
[Page: D79]
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/02/05
Daily Digest - Tuesday, February 5, 2008; pages D84 - D88
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
SUBCOMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS
Committee on Armed Services: Committee announced the following subcommittee
assignments:
Subcommittee on Airland: Senators Lieberman (Chairman), Akaka, Bayh, Clinton,
Pryor, Webb, McCaskill, Cornyn, Warner, Inhofe, Sessions, Chambliss, and
Wicker;
Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities: Senators Reed (Chairman),
Kennedy, Byrd, Nelson (FL), Nelson (NE), Bayh, Clinton, Dole, Warner, Collins,
Graham, Cornyn, and Martinez;
Subcommittee on Personnel: Senators Nelson (NE) (Chairman), Kennedy,
Lieberman, Webb, McCaskill, Graham, Collins, Chambliss, and Dole;
Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support: Senators Akaka (Chairman),
Byrd, Bayh, Clinton, Pryor, McCaskill, Thune, Inhofe, Chambliss, Dole, and
Wicker;
Subcommittee on Seapower: Senators Kennedy (Chairman), Lieberman, Reed, Akaka,
Nelson (FL), Webb, Martinez, Warner, Sessions, Collins, and Cornyn;
Subcommittee on Strategic Forces: Senators Nelson (FL) (Chairman), Byrd, Reed,
Nelson (NE), Pryor, Sessions, Inhofe, Graham, and Thune.
Senators Levin and McCain are ex-officio members of each of the Subcommittees.
2009: BUDGET
Committee on the Budget: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
President's proposed budget for fiscal year 2009, after receiving testimony
from Jim Nussle, Director, Office of Management and Budget.
2009: BUDGET
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the President's
proposed budget for fiscal year 2009, after receiving testimony from Henry M.
Paulson, Jr., Secretary, Department of the Treasury.
[Page: D86]
VETERANS' DISABILITY COMPENSATION
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to
examine veterans' disability compensation, after receiving testimony from Ruth
A. Fanning, Director, Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Service,
Veterans Benefits Administration, and Kristin Day, LCSW, Chief Consultant,
Care Management and Social Work, Veterans Health Administration, both of the
Department of Veterans Affairs; James Rothrock, Virginia Department of
Rehabilitative Services, and Linda Winslow, National Rehabilitation
Association, both of Richmond, Virginia; Dorcas R. Hardy, DRHardy and
Associates, Spotsylvania, Virginia; and John Lancaster, National Council on
Independent Living, Douglas B. Carmon, Easter Seals, Inc., and Richard Daley,
Paralyzed Veterans of America, all of Washington, D.C.
WORLD THREATS
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
current and projected national security threats, after receiving testimony
from Mike McConnell, Director, National Intelligence; Michael Hayden,
Director, Central Intelligence Agency (CIA); Robert S. Mueller, III, Director,
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Department of Justice; Randall M. Fort,
Assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence and Research; and Lieutenant
General Michael D. Maples, Director, Defense Intelligence Agency, Department
of Defense.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the intelligence
community.
[Page: D87]
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/02/06
Daily Digest - Wednesday, February 6, 2008; pages D89 - D96
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Armed Services: Committee ordered favorably reported 782
nominations in the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps.
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
defense authorization request for fiscal year 2009, the future years defense
program, and for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, after receiving testimony
from Robert M. Gates, Secretary, Admiral Michael G. Mullen, USN, Chairman,
Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Tina W. Jonas, Under Secretary (Comptroller), all
of the Department of Defense.
2009: BUDGET
Committee on the Budget: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
President's fiscal year 2009 budget and revenue proposals, after receiving
testimony from Henry M. Paulson, Jr., Secretary, Department of the Treasury.
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY BUDGET
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the President's proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2009 for the
Department of Energy, after receiving testimony from Samuel W. Bodman,
Secretary of Energy.
SURFACE TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION REPORT
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine perspectives on the Surface Transportation Commission report, focusing
on current and future transportation needs of the United States, after
receiving testimony from Mary E. Peters, Secretary of Transportation; JayEtta
Z. Hecker, Director, Physical Infrastructure Issues, Government Accountability
Office; Debra L. Miller, Kansas Department of Transportation, Topeka, on
behalf of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation
Officials; and Janet F. Kavinoky, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and Gregory M.
Cohen, American Highway Users Alliance, both of Washington, D.C.
[Page: D91]
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee ordered favorably
reported S. 2146, to authorize the Administrator of the Environmental
Protection Agency to accept, as part of a settlement, diesel emission
reduction Supplemental Environmental Projects.
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES BUDGET
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the President's
proposed budget request for fiscal year 2009 for the Department of Health and
Human Services, after receiving testimony from Michael O. Leavitt, Secretary,
Department of Health and Human Services.
KOREAN PENINSULA DENUCLEARIZATION
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
Six-Party Talks for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula, after
receiving testimony from Christopher R. Hill, Assistant Secretary of State for
East Asia and Pacific Affairs.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of Margaret Scobey, of Tennessee, to be Ambassador to the Arab
Republic of Egypt, James Francis Moriarty, of Massachusetts, to be Ambassador
to the People's Republic of Bangladesh, and Deborah K. Jones, of New Mexico,
to be Ambassador to the State of Kuwait, all of the Department of State, after
the nominees testified and answered questions in their own behalf.
SUDAN
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee met in closed session to receive a
briefing on Sudan from Richard Williamson, President's Special Envoy to Sudan,
Department of State.
No Joint meetings noted.
2008/02/07
Daily Digest - Thursday, February 7, 2008; pages D97 - D108
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
NATIONAL GUARD AND RESERVES
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
final report of the Commission on the National Guard and Reserves, after
receiving testimony from Major General Arnold L. Punaro, USMCR (Ret.),
Chairman, and William L. Ball, III, Patricia L. Lewis, and Major General E.
Gordon Stump, USAF (Ret.), all Commissioners, all of the Commission on the
National Guard and Reserves.
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support
concluded a hearing to examine business transformation and financial
management at the Department of Defense, after receiving testimony from David
M. Walker, Comptroller General of the United States, Government Accountability
Office; and Paul A. Brinkley, Deputy Under Secretary for Business
Transformation, Peter E. Kunkel, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of the
Army for Financial Management and Comptroller, Douglas A. Brook, Assistant
Secretary of the Navy for Financial Management and Comptroller, and John H.
Gibson, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Financial Management and
Comptroller, all of the Department of Defense.
[Page: D99]
GOVERNMENT-SPONSORED ENTERPRISES
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine ways to reform the regulation of government-sponsored
enterprises, after receiving testimony from David G. Nason, Assistant
Secretary of the Treasury for Financial Institutions; James B. Lockhart, III,
Director, Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight; Ronald A. Rosenfeld,
Chairman, Federal Housing Finance Board; Richard F. Syron, Federal Home Loan
Mortgage Corporation, McLean, Virginia; and Daniel H. Mudd, Federal National
Mortgage Association, Washington, D.C.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the nominations of Robert A. Sturgell, of Maryland, to be
Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, and Simon Charles Gros,
of New Jersey, to be an Assistant Secretary for Governmental Affairs, who was
introduced by Representative LoBiondo, both of the Department of
Transportation, after the nominees testified and answered questions in their
own behalf.
RENEWABLE FUEL STANDARD
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded an oversight
hearing to examine the energy market effects of the recently-passed renewable
fuel standard enacted as part of the Energy Independence and Security Act
(Public Law 110-140), after receiving testimony from Alexander Karsner,
Assistant of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy; Robert
J. Meyers, Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator, Office of Air and
Radiation, Environmental Protection Agency; Carol Werner, Environmental and
Energy Study Institute, Charles T. Drevna, National Petrochemical and Refiners
Association, Michael J. McAdams, Advanced Biofuels Coalition, and Bob Dinneen,
Renewable Fuels Association, all of Washington, D.C.; and Brian Jennings,
American Coalition for Ethanol, Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
MEDICARE PRIVATE PLANS
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to examine
selling to seniors, focusing on the need for accountability and oversight of
marketing and sales by Medicare private plans, after receiving testimony from
Michael McRaith, Illinois Division of Insurance, Springfield, on behalf of the
National Association of Insurance Commissioners; Peter C. Hebertson, Salt Lake
County Aging Services, Salt Lake City, Utah; Patrick O'Toole, Humana Inc.,
Louisville, Kentucky; and George Harper, Mayflower, Arkansas.
KENYA
Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on African Affairs concluded a
hearing to examine the immediate and underlying causes and consequences of
Kenya's flawed election, after receiving testimony from Jendayi Frazer,
Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs; Katherine J. Almquist,
Assistant Administrator for Africa, United States Agency for International
Development (USAID); and Chris Albin-Lackey, Human Rights Watch, Joel D.
Barkan, Center for Strategic and International Studies, and David Mozersky,
International Crisis Group, all of Washington, D.C.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of Hector E. Morales, of Texas, to be Permanent Representative of
the United States of America to the Organization of American States, with the
rank of Ambassador, who was introduced by Senator Hutchison, Larry Woodrow
Walther, of Arkansas, to be Director of the Trade and Development Agency, who
was introduced by Senator Lincoln, Ana M. Guevara, of Florida, to be United
States Alternate Executive Director of the International Bank for
Reconstruction and Development, and Jeffrey J. Grieco, of Virginia, to be an
Assistant Administrator of the United States Agency for International
Development, after the nominees testified and answered questions in their own
behalf.
NOMINATION
Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nomination of Robert G. McSwain, of Maryland, to be Director of the Indian
Health Service, Department of Health and Human Services, after the nominee
testified and answered questions in his own behalf.
FOUNDING FATHERS PROJECT
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
Founding Fathers Project, focusing on ensuring public access to the complete
annotated writings of the six founding fathers of the United States, after
receiving testimony from Deanna B. Marcum, Associate Librarian for Library
Services, Library of Congress; Allen Weinstein, Archivist of the United
States, National Archives and Records Administration; Stanley Katz, Princeton
University Woodrow Wilson School, Princeton, New Jersey; Rebecca W. Rimel, Pew
Charitable Trusts, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Ralph Ketcham, Syracuse
University Maxwell School, Syracuse, New York; and David G. McCullough,
Camden, Maine.
[Page: D100]
Joint Meetings
COMBATING ANTI-SEMITISM (PART II)
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Commission concluded
hearings to examine anti-Semitism in the Organization for Security and
Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) region, after receiving testimony from Gregg
Rickman, Special Envoy to Monitor and Combat Anti Semitism, Department of
State; Felice D. Gaer, Commissioner, United States Commission on International
Religious Freedom; Andrew Baker, American Jewish Committee, Mark Levin,
National Conference on Soviet Jewry, and Stacy Burdett, Anti-Defamation
League, all of Washington, D.C.; and Marvin Hier, Simon Wiesenthal Center, Los
Angeles, California.
2008/02/08
Daily Digest - Friday, February 8, 2008; pages D109 - D116
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/02/11
Daily Digest - Monday, February 11, 2008; pages D117 - D120
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/02/12
Daily Digest - Tuesday, February 12, 2008; pages D122 - D130
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
AIR FORCE NUCLEAR SECURITY
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded open and closed hearings to
examine Air Force nuclear security, focusing on the August 2007
weapons-transfer incident, after receiving testimony from Lieutenant General
Daniel J. Darnell, USAF, Deputy Chief of Staff for Air, Space and Information
Operations, Plans and Requirements, Major General Douglas L. Raaberg, USAF,
Director, Air and Space Operations, Air Combat Command, Major General Polly A.
Peyer, USAF, Director, Resource Integration, Office of the Deputy Chief of
Staff, Logistics, Installation, and Mission Support, all of the Department of
Defense; and General Larry D. Welch, USAF (Ret.), Institute for Defense
Analysis, Alexandria, Virginia.
DEFENSE AND WAR COSTS BUDGET
Committee on the Budget: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2009 for the Department of
Defense and war costs, after receiving testimony from Gordon England, Deputy
Secretary, General James Cartwright, USMC, Vice Chairman, Joint Chiefs of
Staff, and Tina Jonas, Under Secretary (Comptroller), all of the Department of
Defense.
HEALTHCARE WORKFORCE ISSUES
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine ways to address healthcare workforce issues for the future,
focusing on primary care professionals, after receiving testimony from A.
Bruce Steinwald, Director, Health Care, Government Accountability Office;
Kevin Grumbach, University of California Department of Family and Community
Medicine, San Francisco; Roderick S. Hooker, Department of Veterans Affairs
Medical Center, Dallas, Texas; Edward Salsberg, Association of American
Medical Colleges (AAMC), Washington, D.C.; James Q. Swift, American Dental
Education Association (ADEA), Minneapolis, Minnesota; Bruce Auerbach,
Massachusetts Medical Society, Waltham; Beth Landon, Alaska Center for Rural
Health, Anchorage, on behalf of the National Rural Health Association (NRHA);
Jennifer S. Laurent, Vermont Nurse and Practitioner Association, Burlington;
and John E. Maupin, Jr., Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia, on
behalf of the Association of Minority Health Professions Schools.
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.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/02/13
Daily Digest - Wednesday, February 13, 2008; pages D131 - D142
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
WOUNDED AND ILL SERVICE MEMBERS
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
improvements implemented and planned by the Department of Defense and the
Department of Veterans Affairs for the care, management, and transition of
wounded and ill military service members, after receiving testimony from
Preston M. Geren, III, Secretary of the Army, David S. C. Chu, Under Secretary
for Personnel and Readiness, and Lieutenant General Eric B. Schoomaker, USA,
Surgeon General of the U.S. Army, all of the Department of Defense; and Gordon
H. Mansfield, Deputy Secretary, and Rear Admiral Patrick W. Dunne, USN (Ret.),
Assistant Secretary for Policy and Planning, both of the Department of
Veterans Affairs.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee ordered favorably
reported an original bill entitled "Industrial Bank Holding Company Act of
2008".
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR BUDGET
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the President's budget request for fiscal year 2009 for the Department
of the Interior, after receiving testimony from former Senator Dirk
Kempthorne, Secretary of the Interior.
MEDICARE PRIVATE PLANS (PART II)
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded hearings to examine selling to
seniors, focusing on the need for accountability and oversight of marketing
and sales by Medicare private plans, after receiving testimony from Kerry
Weems, Acting Administrator, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS),
Department of Health and Human Services.
[Page: D133]
FOREIGN AFFAIRS BUDGET
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
President's budget request for fiscal year 2009 for foreign affairs, after
receiving testimony from Condoleezza Rice, Secretary of State.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
H.R. 1469, to establish the Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation under
the authorities of the Mutual Educational and Cultural Exchange Act of 1961,
with amendments;
H.R. 2798, to reauthorize the programs of the Overseas Private Investment
Corporation, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 1418, to provide assistance to improve the health of newborns, children,
and mothers in developing countries, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
S. 2433, to require the President to develop and implement a comprehensive
strategy to further the United States foreign policy objective of promoting
the reduction of global poverty, the elimination of extreme global poverty,
and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goal of reducing by one-half
the proportion of people worldwide, between 1990 and 2015, who live on less
than $1 per day, with amendments;
S. Res. 439, expressing the strong support of the Senate for the North
Atlantic Treaty Organization to enter into a Membership Action Plan with
Georgia and Ukraine; and
The nominations of James K. Glassman, of Connecticut, to be Under Secretary of
State for Public Diplomacy with the rank of Ambassador, Goli Ameri, of Oregon,
to be Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs, David
J. Kramer, of Massachusetts, to be Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy,
Human Rights, and Labor, James Francis Moriarty, of Massachusetts, to be
Ambassador to the People's Republic of Bangladesh, Margaret Scobey, of
Tennessee, to be Ambassador to the Arab Republic of Egypt, Deborah K. Jones,
of New Mexico, to be Ambassador to the State of Kuwait, Hector E. Morales, of
Texas, to be Permanent Representative of the United States of America to the
Organization of American States, with the rank of Ambassador, Larry Woodrow
Walther, of Arkansas, to be Director of the Trade and Development Agency,
Jeffrey J. Grieco, of Virginia, to be an Assistant Administrator of the United
States Agency for International Development, John E. Osborn, of Delaware, to
be a Member of the United States Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy,
Elizabeth F. Bagley, of the District of Columbia, to be a Member of the United
States Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy, William J. Hybl, of Colorado,
to be a Member of the United States Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy,
Mark McKinnon, of Texas, Joaquin F. Blaya, of Florida, Edward E. Kaufman, of
Delaware, Susan M. McCue, of Virginia, Dennis M. Mulhaupt, of California, and
Steven J. Simmons, of Connecticut, each to be a Member of the Broadcasting
Board of Governors, and Ana M. Guevara, of Florida, to be United States
Alternate Executive Director of the International Bank for Reconstruction and
Development.
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE HOMELAND SECURITY ROLE
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the role of the Department of Defense in homeland security,
focusing on ways the military can and will contribute, after receiving
testimony from Major General Arnold L. Punaro, USMCR (Ret.), Chairman, and
Lieutenant General James E. Sherrard III, USAFR (Ret.), and Major General E.
Gordon Stump, ANG (Ret.), both Commissioners, all of the Commission on the
National Guard and Reserves.
FAMILY AND MEDICAL LEAVE ACT
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Subcommittee on Children
and Families concluded a hearing to examine the Family and Medical Leave Act
(FMLA)(P.L. 103-3), focusing on a fifteen year history of support for workers,
after receiving testimony from Victoria A. Lipnic, Assistant Secretary of
Labor for the Employment Standards Administration; Debra Ness, National
Partnership for Women and Families, Marcel Reid, Association of Community
Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), and Kristen Grimm, Spitfire Strategies,
all of Washington, D.C.; and Katheryn Elliott, Central Michigan University
Employee Relations, Mount Pleasant, on behalf of the Society for Human
Resource Management (SPHR).
NOMINATIONS
Committee on the Judiciary: On Tuesday, February 12, committee concluded a
hearing to examine the nominations of James Randal Hall, to be United States
District Judge for the Southern District of Georgia, who was introduced by
Senators Chambliss and Isakson, Richard H. Honaker, to be United States
District Judge for the District of Wyoming, who was introduced by Senators
Enzi and Barrasso, Gustavus Adolphus Puryear IV, to be United States District
Judge for the Middle District of Tennessee, who was introduced by Senators
Alexander and Corker, and Brian Stacy Miller, to be United States District
Judge for the Eastern District of Arkansas, who was introduced by Senators
Lincoln and Pryor, after the nominees testified and answered questions in
their own behalf.
[Page: D134]
FEDERAL COCAINE SENTENCING LAWS
Committee on the Judiciary: On Tuesday, February 12, Subcommittee on Crime and
Drugs concluded a hearing to examine federal cocaine sentencing laws, focusing
on reforming the 100-to-1 crack/powder disparity, including S. 1383, to reduce
the disparity in punishment between crack and powder cocaine offenses, to more
broadly focus the punishment for drug offenders on the seriousness of the
offense and the culpability of the offender, S. 1685, to reduce the sentencing
disparity between powder and crack cocaine violations, and to provide
increased emphasis on aggravating factors relating to the seriousness of the
offense and the culpability of the offender, and S. 1711, to target cocaine
kingpins and address sentencing disparity between crack and powder cocaine,
after receiving testimony from Gretchen C. Shappert, United States Attorney,
Western District of North Carolina, Department of Justice; Ricardo H.
Hinojosa, Chair, United States Sentencing Commission; Nora D. Volkow,
Director, National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health,
Department of Health and Human Services; Reggie B. Walton, Judge, United
States District Court for the District of Columbia, on behalf of the Judicial
Conference of the United States; and James E. Felman, American Bar
Association, Washington, D.C.
STATE SECRETS PRIVILEGE
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the state
secrets privilege, focusing on protecting national security while preserving
accountability, including S. 2533, to enact a safe, fair, and responsible
state secrets privilege Act, after receiving testimony from Carl J. Nichols,
Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Civil Division, Department of Justice;
Patricia M. Wald, former Chief Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the District
of Columbia Circuit, Washington, D.C.; Louis Fisher, Specialist in
Constitutional Law, Law Library, Library of Congress; Robert M. Chesney, Wake
Forest University School of Law, Winston-Salem, North Carolina; and Michael A.
Vatis, Steptoe and Johnson LLP, New York, New York.
VETERANS PROGRAMS BUDGET
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2009 for veterans
programs, after receiving testimony from James B. Peake, Secretary of Veterans
Affairs; Carl Blake, Paralyzed Veterans of America (PVA), Fredericksburg,
Virginia; Raymond C. Kelley, American Veterans (AMVETS), Lanham, Maryland;
John Rowan, Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA), Middle Village, New York; and
Kerry Baker, Disabled American Veterans (DAV), Christopher Needham, Veterans
of Foreign Wars of the United States (VFW), and Peter S. Gaytan, American
Legion, all of Washington, D.C.
FORECLOSURE AFTERMATH
Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
housing foreclosure aftermath, focusing on concerns for elderly homeowners,
after receiving testimony from Peggy Twohig, Associate Director, Division of
Financial Practices, Federal Trade Commission; Thomas E. Perez, Maryland
Department of Labor, Licensing, and Registration, Baltimore; Walter Malone,
Malone and Malone Construction, Washington, D.C.; Catherine M. Doyle, Legal
Aid Society of Milwaukee, Inc., Milwaukee, Wisconsin; John W. Anderson, Twin
Oaks Realty, Minneapolis, Minnesota, on behalf of the National Association of
Realtors; and Rachel M. Dollar, Smith Dollar, PC, Santa Rosa, California, on
behalf of the Mortgage Bankers Association.
Joint Meetings
SOVEREIGN WEALTH FUNDS
Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
efficacy of sovereign wealth funds, government investment funds, funded by
foreign currency reserves, but managed separately from official currency
reserves, focusing on the U.S. economy and national security risks, after
receiving testimony from David H. McCormick, Under Secretary of the Treasury
for International Affairs; and Stuart E. Eizenstat, Covington and Burling LLP,
and Douglas Rediker, New America Foundation, both of Washington, D.C.
FINLAND'S LEADERSHIP OF THE OSCE
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Commission concluded a
hearing to examine Finland's leadership of the Organization for Security and
Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), focusing on plans, priorities, and challenges
that face the region, after receiving testimony from Ilkka Kanerva, Finland
Minister for Foreign Affairs, Helsinki.
2008/02/14
Daily Digest - Thursday, February 14, 2008; pages D143 - D152
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
AFGHANISTAN STRATEGY
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded hearings to examine the
strategy in Afghanistan, focusing on reports by the Afghanistan Study Group
and the Atlantic Council of the United States, after receiving testimony from
James J. Shinn, Assistant Secretary for Asian and Pacific Security Affairs,
Office of the Secretary of Defense for Policy, and Lieutenant General John F.
Sattler, USMC, Director for Strategic Plans and Policy, J-5, Joint Staff, both
of the Department of Defense; Richard A. Boucher, Assistant Secretary of State
for South and Central Asian Affairs; General James L. Jones, USMC (Ret.),
Atlantic Council of the United States, and Karl F. Inderfurth, George
Washington University, both of Washington, D.C.
CURRENT U.S. ECONOMY
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the current state of the United States economy and
financial matters, after receiving testimony from Henry M. Paulson, Jr.,
Secretary of the Treasury; former Representative Christopher Cox, Chairman,
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission; and Ben S. Bernanke, Chairman, Board
of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.
INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND HEALTH CARE REFORM
Committee on the Budget: Committee concluded a hearing to examine health care
and the federal budget, focusing on information technology and health care
reform, after receiving testimony from Valerie C. Melvin, Director, Human
Capital and Management, Information Systems Issues, Government Accountability
Office; Laura L. Adams, Rhode Island Quality Institute, Providence; and Mary
R. Grealy, Healthcare Leadership Council, Washington, D.C.
USDA FOREST SERVICE BUDGET
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2009 for the
United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service (USDA), after receiving
testimony from Mark Rey, Under Secretary, and Abigail Kimbell, Chief, USDA
Forest Service, both of the Department of Agriculture.
MARINE VESSEL EMISSIONS REDUCTION ACT
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine S. 1499, to amend the Clean Air Act to reduce air pollution from
marine vessels, after receiving testimony from Bryan Wood-Thomas, Associate
Director, Office of Transportation and Air Quality, Office of Air and
Radiation, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; Barry R. Wallerstein, South
Coast Air Quality Management District, Diamond Bar, California; Lisa P.
Jackson, New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, Trenton; Jennifer
J. Mouton, Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality Air Quality
Assessment Division, Baton Rouge; John G. Miller, American College of
Emergency Physicians (ACEP), San Pedro, California; Richard Kassel, Natural
Resources Defense Council (NRDC), New York, New York; Joe Accardo, Jr., Ports
Association of Louisiana (PAL), and Joel T. Chaisson, Port of South Louisiana,
both of LaPlace; Ken Wells, Offshore Marine Service Association, Harahan,
Louisiana; and Jonah Ramirez, San Bernardino, California.
INTERNATIONAL CARBON CAP AND TRADE PROGRAM
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine international
aspects of a carbon cap and trade program, focusing on experiences and
implications for a United States cap-and-trade program, after receiving
testimony from Senator Specter; Jennifer Haverkamp, Enviromental Defense Fund,
and Kjell Olav Kristiansen, Point Carbon, both of Washington, D.C.; Abraham F.
Breehey, International Brotherhood of Boilermakers, Iron Ship Builders,
Blacksmiths, Forgers and Helpers (AFL-CIO), Fairfax, Virginia; and Ruksana
Mirza, Holcim (US), Inc., Waltham, Massachusetts.
FEDERAL ACQUISITION WORKFORCE
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of
Columbia concluded a hearing to examine ways to build and strengthen the
Federal acquisition workforce, after receiving testimony from Paul A. Denett,
Administrator, Federal Procurement Policy, Office of Management and Budget;
Frank J. Anderson, Jr., President, Defense Acquisition University, Office of
the Under Secretary for Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics, Department of
Defense; and Karen A. Pica, Director, Federal Acquisition Institute, General
Services Administration.
[Page: D148]
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY BUDGET
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the President's proposed budget request for fiscal year
2009 for the Department of Homeland Security, after receiving testimony from
Michael Chertoff, Secretary of Homeland Security.
DNI AUTHORITIES
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
authorities given to the Director of National Intelligence and personnel
issues, after receiving testimony from J. Michael McConnell, Director of
National Intelligence.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/02/15
Daily Digest - Friday, February 15, 2008; pages D153 - D154
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/02/19
Daily Digest - Tuesday, February 19, 2008; pages D155 - D156
Committee Meetings
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/02/21
Daily Digest - Thursday, February 21, 2008; pages D157 - D158
Committee Meetings
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/02/22
Daily Digest - Friday, February 22, 2008; pages D159 - D160
Committee Meetings
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/02/25
Daily Digest - Monday, February 25, 2008; pages D161 - D172
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
SUBCOMMITTEE ASSIGNMENTS
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: On January 24, committee
announced the following subcommittee assignments:
Subcommittee on Securities, Insurance, and Investment: Senators Reed (RI)
(Chairman), Menendez, Johnson, Schumer, Bayh, Casey, Akaka, Tester, Allard,
Enzi, Bennett, Hagel, Bunning, Crapo, and Corker;
Subcommittee on Financial Institutions: Senators Johnson (Chairman), Tester,
Menendez, Akaka, Reed (RI), Schumer, Bayh, Carper, Hagel, Bennett, Allard,
Bunning Crapo, Dole, and Corker;
Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development: Senators
Schumer (Chairman), Akaka, Casey, Reed (RI), Carper, Brown, Tester, Crapo,
Dole, Martinez, Allard, Enzi, and Hagel;
Subcommittee on Economic Policy: Senators Carper (Chairman), Brown, and
Bunning;
Subcommittee on Security and International Trade and Finance: Senators Bayh
(Chairman), Brown, Johnson, Casey, Dodd, Martinez, Enzi, Dole, and Bennett.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on the Judiciary: On Thursday, February 21, committee concluded a
hearing to examine the nominations of Catharina Haynes, of Texas, to be United
States Circuit Judge for the Fifth Circuit, John A. Mendez, to be United
States District Judge for the Eastern District of California, and Stanley
Thomas Anderson, to be United States District Judge for the Western District
of Tennessee, after the nominees testified and answered questions in their own
behalf.
[Page: D164]
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/02/26
Daily Digest - Tuesday, February 26, 2008; pages D174 - D184
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR PROGRAMS
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and
Related Agencies concluded an oversight hearing to examine the oil, gas, and
mineral revenue programs managed by the Department of the Interior, after
receiving testimony from C. Stephen Allred, Assistant Secretary for Lands and
Minerals Management, and Randall Luthi, Director, Minerals Management Service,
both of the Department of the Interior.
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
defense authorization request for fiscal year 2009 for the Department of the
Army, and the future years defense program, after receiving testimony from
Preston M. Geren III, Secretary, and General George W. Casey, Jr., USA, Chief
of Staff, both of the Army, Department of Defense.
U.S. OIL INVENTORY POLICIES
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded an oversight
hearing to examine United States oil inventory policies, focusing on the
Department of Energy's Strategic Petroleum Reserve Project Management Office
policies, after receiving testimony from Katharine Fredriksen, Principal
Deputy Assistant Secretary of Energy for Policy and International Affairs;
Frank Rusco, Acting Director, Natural Resources and Environment, Government
Accountability Office; Frank A. Verrastro, Center for Strategic and
International Studies, Washington, D.C.; and Melanie A. Kenderdine,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology Energy Initiative, Cambridge.
ECONOMIC AND FISCAL CONDITIONS OF THE STATES
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the economic
and fiscal conditions of the states, focusing on the national economic
outlook, after receiving testimony from Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano,
Phoenix.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the intelligence
community.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
[Page: D176]
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/02/27
Daily Digest - Wednesday, February 27, 2008; pages D185 - D194
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: U.S. ARMY
Committee on Appropriations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine proposed
budget estimates for fiscal year 2009 for the U.S. Army, Department of
Defense, after receiving testimony from Preston M. Geren III, Secretary, and
General George W. Casey, Jr., Chief of Staff, both of the United States Army,
Department of Defense.
NATIONAL SECURITY
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
current and future worldwide threats to the national security of the United
States, after receiving testimony from John M. McConnell, Director, Tim
Langford, Cuba-Venezuela Mission Manager, Benjamin Powell, General Counsel,
Alan Pino, National Intelligence Officer for the Middle East, and Tom Fingar,
Deputy Director for Analysis, all of National Intelligence; and Lieutenant
General Michael D. Maples, USA, Director, Defense Intelligence Agency.
[Page: D186]
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Personnel concluded a hearing to
examine the defense authorization request for fiscal year 2009 for the Active
component, Reserve component, civilian personnel programs, and the future
years defense program, after receiving testimony from David S. C. Chu, Under
Secretary for Personnel and Readiness, Lieutenant General Michael D. Rochelle,
USA, Deputy Chief of Staff, G1, United States Army, Vice Admiral John C.
Harvey, Jr., USN, Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Manpower, Personnel,
Training and Education, United States Navy, Lieutenant General Roland S.
Coleman, USMC, Deputy Commandant for Manpower and Reserve Affairs, United
States Marine Corps, and Lieutenant General Richard Y. Newton III, USAF,
Deputy Chief of Staff for Manpower and Personnel, United States Air Force, all
of the Department of Defense.
NASA BUDGET
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Space,
Aeronautics, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine the
President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2009 for the National
Space and Aeronautics Administration (NASA), after receiving testimony from
Michael D. Griffin, Administrator, National Aeronautics and Space
Administration.
NOMINATION
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the nomination of J. Gregory Copeland, of Texas, to be General Counsel
of the Department of Energy, after the nominee testified and answered
questions in his own behalf.
LAND BILLS
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Public Lands and
Forests concluded a hearing to examine S. 2229, to withdraw certain Federal
land in the Wyoming Range from leasing and provide an opportunity to retire
certain leases in the Wyoming Range, S. 2379, to authorize the Secretary of
the Interior to cancel certain grazing leases on land in Cascade-Siskiyou
National Monument that are voluntarily waived by the lessees, to provide for
the exchange of certain Monument land in exchange for private land, to
designate certain Monument land as wilderness, S. 832, to provide for the sale
of approximately 25 acres of public land to the Turnabout Ranch, Escalante,
Utah, at fair market value, S. 2508 and H.R. 903, bills to provide for a study
of options for protecting the open space characteristics of certain lands in
and adjacent to the Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests in Colorado, S.
2601 and H.R. 1285, bills to require the Secretary of Agriculture to convey to
King and Kittitas Counties Fire District No. 51 a certain parcel of real
property for use as a site for a new Snoqualmie Pass fire and rescue station,
H.R. 523, to require the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain public
land located wholly or partially within the boundaries of the Wells
Hydroelectric Project of Public Utility District No. 1 of Douglas County,
Washington, to the utility district, and S. 532 and H.R. 838, bills to provide
for the conveyance of the Bureau of Land Management parcels known as the White
Acre and Gambel Oak properties and related real property to Park City, Utah,
after receiving testimony from Wyoming Governor Dave Freudenthal, Cheyenne;
Melissa Simpson, Deputy Under Secretary of Agriculture for Natural Resources
and Environment; Luke Johnson, Deputy Director, Bureau of Land Management,
Department of the Interior; Andy Kerr, Soda Mountain Wilderness Council, and
Mike Dauenhauer, both of Ashland, Oregon; Claire Moseley, Public Lands
Advocacy, Denver, Colorado; Gary Amerine, Citizens Protecting the Wyoming
Range, Daniel; and Chris Caviezel, Snoqualmie Pass Fire Station, Snoqualmie
Pass, Washington.
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY BUDGET
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2009 for the
Environmental Protection Agency, after receiving testimony from Stephen L.
Johnson, Administrator, Environmental Protection Agency.
PRIVATE SECURITY FIRMS RELIANCE
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine U.S. reliance on private security firms in overseas
operations, after receiving testimony from Patrick F. Kennedy, Under Secretary
of State for Management; P. Jackson Bell, Deputy Under Secretary of Defense
for Logistics and Material Readiness; James D. Schmitt, ArmorGroup North
America, Inc., McLean, Virginia; and Laura A. Dickinson, University of
Connecticut School of Law, Hartford.
FOREIGN AID LESSONS FOR DOMESTIC ECONOMIC ASSISTANCE ACT
Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded a hearing to examine S. 2232,
to direct the Secretary of Commerce to establish a demonstration program to
adapt the lessons of providing foreign aid to underdeveloped economies to the
provision of Federal economic development assistance to certain similarly
situated individuals, after receiving testimony from Senator Stevens; Matthew
Crow, Deputy Assistant Secretary for External Affairs and Communications of
Commerce for Economic Development Administration; Julie Kitka, Alaska
Federation of Natives, Anchorage; Byron Mallott, Sealaska Corporation, Juneau,
Alaska; Ralph Andersen, Bristol Bay Native Association, Dillingham, Alaska;
Zach Brink, Association of Village Council Presidents, Bethel, Alaska; and
Paul V. Applegarth, Value Enhancement International, Greenwich, Connecticut.
[Page: D187]
FALSE CLAIMS ACT
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine S. 2041,
to amend the False Claims Act, focusing on strengthening the government's most
effective tool against fraud for the 21st century, after receiving testimony
from Michael F. Hertz, Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Civil Division,
Department of Justice; John E. Clark, Goode, Casseb, Jones, Riklin, Choate,
and Watson, PC, San Antonio, Texas; John T. Boese, Fried, Frank, Harris,
Shriver and Jacobson, LLP, Washington, DC; Pamela H. Bucy, University of
Alabama School of Law, Tuscaloosa; and Tina Marie Gonter, Jacksonville,
Florida.
FEDERAL FUNDING FOR STATE AND LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs concluded a
hearing to examine supporting the front line in the fight against crime,
focusing on restoring federal funding for state and local law enforcement,
after receiving testimony from Senators Harkin and Chambliss; Mark Epley,
Senior Counsel to the Deputy Attorney General, Department of Justice; Jeffrey
Horvath, Dover Police Department, Dover, Delaware; Anthony F. Wieners, New
Jersey Police Department, Belleville, on behalf of the National Association of
Police Organizations (NAPO); and Charles H. Ramsey, Philadelphia Police
Department, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
VOTE CAGING PRACTICES
Committee on Rules and Administration: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine protecting voters in the United States at the polls, focusing on
limiting abusive robocalls and vote caging practices, including S. 2305, to
prevent voter caging, after receiving testimony from Senator Whitehouse; Roy
Cooper, North Carolina Attorney General, Raleigh; J. Bradley King, Indiana
Election Division, Indianapolis; James Bopp, Jr., James Madison Center for
Free Speech, Terre Haute, Indiana; Shaun Dakin, National Political Do Not
Contact Registry, and Judith A. Browne-Dianis, Advancement Project, both of
Washington, DC; and Chandler Davidson, Rice University, Houston, Texas.
SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION BUDGET
Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the President's proposed budget request for fiscal year
2009 for the Small Business Administration, including The Military Reservist
and Veteran Small Business Reauthorization and Opportunity Act (Public Law
110-186), The CLEAN Energy Act (Public Law 110-140), and S. 1256, to amend the
Small Business Act to reauthorize loan programs under that Act, after
receiving testimony from Steven Preston, Administrator, Small Business
Administration.
POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
veterans' disability compensation, focusing on expert work on post-traumatic
stress disorder and other issues, after receiving testimony from Joyce
McMahon, CNA Corporation, Alexandria, Virginia; Lonnie R. Bristow, National
Academies, Washington, DC; Dean G. Kilpatrick, Medical University of South
Carolina National Crime Victims Research and Treatment Center, Charleston; and
Scott L. Zeger, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore,
Maryland.
BUSINESS MEETING
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee met in closed session to consider
pending intelligence matters.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
MEDICAL DEVICE INDUSTRY
Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded a hearing to examine issues
relative to surgeons, focusing on conflicts and consultant payments in the
medical device industry, after receiving testimony from Gregory E. Demske,
Assistant Inspector General for Legal Affairs, Department of Health and Human
Services; Charles D. Rosen, University of California School of Medicine,
Irvine, on behalf of the Association for Ethics in Spine Surgery; Said Hilal,
Applied Medical Resources Corporation, Ranch Santa, Margarita, California;
Edward B. Lipes, Stryker Corporation, Mahwah, New Jersey; Chad F. Phipps,
Zimmer Holdings, Inc., Warsaw, Indiana; and Christopher L. White, Advanced
Medical Technology Association, Washington, DC.
[Page: D188]
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/02/28
Daily Digest - Thursday, February 28, 2008; pages D196 - D204
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
HALLMARK/WESTLAND MEAT RECALL
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development,
Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to
examine the recent Hallmark/Westland Meat Company meat recall, after receiving
testimony from Ed Schafer, Secretary of Agriculture; and Wayne Pacelle, Humane
Society of the United States, and J. Patrick Boyle, American Meat Institute,
both of Washington, D.C.
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
defense authorization request for fiscal year 2009 for Department of the Navy,
and the future years defense program, after receiving testimony from Donald C.
Winter, Secretary of the Navy, Admiral Gary Roughead, USN, Chief of Naval
Operations, and General James T. Conway, USMC, Commandant of the Marine Corps,
all of the Department of Defense.
SEMIANNUAL MONETARY POLICY REPORT
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the semiannual ``Monetary Policy Report to the Congress'',
after receiving testimony from Ben S. Bernanke, Chairman, Board of Governors
of the Federal Reserve System.
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION BUDGET
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded an
oversight hearing to examine the President's proposed budget request for
fiscal year 2009 for the Department of Transportation, after receiving
testimony from Mary E. Peters, Secretary, and Robert Sturgell, Acting
Administrator, Federal Aviation Administration, both of the Department of
Transportation.
AMERICAN SAMOA AND THE COMMONWEALTH OF THE NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS ECONOMIES
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the impact of increased minimum wages on the economies of American
Samoa and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, after receiving
testimony from Representative Faleomavaega; Jay Berman, Senior Economist,
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy, Department of Labor; Nikolao I.
Pula, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Insular Affairs;
American Samoa Governor Togiola T.A. Tulafono, Pago Pago; and Governor Benigno
R. Fitial, and Resident Representative Pedro A. Tenorio, both of Saipan, the
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
LAND BILLS
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Water and Power
concluded a hearing to examine S. 177 and H.R. 2085, bills to authorize the
Secretary of the Interior to convey to the McGee Creek Authority certain
facilities of the McGee Creek Project, Oklahoma, S. 1473 and H.R. 1855, bills
to authorize the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bureau of
Reclamation, to enter into a cooperative agreement with the Madera Irrigation
District for purposes of supporting the Madera Water Supply Enhancement
Project, S. 1474 and H.R. 1139, bills to authorize the Secretary of the
Interior to plan, design and construct facilities to provide water for
irrigation, municipal, domestic, and other uses from the Bunker Hill
Groundwater Basin, Santa Ana River, California, S. 1929, to authorize the
Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Commissioner of Reclamation, to
conduct a feasibility study of water augmentation alternatives in the Sierra
Vista Subwatershed, S. 2370, to clear title to certain real property in New
Mexico associated with the Middle Rio Grande Project, and H.R. 2381, to
promote Department of the Interior efforts to provide a scientific basis for
the management of sediment and nutrient loss in the Upper Mississippi River
Basin, after receiving testimony from Representative Radanovich; Robert J.
Quint, Director of Operations, Bureau of Reclamation, Department of the
Interior; Mayor Mick Cornett, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; John Rossi, Western
Municipal Water District, Riverside, California; Carl Janzen, Madera
Irrigation District, Madera, California; and Charles Potucek, Upper San Pedro
Partnership, Sierra Vista, Arizona.
[Page: D198]
NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on Clean Air and
Nuclear Safety concluded an oversight hearing to examine the Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, focusing on the security of the nuclear power plants in
the United States, after receiving testimony from Senators Specter and Casey;
Dale E. Klein, Chairman, and Gregory B. Jaczko, and Peter B. Lyons, both
Commissioners, all of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission; Christopher
Crane, Exelon Corporation, Warrenville, Illinois; Eric F. Wilson, G4S
Regulated Security Solutions, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida; David A. Lochbaum,
Nuclear Safety Project, on behalf of the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS),
and Marvin Fertel, Nuclear Energy Institute, both of Washington, D.C.
REAL ESTATE MARKET
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the real estate
market, focusing on building a strong economy, after receiving testimony from
Lawrence B. Lindsey, Lindsey Group, and David Seiders, National Association of
Home Builders (NAHB), both of Washington, D.C.; Timothy H. Callahan, Callahan
Capital Partners, Denver, Colorado, on behalf of the Real Estate Roundtable;
and Jeffrey H. Schwartz, ProLogis, Chicago, Illinois, on behalf of the
National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts.
POST-ELECTION PAKISTAN
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
policy options of the United States in post-election Pakistan, after receiving
testimony from John D. Negroponte, Deputy Secretary of State.
VISA WAIVER PROGRAM
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Terrorism, Technology and Homeland
Security concluded a hearing to examine weaknesses in the visa waiver program,
focusing on possible safeguards needed to protect the United States of
America, including the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act
of 2007 (Public Law 110-53), after receiving testimony from Paul Rosenzweig,
Acting Assistant Secretary for International Affairs, Deputy Assistant
Secretary for Policy, Department of Homeland Security; Stephen A. Tony Edson,
Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Visa Services; Jess T. Ford, Director,
International Affairs and Trade, Government Accountability Office; Susan
Ginsburg, Migration Policy Institute, Washington, D.C.; and Jessica M.
Vaughan, Center for Immigration Studies, Franklin, Massachusetts.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the intelligence
community.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
[Page: D199]
Joint Meetings
ECONOMIC COSTS OF THE WAR
Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the total
economic costs of the Iraq war beyond the federal budget, after receiving
testimony from Joesph E. Stiglitz, Columbia University, and Robert D. Hormats,
Goldman Sachs (International), both of New York, New York; and Rand Beers,
National Security Network, and Scott Wallsten, iGrowthGlobal, both of
Washington, D.C.
2008/02/29
Daily Digest - Friday, February 29, 2008; pages D206 - D212
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY MANAGEMENT REFORMS
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of
Columbia concluded a hearing to examine government-wide intelligence community
management reforms, including S. 82, to reaffirm the authority of the
Comptroller General to audit and evaluate the programs, activities, and
financial transactions of the intelligence community, focusing on ensuring
effective Congressional oversight and the role of the Government
Accountability Office, after receiving testimony from David M. Walker,
Comptroller General, Government Accountability Office; Frederick M. Kaiser,
Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress; Marvin C. Ott, National
Defense University National War College National Security Policy; and Steven
Aftergood, Federation of American Scientists, and Ronald Anthony Marks, Oxford
Analytica, Inc., both of Washington, D.C.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/03/03
Daily Digest - Monday, March 3, 2008; pages D214 - D218
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
[Page: D215]
2008/03/04
Daily Digest - Tuesday, March 4, 2008; pages D219 - D226
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Homeland Security concluded a
hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2009 for the
Department of Homeland Security, after receiving testimony from Michael
Chertoff, Secretary of Homeland Security.
APPROPRIATIONS: ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and
Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for
fiscal year 2009 for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, after receiving
testimony from Stephen L. Johnson, Administrator, Environmental Protection
Agency.
APPROPRIATIONS: U.S. AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and
Related Programs to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2009 for
the U.S. Agency for International Development, after receiving testimony from
Henrietta H. Fore, Director, Foreign Assistance, and Administrator, U.S.
Agency for International Development.
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
defense authorization request for fiscal year 2009 for the United States
Central Command and the United States Special Operations Command, and the
future years defense program, after receiving testimony from Admiral William
J. Fallon, USN, Commander, United States Central Command, and Admiral Eric T.
Olson, USN, Commander, United States Special Operations Command, both of the
Department of Defense.
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Strategic Forces concluded a
hearing to examine the defense authorization request for fiscal year 2009 for
the military space programs, and the future years defense program, after
receiving testimony from Gary E. Payton, Deputy Under Secretary of the Air
Force for Space Programs, General C. Robert Kehler, USAF, Commander, Air Force
Space Command, Lieutenant General William L. Shelton, USAF, Commander, Joint
Functional Component Command for Space, United States Strategic Command, and
Rear Admiral Kenneth W. Deutsch, USN, Director, Warfare Integration, Office of
the Chief of Naval Operations, Department of the Navy, all of the Department
of Defense; and Cristina T. Chaplain, Director, Acquisition and Sourcing
Management, Government Accountability Office.
BANKING INDUSTRY
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the state of the banking industry, after receiving
testimony from Sheila C. Bair, Chairman, Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation; John C. Dugan, Comptroller of the Currency, and John M. Reich,
Director, Office of Thrift Supervision, both of the Department of the
Treasury; Donald L. Kohn, Vice Chairman, Board of Governors of the Federal
Reserve System; JoAnn M. Johnson, Chairman, National Credit Union
Administration; and Thomas B. Gronstal, Iowa Division of Banking, Des Moines,
on behalf of the Conference of State Bank Supervisors.
[Page: D221]
PROTECTING OUR SHORES FROM OIL SPILLS
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Surface
Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety and Security
concluded a hearing to examine protecting seashores from oil spills, focusing
on operational procedures and ship designs, after receiving testimony from
Admiral Thad Allen, Commandant, United States Coast Guard, Department of
Homeland Security; Paul G. Kirchner, American Pilots' Association (APA),
Washington, D.C.; Captain Edward Page, Marine Exchange of Alaska, Juneau; and
Kirsi Tikka, American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), Paramus, New Jersey.
ENERGY INFORMATION ADMINISTRATION
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded an oversight
hearing to examine the Energy Information Administration's revised "Annual
Energy Outlook", after receiving testimony from Guy Caruso, Administrator,
Energy Information Administration, Department of Energy.
BALKANS REGION
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
Kosovo, focusing on the Balkans region, after receiving testimony from Daniel
Fried, Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs; and
Janusz Bugajski, Center for Strategic and International Studies, Daniel
Serwer, United States Institute of Peace, and Ivan Vejvoda, German Marshall
Fund of the United States, all of Washington, D.C.
FEMA DISASTER HOUSING STRATEGY
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Ad Hoc Subcommittee
on Disaster Recovery concluded a joint hearing with the Ad Hoc Subcommittee on
State, Local, and Private Sector Preparedness and Integration to examine the
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) disaster housing strategy, after
receiving testimony from Harvey E. Johnson, Jr., Deputy Administrator and
Chief Operating Officer, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Department of
Homeland Security; Howard Frumkin, Director, National Center for Environmental
Health, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention, Department of Health and Human Services; and Milan
Ozdinec, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development for
Public Housing and Voucher Programs.
NATIONAL CYBER SECURITY INITIATIVE
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
closed hearing to examine National Security Presidential Directive-54 and
Homeland Security Presidential Directive-23 (NSPD-54/HSPD-23) and the
comprehensive national cyber security initiative, after receiving testimony
from Robert D. Jamison, Under Secretary of Homeland Security for National
Protection and Programs Directorate; Melissa E. Hathaway, Cyber Coordination
Executive, Office of the Director of National Intelligence; G. Dennis Bartko,
Special Assistant to the Director for Cyber, National Security Agency; and
Scott O'Neal, Section Chief, Cyber Division, Federal Bureau of Investigation,
Department of Justice.
LEGISLATIVE PRESENTATION
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded a joint hearing with the
House Veterans Affairs Committee to examine the legislative presentation of
the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, after receiving testimony
from Senator Menendez; and George Lisicki, and Robert E. Wallace, both of the
Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, Washington, D.C.
LEGISLATIVE PRESENTATION
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded a joint hearing with the
House Veterans Affairs Committee to examine the legislative presentation of
the Disabled American Veterans, after receiving testimony from Senator Webb;
and Robert T. Reynolds, Disabled American Veterans, Washington, D.C.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee met in closed session to receive a
briefing on certain intelligence matters from officials of the intelligence
community.
[Page: D222]
Joint Meetings
NATO ENLARGEMENT
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Commission concluded a
hearing to examine enlargement issues facing the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization (NATO) prior to the summit in Bucharest, Romania, focusing on
democratic development, after receiving testimony from Michael Haltzel, Johns
Hopkins University Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies
Center for Transatlantic Relations, and Steven Pifer, former U.S. Ambassador
to Ukraine, and Janusz Bugajski, both of the Center for Strategic and
International Studies, all of Washington, D.C.
2008/03/05
Daily Digest - Wednesday, March 5, 2008; pages D228 - D238
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2009
for the Department of Energy, after receiving testimony from Kevin M. Kolevar,
Assistant Secretary for Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability, Dennis R.
Spurgeon, Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy, and James Slutz, Acting
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy, all of the Department
of Energy.
[Page: D230]
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense concluded a hearing to
examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2009 for the Department of
the Navy, after receiving testimony from Donald C. Winter, Secretary, Admiral
Gary Roughead, Chief of Naval Operations, both of the United States Navy, and
General James T. Conway, Commandant of the United States Marine Corps, all of
the Department of Defense.
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Financial Services and General
Government concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal
year 2009 for the Department of the Treasury, after receiving testimony from
Henry M. Paulson, Jr., Secretary of the Treasury.
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
defense authorization request for fiscal year 2009 for the Department of the
Air Force, and the future years defense program, after receiving testimony
from Michael W. Wynne, Secretary, and T. Michael Moseley, Chief of Staff, both
of the United States Air Force, Department of Defense.
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE SERVICE-WIDE IMPROVEMENTS
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Personnel concluded a hearing to
examine the findings and recommendations of the Department of Defense Task
Force on Mental Health, the Army's Mental Health Advisory Team reports, and
Department of Defense and service-wide improvements in mental health
resources, including suicide prevention, for servicemembers and their
families, after receiving testimony from Senator Boxer; Vice Admiral Donald C.
Arthur, USN (Ret.), and Shelley M. MacDermid, both Co-Chair, Task Force on
Mental Health, Colonel Charles W. Hoge, USA, Director, Division of Psychiatry
and Neuroscience, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Colonel Carl A.
Castro, USA, Research Area Director, Military Operational Medicine Research
Program, Lieutenant General Eric B. Schoomaker, USA, Surgeon General of the
United States Army and Commanding General, United States Army Medical Command,
Vice Admiral Adam M. Robinson, Jr., USN, Surgeon General of the United States
Navy and Chief, Bureau of Medicine and Surgery, Department of the Navy,
Lieutenant General James G. Roudebush, USAF, Surgeon General of the United
States Air Force, and Colonel Loree K. Sutton, USA, Special Assistant to the
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Health Affairs) Psychological Health and
Traumatic Brain Injury, all of the Department of Defense.
2009: BUDGET
Committee on the Budget: Committee met to mark up a proposed concurrent
resolution setting forth the fiscal year 2009 budget for the Federal
Government, but did not complete consideration thereon, and will meet again
tomorrow.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee ordered favorably
reported the nomination of J. Gregory Copeland, of Texas, to be General
Counsel of the Department of Energy.
ANTIDUMPING INVESTIGATION ON URANIUM
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded an oversight
hearing to examine the initial amendment between the United States and the
Russian Federation on the Agreement Suspending the Antidumping Investigation
on Uranium from the Russian Federation, after receiving testimony from David
M. Spooner, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Import Administration; William
H. Tobey, Deputy Administrator for Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation, National
Nuclear Security Administration, Department of Energy; Marvin Fertel, Nuclear
Energy Institute, Washington, D.C.; John K. Welch, USEC Inc., Bethesda,
Maryland; James P. Malone, Exelon Generation Company, LLC, Warrenville,
Illinois; Robert C. Ervin, Jr., United Steelworkers Local 550 (USW), West
Paducah, Kentucky; and Reinhard Hinterreither, Louisiana Energy Services,
Eunice, New Mexico.
NATIONAL SECURITY THROUGH SMART POWER
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
strengthening national security, focusing on smart power from a military
perspective, after receiving testimony from General Anthony C. Zinni, USMC
(Ret.), former Commander in Chief, U.S. Central Command, and Admiral Leighton
W. Smith, Jr., USN (Ret.), former Commander in Chief, U.S. Naval Forces
Europe, both of the Department of Defense.
CENSUS IN PERIL
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the 2010 Decennial Census, focusing on automation and
information technology in order to improve census coverage, accuracy, and
efficiency, after receiving testimony from Carlos M. Gutierrez, Secretary, and
Steve H. Murdock, Director, U.S. Census Bureau, both of the Department of
Commerce; and Mathew J. Scire, Director, Strategic Issues, and David A.
Powner, Director, Information Technology Management Issues, both of the
Government Accountability Office.
[Page: D231]
UNITED STATES POSTAL SERVICE REFORM
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services, and
International Security concluded a hearing to examine the state of the United
States Postal Service one year after reform, after receiving testimony from
John E. Potter, Postmaster General and Chief Executive Officer, United States
Postal Service; and Dan G. Blair, Chairman, Postal Regulatory Commission.
CLIMBING COSTS OF HEATING HOMES
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Subcommittee on Children
and Families concluded a hearing to examine the rising costs of heating homes,
focusing on the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), after
receiving testimony from Regina Surber, Tennessee Department of Human
Services, Nashville; Meg Power, National Community Action Foundation,
Washington, D.C.; Deborah A. Frank, Boston University School of Medicine,
Boston, Massachusetts; and Robin Hussain, Hartford, Connecticut.
FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to
examine the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), focusing on the FBI's
current and future priorities, changes made to its mission, and challenges
that are being addressed, after receiving testimony from Robert S. Mueller,
III, Director, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Justice.
ELDERLY HUNGER
Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded a hearing to examine elderly
hunger in America, focusing on the steps needed to prevent this now and in the
future, after receiving testimony from Edwin L. Walker, Deputy Assistant
Secretary for Policy and Programs, Administration on Aging, Department of
Health and Human Services; Kate Houston, Deputy Under Secretary of Agriculture
for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services; Marcus Lampros, Lampros Steel,
Inc., Portland, Oregon; James P. Ziliak, University of Kentucky Center for
Poverty Research, Lexington; and James Weill, Food Research and Action Center,
and Bob Blancato, National Association of Nutrition and Aging Services
Programs, both of Washington, D.C.; and Jan L. Jones, Harrah's Entertainment,
Inc., Las Vegas, Nevada.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/03/06
Daily Digest - Thursday, March 6, 2008; pages D240 - D248
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and
Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for
fiscal year 2009 for the Department of Commerce, after receiving testimony
from Carlos Gutierrez, Secretary of Commerce.
[Page: D242]
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban
Development, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine proposed
budget estimates for fiscal year 2009 for the Department of Transportation,
after receiving testimony from Mary E. Peters, Secretary, and Phyllis F.
Scheinberg, Assistant Secretary for Budget and Programs, and Chief Financial
Officer, both of the Department of Transportation.
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
defense authorization request for fiscal year 2009 for the U.S. Southern and
Northern Command, and the future years defense program, after receiving
testimony from General Victor E. Renuart, Jr., USAF, Commander, North American
Aerospace Defense Command and United States Northern Command, and Admiral
James G. Stavridis, USN, Commander, United States Southern Command, both of
the Department of Defense.
GOVERNMENT SPONSORED ENTERPRISES REGULATION REFORM
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine reforming the regulation of government sponsored
enterprises, after receiving testimony from William B. Shear, Director,
Financial Markets and Community Investment, Government Accountability Office;
Vincent E. Malta, National Association of Realtors, and Nancy O. Andrews, Low
Income Investment Fund, both of San Francisco, California; Kieran P. Quinn,
Mortgage Bankers Association, Atlanta, Georgia; and Gerald M. Howard, National
Association of Home Builders, McLean, Virginia.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on the Budget: Committee ordered favorably reported an original
concurrent resolution setting forth the congressional budget for the United
States Government for fiscal year 2009 and including the appropriate budgetary
levels for fiscal year 2008 and for fiscal years 2010 through 2013.
U.S. COAST GUARD BUDGET
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Oceans,
Atmosphere, Fisheries, and Coast Guard concluded a hearing to examine the
President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2009 for the U.S. Coast
Guard and conduct oversight, after receiving testimony from Admiral Thad W.
Allen, Commandant, United States Coast Guard, Department of Homeland Security;
and Stephen L. Caldwell, Director, Homeland Security and Justice Issues,
Government Accountability Office.
ADMINISTRATION'S 2008 TRADE AGENDA
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
Administration's 2008 trade agenda, focusing on Trade Adjustment Assistance,
pending free trade agreements, and the Doha Development Round of multilateral
trade negotiations, after receiving testimony from Ambassador Susan C. Schwab,
United States Trade Representative.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Finance: Committee ordered favorably reported the nomination of
Douglas H. Shulman, of the District of Columbia, to be Commissioner of
Internal Revenue.
Also, Committee reported the following subcommittee assignments for the 110th
Congress.
Subcommittee on Health Care: Senators Rockefeller (Chairman), Kerry, Bingaman,
Lincoln, Wyden, Stabenow, Cantwell, Salazar, Hatch, Grassley, Snowe, Kyl,
Roberts, Bunning, and Ensign;
Subcommittee on Taxation, IRS Oversight, And Long-Term Growth: Senators Conrad
(Chairman), Baucus, Wyden, Cantwell, Schumer, Stabenow, Salazar, Kyl, Roberts,
Sununu, Snowe, Crapo, and Hatch;
Subcommittee on Energy, Natural Resources, And Infrastructure: Senators
Bingaman (Chairman), Conrad, Kerry, Lincoln, Wyden, Cantwell, Salazar,
Bunning, Smith, Hatch, Crapo, Ensign, and Sununu;
Subcommittee on Social Security, Pensions, And Family Policy: Senators Kerry
(Chairman), Rockefeller, Conrad, Schumer, Ensign, Kyl, and Sununu; and
Subcommittee on International Trade And Global Competitiveness: Senators
Lincoln (Chairman), Baucus, Rockefeller, Bingaman, Stabenow, Schumer, Smith,
Crapo, Snowe, Roberts, and Bunning.
(The chairman and ranking minority member are ex officio members of all
subcommittees.)
CURRENT UNEMPLOYMENT
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine unemployment in the economy, focusing on ways to secure
families and build opportunities, after receiving testimony from M. Patricia
Smith, New York Department of Labor, Albany; former Senator William E. Brock,
III, Annapolis, Maryland; Alan B. Krueger, Princeton University, Princeton,
New Jersey; and Ronica Jackson, Boston, Massachusetts.
INDIAN COUNTRY FACILITIES
Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
state of facilities in Indian country, focusing on jails, schools, and health
facilities, after receiving testimony from Randy Grinnell, Deputy Director for
Management Operations, and Gary Hartz, Director, Office of Environmental
Health and Engineering, both of the Indian Health Services, Department of
Health and Human Services; Jack Rever, Director, Facilities, Environmental,
Safety and Cultural Resources, and Pat Ragsdale, Director, Office of Law
Enforcement Services, both of the Department of the Interior; Domingo Herraiz,
Director, Bureau of Justice Assistance, Department of Justice; Valerie
Davidson and Rick Boyce, both of the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium,
Anchorage; Wendsler Nosie, San Carlos Apache Tribe, San Carlos, Arizona; and
Monty Roessel, Rough Rock Community School, Rough Rock, Arizona.
[Page: D243]
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
S. 2304, to amend title I of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of
1968 to provide grants for the improved mental health treatment and services
provided to offenders with mental illnesses, with an amendment in the nature
of a substitute;
S. 2449, to amend chapter 111 of title 28, United States Code, relating to
protective orders, sealing of cases, disclosures of discovery information in
civil actions, with amendment;
S. 352, to provide for media coverage of Federal court proceedings, with
amendments; and
The nominations of Kevin J. O'Connor, of Connecticut, to be Associate Attorney
General, and Gregory G. Katsas, of Massachusetts, to be an Assistant Attorney
General, both of the Department of Justice, Brian Stacy Miller, to be United
States District Judge for the Eastern District of Arkansas, James Randal Hall,
to be United States District Judge for the Southern District of Georgia,
William Joseph Hawe, to be United States Marshal for the Western District of
Washington, Stanley Thomas Anderson, to be United States District Judge for
the Western District of Tennessee, and John A. Mendez, to be United States
District Judge for the Eastern District of California.
VETERANS ORGANIZATIONS
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded a joint hearing with the
House Committee on Veterans Affairs to examine a sundry of associations'
outlook on veterans affairs issues and to receive their legislative
presentations, after receiving testimony from Warren G. King, Sr., American
Ex-Prisoners of War, Randy L. Pleva, Sr., Paralyzed Veterans of America,
Lawrence Schulman, Jewish War Veterans of the United States, Norman Jones,
Jr., Blinded Veterans Association, John Rowan, Vietnam Veterans of America,
Sergeant Major H. Gene Overstreet, USMC (Ret.), Non Commissioned Officers
Association of the United States of America, and Richard M. Dean, Air Force
Sergeants Association, all of Washington, D.C.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence : Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the intelligence
community.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
Joint Meetings
FUTURE OF THE FEDERAL WORKFORCE
Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded a joint hearing with the House
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on Federal
Workforce, Postal Service, and the District of Columbia to examine investing
in the future of the federal workforce, focusing on paid parental leave to
improve recruitment and retention, after receiving testimony from Daniel P.
Beard, Chief Administrative Officer, United States House of Representatives;
Nancy H. Kichak, Associate Director for Strategic Human Resources Policy,
Office of Personnel Management; Jane Waldfogel, Columbia University, New York,
New York; and Sharyn Tejani, National Partnership for Women and Families,
Vicky Lovell, Institute for Women's Policy Research, Colleen M. Kelley,
National Treasury Employees Union, Mary Jean Burke, American Federation of
Government Employees (AFL-CIO), and Amy S. Costantino, all of Washington, D.C.
2008/03/07
Daily Digest - Friday, March 7, 2008; pages D249 - D256
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
[Page: D250]
Joint Meetings
EMPLOYMENT
Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
employment situation for February 2008, after receiving testimony from Keith
Hall, Commissioner, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Department of Labor; Rebecca
M. Blank, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor; Christine L. Owens, National
Employment Law Project, Washington, D.C.; and Lowell Gallaway, Ohio
University, Athens.
2008/03/10
Daily Digest - Monday, March 10, 2008; pages D257 - D262
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
[Page: D258]
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/03/11
Daily Digest - Tuesday, March 11, 2008; pages D264 - D276
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
IRAQ
Committee on Appropriations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
effectiveness of the United States efforts to combat corruption, waste, fraud,
and abuse in Iraq, after receiving testimony from David M. Walker, Comptroller
General, Government Accountability Office; Claude M. Kicklighter, Inspector
General, and Stuart W. Bowen, Jr., Special Inspector General for Iraq
Reconstruction, both of the Department of Defense; and Radhi Hamza al-Radhi,
Commission on Public Integrity, Republic of Iraq.
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
defense authorization request for fiscal year 2009 for the United States
Pacific Command and United States Forces in Korea, and the future years
defense program, after receiving testimony from Admiral Timothy J. Keating,
USN, Commander, United States Pacific Command, and General B.B. Bell,
Commander, United Nations Command (UNC), Commander, Republic of Korea--United
States Combined Forces Command (CFC), and Commander, United States Forces
Korea (USFK), both of the Department of Defense.
NATION'S INFRASTRUCTURE
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the condition of the nation's infrastructure, focusing on
proposals for needed improvements, including S. 1926, to establish the
National Infrastructure Bank to provide funding for qualified infrastructure
projects, after receiving testimony from David G. Mongan, American Society of
Civil Engineers, Baltimore, Maryland; Felix G. Rohatyn, Center for Strategic
and International Studies, and Tracy Wolstencroft, Goldman, Sachs, and Co.,
both of New York, New York; and Ron Blackwell, American Federation of Labor
and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), and Janet F. Kavinoky,
United States Chamber of Commerce, both of Washington, D.C.
U.S. BASIC RESEARCH BUDGET
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Science,
Technology, and Innovation concluded a hearing to examine the President's
proposed budget request for fiscal year 2009 to support basic research in the
United States, after receiving testimony from John Marburger III, Director,
Office of Science and Technology Policy, Executive Office of the President;
James M. Turner, Acting Director, National Institute of Standards and
Technology, Department of Commerce; and Arden L. Bement, Jr., Director,
National Science Foundation.
CROSS-BORDER TRUCK PILOT PROGRAM
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded an
oversight hearing to examine the Department of Transportation's Cross-Border
Truck pilot program, after receiving testimony from Mary E. Peters, Secretary,
and Calvin L. Scovel III, Inspector General, both of the Department of
Transportation; and Jacqueline S. Gillan, Advocates for Highway and Auto
Safety, and Paul D. Cullen, Sr., Owner-Operator Independent Drivers
Association, Inc., both of Washington, D.C.
[Page: D266]
U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS BUDGET
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the President's proposed budget request for fiscal year 2009 for the
United States Army Corps of Engineers Civil Works Program, and the
implementation of the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2007 (Public
Law 110-114), after receiving testimony from John Paul Woodley, Jr., Assistant
Secretary of the Army for Civil Works; and Lieutenant General Robert Van
Antwerp, Chief of Engineers, United States Army Corps of Engineers.
HORN OF AFRICA
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing evaluating
United States policy options on the Horn of Africa, after receiving testimony
from Jendayi Frazer, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs;
Katherine J. Almquist, Assistant Administrator for Africa, United States
Agency for International Development; Theresa Whelan, Deputy Assistant
Secretary of Defense for African Affairs; David H. Shinn, George Washington
University Elliott School of International Affairs, and Lynn Fredriksson,
Amnesty International USA, both of Washington, D.C.; and Colonel Thomas A.
Dempsey, USA (Ret.), United States Army War College, Carlisle Barracks,
Pennsylvania.
NATO
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), focusing on enlargement and
effectiveness, after receiving testimony from Daniel Fried, Assistant
Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs; General John Craddock,
U.S. European Command and Supreme Allied Commander, Europe, NATO Headquarters,
Mons, Belgium; Ronald D. Asmus, German Marshall Fund, Brussels, Belgium; and
Philip H. Gordon, Brookings Institution, Bruce Pitcairn Jackson, Project on
Transitional Democracies, and James J. Townsend, Jr., Atlantic Council, all of
Washington, D.C.
LIFE SCIENCES
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine funding of the National Institutes of Health, focusing on
opportunities in the life sciences and biomedical research, after receiving
testimony from Drew Gilpin Faust, Harvard University, Cambridge,
Massachusetts; Jill A. Rafael-Fortney, The Ohio State University College of
Medicine, Columbus; Edward D. Miller, Johns Hopkins Medicine, Baltimore,
Maryland; Samuel M. Rankin III, American Mathematical Society, Washington,
D.C.; and Dana Lewis, Huntsville, Alabama.
NOMINATION
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nomination of Grace C. Becker, of New York, to be Assistant Attorney General
for the Civil Rights Division, Department of Justice, after the nominee, who
was introduced by Senator Hatch, testified and answered questions in her own
behalf.
FAMILIES OF WOUNDED WARRIORS
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Defense cooperation and
collaboration, focusing on caring for the families of wounded warriors, after
receiving testimony from Lynda C. Davis, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the
Navy for Military Personnel Policy, Department of Defense; Kristen Day, Chief
Consultant, Care Management and Social Work, Office of Patient Care Services,
Veterans Health Administration, and Steven L. Sayers, Clinical Research
Psychologist, Philadelphia Medical Center, both of the Department of Veterans
Affairs; Jane Dulin, United States Army Wounded Warrior Program, Elkins Park,
Pennsylvania; Colonel Peter J. Bunce, USAF (Ret.), Arlington, Virginia; Robert
Verbeke, Exton, Pennsylvania; and Jackie McMichael, Franklinton, North
Carolina.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the intelligence
community.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/03/12
Daily Digest - Wednesday, March 12, 2008; pages D277 - D288
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: AIR FORCE
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense concluded a hearing to
examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2009 for the Air Force,
after receiving testimony from Michael W. Wynne, Secretary, and General T.
Michael Moseley, Chief of Staff, both of the United States Air Force,
Department of Defense.
APPROPRIATIONS: FEDERAL JUDICIARY
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Financial Services and General
Government concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal
year 2009 for the federal judiciary, after receiving testimony from Julia S.
Gibbons, Judge, Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, and Chair, Committee on the
Budget, Judicial Conference of the United States; and James C. Duff, Director,
Administrative Office of the United States Courts.
CURRENT READINESS OF U.S. ARMED FORCES
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support
met to discuss the current readiness of the armed forces of the United States,
receiving testimony from Lieutenant General James D. Thurman, USA, Deputy
Chief of Staff, G-3/5/7, Lieutenant General Richard F. Natonski, USMC, Deputy
Commandant, Plans, Policies, and Operations, Vice Admiral Michael K. Loose,
USN, Deputy Chief, Naval Operations Fleet Readiness and Logistics, and
Lieutenant General Daniel J. Darnell, USAF, Deputy Chief of Staff, Air, Space
and Information Operations, Plans and Requirements, all of the Department of
Defense.
[Page: D279]
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Strategic Forces concluded a
hearing to examine strategic forces programs in review of the defense
authorization request for fiscal year 2009 and the future years defense
program, after receiving testimony from General Kevin P. Chilton, USAF,
Commander, United States Strategic Command, Michael G. Vickers, Assistant
Secretary for Special Operations/Low-Intensity Conflict and Interdependent
Capabilities, Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, Major
General Richard Webber, USAF, Assistant Deputy Chief, Operations, Plans and
Requirements Headquarters, United States Air Force, and Rear Admiral Stephen
Johnson, USN, Director, Strategic Systems Programs, United States Navy, all of
the Department of Defense; and Thomas P. D'Agostino, Administrator, National
Nuclear Security Administration, Department of Energy.
WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities
concluded a hearing to examine technologies to combat weapons of mass
destruction, after receiving testimony from James A. Tegnelia, Director,
Defense Threat Reduction Agency, and Major General Stephen V. Reeves, USA,
Joint Program Executive Officer, Chemical and Biological Defense, both of the
Department of Defense; and T. Jan Cerveny, Assistant Deputy Administrator,
Nonproliferation Research and Development, Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation,
National Nuclear Security Administration, Department of Energy.
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support
concluded a hearing to examine the defense authorization request for fiscal
year 2009, the future years defense program, and military installation,
environmental, and base closure programs, after receiving testimony from Wayne
Arny, Deputy Under Secretary for Installations and Environment, Keith E.
Eastin, Assistant Secretary of the Army for Installations and Environment,
B.J. Penn, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Installations and Environment,
and William C. Anderson, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for
Installations, Environment and Logistics, all of the Department of Defense.
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on SeaPower concluded a hearing to
examine the defense authorization request for fiscal year 2009 for the
strategic lift programs, and the future years defense program, after receiving
testimony from Sue Payton, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for
Acquisition, and General Norton A. Schwartz, USAF, Commander, United States
Transportation Command, both of the Department of Defense.
DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT BUDGET
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the President's proposed budget request for fiscal year
2009 for the Department of Housing and Urban Development, after receiving
testimony from Alphonso Jackson, Secretary of Housing and Urban Development;
Michael Kelly, District of Columbia Housing Authority, and Hector Pinero,
Related Management Company LLC, on behalf of the National Leased Housing
Association, National Multi Housing Council, and National Apartment
Association, both of Washington, D.C.; Diane Randall, Partnership for Strong
Communities, West Hartford, Connecticut; Edgar O. Olsen, University of
Virginia, Charlottesville; and Barbara Sard, Center on Budget and Policy
Priorities, Brookline, Massachusetts.
GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Interstate
Commerce, Trade, and Tourism concluded a hearing to examine the gross domestic
product as a measurement of national strength, after receiving testimony from
J. Steven Landefeld, Director, Bureau of Economic Analysis, Department of
Commerce; Robert H. Frank, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York; Karen Davis,
Commonwealth Fund, New York, New York; Katharine G. Abraham, University of
Maryland, College Park; and Jonathan Rowe, West Marin Commons, Point Reyes
Station, California.
HARDROCK MINING
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine hardrock mining, focusing on issues relating to abandoned mine lands
and uranium mining, including federal funds spent to clean up abandoned
hardrock mine sites since 1998, number of abandoned hardrock mine sites and
hazards, and the value and coverage of financial assurances operators use to
guarantee reclamation costs on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land, after
receiving testimony from Robin M. Nazzaro, Director, Natural Resources and
Environment, Government Accountability Office; Tony L. Ferguson, Director,
Minerals and Geology Management, National Forest System, United States Forest
Service, Department of Agriculture; Henri Bisson, Deputy Director, Bureau of
Land Management, Department of the Interior; David W. Geiser, Deputy Director
for Legacy Management, Department of Energy; Benjamin H. Grumbles, Assistant
Administrator for Water, Environmental Protection Agency; Charles L. Miller,
Director, Office of Federal and State Materials and Environmental, Management
Programs, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission; Bill Brancard, New Mexico
Energy, Minerals, and Natural Resources Department, Santa Fe, on behalf of the
Interstate Mining Compact Commission; former Representative Pat Williams,
Western Progress, Missoula, Montana; Debra Struhsacker, Northwest Mining
Association, Reno, Nevada; Joe Shirley, Jr., Navajo Nation, Window Rock,
Arizona; David Ulibarri, Cibola County, Grants, New Mexico; and Fletcher T.
Newton, Uranium One, Inc., Denver, Colorado, on behalf of the National Mining
Association.
[Page: D280]
CURRENT FEDERAL ESTATE TAX SYSTEM
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine alternatives to
the current federal estate tax system, after receiving testimony from Lily L.
Batchelder, New York University School of Law, New York, New York; Joseph M.
Dodge, Florida State University College of Law, Tallahassee; and David G.
Duff, University of Toronto Faculty of Law, Toronto, Canada.
U.S. AND VIETNAM BILATERAL RELATIONSHIP
Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific Affairs
concluded a hearing to examine the United States and Vietnam, focusing on the
bilateral relationship, after receiving testimony from Christopher Hill,
Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs;
Janet Nguyen, Board of Supervisors, Santa Ana, California; Do Hoang Diem,
Vietnam Reform Party, San Jose, California; Sophie Richardson, Human Rights
Watch, and Matthew P. Daley, US-ASEAN Business Council, both of Washington,
D.C.; and Ann Mills Griffiths, National League of Prisoners of War and Missing
in Action (POW/MIA) Families, Arlington, Virginia.
PROTECTING FEDERAL INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services, and
International Security concluded a hearing to examine agencies in peril,
focusing on protecting federal information technology and securing sensitive
information, including the status of agency performance of information
security control activities as reported by major agencies and their inspectors
general (IG), the effectiveness of information security at federal agencies,
and opportunities to improve federal information security, after receiving
testimony from Karen S. Evans, Administrator of E-Government and Information
Technology, Office of Management and Budget; Gregory C. Wilshusen, Director,
Information Security Issues, Government Accountability Office; Susan H. Swart,
Chief Information Officer, Bureau of Information Resource Management,
Department of State; Philip M. Heneghan, Chief Information Security Officer
and Chief Privacy Officer, Bureau for Management, United States Agency for
International Development; Darren B. Ash, Chief Information Officer, Deputy
Executive Director for Information Services, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory
Commission; Robert T. Howard, Assistant Secretary of Veterans Affairs for
Information and Technology; and Tim Bennett, Cyber Security Industry Alliance,
Arlington, Virginia.
OVER-THE-COUNTER AND PRESCRIPTION DRUG ABUSE
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs concluded a joint
hearing with the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control to examine
the 51 million Americans born between 1965 and 1976, also know as "Generation
X", focusing on the abuse of prescription and over-the-counter drugs,
including S. 2274, to amend the Controlled Substances Act to prevent the abuse
of dextromethorphan, after receiving testimony from Leonard J. Paulozzi,
Medical Epidemiologist, Division of Unintentional Injury Prevention, National
Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, and Nora D. Volkow, Director, National Institute on Drug Abuse,
National Institutes of Health, both of the Department of Health and Human
Services; Stephen J. Pasierb, Partnership for a Drug-Free America, New York,
New York; Derek Clark, Clinton Substance Abuse Council, Clinton, Iowa; and
Misty Fetko, New Albany, Ohio.
VOTER FRAUD AND DISENFRANCHISEMENT
Committee on Rules and Administration: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine issues relative to in-person voter fraud and voter disenfranchisement,
after receiving testimony from Senators Leahy and Bond; Robin Carnahan,
Missouri Secretary of State, Jefferson City; Robert A. Simms, Georgia Deputy
Secretary of State, Atlanta; David C. Iglesias, former United States Attorney
for the District of New Mexico, Albuquerque; Jeffrey Milyo, University of
Missouri-Columbia; and Justin Levitt, New York University School of Law
Brennan Center for Justice, New York, New York.
[Page: D281]
BUSINESS MEETING
Select Committee on Intelligence : Committee met in closed session to consider
pending intelligence matters.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
DOCTORS AND PRESCRIPTION DRUG INFORMATION AND REVIEWS
Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded a hearing to examine doctors
and prescription drug information and reviews, and pharmaceutical industry
marketing, after receiving testimony from Nora Dowd Eisenhower, Pennsylvania
Department of Aging, Harrisburg; Jerry Avorn, Harvard Medical School, and
Allan Coukell, Prescription Project, both of Boston, Massachusetts; Ambrose
Carrejo, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc., Livermore, California, on behalf
of the Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program; and Shahram Ahari, El Cerrito,
California.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/03/13
Daily Digest - Thursday, March 13, 2008; pages D289 - D324
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban
Development, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine proposed
budget estimates for fiscal year 2009 for the Department of Housing and Urban
Development, after receiving testimony from Alphonso Jackson, Secretary of
Housing and Urban Development.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Armed Services: Committee ordered favorably reported 2,614
nominations in the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee ordered
favorably reported the nominations of John J. Sullivan, of Maryland, to be
Deputy Secretary of Commerce, and Simon Charles Gros, of New Jersey, to be
Assistant Secretary of Transportation for Governmental Affairs, and promotion
lists in the United States Coast Guard and the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Corps.
Prior to this action, committee concluded a hearing to examine the nomination
of John J. Sullivan, of Maryland, to be Deputy Secretary of Commerce, after
the nominee testified and answered questions in his own behalf.
FOREST MANAGEMENT IN THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST REGION
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Public Lands and
Forests concluded a hearing to examine old-growth forest science, focusing on
policy and management in the Pacific Northwest region, after receiving
testimony from Linda Goodman, Regional Forester, Pacific Northwest Region,
United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service; James Caswell,
Director, Bureau of Land Management, Department of the Interior; Marvin D.
Brown, Oregon Department of Forestry, Salem; David A. Perry, and John
Tappeiner, both of Oregon State University Department of Forest Engineering,
Corvallis; Paul H. Beck, Herbert Lumber Company, Riddle, Oregon; and Randi
Spivak, American Lands Alliance, Washington, D.C.
U.S. ECONOMIC INTERESTS AND SECURITY
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine customs
reauthorization relative to the activity of the U.S. Customs and Border
Protection agency and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency,
both of the Department of Homeland Security, focusing on strengthening United
States economic interests and security, after receiving testimony from Samuel
H. Banks, Sandler and Travis Trade Advisory Services, Inc., Washington, D.C.;
Charlene N. Stocker, Procter and Gamble Distributing, LLC, Cincinnati, Ohio,
on behalf of the American Association of Exporters and Importers; Greg P.
Brown, Ford Global Technologies, Dearborn, Michigan; and Antoinette M. Tease,
Antoinette M. Tease, P.L.L.C., Billings, Montana.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
S. 2731, to authorize appropriations for fiscal years 2009 through 2013 to
provide assistance to foreign countries to combat HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and
malaria, with amendments; and
The nominations of William Raymond Steiger, of Wisconsin, to be Ambassador to
the Republic of Mozambique, Department of State, and a promotion list in the
Foreign Service.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee ordered
favorably reported the following:
S. 579, to amend the Public Health Service Act to authorize the Director of
the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to make grants for the
development and operation of research centers regarding environmental factors
that may be related to the etiology of breast cancer, with an amendment in the
nature of a substitute;
S. 1810, to amend the Public Health Service Act to increase the provision of
scientifically sound information and support services to patients receiving a
positive test diagnosis for Down syndrome or other prenatal and postnatal
diagnosed conditions, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 999, to amend the Public Health Service Act to improve stroke prevention,
diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
[Page: D299]
S. 1760, to amend the Public Health Service Act with respect to the Healthy
Start Initiative, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 1042, to amend the Public Health Service Act to make the provision of
technical services for medical imaging examinations and radiation therapy
treatments safer, more accurate, and less costly, with an amendment in the
nature of a substitute; and
The nominations of Jan Cellucci, of Massachusetts, William J. Hagenah, of
Illinois, Mark Y. Herring, of South Carolina, and Julia W. Bland, of
Louisiana, each to be a Member of the National Museum and Library Services
Board, Jamsheed K. Choksy, of Indiana, Gary D. Glenn, of Illinois, David
Hertz, of Indiana, Marvin Bailey Scott, of Indiana, Carol M. Swain, of
Tennessee, and Dawn Ho Delbanco, of New York, each to be a Member of the
National Council on the Humanities, Jonathan Baron, of Maryland, Sally Epstein
Shaywitz, of Connecticut, and Frank Philip Handy, of Florida, each to be a
Member of the Board of Directors of the National Board for Education Sciences,
Javaid Anwar, of Nevada, to be a Member of the Board of Trustees of the Harry
S Truman Scholarship Foundation, Neil Romano, of Maryland, to be an Assistant
Secretary of Labor, Joxel Garcia, of Connecticut, to be Medical Director in
the Regular Corps of the Public Health Service and to be an Assistant
Secretary of Health and Human Services, and Robert F. Cohen, Jr., of West
Virginia, and Michael F. Duffy, of the District of Columbia, each to be a
Member of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission.
Joint Meetings
MUSEUM OF THE HISTORY OF POLISH JEWS
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Commission concluded a
hearing to examine Poland's Museum of the History of Polish Jews, after
receiving testimony from Sigmund Rolat, Museum of the History of Polish Jews
North American Council, New York, New York; and Ewa Junczyk-Ziomecka,
Chancellery of the President of the Republic of Poland, and Ewa Wierzycka,
Museum of the History of Polish Jews, both of Warsaw, Poland.
2008/03/14
Daily Digest - Friday, March 14, 2008; pages D326 - D328
Committee Meetings
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/03/18
Daily Digest - Tuesday, March 18, 2008; pages D329 - D330
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/03/21
Daily Digest - Friday, March 21, 2008; pages D331 - D332
Committee Meetings
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/03/24
Daily Digest - Monday, March 24, 2008; pages D333 - D334
Committee Meetings
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/03/27
Daily Digest - Thursday, March 27, 2008; pages D335 - D336
Committee Meetings
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/03/31
Daily Digest - Monday, March 31, 2008; pages D338 - D346
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: On Friday, March 14,
2008, Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal
Workforce, and the District of Columbia concluded a hearing to examine ways to
reform the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) system, including H.R.
2080, to amend the District of Columbia Home Rule Act to conform the District
charter to revisions made by the Council of the District of Columbia relating
to public education, after receiving testimony from Cornelia M. Ashby,
Director, Education, Workforce, and Income Security Issues, Government
Accountability Office; and Michelle Rhee, Chancellor of the District of
Columbia Public Schools, Victor Reinoso, Deputy Mayor for Education, Deborah
A. Gist, State Superintendent of Education, Allen Y. Lew, Office of Public
Education Facilities Modernization, John W. Hill, Federal City Council, and
Jane Hannaway, Urban Institute Education Policy Center, all of Washington,
D.C.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/04/01
Daily Digest - Tuesday, April 1, 2008; pages D347 - D356
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: U.S. FOREST SERVICE
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and
Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for
fiscal year 2009 for the United States Forest Service, after receiving
testimony from Mark Rey, Under Secretary for Natural Resources and
Environment, and Abigail Kimbell, Chief, United States Forest Service, both of
the Department of Agriculture.
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Airland concluded a hearing to
examine the defense authorization request for fiscal year 2009 relative to the
Army's new doctrine (Field Manual 3-0, Operations), and the future years
defense program, after receiving testimony from Lieutenant General William B.
Caldwell, IV, USA, Commanding General, United States Army Combined Arms Center
and Fort Leavenworth.
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support
concluded a hearing to examine the defense authorization request for fiscal
year 2009 for the current readiness of the armed forces, and the future years
defense program, after receiving testimony from General Richard A. Cody, USA,
Vice Chief of Staff, United States Army, General Robert Magnus, USMC,
Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps, Admiral Patrick M. Walsh, USN, Vice
Chief of Naval Operations, and General Duncan J. McNabb, USAF, Vice Chief of
Staff, United States Air Force, all of the Department of Defense.
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Strategic Forces concluded a
hearing to examine the defense authorization request for fiscal year 2009 for
ballistic missile defense programs, and the future years defense program,
after receiving testimony from John J. Young, Jr., Under Secretary for
Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, Lieutenant General Henry A. Obering
III, USAF, Director, Missile Defense Agency, Lieutenant General Kevin T.
Campbell, USA, Commanding General, United States Army Space and Missile
Defense Command, and Charles E. McQueary, Director, Operational Test and
Evaluation, all of the Department of Defense; and Paul L. Francis, Director,
Acquisition and Sourcing Management, Government Accountability Office.
FOREST LANDSCAPE RESTORATION ACT
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine S. 2593, to establish a program at the Forest Service and the
Department of the Interior to carry out collaborative ecological restoration
treatments for priority forest landscapes on public land, after receiving
testimony from Gail Kimbell, Chief, Forest Service, Department of Agriculture;
Henri Bisson, Deputy Director, Bureau of Land Management, Department of the
Interior; Scott Simon, Nature Conservancy, Little Rock, Arkansas; Christopher
I. West, American Forest Resource Council, Portland, Oregon; Nathaniel
Lawrence, Natural Resources Defense Council, Olympia, Washington; and Howard
Gross, Forest Guild, Santa Fe, New Mexico.
ANTI-TERRORISM FINANCING
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine anti-terrorism
financing, focusing on progress made and the challenges ahead, after receiving
testimony from Stuart Levey, Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and
Financial Intelligence.
IRAQ
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee met in closed session to receive a
briefing on the situation in Iraq from Stephen S. Kaplan, Vice Chairman, and
Alan R. Pino, National Intelligence Officer for the Near East, both of the
National Intelligence Council, and certain other members of the intelligence
community.
[Page: D349]
OSHA VIOLATIONS
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Subcommittee on
Employment and Workplace Safety concluded a hearing to examine Occupational
Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) violations, focusing on strategies for
breaking dangerous patterns, after receiving testimony from Eric Frumin,
Change to Win, New York, New York; Doris Morrow, United Food and Commercial
Workers International Union (UFCW) Local 227, Robards, Kentucky; Carman J.
Bianco, Behavioral Science Technology, Inc., Ojai, California; and Gerard
Scannell, Washington, D.C.
ACCOUNTABILITY FOR SEXUAL VIOLENCE IN WAR
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law concluded
a hearing to examine rape as a weapon of war, focusing on accountability for
sexual violence in conflict, after receiving testimony from Karin Wachter,
International Rescue Committee, Kelly Dawn Askin, Open Society Justice
Initiative, and Lisa F. Jackson, all of New York, New York; and Denis Mukwege,
Panzi General Referral Hospital, Bukavu, South Kivu, Democratic Republic of
the Congo.
BUSINESS MEETING
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee met in closed session to consider
pending intelligence matters.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/04/02
Daily Digest - Wednesday, April 2, 2008; pages D358 - D366
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
SAFEGUARDING WORKERS' RIGHTS
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services,
Education, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine National Labor
Relations Board representation elections and initial collective bargaining
agreements, focusing on safeguarding workers' rights, after receiving
testimony from Peter C. Schaumber, Chairman, and Wilma B. Liebman, Member,
both of the National Labor Relations Board; Gordon Lafer, University of Oregon
Labor Education and Research Center, Eugene; and John N. Raudabaugh, Baker and
McKenzie LLP, Chicago, Illinois.
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2009
for the Department of Energy, after receiving testimony from Raymond L.
Orbach, Under Secretary for Science, Alexander Karsner, Assistant Secretary
for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, and David G. Frantz, Director,
Loan Guarantee Program Office, Office of the Chief Financial Officer, all of
the Department of Energy.
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities
concluded a hearing to examine the defense authorization request for fiscal
year 2009 for the Cooperative Threat Reduction Program and the Proliferation
Security Initiative at the Department of Defense, and nuclear nonproliferation
programs at the National Nuclear Security Administration, and the future years
defense program, after receiving testimony from William H. Tobey, Deputy
Administrator, Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation, National Nuclear Security
Administration, Department of Energy; and Joseph A. Benkert, Principal Deputy
Assistant Secretary of Defense for Global Security Affairs.
DOD CONTRACTING
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support
concluded a hearing to examine Department of Defense (DOD) contracting in Iraq
and Afghanistan, after receiving testimony from James I. Finley, Deputy Under
Secretary for Acquisition and Technology, Jack Bell, Deputy Under Secretary
for Logistics and Materiel Readiness, Office of the Under Secretary of Defense
for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, Lieutenant General N. Ross Thompson
III, USA, Military Deputy to the Assistant Secretary of the Army for
Acquisition, Logistics and Technology, and Jeffery P. Parsons, Executive
Director, Army Contracting Command (Provisional), United States Army Materiel
Command, all of the Department of Defense.
POLAR BEARS
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded an oversight
hearing to examine the listing decision for the polar bear under the
Endangered Species Act, focusing on the issues of climate change and
conservation of polar bears, after receiving testimony from Douglas B. Inkley,
National Wildlife Federation (NWF), Reston, Virginia; William P. Horn, Birch,
Horton, Bittner and Cherot, Washington, D.C., on behalf of sundry
organizations; and Kassie Siegel, Center for Biological Diversity, Joshua
Tree, California.
IRAQ
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine Iraq
after the troop surge, focusing on military prospects, after receiving
testimony from General Barry R. McCaffrey, USA (Ret.), BR McCaffrey Associates
LLC, Arlington, Virginia; and Lieutenant General William E. Odom, USA (Ret.),
Center for Strategic and International Studies, Major General Robert H.
Scales, Jr., USA (Ret.), Colgen, Inc., and Michele Flournoy, Center for New
American Security, all of Washington, D.C.
IRAQ
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine Iraq
after the troop surge, focusing on political prospects, after receiving
testimony from Yahia Khairi Said, Revenue Watch Institute, and Nir Rosen, New
York University Center on Law and Security, both of New York, New York; and
Stephen Biddle, Council on Foreign Relations, Washington, D.C.
ASSESSING THE THREAT OF NUCLEAR TERRORISM
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine nuclear terrorism, focusing on assessing the threat to the
United States, after receiving testimony from Charles E. Allen, Under
Secretary of Homeland Security for Intelligence and Analysis; Rolf
Mowatt-Larssen, Director, Office of Intelligence and Counterintelligence,
Department of Energy; Matthew Bunn, Harvard University John F. Kennedy School
of Government Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Cambridge,
Massachusetts; and Gary Anthony Ackerman, University of Maryland National
Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START),
College Park.
[Page: D360]
DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY OVERSIGHT
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to
examine the Department of Homeland Security, focusing on the Department's
progress in securing the United States and protecting the American people,
after receiving testimony from Michael Chertoff, Secretary of Homeland
Security.
Joint Meetings
CURRENT ECONOMIC OUTLOOK
Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the current
economic outlook, after receiving testimony from Ben S. Bernanke, Chairman,
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.
BUSINESS MEETING
Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies--2008: Committee
announced the following membership: Senator Feinstein (Chairman), Senator
Reid, Senator Bennett, Representative Pelosi, Representative Hoyer, and
Representative Boehner.
[Page: D364]
Also, Committee approved its budget.
2008/04/03
Daily Digest - Thursday, April 3, 2008; pages D367 - D374
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: NASA
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and
Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for
fiscal year 2009 for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA),
after receiving testimony from Michael D. Griffin, Administrator, National
Aeronautics and Space Administration.
SURFACE TRANSPORTATION TRUST FUNDS
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban
Development, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine the status of
the surface transportation trust funds and their impact on federal spending,
after receiving testimony from James S. Simpson, Administrator, Federal
Transit Administration, James D. Ray, Acting Administrator, Federal Highway
Administration, Joseph H. Boardman, Federal Railroad Administrator, and David
Tornquist, Assistant Inspector General, Rail and Maritime Program Audits and
Economic Analysis, all of the Department of Transportation; John McCaskie,
Swank Associated Companies, New Kensington, Pennsylvania, on behalf of the
Transportation Construction Coalition; William M. Millar, American Public
Transportation Association, and Donna McLean and Alex Kummant, both of the
National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak), all of Washington, D.C.; and
Joel Parker, Transportation Communications Union, Rockville, Maryland.
[Page: D369]
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of General David D. McKiernan, to be General, and Commander,
International Security Assistance Force, Afghanistan, Lieutenant General
Raymond T. Odierno, to be General, and Vice Chief of Staff, and Lieutenant
General Walter L. Sharp, to be General, and Commander, United Nations
Command/Combined Forces Command/United States Forces Korea, all of the United
States Army, after the nominees testified and answered questions in their own
behalf.
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Airland concluded a hearing to
examine the defense authorization request for fiscal year 2009 on Army
modernization, and the future years defense program, after receiving testimony
from Lieutenant General Stephen M. Speakes, USA, Deputy Chief of Staff, G-8,
United States Army, and Lieutenant General N. Ross Thompson III, USA, Military
Deputy to the Acting Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition,
Logistics and Technology, both of the Department of Defense.
U.S. CREDIT MARKETS
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine turmoil in United States credit markets, focusing on the
recent actions of federal financial regulators, after receiving testimony from
Ben S. Bernanke, Chairman, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System;
former Representative Christopher Cox, Chairman, United States Securities and
Exchange Commission; Robert K. Steel, Under Secretary of the Treasury for
Domestic Finance; Timothy F. Geithner, President and Chief Executive Officer,
Federal Reserve Bank of New York; and Jamie Dimon, JP Morgan Chase, and Alan
Schwartz, Bear Stearns Companies, Inc., both of New York, New York.
INTERNATIONAL FISHERIES
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Oceans,
Atmosphere, Fisheries, and Coast Guard concluded a hearing to examine
international fisheries, focusing on management and enforcement, after
receiving testimony from John D. Negroponte, Deputy Secretary, and David A.
Balton, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Oceans and Fisheries, both of the
Department of State; Rear Admiral A.E. Brooks, Commander, Coast Guard District
Seventeen, Department of Homeland Security; James W. Balsiger, National Marine
Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department
of Commerce; Jim Cook, Pacific Ocean Producers, Honolulu, Hawaii; David
Benton, Marine Conservation Alliance, Juneau, Alaska; and Lisa Speer, Natural
Resources Defense Council, New York, New York.
PRICE OF OIL
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the current price of crude oil, focusing on the influence of
non-commercial institutional investors, after receiving testimony from Jeffrey
Harris, Chief Economist, Commodity Futures Trading Commission; Sarah A.
Emerson, Energy Security Analysis, Inc., Wakefield, Massachusetts; Kevin Book,
FBR Capital Markets Corporation, Arlington, Virginia; James Burkhard,
Cambridge Energy Research Associates, Cambridge, Massachusetts; Sean Cota,
Cota and Cota, Inc., Bellows Falls, Vermont, on behalf of the Petroleum
Marketers Association of America; and John Eichberger, National Association of
Convenience Stores, Alexandria, Virginia.
REDUCING GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at United States
colleges and universities, after receiving testimony from Richard C. Levin,
Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut; Jacqueline Johnson, University of
Minnesota, Morris; and Robert J. Birgeneau, University of California,
Berkeley.
ESTATE TAX REFORM
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine creative
thinking and new perspectives relative to estate tax reform, focusing on
reviewing ideas to simplify planning, after receiving testimony from Dennis I.
Belcher, McGuire Woods, LLP, Richmond, Virginia; Shirley L. Kovar, Branton and
Wilson, APC, San Diego, California; Roby B. Sawyers, North Carolina State
University College of Management, Raleigh, on behalf of the American Institute
of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA); and Diana Aviv, Independent Sector,
Washington, D.C.
[Page: D370]
IRAQ: THE FUTURE
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
possible conditions and developments in Iraq in the year 2012, after receiving
testimony from Carole A. O'Leary, American University Center for Global Peace,
and Carlos Pascual, Brookings Institution, both of Washington, D.C.; Dawn
Brancati, Harvard University Institute for Quantitative Social Science,
Cambridge, Massachusetts; F. Gregory Gause III, University of Vermont,
Burlington; and Terrence K. Kelly, RAND Corporation, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
FEMA TODAY
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), focusing on
whether the agency is better prepared for a catastrophe in 2008 than it was in
2005, after receiving testimony from Richard L. Skinner, Inspector General,
and R. David Paulison, Administrator, Federal Emergency Management Agency,
both of the Department of Homeland Security.
SENIOR EXECUTIVE DIVERSITY ASSURANCE ACT
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of
Columbia concluded a joint hearing with the House Committee on Oversight and
Government Reform Subcommittee on the Federal Workforce, Postal Service, and
the District of Columbia to examine managing diversity of senior leadership in
the Federal workforce and Postal Service, including S. 2148 and H.R. 3774,
bills to provide for greater diversity within, and to improve policy direction
and oversight of, the Senior Executive Service, after receiving testimony from
Nancy Kichak, Associate Director and Chief Actuary, Strategic Human Resources
Policy Division, Office of Personnel Management; Susan LaChance, Vice
President of Employee Development and Diversity, Steven W. Williams, Secretary
and Chief Administrative Officer, Postal Regulatory Commission, Ronald Stith,
Assistant Inspector General for Mission Support, Office of Inspector General,
and Nicole A. Johnson, Assistant Chief Inspector Investigations and Security
Support, United States Postal Inspection Service, all of the United States
Postal Service; George H. Stalcup, Director of Strategic Issues, and Katherine
Siggerud, Director of Physical Infrastructure, both of the Government
Accountability Office; Bray Barnes, Acting Chief Human Capital Officer, and
Carmen Walker, Deputy Officer, Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties,
both of the Department of Homeland Security; William Bransford, Senior
Executives Association, Rhonda Trent, Federally Employed Women, Carson Eoyang,
Asian American Government Executives Network, Jose Osegueda, National
Association of Hispanic Federal Executives, and Darlene Young, Blacks in
Government, all of Washington, D.C.; and William Brown, African American
Federal Executives Association, Upper Marlboro, Maryland.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
S. 2136, to address the treatment of primary mortgages in bankruptcy, with an
amendment;
S. 2041, to amend the False Claims Act, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
S. Res. 468, designating April 2008 as "National 9-1-1 Education Month"; and
The nominations of Catharina Haynes, of Texas, to be United States Circuit
Judge for the Fifth Circuit, and Rebecca A. Gregory, to be United States
Attorney for the Eastern District of Texas.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of Mark S. Davis, to be United States District Judge for the
Eastern District of Virginia, David J. Novak, to be United States District
Judge for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Elisebeth C. Cook, of
Virginia, to be an Assistant Attorney General, who were all introduced by
Senators Warner and Webb, and David Gregory Kays, to be United States District
Judge for the Western District of Missouri, and Stephen N. Limbaugh, Jr., to
be United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Missouri, who were
both introduced by Senators Bond and McCaskill, after the nominees testified
and answered questions in their own behalf.
VETERANS LEGISLATIVE PRESENTATIONS
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded a joint hearing with the
House Committee on Veterans' Affairs to examine legislative presentations from
sundry veteran affairs organizations, after receiving testimony from John A.
Scocos, Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs, Madison, on behalf of the
National Association of State Directors of Veterans Affairs; John P. Brown
III, AMVETS, Youngstown, Ohio; Henry J. Cook III, Military Order of the Purple
Heart, Annandale, Virginia; Commander Rene A. Campos, USN (Ret.), Military
Officers Association of America, Washington, D.C.; Rose Elizabeth Lee, Gold
Star Wives of America, Inc., Birmingham, Alabama; Master Chief Joseph L.
Barnes, USN (Ret.), Fairfax, Virginia; and Gunnery Sergeant Patrick Corbett,
USMC (Ret.), Retired Enlisted Association, Bellefonte, Pennsylvania.
[Page: D371]
HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE
Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded a hearing to examine searching
for health insurance coverage, focusing on health security for people between
the ages of 55 and 64, after receiving testimony from Lee Anne Fitzpatrick,
Lake Oswego, Oregon, and Mike Roach, Portland, Oregon, both of Paloma
Clothing; Ben Linder, Nutshell Enterprises, Redmond, Oregon; Paul Fronstin,
Employee Benefit Research Institute, Washington, D.C.; Jeanne M. Lambrew,
University of Texas at Austin Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs; and
John Sheils, Lewin Group, Falls Church, Virginia.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/04/04
Daily Digest - Friday, April 4, 2008; pages D375 - D382
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
Joint Meetings
EMPLOYMENT
Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
employment situation for March 2008, after receiving testimony from Keith
Hall, Commissioner, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Department of Labor.
2008/04/07
Daily Digest - Monday, April 7, 2008; pages D383 - D386
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/04/08
Daily Digest - Tuesday, April 8, 2008; pages D388 - D396
[This unlabeled selection of Senate hearings is found below the House Chamber
Action for this day.]
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development,
Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to
examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2009 for the Department of
Agriculture, after receiving testimony from Ed Schafer, Secretary, Chuck
Conner, Deputy Secretary, Joseph Glauber, Chief Economist, and W. Scott
Steele, Budget Officer, all of the Department of Agriculture.
IRAQ
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
situation in Iraq and progress made by the government of Iraq in meeting
benchmarks and achieving reconciliation, after receiving testimony from Ryan
C. Crocker, United States Ambassador to Iraq, Department of State; and General
David H. Petraeus, USA, Commanding General, Multi-National Force-Iraq,
Department of Defense.
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on SeaPower concluded a hearing to
examine the defense authorization request for fiscal year 2009 on Navy force
structure requirements and programs to meet those requirements, and the future
years defense program, after receiving testimony from Allison Stiller, Deputy
Assistant Secretary for Ship Programs, and Vice Admiral Barry McCullough,
Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Integration of Capabilities and
Resources, both of the Department of the Navy, and Lieutenant General James F.
Amos, Deputy Commandant of the Marine Corps for Combat Development and
Integration, all of the Department of Defense.
FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine legislation to reauthorize the Federal Trade Commission,
after receiving testimony from William Kovacic, Chairman, and Pamela Jones
Harbour, Jon Leibowitz, and J. Thomas Rosch, all Commissioners, all of the
Federal Trade Commission.
DIGITAL TELEVISION TRANSITION
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded an
oversight hearing to examine the transition to digital television, focusing on
consumers, broadcasters, and converter boxes, after receiving testimony from
Kevin J. Martin, Chairman, Federal Communications Commission; and Meredith A.
Baker, Acting Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and
Information, National Telecommunications and Information Administration.
WATER BILLS
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Water and Power
concluded a hearing to examine S. 2259 and H.R. 813, bills to amend the
Reclamation Wastewater and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act to authorize
the Secretary of the Interior to participate in the Prado Basin Natural
Treatment System Project, to authorize the Secretary to participate in the
Lower Chino Dairy Area desalination demonstration and reclamation project,
H.R. 31, to amend the Reclamation Wastewater and Groundwater Study and
Facilities Act to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to participate in
the Elsinore Valley Municipal Water District Wildomar Service Area Recycled
Water Distribution Facilities and Alberhill Wastewater Treatment and
Reclamation Facility Projects, H.R. 716, to amend the Reclamation Wastewater
and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act to authorize the Secretary of the
Interior to participate in the Santa Rosa Urban Water Reuse Plan, H.R. 786, to
amend the Reclamation Wastewater and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act to
authorize the Secretary of the Interior to participate in the Los Angeles
County Water Supply Augmentation Demonstration Project, H.R. 1140, to
authorize the Secretary, in cooperation with the City of San Juan Capistrano,
California, to participate in the design, planning, and construction of an
advanced water treatment plant facility and recycled water system, H.R. 1503,
to amend the Reclamation Wastewater and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act
to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to participate in the Avra Black
Wash Reclamation and Riparian Restoration Project, H.R. 1725, to amend the
Reclamation Wastewater and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act to authorize
the Secretary of the Interior to participate in the Rancho California Water
District Southern Riverside County Recycled Non-Potable Distribution
Facilities and Demineralization Desalination Recycled Water Treatment and
Reclamation Facility Project, H.R. 1737, to amend the Reclamation Wastewater
and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act to authorize the Secretary of the
Interior to participate in the design, planning, and construction of permanent
facilities for the GREAT project to reclaim, reuse, and treat impaired waters
in the area of Oxnard, California, and H.R. 2614, to amend the Reclamation
Wastewater and Groundwater Study and Facilities Act to authorize the Secretary
of the Interior to participate in certain water projects in California, after
receiving testimony from Kris Polly, Deputy Commissioner, Bureau of
Reclamation, Department of the Interior.
[Page: D392]
IRAN COUNTER-PROLIFERATION ACT
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine S. 970, to
impose sanctions on Iran and on other countries for assisting Iran in
developing a nuclear program, after receiving testimony from Philip H. Gordon,
Brookings Institution, Danielle Pletka, American Enterprise Institute for
Public Policy Research, and William A. Reinsch, National Foreign Trade Council
and USA*Engage, all of Washington, D.C.; and Orde F. Kittrie, Arizona State
University, Tempe.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of Barbara McConnell Barrett, of Arizona, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of Finland, Yousif Boutrous Ghafari, of Michigan, to be Ambassador to
the Republic of Slovenia, Frank Charles Urbancic, Jr., of Indiana, to be
Ambassador to the Republic of Cyprus, Nancy E. McEldowney, of Florida, to be
Ambassador to the Republic of Bulgaria, and Kurt Douglas Volker, of
Pennsylvania, to be United States Permanent Representative on the Council of
the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, with the rank and status of
Ambassador, after the nominees testified and answered questions in their own
behalf.
IRAQ
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine Iraq
after the troop surge, after receiving testimony from Ryan C. Crocker, United
States Ambassador to Iraq, Department of State; and General David H. Petraeus,
USA, Commander, Multi-National Force-Iraq, Department of Defense.
AMERICA'S SYSTEM OF CAPITAL PUNISHMENT
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on the Constitution concluded a
hearing to examine the adequacy of representation in capital cases, after
receiving testimony from Carolyn Engel Temin, Senior Judge, Court of Common
Pleas of the First Judicial District of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia; Michael S.
Greco, Kirkpatrick and Lockhart, Preston, Gates, Ellis, LLP, Boston,
Massachusetts, on behalf of the American Bar Association; Bryan A. Stevenson,
New York University School of Law, Montgomery, Alabama; and Donald B.
Verrilli, Jr., Jenner and Block, LLP, Washington, D.C.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the intelligence
community.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/04/09
Daily Digest - Wednesday, April 9, 2008; pages D398 - D410
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2009
for the Department of Energy, after receiving testimony from James A. Rispoli,
Assistant Secretary for Environmental Management, and Edward F. Sproat, III,
Director, Office of Civilian Radioactive Waste Management, both of the
Department of Energy.
CYBER WARFARE PROGRAMS
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense concluded a closed
hearing to examine cyber warfare programs, after receiving testimony from
General Kevin Chilton, Commander, Strategic Command, Department of Defense;
and Chris Inglis, Deputy Director, National Security Agency.
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and
Related Programs concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for
fiscal year 2009 for the Department of State and foreign operations, after
receiving testimony from Condoleezza Rice, Secretary of State.
IRAQ
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
situation in Iraq, focusing on progress made by the government of Iraq in
meeting benchmarks and achieving reconciliation, after receiving testimony
from Andrew J. Bacevich, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts; and General
John M. Keane, USA (Ret.), Keane Advisors, LLC, and Robert Malley,
International Crisis Group, both of Washington, D.C.
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Airland concluded a hearing to
examine the defense authorization request for fiscal year 2009 for Air Force
and Navy aviation programs, and the future years defense program, after
receiving testimony from William M. Balderson, Deputy Assistant Secretary for
Air Programs, and Rear Admiral Allen G. Myers, USN, Director, Air Warfare,
both of the Department of the Navy, Lieutenant General Daniel J. Darnell,
USAF, Deputy Chief of Staff for Air, Space and Information Operations, Plans,
and Requirements, and Lieutenant General Donald J. Hoffman, USAF, Military
Deputy, Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition,
both of the Department of the Air Force, and Lieutenant General George J.
Trautman, III, USMC, Deputy Commandant for Aviation, United States Marine
Corps, all of the Department of Defense.
[Page: D401]
COAL GASIFICATION TECHNOLOGIES
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Science,
Technology, and Innovation concluded a hearing to examine coal gasification
technologies, focusing on the need for large scale projects, after receiving
testimony from John Marburger, III, Director, Office of Science and Technology
Policy, Executive Office of the President; Joseph P. Strakey, Chief Technology
Officer, National Energy Technology Laboratory, Department of Energy; James M.
Childress, Gasification Technologies Council, Arlington, Virginia; and Michael
J. Mudd, FutureGen Alliance, David G. Hawkins, Natural Resources Defense
Council Climate Center, and John Novak, Electric Power Research Institute, all
of Washington, D.C.
HISTORICAL LAND BILLS
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on National Parks
concluded a hearing to examine S. 1633, to authorize the Secretary of the
Interior to conduct a special resource study to determine the suitability and
feasibility of including the battlefield and related sites of the Battle of
Shepherdstown in Shepherdstown, West Virginia, as part of Harpers Ferry
National Historical Park or Antietam National Battlefield, S. 1993 and H.R.
2197, bills to modify the boundary of the Hopewell Culture National Historical
Park in the State of Ohio, S. 2207, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to
study the suitability and feasibility of designating Green McAdoo School in
Clinton, Tennessee, as a unit of the National Park System, S. 2254, to
establish the Mississippi Hills National Heritage Area in the State of
Mississippi, S. 2262, to authorize the Preserve America Program and Save
America's Treasures Program, S. 2329 and H.R. 2627, bills to establish the
Thomas Edison National Historical Park in the State of New Jersey as the
successor to the Edison National Historic Site, S. 2502 and H.R. 3332, bills
to provide for the establishment of a memorial within Kalaupapa National
Historical Park located on the island of Molokai, in the State of Hawaii, to
honor and perpetuate the memory of those individuals who were forcibly
relocated to the Kalaupapa Peninsula from 1866 to 1969, S. 2512, to establish
the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area in the State of Mississippi, and
H.R. 3998, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct special
resources studies of certain lands and structures to determine the appropriate
means for preservation, use, and management of the resources associated with
such lands and structures, after receiving testimony from Senator Alexander;
P. Lynn Scarlett, Deputy Secretary, and Katherine H. Stevenson, Acting
Assistant Director, Business Services, National Park Service, both of the
Department of the Interior; James T. Surkamp, Jefferson County Commission,
Charles Town, West Virginia; and Richard Moe, National Trust for Historic
Preservation, Washington, D.C.
CLEAN WATER RESTORATION ACT
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine S. 1870, to amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to clarify
the jurisdiction of the United States over waters of the United States, after
receiving testimony from Alexander B. Grannis, New York State Department of
Environmental Conservation, Albany; Joan Card, Arizona Department of
Environmental Quality, Phoenix; David Brand, Madison County, London, Ohio, on
behalf of the National Association of Counties (NACo) and the National
Association of County Engineers (NACE); Carol M. Browner, Albright Group, LLC,
Washington, D.C.; and Randall Smith, Glen, Montana, on behalf of the National
Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA) and the Montana Stock Growers Associations
(MSGA).
CHIP DIRECTIVE
Committee on Finance: Subcommittee on Healthcare concluded a hearing to
examine covering uninsured children, focusing on the provisions and
regulations in the current Children's Healthcare Insurance Program (CHIP)
directive, after receiving testimony from Dennis G. Smith, Director, Center
for Medicaid and State Operations, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services,
Department of Health and Human Services; Peter Orszag, Director, Congressional
Budget Office; Chris L. Peterson, Specialist, Health Care Financing, Domestic
Social Policy Division, Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress;
Alan Weil, National Academy for State Health Policy (NASHP), Nina Owcharenko,
Heritage Foundation, and Cindy Mann, Georgetown University Center for Children
and Families Health and Policy Institute, all of Washington, D.C.; and Paula
Novak, Lebanon, Ohio.
[Page: D402]
U.S. CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS OF VIOLENT CRIMES OVERSEAS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on International Operations and
Organizations, Democracy and Human Rights concluded a hearing to examine
closing legal loopholes, focusing on prosecuting sexual assaults and other
violent crimes committed overseas by American civilians in a combat
environment, after receiving testimony from Sigal P. Mandelker, Deputy
Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division, Department of Justice; Gregory
B. Starr, Acting Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Diplomatic Security, and J.
Bradford Wiegmann, Assistant Legal Adviser for Management, both of the
Department of State; and Robert E. Reed, Associate Deputy General Counsel for
Military Justice and Personnel Policy, Department of Defense; Eugene R.
Fidell, Feldesman, Tucker, Leifer, Fidell, LLP, Washington, D.C.; and Mary
Beth Kineston, Olmsted Falls, Ohio, and Dawn Leamon, Lena, Illinois, both of
KBR, Inc.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of Patricia M. Haslach, of Oregon, for the rank of Ambassador
during her tenure of service as United States Senior Coordinator for the
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum, Scot A. Marciel, of
California, for the rank of Ambassador during his tenure of service as Deputy
Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN) Affairs, D. Kathleen Stephens, of Montana, to be Ambassador to
the Republic of Korea, who was introduced by Senator Kennedy, and William E.
Todd, to be Ambassador to the State of Brunei Darussalam, all of the
Department of State, after the nominees testified and answered questions in
their own behalf.
HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS AT THE VA
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to
examine efforts to make the Department of Veterans Affairs the workplace of
choice for health care providers, after receiving testimony from Marisa
Palkuti, Director, Health Care Retention and Recruitment Office, Veterans
Health Administration, Shelia M. Cullen, Director, San Francisco Veterans
Affairs Medical Center, San Francisco, California, Steven P. Kleinglass,
Director, Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota, and
Jennifer L. Strauss, Health Scientist, Center for Health Services Research in
Primary Care, Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina,
on behalf of the Friends of VA Medical Care and Health Research, all of the
Department of Veterans Affairs; Marjorie Kanof, Managing Director, Health
Care, Government Accountability Office; John A. McDonald, University of Nevada
School of Medicine, Reno, on behalf of the Association of American Medical
Colleges; Valerie O'Meara, Veterans Affairs Puget Sound Health Care System,
Seattle, Washington, on behalf of the American Federation of Government
Employees (AFL-CIO); and Randy Phelps, American Psychological Association,
Washington, D.C.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/04/10
Daily Digest - Thursday, April 10, 2008; pages D412 - D424
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
FEDERAL HOUSING ADMINISTRATION
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban
Development, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine the Federal
Housing Administration's role in addressing the housing crisis, after
receiving testimony from Brian D. Montgomery, Assistant Secretary for
Housing-Federal Housing Commissioner, Department of Housing and Urban
Development; and Kenneth D. Wade, NeighborWorks America, and David G. Kittle,
Mortgage Bankers Association, both of Washington, D.C.
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and
Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for
fiscal year 2009 for the Department of Justice, after receiving testimony from
Michael B. Mukasey, United States Attorney General, Department of Justice.
APPROPRIATIONS
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2009
for the Department of the Army, Army Corps of Engineers, Bureau of
Reclamation, and the Department of the Interior, after receiving testimony
from John Paul Woodley, Jr., Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works,
and Lieutenant General Robert Van Antwerp, Chief of Engineers, United States
Army Corps of Engineers, both of the Department of Defense; and Kameran Onley,
Assistant Deputy Secretary, and Robert W. Johnson, Commissioner, United States
Bureau of Reclamation, both of the Department of the Interior.
[Page: D414]
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans
Affairs, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget
estimates for fiscal year 2009 for the Department of Veterans Affairs, after
receiving testimony from James B. Peake, Secretary, Michael J. Kussman, Under
Secretary for Health, Veterans Health Administration, Patrick W. Dunne, Acting
Under Secretary for Benefits, Veterans Benefits Administration, William F.
Tuerk, Under Secretary for Memorial Affairs, National Cemetery Administration,
Paul J. Hutter, General Counsel, Robert J. Henke, Assistant Secretary for
Management, and Robert T. Howard, Assistant Secretary for Information and
Technology, all of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
IRAQ
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
situation in Iraq, focusing on the progress made by the government of Iraq in
meeting benchmarks and achieving reconciliation, the future United States
military presence in Iraq, and the situation in Afghanistan, after receiving
testimony from Robert M. Gates, Secretary, and Admiral Michael G. Mullen, USA,
Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, both of the Department of Defense.
U.S. CREDIT MARKETS
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine credit markets in the United States, focusing on proposals
to mitigate foreclosures and restore liquidity to the mortgage markets, after
receiving testimony from Lawrence H. Summers, Harvard University, Cambridge,
Massachusetts; Dean Baker, Center for Economic and Policy Research, Ellen
Harnik, Center for Responsible Lending, and Douglas W. Elmendorf, Brookings
Institution, all of Washington, D.C.; and Scott Stern, Lenders One, Saint
Louis, Missouri.
AVIATION SAFETY
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Aviation
Operations, Safety, and Security concluded an oversight hearing to examine
aviation safety, focusing on recent reports and investigations, after
receiving testimony from Nicholas A. Sabatini, Associate Administrator for
Safety, and Hank Krakowski, Chief Operating Officer, both of the Federal
Aviation Administration; Calvin L. Scovel III, Inspector General, Department
of Transportation; Steven R. Chealander, Member, National Transportation
Safety Board (NTSB); and Tom Brantley, Professional Aviation Safety
Specialists, AFL-CIO, and Basil Barimo, Air Transport Association of America,
Inc., both of Washington, D.C.
HAWAII'S AIR SERVICE MARKET
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine challenges facing Hawaii's air service market, after
receiving testimony from Representative Hirono; Michael W. Reynolds, Acting
Assistant Secretary of Transportation for Aviation and International Affairs;
Vincent K. Snowbarger, Deputy Director for Operations, Pension Benefit
Guaranty Corporation; James C. May, Air Transport Association of America,
Inc., Washington, D.C.; and Barry Fukunaga, Office of the Governor of Hawaii,
David Banmiller, Aloha Airlines, and Charles Willis IV, Hawaii Island Air,
Inc., all of Honolulu.
NOMINATION
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the nomination of David R. Hill, of Missouri, to be an Assistant
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, after the nominee
testified and answered questions in his own behalf.
IDENTITY THEFT
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine identity theft
in the administration of the tax system, focusing on e-filing and protecting
individuals against fraud, after receiving testimony from Douglas Shulman,
Commissioner, and Nina E. Olson, National Taxpayer Advocate, both of the
Internal Revenue Service (IRS), and J. Russell George, Inspector General for
Tax Administration, all of the Department of the Treasury; and Rebecca
Spencer, Benedict's Laser Tax Service, Billings, Montana.
IRAQ
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
negotiating a long-term relationship with Iraq, after receiving testimony from
David M. Satterfield, Senior Advisor to the Secretary of State and Coordinator
for Iraq, and Joan Donoghue, Principal Deputy Legal Adviser, both of the
Department of State; Mary Beth Long, Assistant Secretary of Defense for
International Security Affairs; Michael J. Matheson, George Washington
University Law School, and Ruth Wedgwood, Johns Hopkins University Paul H.
Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, both of Washington, D.C.; and
Michael J. Glennon, Tufts University Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy,
Medford, Massachusetts.
[Page: D415]
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee ordered
favorably reported the following:
H.R. 3247, to improve the provision of disaster assistance for Hurricanes
Katrina and Rita, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
H.R. 3179, to amend title 40, United States Code, to authorize the use of
Federal supply schedules for the acquisition of law enforcement, security, and
certain other related items by State and local governments;
S. 2606, to reauthorize the United States Fire Administration, with an
amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 789, to prevent abuse of Government credit cards, with an amendment in the
nature of a substitute;
S. 2420, to encourage the donation of excess food to nonprofit organizations
that provide assistance to food-insecure people in the United States in
contracts entered into by executive agencies for the provision, service, or
sale of food, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 2291, to enhance citizen access to Government information and services by
establishing plain language as the standard style of Government documents
issued to the public;
H.R. 5551, to amend title 11, District of Columbia Official Code, to implement
the increase provided under the District of Columbia Appropriations Act, 2008,
in the amount of funds made available for the compensation of attorneys
representing indigent defendants in the District of Columbia courts;
H. Con. Res. 307, expressing the sense of Congress that Members' Congressional
papers should be properly maintained and encouraging Members to take all
necessary measures to manage and preserve these papers;
S. Res. 497, expressing the sense of the Senate that public servants should be
commended for their dedication and continued service to the Nation during
Public Service Recognition Week, May 5 through 11, 2008;
S. 2534, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located
at 2650 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Street, Indianapolis, Indiana, as the
"Julia M. Carson Post Office Building";
H.R. 3720, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 424 Clay Avenue in Waco, Texas, as the "Army PFC Juan Alonso
Covarrubias Post Office Building";
H.R. 3988, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 3701 Altamesa Boulevard in Fort Worth, Texas, as the "Master
Sergeant Kenneth N. Mack Post Office Building";
H.R. 4211, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 725 Roanoke Avenue in Roanoke Rapids, North Carolina, as the "Judge
Richard B. Allsbrook Post Office";
H.R. 4240 and S. 2673, bills to designate the facility of the United States
Postal Service located at 10799 West Alameda Avenue in Lakewood, Colorado, as
the "Felix Sparks Post Office Building";
H.R. 5400 and S. 2626, bills to designate the facility of the United States
Postal Service located at 160 East Washington Street in Chagrin Falls, Ohio,
as the "Sgt. Michael M. Kashkoush Post Office Building";
H.R. 3468, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 1704 Weeksville Road in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, as the "Dr.
Clifford Bell Jones, Sr. Post Office";
H.R. 3532, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 5815 McLeod Street in Lula, Georgia, as the "Private Johnathon
Millican Lula Post Office";
H.R. 4203, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 3035 Stone Mountain Street in Lithonia, Georgia, as the "Specialist
Jamaal RaShard Addison Post Office Building";
H.R. 5135 and S. 2675, bills to designate the facility of the United States
Postal Service located at 201 West Greenway Street in Derby, Kansas, as the
"Sergeant Jamie O. Maugans Post Office Building";
H.R. 3803, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 3100 Cashwell Drive in Goldsboro, North Carolina, as the "John
Henry Wooten, Sr. Post Office Building";
H.R. 3936, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 116 Helen Highway in Cleveland, Georgia, as the "Sgt. Jason Harkins
Post Office Building";
H.R. 4454, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 3050 Hunsinger Lane in Louisville, Kentucky, as the "Iraq and
Afghanistan Fallen Military Heroes of Louisville Memorial Post Office
Building", in honor of the servicemen and women from Louisville, Kentucky, who
died in service during Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom;
H.R. 5220, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 3800 SW. 185th Avenue in Beaverton, Oregon, as the "Major Arthur
Chin Post Office Building";
H.R. 3196, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 20 Sussex Street in Port Jervis, New York, as the "E. Arthur Gray
Post Office Building";
[Page: D416]
H.R. 4166, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 701 East Copeland Drive in Lebanon, Missouri, as the "Steve W.
Allee Carrier Annex";
S. 2725, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located
at 6892 Main Street in Gloucester, Virginia, as the "Congresswoman Jo Ann S.
Davis Post Office"; and
The nomination of Harvey E. Johnson, Jr., of Virginia, to be Deputy
Administrator, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Department of Homeland
Security.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the nominations of Andrew Saul, of New York, Alejandro
Modesto Sanchez, of Florida, who was introduced by Senators Nelson (FL) and
Martinez, and Gordon James Whiting, of New York, all to be Members of the
Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board, after the nominees testified and
answered questions in their own behalf.
CLIMATE CHANGE
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine climate change, focusing on it as a challenge for public
health, after receiving testimony from Jonathan Patz, University of
Wisconsin--Madison Center for Sustainability and the Global Environment
(SAGE); Kristie L. Ebi, ESS LLC, Alexandria, Virginia; John M. Balbus,
Environmental Defense Fund, Washington, D.C.; and John W. McDonald, Institute
for Multi-Track Diplomacy, Arlington, Virginia.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence : Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the intelligence
community.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
Joint Meetings
DISPLACEMENT OF IRAQI CITIZENS
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Commission concluded a
hearing to examine the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe
(OSCE) countries and refugees from Iraq, focusing on the impact of the
displacement of Iraqi citizens on Jordan, Syria, Egypt, Turkey, and other
surrounding countries in the region, after receiving testimony from James
Foley, Senior Coordinator for Iraqi Refugees, Department of State; Lori
Scialabba, Senior Advisor to the Secretary of Homeland Security for Iraqi
Refugees; Michael Gabaudan, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees,
Washington, D.C.; Noel Saleh, Arab Community Center for Economic and Social
Services (ACCESS), Detroit, Michigan; and Mayor Anders Lago, Sodertalje,
Sweden.
2008/04/14
Daily Digest - Monday, April 14, 2008; pages D426 - D432
Committee Meetings
No committee meetings were held.
Joint Meetings
FARM BILL EXTENSION ACT
Conferees met to resolve the differences between the Senate and House passed
versions of H.R. 2419, to provide for the continuation of agricultural
programs through fiscal year 2012, but did not complete action thereon, and
recessed subject to the call and will meet again on Tuesday, April 15, 2008.
2008/04/15
Daily Digest - Tuesday, April 15, 2008; pages D433 - D442
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Interior, Environment, and
Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for
fiscal year 2009 for the Department of the Interior, after receiving testimony
from former Senator Dirk Kempthorne, Secretary of the Interior.
[Page: D434]
APPROPRIATIONS: FDA
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Agriculture, Rural Development,
Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to
examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2009 for the United States
Food and Drug Administration, after receiving testimony from Andrew von
Eschenbach, Commissioner, United States Food and Drug Administration,
Department of Health and Human Services.
U.S. CREDIT MARKETS AND STUDENT LOANS
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine credit markets in the United States, focusing on the impact
on the cost and availability of student loans, after receiving testimony from
John F. Remondi, Sallie Mae, Inc., Reston, Virginia; Tom Deutsch, American
Securitization Forum, New York, New York, on behalf of the Securities Industry
and Financial Markets Association; Patricia A. McGuire, Trinity Washington
University, and Sarah Flanagan, National Association of Independent Colleges
and Universities, both of Washington, D.C.; and Mark Kantrowitz, FinAid.org,
Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania.
LANDS BILLS
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Public Lands and
Forests concluded a hearing to examine S. 570 and H.R. 1011, bills to
designate additional National Forest System lands in the State of Virginia as
wilderness or a wilderness study area, to designate the Kimberling Creek
Potential Wilderness Area for eventual incorporation in the Kimberling Creek
Wilderness, to establish the Seng Mountain and Bear Creek Scenic Areas, to
provide for the development of trail plans for the wilderness areas and scenic
areas, S. 758, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to convey the
Alta-Hualapai Site to the city of Las Vegas, Nevada, for the development of a
cancer treatment facility, H.R. 1311, to provide for the conveyance of the
Alta-Hualapai Site to the Nevada Cancer Institute, S. 1680, to provide for the
inclusion of certain non-Federal land in the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge
and the Alaska Peninsula National Wildlife Refuge in the State of Alaska, S.
2109, to designate certain Federal lands in Riverside County, California, as
wilderness, to designate certain river segments in Riverside County as a wild,
scenic, or recreational river, to adjust the boundary of the Santa Rosa and
San Jacinto Mountains National Monument, S. 2124, to direct the Secretary of
Agriculture to convey certain land in the Beaverhead-Deerlodge National
Forest, Montana, to Jefferson County, Montana, for use as a cemetery, and S.
2581, to designate as wilderness additional National Forest System lands in
the Monongahela National Forest in the State of West Virginia, after receiving
testimony from Senators Warner and Boxer; Joel Holtrop, Deputy Chief, National
Forest System, United States Forest Service, Department of Agriculture; Henri
Bisson, Acting Senior Advisor to the Secretary for Alaska Affairs, and Elena
Daly, Director, National Landscape Conservation System, Bureau of Land
Management, both of the Department of the Interior; J.J. Murray, Virginia
Wilderness Committee, Charlottesville; Stanley Senner, Audubon Alaska,
Anchorage; and Della Trumble, King Cove, Alaska, on behalf of the Agdaagux
Tribe.
PHARMACEUTICALS IN DRINKING WATER
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on Transportation
Safety, Infrastructure Security, and Water Quality concluded a hearing to
examine pharmaceuticals in the nation's drinking water, focusing on assessing
potential risks and actions to address this issue, after receiving testimony
from Benjamin H. Grumbles, Assistant Administrator for Water, Environmental
Protection Agency; Robert M. Hirsch, Associate Director for Water, United
States Geological Survey, Department of the Interior; Shane Snyder, Southern
Nevada Water Authority, Henderson, on behalf of the American Water Works
Association; David Pringle, New Jersey Environmental Federation, Trenton, on
behalf of the New Jersey Environmental Federation and Clean Water Action; and
Jennifer Sass, Natural Resources Defense Council, and Alan Goldhammer,
Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, both of Washington, D.C.
TAX REFORM
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine tax reform,
focusing on the fundamentals for advancement, after receiving testimony from
Daniel N. Shaviro, New York University School of Law, New York, New York;
Michael J. Graetz, Yale Law School, New Haven, Connecticut; and Jason Furman,
Brookings Institution, and Robert Carroll, Tax Foundation, both of Washington,
D.C.
TREATIES
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating
to the Adoption of an Additional Distinctive Emblem (the "Geneva Protocol
III"), adopted at Geneva on December 8, 2005, and signed by the United States
on that date, the Amendment to Article 1 of the 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 "CCW
Amendment"), and the CCW Protocol on Explosive Remnants of War (the "CCW
Protocol V") (Treaty Doc. 109-10), the Hague Convention for the Protection of
Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict (the Convention) and, for
accession, The Hague Protocol, concluded on May 14, 1954, and entered into
force on August 7, 1956 with accompanying report from the Department of State
(Treaty Doc. 106-01), and 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. 105-01), after receiving testimony from John B.
Bellinger, Legal Adviser, Department of State; and Charles A. Allen, Deputy
General Counsel (International Affairs), and Brigadier General Michelle D.
Johnson, Deputy Director for the War on Terrorism and Global Effects, J-5
Strategic Plans and Policy Directorate, Joint Staff, the Pentagon, both of the
Department of Defense.
[Page: D435]
NUCLEAR TERRORISM
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine nuclear terrorism, focusing on confronting the challenges
of various nuclear attack scenarios, after receiving testimony from John R.
Gibb, New York State Emergency Management Office, Albany; Ashton B. Carter,
Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government, Cambridge,
Massachusetts; Cham E. Dallas, University of Georgia College of Public Health,
Athens; and Roger C. Molander, RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, California.
2010 DECENNIAL CENSUS
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the 2010 Decennial Census, focusing on automation and
information technology in order to improve census coverage, accuracy, and
efficiency, after receiving testimony from Carlos M. Gutierrez, Secretary, and
Steve H. Murdock, Director, United States Census Bureau, both of the
Department of Commerce; and Mathew Scire, Director, Strategic Issues, and
David A. Powner, Director, Information Technology Management Issues, both of
the Government Accountability Office.
TOMATO WORKERS' WORKING CONDITIONS
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine ending abuses and improving working conditions for tomato
workers, after receiving testimony from Lucas Benitez, Coalition of Immokalee
Workers, and Roy Reyna, both of Immokalee, Florida; Charlie Frost, Collier
County Sheriff's Office, Naples, Florida; Mary Bauer, Southern Poverty Law
Center Immigrant Justice Project, Montgomery, Alabama; Reginald L. Brown,
Florida Tomato Growers Exchange, Maitland; and Eric Schlosser, Monterey,
California.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence : Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the intelligence
community.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
[Page: D436]
Joint Meetings
FARM BILL EXTENSION ACT
Conferees met to resolve the differences between the Senate and House passed
versions of H.R. 2419, to provide for the continuation of agricultural
programs through fiscal year 2012, but did not complete action thereon, and
recessed subject to the call and will meet again on Wednesday, April 16, 2008,
at approximately 1:30 p.m.
2008/04/16
Daily Digest - Wednesday, April 16, 2008; pages D443 - D452
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE MEDICAL PROGRAMS
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense concluded a hearing to
examine Department of Defense medical programs, after receiving testimony from
Lieutenant General Eric B. Schoomaker, Surgeon General, and Major General Gale
S. Pollock, Chief, Army Nurse Corps, both of the United States Army, Vice
Admiral Adam M. Robinson, USN, MC, Surgeon General, and Rear Admiral Christine
M. Bruzek-Kohler, USN, NC, Director, Navy Nurse Corps, both of the United
States Navy, and Lieutenant General James G. Roudebush, Surgeon General, and
Major General Melissa A. Rank, Assistant Surgeon General, Nursing Services and
Medical Force Development, both of the United States Air Force, all of the
Department of Defense.
APPROPRIATIONS: SUPPLEMENTAL FUNDING REQUEST
Committee on Appropriations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
supplemental request for war funding for fiscal year 2008, after receiving
testimony from former Representative Jim Nussle, Director, Office of
Management and Budget, Executive Office of the President.
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2009
for the Department of Energy, after receiving testimony from Thomas P.
D'Agostino, Administrator, Thomas O. Hunter, President and Director, Sandia
National Laboratories, both of the National Nuclear Security Administration,
George H. Miller, Director, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, and
Michael R. Anastasio, Director, Los Alamos National Laboratory, all of the
Department of Energy.
APPROPRIATIONS: IRS
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Financial Services and General
Government concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal
year 2009 for the Internal Revenue Service, after receiving testimony from
Douglas Shulman, Commissioner, Nina E. Olson, National Taxpayer Advocate, both
of the Internal Revenue Service, J. Russell George, Inspector General for Tax
Administration, and Paul Cherecwich, Jr., Internal Revenue Service Oversight
Board, all of the Department of the Treasury.
APPROPRIATIONS: FBI
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and
Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for
fiscal year 2009 for the Federal Bureau of Investigation, after receiving
testimony from Robert S. Mueller, III, Director, Federal Bureau of
Investigation, Department of Justice.
DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION REQUEST
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Personnel concluded a hearing to
examine the defense authorization request for fiscal year 2009 relative to
military beneficiary organizations regarding the quality of life of Active,
Reserve, and retired military personnel and their members, and the future
years defense program, after receiving testimony from Colonel Steven P.
Strobridge, USAF (Ret.), Military Officers Association of America (MOAA), and
Master Chief Joseph L. Barnes, USN (Ret.), Fleet Reserve Association (FRA),
both of the Military Coalition, and Kathleen B. Moakler, National Military
Family Association, and Master Sergeant Michael P. Cline, USA (Ret.), Enlisted
Association of the National Guard of the United States, all of Alexandria,
Virginia; and Meredith M. Beck, Wounded Warrior Project, Arlington, Virginia.
U.S. CREDIT MARKETS
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine credit markets in the United States, focusing on proposals
to mitigate foreclosures and restore liquidity to the mortgage markets, after
receiving testimony from Brian D. Montgomery, Assistant Secretary of Housing,
Federal Housing Commissioner, Department of Housing and Urban Development;
Arthur J. Murton, Director, Division of Insurance and Research, Federal
Deposit Insurance Corporation; and Scott M. Polakoff, Senior Deputy Director
and Chief Operating Officer, Office of Thrift Supervision, Department of the
Treasury.
AFFORDABLE HOUSING OPPORTUNITIES
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on Housing,
Transportation and Community Development concluded a hearing to examine
affordable housing opportunities, focusing on reforming the housing voucher
program, including S. 2684, to reform the housing choice voucher program under
section 8 of the United States Housing Act of 1937, after receiving testimony
from Shaun Donovan, New York City Department of Housing Preservation and
Development, New York, New York; Barbara Sard, Center on Budget and Policy
Priorities, Washington, D.C.; George Moses, National Low Income Housing
Coalition, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; P. Curtis Hiebert, Keene Housing
Authority, Keene, New Hampshire; and Jack Murray, National Affordable Housing
Management Association, Silver Spring, Maryland, on behalf of the National
Leased Housing Association.
[Page: D445]
SURFACE TRANSPORTATION AND THE GLOBAL ECONOMY
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on Transportation and
Infrastructure concluded a hearing to examine surface transportation
challenges and the global economy, after receiving testimony from Siva Yam,
United States-China Chamber of Commerce, Chicago, Illinois; John Isbell, Nike,
Inc., Beaverton, Oregon; Ray Kuntz, Watkins and Shepard Trucking, Helena,
Montana, on behalf of the American Trucking Associations; and Edward Wytkind,
Transportation Trades Department (TTD) AFI-CIO, Washington, D.C.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of Robert J. Callahan, of Virginia, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of Nicaragua, Heather M. Hodges, of Ohio, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of Ecuador, Barbara J. Stephenson, of Florida, to be Ambassador to
the Republic of Panama, Peter E. Cianchette, of Maine, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of Costa Rica, who was introduced by Senators Collins and Snowe, Hugo
Llorens, of Florida, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Honduras, who was
introduced by Senator Martinez, Stephen George McFarland, of Texas, to be
Ambassador to the Republic of Guatemala, all of the Department of State, and
Samuel W. Speck, of Ohio, to be a Commissioner on the part of the United
States on the International Joint Commission, United States and Canada, who
was introduced by Senator Voinovich, after the nominees testified and answered
questions in their own behalf.
CHILD PROTECTION
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs concluded a
hearing to examine violence against and exploitation of youth in the 21st
century, focusing on solutions for protecting children, including S. 1738, to
establish a Special Counsel for Child Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction
within the Office of the Deputy Attorney General, to improve the Internet
Crimes Against Children Task Force, to increase resources for regional
computer forensic labs, and to make other improvements to increase the ability
of law enforcement agencies to investigate and prosecute predators, after
receiving testimony from McGregor Scott, United States Attorney, Eastern
District of California, Department of Justice; Flint Waters, Wyoming Office of
the Attorney General, Division of Criminal Investigation, Cheyenne; Robert
Moses, Delaware State Police, Dover; Randall I. Hillman, Alabama District
Attorneys Association, Montgomery; Michelle K. Collins, National Center for
Missing and Exploited Children, Alexandria, Virginia; and Grier Weeks,
National Association to Protect Children, Asheville, North Carolina.
SMALL BUSINESS AND THE CREDIT CRUNCH
Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the impact of the credit market on small businesses,
including S. 1256, to amend the Small Business Act to reauthorize loan
programs under that Act, S. 2553, to modify certain fees applicable under the
Small Business Act for 2008, to make an emergency appropriation for certain
small business programs, and to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to
provide increased expensing for 2008, to provide a 5-year carryback for
certain net operating losses, and S. 2612, to provide economic stimulus for
small business concerns, after receiving testimony from Frederic S. Mishkin,
Member, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System; Steven C. Preston,
Administrator, Small Business Administration; Daniel O'Connell, Massachusetts
Secretary for the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development,
Boston; Mayor Carolyn A. Kirk, Gloucester, Massachusetts; Marilyn D. Landis,
Basic Business Concepts, Inc., Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on behalf of the
National Small Business Association; Robert Mitchell, Mitchell and Best
Homebuilders, LLC, Rockville, Maryland, on behalf of National Association of
Home Builders; Cynthia Blankenship, Bank of the West, Irving, Texas, on behalf
of the Independent Community Bankers of America; and Samuel D. Bornstein, Kean
University School of Business, Union, New Jersey.
CARING FOR SENIORS
Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded a hearing to examine caring
for the elderly, focusing on ways to support care providers, after receiving
testimony from John W. Rowe, Columbia University Mailman School of Public
Health Department of Health Policy and Management, and Martha Stewart, Martha
Stewart Living Omnimedia, both of New York, New York; Robyn I. Stone,
Institute for the Future of Aging Services, Washington, D.C., on behalf of the
American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging; Todd Semla, American
Geriatrics Society, Evanston, Illinois; Mary McDermott, Wisconsin Home Care
Commission, Verona; and Sally Bowman, Oregon State University College of
Health and Human Sciences, Corvallis.
[Page: D446]
Joint Meetings
FARM BILL EXTENSION ACT
Conferees met to resolve the differences between the Senate and House passed
versions of H.R. 2419, to provide for the continuation of agricultural
programs through fiscal year 2012, but did not complete action thereon, and
recessed subject to the call and will meet again on Thursday, April 17, 2008.
2008/04/17
Daily Digest - Thursday, April 17, 2008; pages D453 - D458
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
FAA SAFETY AND MODERNIZATION
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban
Development, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine the Federal
Aviation Administration's (FAA) safety and modernization performance, after
receiving testimony from Robert A. Sturgell, Acting Administrator, Federal
Aviation Administration; and Calvin L. Scovel, III, Inspector General,
Department of Transportation.
U.S. BUREAU OF RECLAMATION
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Water and Power
concluded a hearing to examine the United States Bureau of Reclamation,
focusing on issues associated with aging water resource infrastructure, after
receiving testimony from Senator Reid; Robert W. Johnson, Commissioner, Bureau
of Reclamation, Department of the Interior; Mayor Todd Cutler, Fernley,
Nevada; Major General Charles I. McGinnis, USA (Ret.), United States Army
Corps of Engineers, Charlottesville, Virginia, on behalf of the National
Research Council; Thomas F. Donnelly, National Water Resources Association,
Arlington, Virginia; Wesley Randal Reed, St. Mary Rehabilitation Working
Group, Chinook, Montana; and Tony Willardson, Western States Water Council,
Midvale, Utah, on behalf of the Western Governors' Association (WGA).
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the nominations
of Deanna Tanner Okun, of Idaho, to be a Deputy United States Trade
Representative, with the rank of Ambassador, who was introduced by Senator
Roberts, David Gustafson, of Virginia, Richard T. Morrison, of Virginia, and
Elizabeth Crewson Paris, of the District of Columbia, who was introduced by
Senator Grassley, each to be a Judge of the United States Tax Court, and Eric
M. Thorson, of Virginia, to be Inspector General, and Edwin Eck, of Montana,
to be a Member of the Internal Revenue Service Oversight Board, both of the
Department of the Treasury, after the nominees testified and answered
questions in their own behalf.
FUSION CENTERS
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Ad Hoc Subcommittee
on State, Local, and Private Sector Preparedness and Integration concluded a
hearing to examine the national strategy for information sharing relating to
fusion centers-collaborative efforts to detect, prevent, investigate, and
respond to criminal terrorist activity, focusing on a recent progress report
from federal, state, and local agencies, after receiving testimony from Eileen
R. Larence, Director, Homeland Security and Justice Issues, Government
Accountability Office; Vance E. Hitch, Chief Information Officer, Department
of Justice; Jack Thomas Tomarchio, Deputy Under Secretary of Homeland Security
for Intelligence and Analysis; Captain Charles W. Rapp, Maryland Coordination
and Analysis Center (MCAC), Baltimore; Matthew Bettenhausen, California
Governor's Office of Homeland Security, Sacramento; and Russell M. Porter,
Iowa Department of Public Safety, Des Moines.
[Page: D455]
NATIONAL INDIAN GAMING COMMISSION
Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to
examine the National Indian Gaming Commission, after receiving testimony from
Philip N. Hogen, Chairman, National Indian Gaming Commission; Delia Carlyle,
Arizona Indian Gaming Association, Phoenix, on behalf of the Ak-Chin Indian
Community Council; J.R. Matthews, Quapaw Tribe of Oklahoma, Quapaw, Oklahoma;
Mark Van Norman, National Indian Gaming Association, Washington, D.C.; Brian
Patterson, United South and Eastern Tribes, Inc., Nashville, Tennessee; Kurt
Luger, Great Plains Indian Gaming Association, Bismarck, North Dakota; and
Kathryn R.L. Rand and Steven Light, both of the University of North Dakota
Institute for the Study of Tribal Gaming Law and Policy, Grand Forks.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the intelligence
community.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
Joint Meetings
ARMENIA AND MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE ACCOUNT
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Commission concluded a
hearing to examine Armenia and the United States, focusing on Organization for
Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSEC) negotiations on Nagorno-Karabakh and
Armenia's qualifications for assistance from the Millennium Challenge Account,
after receiving testimony from Matthew Bryza, Deputy Assistant Secretary of
State for European and Eurasian Affairs; Vigen Sargsian, Assistant to the
President of the Republic of Armenia, Yerevan, Armenia; and Arman Grigorian,
Williamsburg, Virginia.
2008/04/18
Daily Digest - Friday, April 18, 2008; pages D459 - D464
Committee Meetings
No committee meetings were held.
Joint Meetings
FARM BILL EXTENSION ACT
Conferees met to resolve the differences between the Senate and House passed
versions of H.R. 2419, to provide for the continuation of agricultural
programs through fiscal year 2012, but did not complete action thereon, and
recessed subject to the call and will meet again on Tuesday, April 22, 2008.
2008/04/21
Daily Digest - Monday, April 21, 2008; pages D466 - D468
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings were noted.
2008/04/22
Daily Digest - Tuesday, April 22, 2008; pages D469 - D478
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
CREDIT RATING AGENCIES
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine United States credit markets, focusing on the role of the
credit rating agencies, after receiving testimony from former Representative
Christopher Cox, Chairman, United States Securities and Exchange Commission;
and John C. Coffee, Jr., Columbia University Law School, Arturo Cifuentes,
R.W. Pressprich and Company, Stephen W. Joynt, Fitch Ratings, Inc., Claire
Robinson, Moody's Investors Service, and Vickie A. Tillman, Standard and
Poor's, all of New York, New York.
FUTURE OF THE INTERNET
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the future of the internet, after receiving testimony from
Kevin J. Martin, Chairman, Federal Communications Commission; Michele Combs,
Christian Coalition of America, Robert W. Hahn, American Enterprise Institute
Center for Regulatory and Market Studies, and Kyle McSlarrow, National Cable
and Telecommunications Association, all of Washington, D.C.; Patric M.
Verrone, Writers Guild of America, West, Los Angeles, California; Justine
Bateman, FM78.tv, Studio City, California; and Lawrence Lessig, Stanford Law
School, Stanford, California.
FUTURE OF TRANSPORTATION
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue
Study Commission, focusing its report on the future of the surface
transportation system in the United States, after receiving testimony from
Frank J. Busalacchi, Wisconsin Department of Transportation, Madison; Jack
Schenendorf, Covington and Burling, Washington, D.C.; and Steve Heminger,
Metropolitan Transportation Commission, Oakland, California, Matthew K. Rose,
BNSF Railway Company, Fort Worth, Texas, and Patrick E. Quinn, U.S. Xpress
Enterprises, Inc., Chattanooga, Tennessee, all on behalf of the National
Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission.
LAND BILLS
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Public Lands and
Forests concluded a hearing to examine S. 934 and H.R. 1374, bills to amend
the Florida National Forest Land Management Act of 2003 to authorize the
conveyance of an additional tract of National Forest System land under that
Act, S. 2833, to provide for the management of certain public land in Owyhee
County, Idaho, and S. 2834, to establish wilderness areas, promote
conservation, and improve public land in Washington County, Utah, after
receiving testimony from Senators Bennett and Crapo; Julie Jacobson, Deputy
Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Land and Minerals Management; Joel
Holtrop, Deputy Chief, National Forest System, Forest Service, Department of
Agriculture; James J. Eardley, Washington County, Saint George, Utah; William
H. Meadows, Washington, D.C., and Craig Gehrke, Boise, Idaho, both of the
Wilderness Society; and Chad C. Gibson, Owyhee Cattlemen's Association,
Wilder, Idaho.
INTERNATIONAL DEFORESTATION AND CLIMATE CHANGE
Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on International Development and
Foreign Assistance, Economic Affairs and International Environmental
Protection concluded a hearing to examine international deforestation and
climate change, after receiving testimony from Stuart E. Eizenstat, Covington
and Burling, LLP, David Hayes, former Deputy Secretary, Department of the
Interior, and Dirk Forrister, Natsource LLC, all of Washington, D.C.; and
Kevin Gurney, Purdue University Climate Change Research Center (PCCRC), West
Lafayette, Indiana.
[Page: D472]
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
H.R. 3320, to provide assistance for the Museum of the History of Polish Jews
in Warsaw, Poland, with an amendment;
S. Con. Res. 74, honoring the Prime Minister of Ireland, Bertie Ahern, for his
service to the people of Ireland and to the world and welcoming the Prime
Minister to the United States;
S. Res. 494, expressing the sense of the Senate on the need for Iraq's
neighbors and other international partners to fulfill their pledges to provide
reconstruction assistance to Iraq, with an amendment;
S. Res. 523, expressing the strong support of the Senate for the declaration
of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization at the Bucharest Summit that Ukraine
and Georgia will become members of the alliance;
The Protocol of Amendments to the Convention on International Hydrographic
Organization done at Monaco on April 14, 2005 (Treaty Doc. 110-09); and
The nominations of Mark Kimmitt, of Virginia, to be an Assistant Secretary of
State (Political-Military Affairs), Barbara McConnell Barrett, of Arizona, to
be Ambassador to the Republic of Finland, Frank Charles Urbancic, Jr., of
Indiana, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Cyprus, Kurt Douglas Volker, of
Pennsylvania, to be United States Permanent Representative on the Council of
the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, with the rank and status of
Ambassador, Nancy E. McEldowney, of Florida, to be Ambassador to the Republic
of Bulgaria, Scot A. Marciel, of California, for the rank of Ambassador during
his tenure of service as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian
and Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Affairs, Patricia M.
Haslach, of Oregon, for the rank of Ambassador during her tenure of service as
United States Senior Coordinator for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation
(APEC) Forum, William Edward Todd, of Virginia, to be Ambassador to Brunei
Darussalam, D. Kathleen Stephens, of Montana, to be Ambassador to the Republic
of Korea, Joxel Garcia, of Connecticut, to be Medical Director in the Regular
Corps of the Public Health Service, subject to the qualifications therefor as
provided by law and regulations, and to be an Assistant Secretary of Health
and Human Services, Robert J. Callahan, of Virginia, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of Nicaragua, Peter E. Cianchette, of Maine, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of Costa Rica, Heather M. Hodges, of Ohio, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of Ecuador, Hugo Llorens, of Florida, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of Honduras, Stephen George McFarland, of Texas, to be Ambassador to
the Republic of Guatemala, Samuel W. Speck, of Ohio, to be a Commissioner on
the part of the United States on the International Joint Commission, United
States and Canada, Barbara J. Stephenson, of Florida, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of Panama, and Yousif Boutrous Ghafari, of Michigan, to be Ambassador
to the Republic of Slovenia, and a promotion list in the Foreign Service.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence : Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the intelligence
community.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
Joint Meetings
FARM BILL EXTENSION ACT
Conferees met to resolve the differences between the Senate and House passed
versions of H.R. 2419, to provide for the continuation of agricultural
programs through fiscal year 2012, but did not complete action thereon, and
recessed subject to the call.
2008/04/23
Daily Digest - Wednesday, April 23, 2008; pages D480 - D490
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: MISSILE DEFENSE AGENCY
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense concluded a hearing to
examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2009 for the Missile Defense
Agency, after receiving testimony from Lieutenant General Henry A. Obering,
III, USAF, Director, Missile Defense Agency, and Lieutenant General Kevin T.
Campbell, USA, Commanding General, United States Army Space and Missile
Defense Command, United States Army Strategic Forces Command, and Joint
Functional Component Command, Integrated Missile Defense, both of the
Department of Defense.
PHANTOM TRAFFIC
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine "phantom traffic"-telephone calls that do not have
sufficient information or records for the local phone company to bill for
access charges, after receiving testimony from Charles W. McKee, Sprint Nextel
Corporation, Reston, Virginia; Lawrence E. Sarjeant, Qwest, and Angela
Simpson, VON Coalition, both of Washington, D.C.; and Raymond Henagan, Rock
Port Telephone Company, Rock Port, Missouri, on behalf of the National
Telecommunications Cooperative Association.
NATIONAL HISTORIC LANDS
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on National Parks
concluded a hearing to examine S. 662, to authorize the Secretary of the
Interior to conduct a special resource study to evaluate resources at the
Harriet Beecher Stowe House in Brunswick, Maine, to determine the suitability
and feasibility of establishing the site as a unit of the National Park
System, S. 827, to establish the Freedom's Way National Heritage Area in the
States of Massachusetts and New Hampshire, S. 923 and H.R. 1528, bills to
amend the National Trails System Act to designate the New England National
Scenic Trail, S. 956, to establish the Land Between the Rivers National
Heritage Area in the State of Illinois, S. 2073, to amend the National Trails
System Act relating to the statute of limitations that applies to certain
claims, S. 2513, to modify the boundary of the Minute Man National Historical
Park, S. 2604, to establish the Baltimore National Heritage Area in the State
of Maryland, S. 2804, to adjust the boundary of the Everglades National Park,
H.R. 53, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to enter into a long-term
lease with the Government of the United States Virgin Islands to provide land
on the island of Saint John, Virgin Islands, for the establishment of a
school, and H.R. 1483, to amend the Omnibus Parks and Public Lands Management
Act of 1996 to extend the authorization for certain national heritage areas,
after receiving testimony from Representative Christensen; Daniel N. Wenk,
Deputy Director, National Park Service, Department of the Interior; William J.
Pencek, Jr., Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development,
Baltimore; Lorelei Monsanto, One Campus, Saint John, Virgin Islands; and Gale
Illig, Grantwood Village, Missouri.
[Page: D482]
DARFUR
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
crisis in Darfur, after receiving testimony from Richard Williamson,
President's Special Envoy to Sudan, Department of State; Katherine Almquist,
Assistant Administrator for Africa, United States Agency for International
Development (USAID); and Jane Holl Lute, United Nations, New York, New York.
CRISIS IN TIBET
Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific Affairs
concluded a hearing to examine the crisis in Tibet, focusing on peaceful
action that would be in accordance with international standards of religious
freedom and human rights, after receiving testimony from John D. Negroponte,
Deputy Secretary of State; Steve Marshall, Senior Advisor,
Congressional-Executive Commission on China; Richard Gere, International
Campaign for Tibet, New York, New York; Lodi Gyari, Special Envoy of His
Holiness the Dalai Lama, Washington, D.C.; and Lobsang Sangay, Harvard
University Law School East Asian Legal Studies Program, Cambridge,
Massachusetts.
NOMINATION
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the nomination of Nanci E. Langley, of Virginia, to be a
Commissioner of the Postal Regulatory Commission, after the nominee, who was
introduced by Senator Akaka, testified and answered questions in her own
behalf.
NATIONAL SECURITY LETTERS
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine National
Security Letters, focusing on the need for greater accountability and
oversight, including S. 2088, to place reasonable limitations on the use of
National Security Letters, after receiving testimony from James A. Baker,
former Counsel for Intelligence Policy, and Michael J. Woods, former Chief,
National Security Law Unit, Office of the General Counsel, Federal Bureau of
Investigation, both of the Department of Justice; and Gregory T. Nojeim,
Center for Democracy and Technology, all of Washington, D.C.
VA/DOD COOPERATION AND COLLABORATION
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to
examine Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Defense cooperation
and collaboration as they meet the needs of returning servicemembers, after
receiving testimony from Gordon England, Deputy Secretary, and David S. C.
Chu, Under Secretary for Personnel and Readiness, both of the Department of
Defense; Gordon Mansfield, Deputy Secretary, and Patrick W. Dunne, Acting
Under Secretary for Benefits and Assistant Secretary for Policy and Planning,
both of the Department of Veterans Affairs; Adrian M. Atizdao, Disabled
American Veterans, Washington, D.C., on behalf of sundry organizations; Todd
Bowers, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, New York, New York; and
Commander Rene A. Campos, USN (Ret.), Military Officers Association of
America, Alexandria, Virginia.
[Page: D483]
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/04/24
Daily Digest - Thursday, April 24, 2008; pages D491 - D504
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: MILITARY CONSTRUCTION
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans'
Affairs, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget
estimates for fiscal year 2009 for military construction, after receiving
testimony from Tina W. Jonas, Under Secretary (Comptroller), Wayne Arny,
Deputy Under Secretary for Installations and Environment, B.J. Penn, Assistant
Secretary of the Navy for Installations and Environment, Major General Eugene
G. Payne, Jr., Assistant Deputy Commandant for Installations and Logistics
(Facilities), and Rear Admiral Mark A. Handley, Deputy Commander, Navy
Installations Command, all of the Department of Defense.
INTELLIGENCE BRIEFING
Committee on Armed Services: Committee met in closed session to receive a
briefing on sensitive intelligence matters from officials of the intelligence
community.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Armed Services : Committee ordered favorably reported 4,206
nominations in the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps.
SOVEREIGN INVESTMENTS REGULATION
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine United States credit markets, focusing on the United States
regulatory framework for assessing sovereign wealth fund acquisitions and
other foreign government investments in the United States, after receiving
testimony from Scott G. Alvarez, General Counsel, Board of Governors of the
Federal Reserve System; Ethiopis Tafara, Director, Office of International
Affairs, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission; Dennis Johnson, California
Public Employees' Retirement System, Sacramento; Paul Rose, Ohio State
University Moritz College of Law, Columbus; and David Marchick, Carlyle Group,
and Jeanne S. Archibald, Hogan and Hartson LLP, both of Washington, D.C.
[Page: D493]
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee ordered
favorably reported the following:
S. 2688, to improve the protections afforded under Federal law to consumers
from contaminated seafood by directing the Secretary of Commerce to establish
a program, in coordination with other appropriate Federal agencies, to
strengthen activities for ensuring that seafood sold or offered for sale to
the public in or affecting interstate commerce is fit for human consumption,
with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S.J. Res. 28, disapproving the rule submitted by the Federal Communications
Commission with respect to broadcast media ownership;
S. 2607, to make a technical correction to section 3009 of the Deficit
Reduction Act of 2005;
S. 2507, to address the digital television transition in border states, with
an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
H.R. 3985, to amend title 49, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of
Transportation to register a person providing transportation by an
over-the-road bus as a motor carrier of passengers only if the person is
willing and able to comply with certain accessibility requirements in addition
to other existing requirements;
H.R. 802, to amend the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships to implement MARPOL
Annex VI, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 2657, to require the Secretary of Commerce to prescribe regulations to
reduce the incidence of vessels colliding with North Atlantic right whales by
limiting the speed of vessels, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
S. 2482, to repeal the provision of title 46, United States Code, requiring a
license for employment in the business of salvaging on the coast of Florida;
and
Certain promotion lists in the U.S. Coast Guard.
NATIONAL NANOTECHNOLOGY INITIATIVE
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Science,
Technology, and Innovation concluded a hearing to examine the National
Nanotechnology Initiative, focusing on charting the course for its
reauthorization, after receiving testimony from Richard M. Russell, Associate
Director and Deputy Director for Technology, Office of Science and Technology
Policy, Executive Office of the President; Robert A. Robinson, Managing
Director, Natural Resources and Environment, Government Accountability Office;
Matthew M. Nordan, Lux Research, Inc., Boston, Massachusetts; David Rejeski,
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Washington, D.C.; P. Lee
Ferguson, University of South Carolina Department of Chemistry and
Biochemistry, Columbia; Anita Goel, Nanobiosym, Inc., Medford, Massachusetts;
and Jim Heath, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena.
WATER BILLS
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Water and Power
concluded a hearing to examine S. 2680, to amend the Reclamation Projects
Authorization and Adjustment Act of 1992 to require the Secretary of the
Interior to take certain actions to address environmental problems associated
with the Leadville Mine Drainage Tunnel in the State of Colorado, S. 2805, to
direct the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Commissioner of
Reclamation, to assess the irrigation infrastructure of the Rio Grande Pueblos
in the State of New Mexico and provide grants to, and enter into cooperative
agreements with, the Rio Grande Pueblos to repair, rehabilitate, or
reconstruct existing infrastructure, S. 2814, to authorize the Secretary of
the Interior to provide financial assistance to the Eastern New Mexico Rural
Water Authority for the planning, design, and construction of the Eastern New
Mexico Rural Water System, H.R. 29, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior
to construct facilities to provide water for irrigation, municipal, domestic,
military, and other uses from the Santa Margarita River, California, H.R.
1803, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a feasibility study
to design and construct a four reservoir intertie system for the purposes of
improving the water storage opportunities, water supply reliability, and water
yield of San Vicente, El Capitan, Murray, and Loveland Reservoirs in San Diego
County, California in consultation and cooperation with the City of San Diego
and the Sweetwater Authority, and H.R. 123, to authorize appropriations for
the San Gabriel Basin Restoration Fund, after receiving testimony from Robert
W. Johnson, Commissioner, Bureau of Reclamation, Department of the Interior;
Susan Parker Bodine, Assistant Administrator for Solid Waste and Emergency
Response, Environmental Protection Agency; Martha Rudolph, Colorado Department
of Public Health and Environment, Denver; Orlando Ortega, Eastern New Mexico
Rural Water Authority, Portales; Joseph Michael Chavarria, Santa Clara Pueblo,
Espanola, New Mexico, on behalf of the Eight Northern Indian Pueblos Council;
and Milton G. Davies, Fallbrook Public Utility District, Fallbrook,
California.
[Page: D494]
CAP-AND-TRADE PROGRAM TAX ASPECTS
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine tax aspects of
a cap-and-trade system for carbon dioxide emissions, after receiving testimony
from Peter R. Orszag, Director, Congressional Budget Office; Robert
Greenstein, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, Washington, D.C.; and
Henry Derwent, International Emissions Trading Association, Geneva,
Switzerland.
NATIONAL SECURITY REFORM
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
implementing smart power, focusing on setting an agenda for national security
reform, after receiving testimony from Richard L. Armitage, Armitage
International, Arlington, Virginia, and Joseph S. Nye, Jr., Harvard University
Kennedy School of Government, Cambridge, Massachusetts, both on behalf of the
Center for Strategic and International Studies Commission on Smart Power; and
James R. Locher, III, Project on National Security Reform, and Gordon Adams,
American University School of International Service, both of Washington, D.C.
INTERNATIONAL DEBT
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
international debt, focusing on creating relief initiatives, including S.
2166, to provide for greater responsibility in lending and expanded
cancellation of debts owed to the United States and the international
financial institutions by low-income countries, after receiving testimony from
Clay Lowery, Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for International Affairs;
Nancy Birdsall, Center for Global Development, and Gerald F. Flood, United
States Conference of Catholic Bishops, both of Washington, D.C.; and Peter
Blair Henry, Stanford University Graduate School of Business, Stanford,
California.
INTELLIGENCE BRIEFING
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee met in closed session to receive a
briefing on certain intelligence matters from officials of the intelligence
community.
IRAN'S NUCLEAR AMBITIONS
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services, and
International Security concluded a hearing to examine issues relative to the
full range of nuclear technology that Iran desires to acquire, focusing on
policy options for the United States and its allies, after receiving testimony
from Senators Specter and Feinstein; Ambassador Jeffrey Feltman, Principal
Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, and
Patricia McNerney, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of
International Security and Nonproliferation, both of the Department of State;
Stephen G. Rademaker, BGR Holding, LLC, and Dennis Ross, Washington Institute
for Near East Policy, both of Washington, D.C.; and Graham Allison, Harvard
University Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, and Jim Walsh,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, both of Cambridge, Massachusetts.
REFORMING EXPORT LICENSING AGENCIES
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of
Columbia concluded a hearing to examine reforming export licensing agencies
for national security and economic interests, focusing on the structure of the
Federal government's agencies that are responsible for licensing controlled
exports, the process in place for licensing, ways the structures help or
hinder their decision-making for licenses, human capital challenges of the
export control bureaucracy, and recommendations for improving the export
control processes and personal, after receiving testimony from Stephen D.
Mull, Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Political Military Affairs; Beth
M. McCormick, Director, Defense Technology Security Administration, Department
of Defense; Matthew S. Borman, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Industry
and Security, Department of Commerce; Ann Calvaresi Barr, Director,
Acquisition and Sourcing Management, Government Accountability Office; and
William A. Reinsch, National Foreign Trade Council, Daniel B. Poneman,
Scowcroft Group, and Edmund B. Rice, Coalition for Employment through Exports,
Inc., all of Washington, D.C.
FDA
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, focusing on its
ability to ensure the safety of food and the drug supply in the United States,
after receiving testimony from Janet Woodcock, Director, Center for Drug
Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, Department of Health
and Human Services; William K. Hubbard, former Associate Commissioner for
Policy and Planning, Food and Drug Administration, Alliance for a Stronger
FDA, and Robert Brackett, Grocery Manufacturers Association, both of
Washington, D.C.; J. Glenn Morris, Jr., University of Florida, Gainesville;
and Gerry Migliaccio, Pfizer Inc., Peapack, New Jersey.
[Page: D495]
FEDERAL ACKNOWLEDGMENT PROCESS
Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to
examine recommendations for improving the process for federal acknowledgment
as an Indian tribe, after receiving testimony from Carl J. Artman, Assistant
Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs; Patty Ferguson-Bohnee, Arizona
State University Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law, Tempe; and Anthony
Rivera, Jr., Acjachemen Nation, San Juan Capistrano, California.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
H.R. 65, to provide for the recognition of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina;
S. 1779, to establish a program for tribal colleges and universities within
the Department of Health and Human Services and to amend the Native American
Programs Act of 1974 to authorize the provision of grants and cooperative
agreements to tribal colleges and universities, with an amendment in the
nature of a substitute;
H.J. Res. 62, to honor the achievements and contributions of Native Americans
to the United States, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 1193, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to take into trust 2 parcels
of Federal land for the benefit of certain Indian Pueblos in the State of New
Mexico; and
The nomination of Robert G. McSwain, of Maryland, to be Director of the Indian
Health Service, Department of Health and Human Services.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
S. 2533, to enact a safe, fair, and responsible state secrets privilege Act,
with amendments;
S. 702, to authorize the Attorney General to award grants to State courts to
develop and implement State courts interpreter programs, with an amendment in
the nature of a substitute;
S. Res. 511, recognizing that John Sidney McCain, III, is a natural born
citizen;
H. Con. Res. 292, honoring Margaret Truman Daniel and her lifetime of
accomplishments;
S. Res. 515, commemorating the life and work of Dith Pran; and
The nominations of Michael G. McGinn, to be United States Marshal for the
District of Minnesota, and Ralph E. Martinez, of Florida, to be a Member of
the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission of the United States, both of the
Department of Justice, Mark S. Davis, to be United States District Judge for
the Eastern District of Virginia, David Gregory Kays, to be United States
District Judge for the Western District of Missouri, and Stephen N. Limbaugh,
Jr., to be United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Missouri.
DELTA-NORTHWEST MERGER
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and
Consumer Rights concluded a hearing to examine the merger between Delta Air
Lines, Inc., and Northwest Airlines, Inc., after receiving testimony from
Senators Klobuchar and Chambliss; Douglas M. Steenland, Northwest Airlines,
Inc., Eagan, Minnesota; Richard H. Anderson, Delta Air Lines, Inc., Atlanta,
Georgia; Kevin Mitchell, Business Travel Coalition, Radnor, Pennsylvania; and
Darren Bush, University of Houston Law Center, Houston, Texas.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence : Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the intelligence
community.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
[Page: D496]
Joint Meetings
WOMEN: MIGRATION
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Commission concluded a
hearing to examine women, migration and development in the Organization for
Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) region, focusing on the impact of
migration on family and society, the special concerns of migrant women of
color, and the economic contributions of women migrants to their home
countries through remittances, after receiving testimony from Manuel Orozco,
Inter-American Dialogue, and Susan Martin, Georgetown University Institute for
the Study of International Migration, both of Washington, D.C.
2008/04/25
Daily Digest - Friday, April 25, 2008; pages D505 - D506
Committee Meetings
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/04/28
Daily Digest - Monday, April 28, 2008; pages D507 - D510
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of William J. Burns, of the District of Columbia, to be an Under
Secretary of State (Political Affairs), Janice L. Jacobs, of Virginia, to be
an Assistant Secretary of State (Bureau of Consular Affairs), and T. Vance
McMahan, of Texas, to be Representative of the United States of America on the
Economic and Social Council of the United Nations, with the rank of
Ambassador, after the nominees testified and answered questions in their own
behalf.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/04/29
Daily Digest - Tuesday, April 29, 2008; pages D512 - D520
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 jurisdiction of the subcommittee, of the proposed National Defense
Authorization Act for fiscal year 2009.
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 the proposed National Defense
Authorization Act for fiscal year 2009.
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 the
proposed National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2009.
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 the
proposed National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2009.
[Page: D514]
SUBPRIME HOME LENDING
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Interstate
Commerce, Trade, and Tourism concluded a hearing to examine improving consumer
protections in subprime home lending, after receiving testimony from Lydia B.
Parnes, Director, Bureau of Consumer Protection, Federal Trade Commission;
Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, Hartford; Kathleen E. Keest,
Center for Responsible Lending, Durham, North Carolina; and Ira J. Rheingold,
National Association of Consumer Advocates, and Bill Himpler, American
Financial Services Association, both of Washington, D.C.
EPA'S TOXIC CHEMICAL POLICIES
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded an oversight
hearing to examine the Environmental Protection Agency's toxic chemical
policies, focusing on current Toxic Substances Control Act implementation and
risk assessment issues, after receiving testimony from Jim Gulliford,
Assistant Administrator, Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic
Substances, Environmental Protection Agency; John B. Stephenson, Director,
Natural Resources and Environment, Government Accountability Office; Linda C.
Giudice, University of California, San Francisco, Department of Obstetrics,
Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences; Annette Gellert, WELL Network, Tiburon,
California; V.M. DeLisi, Fanwood Chemical, Inc., Fanwood, New Jersey, on
behalf of the Synthetic Organic Chemical Manufacturers Association; Laura M.
Plunkett, Integrative Biostrategies, LLC, Houston, Texas; and Lynn R. Goldman,
Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore,
Maryland.
REAL ID ACT
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of
Columbia concluded a hearing to examine the REAL ID Act (Public Law 109-13)
and the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, focusing on its implementation,
including S. 717, to repeal title II of the REAL ID Act of 2005, to restore
section 7212 of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004,
which provides States additional regulatory flexibility and funding
authorization to more rapidly produce tamper-and counterfeit-resistant
driver's licenses, and to protect privacy and civil liberties by providing
interested stakeholders on a negotiated rulemaking with guidance to achieve
improved 21st century licenses to improve national security, after receiving
testimony from Stewart Baker, Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security for
Policy; Derwood K. Staeben, Senior Advisor, Western Hemisphere Travel
Initiative, Bureau of Consular Affairs, Department of State; State
Representative Donna Stone, Delaware General Assembly, Dover, on behalf of the
National Conference of State Legislatures; and David Quam, National Governors
Association, Caroline Fredrickson, American Civil Liberties Union, Roger J.
Dow, Travel Industry Association of America (TIA), Sophia Cope, Center for
Democracy and Technology, and Angelo I. Amador, United States Chamber of
Commerce, and Americans for Better Borders Coalition (ABB), all of Washington,
D.C.
WORKPLACE SAFETY
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, focusing
on penalties related to workplace safety, after receiving testimony from Peg
Seminario, AFL-CIO, Washington, D.C.; David M. Uhlmann, University of Michigan
Law School Environmental Law and Policy Program, Ann Arbor; Ron Hayes, FIGHT
Project, Fairhope, Alabama; George Jenson, Jenson Fire Protection, Ellicott
City, Maryland; and Donald Coit Smith, Temple, Texas.
RUNAWAY AND HOMELESS YOUTH
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine living on
the street, focusing on finding solutions to protect runaway and homeless
youth, including the Runaway, Homeless, and Missing Children Protection Act
(P.L. 108-96), after receiving testimony from Mark Redmond and Michael
Hutchins, both of Spectrum Youth and Family Services, Burlington, Vermont;
Victoria A. Wagner, National Network for Youth, Washington, D.C.; Jerome
Kilbane, Covenant House, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia; and Djimon Hounsou, Los
Angeles, California.
BUSINESS MEETING
Select Committee on Intelligence : Committee met in closed session to consider
pending intelligence matters.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
[Page: D515]
Joint Meetings
EUROPE'S BLACK POPULATION
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Commission concluded a
hearing to examine challenges and opportunities of Europe's Black population,
focusing on hate crimes and discrimination, anti-immigration and national
identity debates, and growing security concerns, after receiving testimony
from Joe Frans, United Nations Working Group on People of African Descent,
former Swedish Parliamentarian, Stockholm, Sweden; Gary Younge, The Guardian,
New York, New York; Allison Blakeley, Boston University, Boston,
Massachusetts; Philomena Essed, Dutch Equal Treatment Commission, Berkeley,
California; and Clarence Lusane, American University, Washington, D.C.
2008/04/30
Daily Digest - Wednesday, April 30, 2008; pages D522 - D530
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Financial Services and General
Government concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal
year 2009 for the Consumer Product Safety Commission, and H.R. 4040, to
establish consumer product safety standards and other safety requirements for
children's products and to reauthorize and modernize the Consumer Product
Safety Commission, after receiving testimony from Nancy A. Nord, Acting
Chairman, and Thomas H. Moore, Commissioner, both of the Consumer Product
Safety Commission.
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2009
for the Department of Energy and nuclear weapon non-proliferation efforts of
the United States, after receiving testimony from William H. Tobey, Deputy
Administrator for Defense Nuclear Nonproliferation, National Nuclear Security
Administration, Department of Energy; Matthew Bunn, Harvard University John F.
Kennedy School of Government Belfer Center for Science and International
Affairs, Cambridge, Massachusetts; and Siegfried S. Hecker, Stanford
University Center for International Security and Cooperation, Stanford,
California.
NRO/SPACE PROGRAMS
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense met in closed session to
examine the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO)/Space Programs, after
receiving testimony from Scott F. Large, Director, National Reconnaissance
Office, General C. Robert Kehler, Commander, Air Force Space Command, and Gary
E. Payton, Deputy Under Secretary of the Air Force for Space Programs, all of
the Department of Defense.
APPROPRIATIONS: ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL, CAPITOL POLICE, LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Legislative Branch concluded a
hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2009 for the
Office of the Architect of the Capitol, the United States Capitol Police, and
the Library of Congress, after receiving testimony from Stephen T. Ayers,
Acting Architect of the Capitol, Office of the Architect of the Capitol;
Phillip D. Morse, Sr., Chief of Police, United States Capitol Police; and
James Billington, Librarian of Congress, Library of Congress.
AUTHORIZATION--DEFENSE
Committee on Armed Services: Subcommittee on Strategic Forces met in closed
session and approved for full committee consideration, those provisions which
fall within the jurisdiction of the subcommittee, of the proposed National
Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2009.
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 the proposed National Defense
Authorization Act for fiscal year 2009.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Armed Services: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following bills:
An original bill entitled "National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year
2009";
An original bill entitled "Department of Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal
Year 2009";
An original bill entitled "Military Construction Authorization Act for Fiscal
Year 2009"; and
An original bill entitled "Department of Energy National Security Act for
Fiscal Year 2009".
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the nominations of Kameran L. Onley, of Washington, to be an Assistant
Secretary of the Interior, and Jeffrey F. Kupfer, of Maryland, to be Deputy
Secretary of Energy, after the nominees testified and answered questions in
their own behalf.
[Page: D524]
SECRET LAW
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on the Constitution concluded a
hearing to examine secret law--certain counterterrorist measures employed
since the attacks of September 11, 2001, and the threat to democratic and
accountable government, after receiving testimony from John P. Elwood, Deputy
Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legal Counsel, Department of Justice;
Steven Aftergood, Federation of American Scientists, Bradford A. Berenson,
Sidley Austin, LLP, former Associate Counsel to the President, and David B.
Rivkin, Jr., Baker Hostetler, all of Washington, D.C.; Dawn E. Johnsen,
Indiana University School of Law-Bloomington, former Acting Assistant Attorney
General for the Office of Legal Counsel; Heidi Kitrosser, University of
Minnesota Law School, Minneapolis; and J. William Leonard, former Director of
the Information Security Oversight Office, National Archives, Leonardtown,
Maryland.
HIRING AND RETAINING ELDERLY WORKERS
Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
establishing government as a model for hiring and retaining elderly workers,
focusing on critical gaps in leadership and institutional knowledge,
increasing the challenges government agencies face in maintaining a skilled
workforce, after receiving testimony from Barbara D. Bovbjerg, Director,
Education, Workforce, and Income Security Issues, and Robert N. Goldenkoff,
Director, Strategic Issues, both of the Government Accountability Office;
Nancy H. Kichak, Associate Director for Strategic Human Resources Policy,
United States Office of Personnel Management; Thomas M. Dowd, Administrator,
Office of Policy Development and Research, Employment and Training
Administration, Department of Labor; and Max Stier, Partnership for Public
Service, and Chai R. Feldblum, Georgetown University Law Center, both of
Washington, D.C.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/05/01
Daily Digest - Thursday, May 1, 2008; pages D531 - D538
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
HOMELESS VETERANS
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban
Development, and Related Agencies concluded a joint hearing with the
Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans' Affairs, and Related
Agencies to examine the issue of homeless veterans in the United States, after
receiving testimony from Mark Johnston, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Special
Needs, Office of Community Planning and Development, Department of Housing and
Urban Development; Peter H. Dougherty, Director, Homeless Veterans Programs,
Department of Veterans Affairs; Cheryl Beversdorf, National Coalition for
Homeless Veterans, Steven R. Berg, National Alliance to End Homelessness, and
Richard Weidman, Vietnam Veterans of America, all of Washington, D.C.; and
Paul Lambros, Plymouth Housing Group, Seattle, Washington.
FINANCIAL LITERACY FOR HOMEBUYERS
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on Economic
Policy concluded a hearing to examine financial literacy for today's
homebuyers, focusing on quality consumer education and counseling, after
receiving testimony from Sarah Bloom Raskin, Maryland Office of Financial
Regulation, Takoma Park, on behalf of the Conference of State Bank Supervisors
(CSBS); Kenneth D. Wade, NeighborWorks America, Washington, D.C.; and Ronni
Cohen, Delaware Money School, Claymont.
[Page: D533]
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the nominations of Lily Fu Claffee, of Illinois, to be
General Counsel, and William J. Brennan, of Maine, to be Assistant Secretary
for Oceans and Atmosphere, both of the Department of Commerce, after each
nominee testified and answered questions in their own behalf.
PUBLIC UTILITY HOLDING COMPANY ACT
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the adequacy of state and federal regulatory structures for governing
electric utility holding companies relating to the repeal of the Public
Utility Holding Company Act in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (Public Law
109-58), after receiving testimony from Senator Feingold; Joseph T. Kelliher,
Chairman, and Philip D. Moeller, Jon Wellinghoff, Suedeen G. Kelly, and Marc
Spitzer, each a Commissioner, all of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission;
Mark Gaffigan, Director, Natural Resources and Environment, Government
Accountability Office; James Y. Kerr II, North Carolina Utilities Commission,
Raleigh, on behalf of the National Association of Regulatory Utility
Commissioners; David K. Owens, Edison Electric Institute, Washington, D.C.;
and Scott Hempling, National Regulatory Research Institute, Silver Spring,
Maryland.
MILITARY BUILD-UP ON GUAM
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the military build-up on Guam, focusing on the impact on the civilian
community, planning, and response, after receiving testimony from Madeleine Z.
Bordallo, Delegate from Guam; Guam Governor Felix P. Camacho, Hagatna; David
F. Bice, Executive Director, Joint Guam Program Office, Assistant Secretary of
the Navy for Installations and Environment, Department of Defense; Nikolao I.
Pula, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Insular Affairs;
and Brian J. Lepore, Director, Defense Capabilities and Management, Government
Accountability Office.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of Robert Stephen Beecroft, of California, to be Ambassador to the
Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, James B. Cunningham, of New York, to be
Ambassador to Israel, Richard E. Hoagland, of the District of Columbia, to be
Ambassador to the Republic of Kazakhstan, and Joseph Evan LeBaron, of Oregon,
to be Ambassador to the State of Qatar, all of the Department of State, after
each nominee testified and answered questions in their own behalf.
CHILDHOOD INJURY PREVENTION
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine preventing childhood accidental injury, after receiving
testimony from Ileana Arias, Director, National Center for Injury Prevention
and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Department of Health
and Human Services; Alan Korn, Safe Kids USA, and Meri-K Appy, Home Safety
Council, both of Washington, D.C.; Amber N. Williams, State and Territorial
Injury Prevention Directors Association, Atlanta, Georgia; and Justin Bruns,
Baltimore, Maryland.
INDIAN ENERGY DEVELOPMENT
Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to
examine Indian energy development, focusing on regaining self-determination
over reservation resources, after receiving testimony from Robert W.
Middleton, Director, Office of Indian Energy and Economic Development, Office
of the Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs, Department of the Interior; Steven
J. Morello, Director, Office of Indian Energy Policy and Programs, Department
of Energy; Marcus D. Wells, Jr., Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold
Indian Reservation, New Town, North Dakota; Carl Venne, Crow Nation, Crow
Agency, Montana; Steven C. Begay, Dine Power Authority (DPA), Window Rock,
Arizona; and Julie Kitka, Alaska Federation of Natives, Anchorage.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of G. Steven Agee, of Virginia, to be United States Circuit Judge
for the Fourth Circuit, who was introduced by Senators Warner and Webb,
William T. Lawrence, to be United States District Judge for the Southern
District of Indiana, who was introduced by Senators Lugar and Bayh, and G.
Murray Snow, to be United States District Judge for the District of Arizona,
who was introduced by Senator Kyl, after each nominee testified and answered
questions in their own behalf.
BUSINESS MEETING
Select Committee on Intelligence : Committee ordered favorably reported an
original bill to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2009 for
intelligence and intelligence-related activities of the United States
Government, the Community Management Account, and the Central Intelligence
Agency Retirement and Disability System.
[Page: D534]
Joint Meetings
IMPACT OF HIGH FOOD PRICES
Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the ways
that high food prices are impacting American families, after receiving
testimony from Joseph Glauber, Chief Economist, Department of Agriculture;
George Braley, America's Second Harvest, and Tom Buis, National Farmers Union,
both of Washington, D.C.; and Richard Reinwald, Reinwald's Bakery, Huntington,
New York, on behalf of the Retail Bakers of America and the American Bakers
Association.
FARM BILL EXTENSION ACT
Conferees met to resolve the differences between the Senate and House passed
versions of H.R. 2419, to provide for the continuation of agricultural
programs through fiscal year 2012, but did not complete action thereon, and
recessed subject to the call.
2008/05/02
Daily Digest - Friday, May 2, 2008; pages D539 - D544
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
[Page: D540]
Joint Meetings
EMPLOYMENT
Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
employment-unemployment situation for April 2008, after receiving testimony
from Keith Hall, Commissioner, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Department of
Labor.
2008/05/05
Daily Digest - Monday, May 5, 2008; pages D545 - D548
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/05/06
Daily Digest - Tuesday, May 6, 2008; pages D549 - D558
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
NATIONAL MARINE SANCTUARIES
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Oceans,
Atmosphere, Fisheries, and Coast Guard concluded an oversight hearing to
examine the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, including H.R.
1187, to expand the boundaries of the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine
Sanctuary and the Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary, and S. 2281, to
expand the boundaries of the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary and
Underwater Preserve, after receiving testimony from Senator Levin; Vice
Admiral Conrad Lautenbacher, Jr., USN (Ret.), Under Secretary of Commerce for
Oceans and Atmosphere, and Administrator, National Ocean and Atmospheric
Administration; Jefferson Gray, Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary and
Underwater Preserve, Alpena, Michigan; Susan L. Williams, University of
California-Davis, Bodega Bay; and Kathy Fosmark, Alliance of Communities for
Sustainable Fisheries, Monterey, California.
PERCHLORATE AND TCE IN WATER
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine perchlorate and trichloroethylene (TCE) in water, including S. 24, to
amend the Safe Drinking Water Act to require a health advisory and monitoring
of drinking water for perchlorate, after receiving testimony from Benjamin H.
Grumbles, Assistant Administrator for Water, Environmental Protection Agency;
George V. Alexeeff, California Environmental Protection Agency Office of
Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, Sacramento; Michael G. Baker, Ohio
Environmental Protection Agency Division of Drinking and Ground Waters,
Columbus, on behalf of the Association of State Drinking Water Administrators;
Carol Rowan West, Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection Office
of Research and Standards, Boston; New York State Representative Donna A.
Lupardo, Albany; Gail Charnley, HealthRisk Strategies, and Richard Wiles,
Environmental Working Group, both of Washington, D.C.; and David G. Hoel,
Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston.
[Page: D551]
HEALTH CARE REFORM
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine seizing the new
opportunity for health care reform, after receiving testimony from Donna E.
Shalala, University of Miami, Miami, Florida, and Tommy G. Thompson, Logistics
Health, Inc., Washington, D.C., both former Secretaries of Health and Human
Services.
INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION ON HOLOCAUST ERA INSURANCE CLAIMS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
International Commission on Holocaust Era Insurance Claims (ICHEIC), after
receiving testimony from Anna B. Rubin, New York State Banking Department
Holocaust Claims Processing Office, Roman Kent, American Gathering of Jewish
Holocaust Survivors and Their Descendants, and Thane Rosenbaum, Fordham Law
School, all of New York, New York; Jack Rubin, Holocaust Survivors of West
Palm Beach, Boynton Beach, Florida; Lawrence S. Eagleburger, former Secretary
of State and former Chairman, International Commission on Holocaust Era
Insurance Claims, Charlottesville,Virginia; Stuart E. Eizenstat, Covington and
Burling LLP, former Special Representative of the President and Secretary of
State on Holocaust Issues, Washington, D.C.; and Samuel J. Dubbin, Dubbin and
Kravetz, LLP, Miami, Florida.
FORECLOSURE CRISIS
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Administrative Oversight and the
Courts concluded a hearing to examine policing lenders and protecting
homeowners, focusing on the current housing foreclosure crisis, after
receiving testimony from Clifford J. White, III, Director, Executive Office
for United States Trustees, Department of Justice; Steve Bailey, Countrywide
Financial Corporation, Simi Valley, California; Debra Miller, Standing Chapter
13 Trustee, South Bend, Indiana; Katherine Porter, University of Iowa College
of Law, Iowa City; and Robin Atchley, Ballground, Georgia.
NOMINATION
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nomination of Michael E. Leiter, of the District of Columbia, to be Director
of the National Counterterrorism Center, Office of the Director of National
Intelligence, after the nominee, who was introduced by former Senator Robb,
testified and answered questions in his own behalf.
Joint Meetings
ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL SECURITY
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Commission concluded a
hearing to examine oil and food prices relative to the link between energy and
environmental security, focusing on the role that environmental technologies
can play in increasing energy security while combating climate change by
reducing demand on hydrocarbon resources, after receiving testimony from
Richard Bradley, International Energy Agency, Paris, France; Jonathan
Pershing, World Resources Institute, and Jetta Wong, Environmental and Energy
Study Institute, both of Washington, D.C.; Justin M. Lee, Nexsun Energy, Inc.,
Los Angeles, California; and Alex Marker, SCHOTT North America, Duryea,
Pennsylvania.
2008/05/07
Daily Digest - Wednesday, May 7, 2008; pages D559 - D572
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services,
Education, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget
estimates for fiscal year 2009 for the Department of Labor, after receiving
testimony from Elaine L. Chao, Secretary of Labor.
APPROPRIATIONS: UNITED STATES INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense concluded a closed
hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2009 for the
United States intelligence community, after receiving testimony from Mike
McConnell, Director, National Intelligence; and James Clapper, Jr., Under
Secretary for Intelligence, Department of Defense.
APPROPRIATIONS: COMMODITY FUTURES TRADING COMMISSION AND THE SECURITIES AND
EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Financial Services and General
Government concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal
year 2009 for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and
Exchange Commission, after receiving testimony from Walter L. Lukken, Acting
Chairman, Commodity Futures Trading Commission; and former Representative
Christopher Cox, Chairman, United States Securities and Exchange Commission.
REGULATION OF INVESTMENT BANKS
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on Securities,
Insurance and Investment concluded a hearing to examine United States credit
markets, focusing on the regulation of investment banks by the United States
Securities and Exchange Commission, after receiving testimony from Erik Sirri,
Director, Division of Trading and Markets, and Arthur Levitt, Jr. and David S.
Ruder, both former Chairmen, all of the United States Securities and Exchange
Commission.
NASA REAUTHORIZATION
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Space,
Aeronautics, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine issues
relative to the upcoming reauthorization of the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA), after receiving testimony from Gene Kranz, Coalition
for Space Exploration, Seabrook, Texas; Joan Johnson-Freese, Naval War College
National Security Decision Making Department, Newport, Rhode Island; Frederick
A. Tarantino, Universities Space Research Association, Columbia, Maryland;
Major General Robert Dickman, USAF (Ret.), American Institute of Aeronautics
and Astronautics (AIAA), Reston, Virginia; and George T. Whitesides, National
Space Society, Washington, D.C.
AIRLINE MERGER
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Aviation
Operations, Safety, and Security concluded a hearing to examine the financial
state of the airline industry, focusing on the impact of the Delta Airlines,
Inc.-Northwest Airlines, Inc., merger, after receiving testimony from Richard
H. Anderson, Delta Air Lines, Inc., Atlanta, Georgia; Mark Cooper, Consumer
Federation of America, on behalf of Consumers Union, Patricia A. Friend,
Association of Flight Attendants--CWA, AFL-CIO, and Patrick V. Murphy, Jr.,
Gerchick-Murphy Associates, LLC, all of Washington, D.C.; Ray Neidl, Caylon
Securities, New York, New York; Robert Roach, Jr., International Association
of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, Upper Marlboro, Maryland; and Douglas M.
Steenland, Northwest Airlines, Inc., Saint Paul, Minnesota.
[Page: D562]
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee ordered favorably
reported:
S. 27, to authorize the implementation of the San Joaquin River Restoration
Settlement, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 570, to designate additional National Forest System lands in the State of
Virginia as wilderness or a wilderness study area, to designate the Kimberling
Creek Potential Wilderness Area for eventual incorporation in the Kimberling
Creek Wilderness, to establish the Seng Mountain and Bear Creek Scenic Areas,
to provide for the development of trail plans for the wilderness areas and
scenic areas, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 617, to make the National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass
available at a discount to certain veterans, with an amendment in the nature
of a substitute;
S. 662, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special
resource study to evaluate resources at the Harriet Beecher Stowe House in
Brunswick, Maine, to determine the suitability and feasibility of establishing
the site as a unit of the National Park System, with an amendment in the
nature of a substitute;
S. 783, to adjust the boundary of the Barataria Preserve Unit of the Jean
Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve in the State of Louisiana, with
an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 827, to establish the Freedom's Way National Heritage Area in the States of
Massachusetts and New Hampshire, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
S. 832, to provide for the sale of approximately 25 acres of public land to
the Turnabout Ranch, Escalante, Utah, at fair market value, with an amendment;
S. 868, to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate segments of the
Taunton River in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as a component of the
National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
S. 900, to authorize the Boy Scouts of America to exchange certain land in the
State of Utah acquired under the Recreation and Public Purposes Act, with an
amendment;
S. 1171, to amend the Colorado River Storage Project Act and Public Law 87-483
to authorize the construction and rehabilitation of water infrastructure in
Northwestern New Mexico, to authorize the use of the reclamation fund to fund
the Reclamation Water Settlements Fund, to authorize the conveyance of certain
Reclamation land and infrastructure, to authorize the Commissioner of
Reclamation to provide for the delivery of water, with an amendment in the
nature of a substitute;
S. 1281, to amend the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act to designate certain rivers
and streams of the headwaters of the Snake River System as additions to the
National Wild and Scenic Rivers System, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
S. 1380, to designate as wilderness certain land within the Rocky Mountain
National Park and to adjust the boundaries of the Indian Peaks Wilderness and
the Arapaho National Recreation Area of the Arapaho National Forest in the
State of Colorado, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 1633, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a special
resource study to determine the suitability and feasibility of including the
battlefield and related sites of the Battle of Shepherdstown in Shepherdstown,
West Virginia, as part of Harpers Ferry National Historical Park or Antietam
National Battlefield, with an amendment;
S. 1929, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the
Commissioner of Reclamation, to conduct a feasibility study of water
augmentation alternatives in the Sierra Vista Subwatershed;
S. 2124, to direct the Secretary of Agriculture to convey certain land in the
Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest, Montana, to Jefferson County, Montana,
for use as a cemetery;
S. 2207, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to study the suitability and
feasibility of designating Green McAdoo School in Clinton, Tennessee, as a
unit of the National Park System, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
S. 2229, to withdraw certain Federal land in the Wyoming Range from leasing
and provide an opportunity to retire certain leases in the Wyoming Range, with
an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 2254, to establish the Mississippi Hills National Heritage Area in the
State of Mississippi, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 2262, to authorize the Preserve America Program and Save America's
Treasures Program, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 2370, to clear title to certain real property in New Mexico associated with
the Middle Rio Grande Project;
S. 2379, to authorize the Secretary of Interior to cancel certain grazing
leases on land in Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument that are voluntarily
waived by the lessees, to provide for the exchange of certain Monument land in
exchange for private land, to designate certain Monument land as wilderness,
with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
[Page: D563]
S. 2512, to establish the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area in the
State of Mississippi, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 2513, to modify the boundary of the Minute Man National Historical Park;
S. 2593, to establish a program at the Forest Service and the Department of
the Interior to carry out collaborative ecological restoration treatments for
priority forest landscapes on public land, with an amendment in the nature of
a substitute;
S. 2604, to establish the Baltimore National Heritage Area in the State of
Maryland, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 2804, to adjust the boundary of the Everglades National Park, with an
amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 2814, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to provide financial
assistance to the Eastern New Mexico Rural Water Authority for the planning,
design, and construction of the Eastern New Mexico Rural Water System;
S. 2833, to provide for the management of certain public land in Owyhee
County, Idaho, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
H.R. 123, to authorize appropriations for the San Gabriel Basin Restoration
Fund;
H.R. 189, to establish the Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park in
the State of New Jersey, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
H.R. 356, to remove certain restrictions on the Mammoth Community Water
District's ability to use certain property acquired by that District from the
United States, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
H.R. 523, to require the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain public
land located wholly or partially within the boundaries of the Wells
Hydroelectric Project of Public Utility District No. 1 of Douglas County,
Washington, to the utility district;
H.R. 1285, to provide for the conveyance of a parcel of National Forest System
land in Kittitas County, Washington, to facilitate the construction of a new
fire and rescue station;
H.R. 1311, to provide for the conveyance of the Alta-Hualapai Site to the
Nevada Cancer Institute;
H.R. 1483, to amend the Onmibus Parks and Public Lands Management Act of 1996
to extend the authorization for certain national heritage areas, with an
amendment in the nature of a substitute;
H.R. 1528, to amend the National Trails System Act to designate the New
England National Scenic Trail, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
H.R. 1725, to amend the Reclamation Wastewater and Groundwater Study and
Facilities Act to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to participate in
the Rancho California Water District Southern Riverside County
Recycle/Non-Potable Distribution Facilities and Demineralization/Desalination
Recycled Water Treatment Facility Project;
H.R. 1855, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the
Bureau of Reclamation to enter into a cooperative agreement with the Madera
Irrigation District for purposes of supporting the Madera Water Supply
Enhancement Project;
H.R. 2085, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to convey to the McGee
Creek Authority certain facilities of the McGee Creek Project, Oklahoma;
H.R. 2197, to modify the boundary of the Hopewell Culture National Historical
Park in the State of Ohio;
H.R. 2515, to authorize appropriations for the Bureau of Reclamation to carry
out the Lower Colorado River Multi-Species Conservation Program in the States
of Arizona, California, and Nevada, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
H.R. 2627, to establish the Thomas Edison National Historical Park in the
State of New Jersey as the successor to the Edison National Historic Site,
with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
H.R. 3332, to provide for the establishment of a memorial within Kalaupapa
National Historical Park located on the island of Molokai, in the State of
Hawaii, to honor and perpetuate the memory of those individuals who were
forcibly relocated to the Kalaupapa Peninsula from 1866 to 1969;
H.R. 3998, to establish a National Commission on the Infrastructure of the
United States, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
H.R. 5151, to designate as wilderness additional National Forest System Lands
in the Monongahela National Forest in the State of West Virginia, with
amendments; and
The nominations of Kameran L. Onley, of Washington, to be an Assistant
Secretary of the Interior, and Jeffrey F. Kupfer, of Maryland, to be Deputy
Secretary of Energy.
SCIENCE AND ENVIRONMENTAL REGULATORY DECISIONS
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on Public Sector
Solutions to Global Warming, Oversight, and Children's Health Protection
concluded an oversight hearing to examine science and environmental regulatory
decisions, after receiving testimony from George Gray, Assistant Administrator
for Research and Development, Environmental Protection Agency; Francesca T.
Grifo, Union of Concerned Scientists, David Michaels, George Washington
University Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, and John M.
Balbus, Environmental Defense Fund, all of Washington, D.C.; Paul Gilman,
Covanta Energy, Fairfield, New Jersey; George D. Thurston, New York University
School of Medicine, Tuxedo, New York, on behalf of the American Lung
Association; Lorenz R. Rhomberg, Gradient Corporation, Cambridge,
Massachusetts; and Roger O. McClellan, Albuquerque, New Mexico.
[Page: D564]
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of Marcia Stephens Bloom Bernicat, of New Jersey, to be Ambassador
to the Republic of Senegal, and to serve concurrently and without additional
compensation as Ambassador to the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, Gillian Arlette
Milovanovic, of Pennsylvania, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Mali, who
was introduced by Representative Pomeroy, Donald Gene Teitelbaum, of Texas, to
be Ambassador to the Republic of Ghana, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, of Louisiana,
to be Ambassador to the Republic of Liberia, Peter William Bodde, of Maryland,
to be Ambassador to the Republic of Malawi, Donald E. Booth, of Virginia, to
be Ambassador to the Republic of Zambia, Marianne Matuzic Myles, of New York,
to be Ambassador to the Republic of Cape Verde, Stephen James Nolan, of
Virginia, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Botswana, and Patricia McMahon
Hawkins, of Virginia, to be Ambassador to the Togolese Republic, all of the
Department of State, after the nominees testified and answered questions in
their own behalf.
TREATIES
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism (the
"Convention"), adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on April 13,
2005, and signed on behalf of the United States of America on September 14,
2005 (Treaty Doc. 110-04), Amendment to the Convention on the Physical
Protection of Nuclear Material (the "Amendment"). A conference of States
Parties to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material,
adopted on October 28, 1979, adopted the Amendment on July 8, 2005, at the
International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna (Treaty Doc. 110-06), and the
Protocol of 2005 to the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts
against the Safety of Maritime Navigation (the "2005 SUA Protocol") and the
Protocol of 2005 to the Protocol for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against
the Safety of Fixed Platforms Located on the Continental Shelf (the "2005
Fixed Platforms Protocol") (together, "the Protocols"), adopted by the
International Maritime Organization Diplomatic Conference in London on October
14, 2005, and signed by the United States of America on February 17, 2006
(Treaty Doc. 110-08), after receiving testimony from John C. Demers, Deputy
Assistant Attorney General, National Security Division, Department of Justice;
Patricia A. McNerney, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for
International Security and Nonproliferation; and Richard Douglas, Deputy
Assistant Secretary of Defense for Counter-Narcotics, Counter-Proliferation
and Global Threats.
FUEL SUBSIDIES
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine fuel subsidies relating to food supply and prices, after
receiving testimony from Andrew Siegel, When Pigs Fly, Inc., York, Maine;
Bruce A. Babcock, Iowa State University Center for Agricultural and Rural
Development, Ames; and David Beckmann, Bread for the World, and Mark W.
Rosegrant, International Food Policy Research Institute, both of Washington,
D.C.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded open and closed hearings to
examine the nominations of Helene N. White, and Raymond M. Kethledge, both of
Michigan, each to be a United States Circuit Judge for the Sixth Circuit, and
Stephen Joseph Murphy, III, to be United States District Judge for the Eastern
District of Michigan, who were introduced by Senators Levin and Stabenow,
after each nominee testified and answered questions in their own behalf.
ANTITRUST ENFORCEMENT IN AGRICULTURE
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and
Consumer Rights concluded a hearing to examine antitrust enforcement in the
agriculture marketplace, focusing on recent acquisitions, challenges and
opportunities in international markets, major technological changes, and major
concerns of the business relationships between the producers and processors,
including S. 1759, to provide for the review of agricultural mergers and
acquisitions by the Department of Justice, after receiving testimony from
Douglas Ross, Special Counsel for Agriculture, Antitrust Division, Department
of Justice; Peter C. Carstensen, University of Wisconsin Law School, Madison;
Wesley M. Batista, JBS Swift and Company, Greeley, Colorado; Steven D. Hunt,
United States Premium Beef, Ltd., Kansas City, Missouri; Bill Bullard,
Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund, United Stockgrowers of America (R-CALF
USA), Billings, Montana; Dillon M. Feuz, Utah State University, Logan; Michael
Stumo, Organization for Competitive Markets, Lincoln, Nebraska; and David A.
Balto, Center for American Progress, Washington, D.C.
[Page: D565]
VETERANS BENEFITS LEGISLATION
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
pending veterans benefits legislation, including S. 22, to amend title 38,
United States Code, to establish a program of educational assistance for
members of the Armed Forces who serve in the Armed Forces after September 11,
2001, S. 961, to amend title 46, United States Code, to provide benefits to
certain individuals who served in the United States merchant marine (including
the Army Transport Service and the Naval Transport Service) during World War
II, and S. 2674, to amend titles 10 and 38, United States Code, to improve and
enhance procedures for the retirement of members of the Armed Forces for
disability and to improve and enhance authorities for the rating and
compensation of service-connected disabilities in veterans, after receiving
testimony from Senators Nelson (NE) and Thune; Representative Filner; Keith R.
Pedigo, Associate Deputy Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs for Policy and
Program Management; Carl Blake, Paralyzed Veterans of America, and Richard
Paul Cohen, National Organization of Veterans' Advocates, Inc., both of
Washington, D.C.; Eric A. Hilleman, Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United
States, Kansas City, Missouri; Raymond C. Kelley, AMVETS, Lanham, Maryland;
Steve Smithson, American Legion, Indianapolis, Indiana; Joseph A. Violante,
Disabled American Veterans, Cold Spring, Kentucky; Richard Weidman, Vietnam
Veterans of America, Silver Spring, Maryland; H. Gerald Starnes, Saint
Augustine, Florida; and Charles Dana Gibson, Camden, Maine.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/05/08
Daily Digest - Thursday, May 8, 2008; pages D573 - D584
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: ARMY AND AIR FORCE
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans'
Affairs, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget
estimates for fiscal year 2009 for the United States Army and Air Force, after
receiving testimony from Keith E. Eastin, Assistant Secretary for
Installations and Environment, Lieutenant General Robert Wilson, U.S. Army
Assistant Chief of Staff, Installation Management, Major General Raymond W.
Carpenter, Special Assistant to the Director, Army National Guard, and
Brigadier General Julia Ann Kraus, Deputy Chief, Army Reserve, all of the
Department of the Army, and Kathleen I. Ferguson, Deputy Assistant Secretary
for Installations, Brigadier General James Rubeor, Deputy to the Chief of the
Air Force Reserve, and Brigadier General Stanley Clarke III, Deputy Director,
Air National Guard, all of the Department of the Air Force, all of the
Department of Defense.
FUTUREGEN PROGRAM
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
concluded a hearing to examine the Department of Energy's decision to
restructure the FutureGen program and obtain information about the elements of
the original and revised approaches to advance carbon capture and storage
technologies, after receiving testimony from Samuel W. Bodman, Secretary of
Energy; and Paul Thompson, FutureGen Alliance, Washington, D.C.
U.S. CLIMATE MODELING
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded a
hearing on improving the capacity of United States climate modeling--using
quantitative methods to simulate the interactions of the atmosphere, oceans,
land surface, and ice to project the future climate, after receiving testimony
from Alexander MacDonald, Deputy Assistant Administrator for Laboratories and
Cooperative Institutes, Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research, National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce; James J. Hack,
Director, National Center for Computational Sciences, Oak Ridge National
Laboratory; Bruce K. Carlisle, Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and
Environmental Affairs, Boston; Daniel A. Reed, Computing Research Association
(CRA), Redmond, Washington; Edward Sarachik, University of Washington,
Seattle; and John E. Walsh, University of Alaska, Fairbanks.
MOVEMENT OF GOODS
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the importance to the economy of the United States of the efficient
movement of goods on the nation's highways and to explore ways to improve the
efficiency, after receiving testimony from Michael Gallis, Michael Gallis and
Associates, Charlotte, North Carolina; Charles Potts, Heritage Construction
and Materials, Indianapolis, Indiana, on behalf of the American Road and
Transportation Builders Association; and Mortimer Downey, Coalition for
America's Gateways and Trade Corridors, Washington, D.C.
SOCIAL SECURITY FIELD OFFICES
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine Social Security
field offices, focusing on the resources and workforce needed to deliver
quality service to the public, after receiving testimony from Barbara D.
Bovbjerg, Director, Education, Workforce, and Income Security, Government
Accountability Office; Linda S. McMahon, Deputy Commissioner for Operations,
Social Security Administration; Richard E. Warsinskey, National Council of
Social Security Management Associations, Inc., Washington, D.C.; and Witold
Skwierczynski, American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), Baltimore,
Maryland.
NEXT GENERATION OF FEDERAL EMPLOYEES
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of
Columbia concluded a hearing to examine recruiting and hiring the next
generation of federal employees, after receiving testimony from Robert N.
Goldenkoff, Director, Strategic Issues, Government Accountability Office;
Angela Bailey, Deputy Associate Director for Talent and Capacity Policy,
United States Office of Personnel Management; John Crum, Acting Director,
Office of Policy and Evaluation, United States Merit Systems Protection Board;
James F. McDermott, Director, Office of Human Resources, United States Nuclear
Regulatory Commission; John Gage, American Federation of Government Employees
(AFGE), AFL-CIO, Colleen M. Kelley, National Treasury Employees Union, Max
Stier, Partnership for Public Service, and Dan Solomon, Virilion, Inc., all of
Washington, D.C.; and Donna Mathews, Hewitt Associates, LLC, Falls Church,
Virginia.
[Page: D576]
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee ordered
favorably reported the nominations of Nanci E. Langley, of Virginia, to be a
Commissioner of the Postal Regulatory Commission, and Andrew Saul, of New
York, Alejandro Modesto Sanchez, of Florida, and Gordon James Whiting, of New
York, each to be a Member of the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board.
FIGHTING CANCER
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine cancer relating to challenges and opportunities in the 21st
century, after receiving testimony from Elizabeth Edwards, Center for American
Progress, Steve Case, Revolution LLC, and Gregory C. Simon, FasterCures, all
of Washington, D.C.; Lance Armstrong, Lance Armstrong Foundation, Austin,
Texas; Edward J. Benz, Jr., Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston,
Massachusetts; and Hala Moddelmog, Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Dallas, Texas.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
S. 2840, to establish a liaison with the Federal Bureau of Investigation in
United States Citizenship and Immigration Services to expedite naturalization
applications filed by members of the Armed Forces and to establish a deadline
for processing such applications, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
S. 2504, to amend title 36, United States Code, to grant a Federal charter to
the Military Officers Association of America; and
S. Res. 537, commemorating and acknowledging the dedication and sacrifice made
by the men and women who have lost their lives while serving as law
enforcement officers.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the intelligence
community.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
Joint Meetings
RUSSIAN FEDERATION PRESIDENT
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Commission concluded a
hearing to examine the future administration of the President of the Russian
Federation Dmitri Medvedev, focusing on the United States and Russia's
relationship, after receiving testimony from Daniel Fried, Assistant Secretary
of State for European and Eurasian Affairs; Celeste A. Wallander, Georgetown
University Center for Eurasian, Russian and East European Studies, and Stephen
Blank, United States Army War College Strategic Studies Institute, both of
Washington, D.C.; and David Foglesong, Rutgers University Department of
History, New Brunswick, New Jersey.
2008/05/12
Daily Digest - Monday, May 12, 2008; pages D586 - D588
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
Joint Meetings
No joint committee meetings were held.
2008/05/13
Daily Digest - Tuesday, May 13, 2008; pages D589 - D596
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
TRANSPORTATION SECURITY ADMINISTRATION BUDGET
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded an
oversight hearing to examine the President's proposed budget request for
fiscal year 2009 for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), after
receiving testimony from Kip Hawley, Assistant Secretary for Homeland
Security, Transportation Security Administration; and Cathleen A. Berrick,
Director, Homeland Security and Justice Issues, Government Accountability
Office.
CLIMATE CHANGE IN COASTAL REGIONS
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the impacts of climate change on the reliability, security, economics,
and design of critical energy infrastructure in coastal regions of the United
States, after receiving testimony from Thomas J. Wilbanks, Oak Ridge National
Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and Terry Wallace, Los Alamos National
Laboratory, Los Alamos, New Mexico, both of the Department of Energy; Virginia
Burkett, Chief Scientist for Global Change Research, United States Geological
Survey, Department of the Interior; Lisa Polak Edgar, Florida Public Service
Commission, Tallahassee; Charles T. Drevna, National Petrochemical and
Refiners Association, Washington, D.C.; and Ted Falgout, Port Fourchon,
Galliano, Louisiana.
MERCURY LEGISLATION
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine proposed legislation on mercury, including S. 2643, to amend the Clean
Air Act to require the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency to
promulgate regulations to control hazardous air pollutant emissions from
electric utility steam generating units, S. 906, to prohibit the sale,
distribution, transfer, and export of elemental mercury, and H.R. 1534, to
prohibit certain sales, distributions, and transfers of elemental mercury, to
prohibit the export of elemental mercury, after receiving testimony from
Robert J. Meyers, Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator, Office of Air and
Radiation, Environmental Protection Agency; Lisa P. Jackson, New Jersey
Department of Environmental Protection, Trenton; Michael D. Durham, ADA
Environmental Solutions, on behalf of the Institute of Clean Air Companies,
and Linda E. Greer, Natural Resources Defense Council, both of Washington,
D.C.; Steven A. Benson, University of North Dakota Energy and Environmental
Research Center, Grand Forks; Leonard Levin, Electric Power Research
Institute, Palo Alto, California; Vickie Patton, Environmental Defense Fund,
Boulder, Colorado; and Arthur E. Dungan, Chlorine Institute, Inc., Arlington,
Virginia.
[Page: D591]
TAX REFORM
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine individual
income tax reform, focusing on the efficacy of the tax system relative to the
current laws for businesses, individuals, and government agencies, after
receiving testimony from Leonard E. Burman, Urban Institute, William G. Gale,
Brookings Institution, Stephen J. Entin, Institute for Research on the
Economics of Taxation, and J.D. Foster, Heritage Foundation, all of
Washington, D.C.
COMMITTEE ORGANIZATION
Committee on Foreign Relations : On February 13, 2008, Committee announced the
following subcommittee assignments:
Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere, Peace Corps, and Narcotics Affairs :
Senators Dodd (Chairman), Kerry, Nelson (FL), Menendez, Webb, Corker, Isakson,
Coleman, and Barrasso;
Subcommittee on Near Eastern and South and Central Asian Affairs : Senators
Kerry (Chairman), Dodd, Feingold, Boxer, Cardin, Coleman, Hagel, Voinovich,
and Barrasso;
Subcommittee on African Affairs : Senators Feingold (Chairman), Nelson (FL),
Obama, Cardin, Webb, Isakson, Coleman, Vitter, and Hagel;
Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific Affairs : Senators Boxer (Chairman),
Kerry, Feingold, Obama, Webb, Murkowski, Isakson, Vitter, and Hagel;
Subcommittee on International Operations and Organizations, Democracy, and
Human Rights : Senators Nelson (FL) (Chairman), Feingold, Menendez, Casey,
Webb, Vitter, Voinovich, DeMint, and Barrasso;
Subcommittee on European Affairs : Senators Obama (Chairman), Dodd, Menendez,
Cardin, Casey, DeMint, Voinovich, Corker, and Murkowski; and
Subcommittee on International Development and Foreign Assistance, Economic
Affairs, and International Environmental Protection : Senators Menendez
(Chairman), Kerry, Boxer, Obama, Casey, Hagel, Corker, Murkowski, and DeMint.
Senators Biden and Lugar are ex officio members of each Subcommittee.
SUDAN
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee met in closed session to receive a
briefing to examine United States policy toward Sudan from Richard Williamson,
President's Special Envoy to Sudan, Department of State.
INDIAN SELF-DETERMINATION AND EDUCATION ASSISTANCE ACT
Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to
examine the successes and shortfalls of Title IV of the Indian
Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (P.L. 93-638), focusing on
twenty years of tribal self-governance, after receiving testimony from James
Cason, Associate Deputy Secretary of the Interior; W. Ron Allen, Jamestown
S'Klallam Tribe, Sequim, Washington; Clifford Lyle Marshall, Hoopa Valley
Tribe, Hoopa, California; James Steele, Jr., Confederated Salish and Kootenai
Tribes of the Flathead Indian Reservation, Pablo, Montana; and Gene Peltola,
Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation, Bethel, Alaska.
BULLETPROOF VEST PARTNERSHIP PROGRAM
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
Bulletproof Vest Partnership program, focusing on protecting the nation's law
enforcement officers, including a bill entitled, "The Bulletproof Vest
Partnership Grant Reauthorization Act", after receiving testimony from Michael
C. Macarilla, Vermont State Police, Waterbury; and David F. Azur, Baltimore
Police Department, Baltimore, Maryland.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence : Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the intelligence
community.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
[Page: D592]
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/05/14
Daily Digest - Wednesday, May 14, 2008; pages D597 - D606
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: NATIONAL GUARD AND RESERVE
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense concluded a hearing to
examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2009, after receiving
testimony in behalf of funds for their respective activities from Lieutenant
General John A. Bradley, Chief of Air Force Reserve, Vice Admiral John G.
Cotton, Chief of Navy Reserve, Lieutenant General Jack C. Stultz, Commander of
Army Reserve, Lieutenant General Jack W. Bergman, United States Marine Corps
Reserve, Commander, Marine Forces Reserve, Lieutenant General H. Steven Blum,
Chief, National Guard Bureau, Lieutenant General Clyde Vaughn, Director of the
Army National Guard, and Lieutenant General Craig McKinley, Director of the
Air National Guard, all of the Department of Defense.
APPROPRIATIONS: FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Financial Services and General
Government concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal
year 2009 for the Federal Trade Commission, after receiving testimony from
William E. Kovacic, Chairman, and Jon Leibowitz, Commissioner, both of the
Federal Trade Commission.
PLASTIC ADDITIVES IN CONSUMER PRODUCTS
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Consumer
Affairs, Insurance, and Automotive Safety concluded a hearing to examine
plastic additives in consumer products, focusing on bisphenol-A and
phthalates, after receiving testimony from Senator Schumer; Norris Alderson,
Associate Commissioner for Science, Food and Drug Administration, Department
of Health and Human Services; Marilyn Wind, Deputy Associate Executive,
Director for Health Sciences, Consumer Product Safety Commission; J.P. Myers,
Environmental Health Sciences, Charlottesville, Virginia; Elizabeth Hitchcock,
United States Public Interest Research Group, Washington, D.C.; and Steven G.
Hentges, American Chemistry Council, Arlington, Virginia.
[Page: D599]
GLOBAL FOOD CRISIS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
responding to the global food crisis, after receiving testimony from Henrietta
H. Fore, Director, United States Foreign Assistance and Administrator, United
States Agency for International Development (USAID); Edward P. Lazear,
Chairman, Council of Economic Advisers; Josette Sheeran, United Nations World
Food Programme, Rome, Italy; and Peter McPherson, National Association of
State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges, former Administrator of USAID, and
James R. Lyons, Oxfam America, both of Washington, D.C.
NOMINATION
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the nomination of Paul A. Schneider, of Maryland, to be
Deputy Secretary of Homeland Security, after the nominee testified and
answered questions in his own behalf.
NATIONAL ARCHIVES
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services, and
International Security concluded an oversight hearing to examine the National
Archives, focusing on protecting the history of the United States for future
generations, after receiving testimony from Allen Weinstein, Archivist of the
United States, and Paul Brachfeld, Inspector General, both of the National
Archives and Records Administration; Linda Koontz, Director, Information
Management Issues, Government Accountability Office; Patrice McDermott,
OpenTheGovernment.org, Thomas Blanton, George Washington University National
Security Archive, and Martin J. Sherwin, George Mason University, on behalf of
the National Coalition for History, all of Washington, D.C.; and James S.
Henderson, Society of American Archivists, Portland, Maine.
FOOD ALLERGIES IN CHILDREN
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Subcommittee on Children
and Families concluded a hearing addressing the challenge of children with
food allergies, after receiving testimony from Anthony S. Fauci, Director,
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of
Health, Department of Health and Human Services; Hugh A. Sampson, Mount Sinai
School of Medicine Jaffe Food Allergy Institute, New York, New York, on behalf
of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology; Donna Kosiorowski,
West Haven School District, Shelton, Connecticut, on behalf of the National
Association of School Nurses; Colene Birchfield, Ooltewah, Tennessee; and
Teresa Walters, Aurora, Colorado.
ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE
Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
future of Alzheimer's disease, focusing on current medical breakthroughs and
challenges, after receiving testimony from former Supreme Court Justice Sandra
Day O'Connor and former Speaker of the House of Representatives Newt Gingrich,
both of the Alzheimer's Study Group, Washington, D.C.; Rudolph E. Tanzi,
Massachusetts General Hospital Genetics and Aging Research Unit, Hull; Chuck
Jackson, Albany, Oregon; and Suzanne Carbone, Silver Spring, Maryland.
Joint Meetings
CREDIT CRISIS
Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the credit
crisis in the United States, focusing on ways the federal government can
prevent unnecessary systemic risks in the future, after receiving testimony
from Paul A. Volcker, former Chairman, Board of Governors of the Federal
Reserve System; and Douglas W. Elmendorf, Brookings Institution, Ellen
Seidman, New America Foundation, and Alex J. Pollock, American Enterprise
Institute, all of Washington, D.C.
2008/05/15
Daily Digest - Thursday, May 15, 2008; pages D607 - D618
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Appropriations: Committee ordered favorably reported a bill
providing emergency supplemental appropriations for fiscal year 2008, with
amendments.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee ordered
favorably reported the following:
S. 2685, to prohibit cigarette manufacturers from making claims or
representations based on data derived from the cigarette testing method
established by the Federal Trade Commission;
H.R. 1187, to expand the boundaries of the Gulf of the Farallones National
Marine Sanctuary and the Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary, with
amendments;
S. 2281, to expand the boundaries of the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary
and Underwater Preserve;
H.R. 1006, to amend the provisions of law relating to the John H. Prescott
Marine Mammal Rescue Assistance Grant Program, with an amendment in the nature
of a substitute;
S. 2997, to reauthorize the Maritime Administration, with amendments;
S. 2699, to require new vessels for carrying oil fuel to have double hulls,
with amendments; and
The nominations of Lily Fu Claffee, of Illinois, to be General Counsel, and
William J. Brennan, of Maine, to be Assistant Secretary for Oceans and
Atmosphere, both of the Department of Commerce.
OIL SHALE RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine development of oil shale resources, after receiving testimony from
Senators Hatch and Allard; C. Stephen Allred, Assistant Secretary of the
Interior for Land and Minerals Management; Colorado Governor Bill Ritter, Jr.,
Terry O'Connor, Shell Exploration and Production Company, and Steve Smith,
Wilderness Society, all of Denver, Colorado; and James V. Hansen, Oil Shale
Exploration Company, Farmington, Utah.
UNITED STATES-CHINA RELATIONS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee held a hearing to examine United
States-China relations in the era of globalization, receiving testimony from
John D. Negroponte, Deputy Secretary of State; Richard N. Haass, Council on
Foreign Relations, New York, New York; and Kurt Campbell, Center for a New
American Security, and Harry Harding, George Washington University, both of
Washington, D.C.
Hearing recessed subject to the call of the Chair.
MEDICAL CARE IN AFTERMATH OF NUCLEAR TERRORISM
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine nuclear terrorism, focusing on providing medical care and
meeting basic needs in the aftermath of an attack, after receiving testimony
from Irwin Redlener, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health
National Center for Disaster Preparedness, New York, New York; Ira Helfand,
Physicians for Social Responsibility, Leeds, Massachusetts; and Joseph C.
Becker, American Red Cross, and John Ullyot, Hill and Knowlton, Inc., both of
Washington, D.C.
STATE DEPARTMENT ROLE IN ARMS CONTROL
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of
Columbia concluded a hearing to examine the organizational structures of the
Department of State responsible for arms control, counterproliferation, and
nonproliferation, focusing on the processes they have in place for optimizing
national efforts, and how responsive those structures and processes are to the
Executive Branch's nonproliferation and counterproliferation policies, after
receiving testimony from Thomas Graham, Jr., former Acting Director, Bethesda,
Maryland, and Norman A. Wulf, former Deputy Assistant Director,
Nonproliferation and Arms Control, Fairfax, Virginia, both of the U.S. Arms
Control and Disarmament Agency; and Andrew K. Semmel, former Deputy Assistant
Secretary of State for Nuclear Nonproliferation Policy and Negotiations,
Arlington, Virginia.
[Page: D610]
NATIVE AMERICAN ISSUES
Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded a hearing to examine S. 1080,
to develop a program to acquire interests in land from eligible individuals
within the Crow Reservation in the State of Montana, H.R. 2120, to direct the
Secretary of the Interior to proclaim as reservation for the benefit of the
Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians a parcel of land now held in trust
by the United States for that Indian tribe, S. 2494, to provide for equitable
compensation to the Spokane Tribe of Indians of the Spokane Reservation for
the use of tribal land for the production of hydropower by the Grand Coulee
Dam, H.R. 2963, to transfer certain land in Riverside County, California, and
San Diego County, California, from the Bureau of Land Management to the United
States to be held in trust for the Pechanga Band of Luiseno Mission Indians,
and S. 531, to repeal section 10(f) of Public Law 93-531, commonly known as
the "Bennett Freeze", after receiving testimony from Jerry Gidner, Director,
Bureau of Indian Affairs, Department of the Interior; Richard Sherwood,
Spokane Tribe of Indians, Wellpinit, Washington; Carl Venne, Crow Nation, Crow
Agency, Montana; Mark Macarro, Pechanga Band of Luiseno Mission Indians,
Temecula, California; Aaron Payment, Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa
Indians, Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan; Benjamin H. Nuvamsa, Hopi Tribe,
Kykotsmovi, Arizona; and Raymond Maxx, Navajo Nation Council, Window Rock,
Arizona.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
S. 2913, to provide a limitation on judicial remedies in copyright
infringement cases involving orphan works, with an amendment in the nature of
a substitute;
S. 2511, to amend the grant program for law enforcement armor vests to provide
for a waiver of or reduction in the matching funds requirement in the case of
fiscal hardship, with an amendment;
S. 2565, to establish an awards mechanism to honor exceptional acts of bravery
in the line of duty by Federal law enforcement officers, with an amendment;
H.R. 4056, to establish an awards mechanism to honor Federal law enforcement
officers injured in the line of duty, with an amendment;
S. 2774, to provide for the appointment of additional Federal circuit and
district judges;
S. 1738, to establish a Special Counsel for Child Exploitation Prevention and
Interdiction within the Office of the Deputy Attorney General, to improve the
Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, to increase resources for
regional computer forensic labs, and to make other improvements to increase
the ability of law enforcement agencies to investigate and prosecute
predators, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 1515, to establish a domestic violence volunteer attorney network to
represent domestic violence victims, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
S. 2942, to authorize funding for the National Advocacy Center; and
The nomination of G. Steven Agee, of Virginia, to be United States Circuit
Judge for the Fourth Circuit.
[Page: D611]
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/05/16
Daily Digest - Friday, May 16, 2008; pages D619 - D620
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/05/19
Daily Digest - Monday, May 19, 2008; pages D622 - D628
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Appropriations : On Thursday, May 15, 2008, Committee authorized
the Chairman, on behalf of the Committee, to offer three amendments to the
House message accompanying H.R. 2642, making appropriations for military
construction, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and related agencies for the
fiscal year ending September 30, 2008 (emergency supplemental appropriations
for fiscal year 2008-2009).
[Page: D623]
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/05/20
Daily Digest - Tuesday, May 20, 2008; pages D629 - D640
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense concluded a hearing to
examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2009 for the Department of
Defense, after receiving testimony from Robert M. Gates, Secretary, and
Admiral Michael G. Mullen, USN, Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff, both of the
Department of Defense.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee ordered favorably
reported the following:
H.R. 634, to require the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins in
commemoration of veterans who became disabled for life while serving in the
Armed Forces of the United States, with an amendment;
An original bill entitled "Federal Housing Finance Regulatory Reform Act"; and
An original bill to make certain technical corrections to Title III of
SAFETEA-LU.
ECONOMIC IMPACTS
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine energy and related economic effects of global climate change
legislation, including S. 1766, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the
production and use of energy, and S. 2191, to direct the Administrator of the
Environmental Protection Agency to establish a program to decrease emissions
of greenhouse gases, focusing on containing the costs of a cap-and-trade
program for carbon dioxide emissions, after receiving testimony from Brent
Yacobucci and Larry Parker, both Specialists in Energy and Environmental
Policy, Resource, Science, and Industry Division, Congressional Research
Service, Library of Congress; Howard Gruenspecht, Deputy Administrator, Energy
Information Administration, Department of Energy; Brian J. McLean, Director,
Office of Atmospheric Programs, Office of Air and Radiation, Environmental
Protection Agency; and Peter R. Orszag, Director, Congressional Budget Office.
TREATIES
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
Agreement on Extradition between the United States of America and the European
Union (EU), signed on June 25, 2003 at Washington, together with twenty-two
bilateral instruments which subsequently were signed between the United States
and each European Union Member State in order to implement the Agreement with
the EU. The Agreement includes an explanatory note which is an integral part
of the Agreement (Treaty Doc.109-14), Extradition Treaty between the United
States of America and the Government of the Republic of Latvia, signed on
December 7, 2005, at Riga (Treaty Doc.109-15), Extradition Treaty between the
United States of America and the Government of the Republic of Estonia, signed
on February 8, 2006, at Tallinn (Treaty Doc.109-16), Extradition Treaty
between the United States of America and the Government of Malta, signed on
May 18, 2006, at Valletta, that includes an exchange of letters that is an
integral part of the treaty (Treaty Doc.109-17), Extradition Treaty between
the United States of America and Romania (the "Extradition Treaty" or the
"Treaty") and the Protocol to the Treaty between the United States of America
and Romania on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters (the "Protocol"),
both signed at Bucharest on September 10, 2007 (Treaty Doc.110-11),
Extradition Treaty between the Government of the United States of America and
the Government of the Republic of Bulgaria (the "Extradition Treaty" or the
"Treaty") and the Agreement on Certain Aspects of Mutual Legal Assistance in
Criminal Matters between the Government of the United States of America and
the Government of the Republic of Bulgaria (the "MLA Agreement"), both signed
at Sofia on September 19, 2007 (Treaty Doc.110-12), Treaty Between the
Government of the United States of America and the Government of the Kingdom
of Sweden on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters, signed at Stockholm
on December 17, 2001 (Treaty Doc.107-12), Mutual Legal Assistance between the
United States of America and the European Union (EU), signed on June 25, 2003,
at Washington, together with 25 bilateral instruments that subsequently were
signed between the United States and each European Union Member State in order
to implement the Agreement with the EU, and an explanatory note that is an
integral part of the Agreement (Treaty Doc.109-13), and Treaty between the
United States of America and Malaysia on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal
Matters, signed on July 28, 2006, at Kuala Lumpur (Treaty Doc.109-22), after
receiving testimony from Susan Biniaz, Deputy Legal Adviser, Department of
State; and Bruce C. Swartz, Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Criminal
Division, Department of Justice.
[Page: D632]
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
H.R. 3913, to amend the International Center Act to authorize the lease or
sublease of certain property described in such Act to an entity other than a
foreign government or international organization if certain conditions are
met;
S. Res. 550, expressing the sense of the Senate regarding provocative and
dangerous statements made by the Government of the Russian Federation that
undermine the territorial integrity of the Republic of Georgia;
S. 3024, to authorize grants to the Eurasia Foundation; and
The nominations of Gillian Arlette Milovanovic, of Pennsylvania, to be
Ambassador to the Republic of Mali, Janice L. Jacobs, of Virginia, to be an
Assistant Secretary (Bureau of Consular Affairs), T. Vance McMahan, of Texas,
to be an Alternate Representative of the United States of America to the
Sessions of the General Assembly of the United Nations, during his tenure of
service as Representative of the United States of America on the Economic and
Social Council of the United Nations, William J. Burns, of the District of
Columbia, to be an Under Secretary (Political Affairs), Robert Stephen
Beecroft, of California, to be Ambassador to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,
James B. Cunningham, of New York, to be Ambassador to Israel, Richard E.
Hoagland, of the District of Columbia, to be Ambassador to the Republic of
Kazakhstan, Joseph Evan LeBaron, of Oregon, to be Ambassador to the State of
Qatar, Marcia Stephens Bloom Bernicat, of New Jersey, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of Senegal, and to serve concurrently and without additional
compensation as Ambassador to the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, Donald Gene
Teitelbaum, of Texas, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Ghana, Linda
Thomas-Greenfield, of Louisiana, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Liberia,
Patricia McMahon Hawkins, of Virginia, to be Ambassador to the Togolese
Republic, Peter William Bodde, of Maryland, to be Ambassador to the Republic
of Malawi, Donald E. Booth, of Virginia, to be Ambassador to the Republic of
Zambia, Marianne Matuzic Myles, of New York, to be Ambassador to the Republic
of Cape Verde, Stephen James Nolan, of Virginia, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of Botswana, Richard A. Boucher, of Maryland, for the personal rank
of Career Ambassador in recognition of especially distinguished service over a
sustained period, Anne Woods Patterson, of Virginia, for the personal rank of
Career Ambassador in recognition of especially distinguished service over a
sustained period, and C. David Welch, of Virginia, for the personal rank of
Career Ambassador in recognition of especially distinguished service over a
sustained period, all of the Department of State, and certain promotion lists
in the Foreign Service.
PAKISTAN
Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on Near Eastern and South and
Central Asian Affairs concluded a hearing to examine the terrorist threat in
Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), focusing on securing
one of the world's most dangerous regions, after receiving testimony from John
D. Negroponte, Deputy Secretary of State; and Gene L. Dodaro, Acting
Comptroller General, Government Accountability Office.
COMMODITY MARKETS
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine financial speculation in commodity markets, focusing on
whether institutional investors and hedge funds are contributing to food and
energy price inflation, after receiving testimony from Jeffrey Harris, Chief
Economist, Commodity Futures Trading Commission; Michael W. Masters, Masters
Capital Management, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia; Thomas Erickson, Commodity Markets
Council, and Tom Buis, National Farmers Union, both of Washington, D.C.; and
Benn Steil, Council on Foreign Relations, New York, New York.
WORKERS RIGHTS/WARN ACT
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine plant closings, focusing on workers rights and the Worker
Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) (Public Law 100-379) Act's 20th
anniversary, after receiving testimony from John C. Philo, Maurice and Jane
Sugar Law Center for Economic and Social Justice, Detroit, Michigan; Richard
L. Trumka, American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial
Organizations (AFL-CIO), Washington, D.C.; Stefan Jan Marculewicz, Miles and
Stockbridge, P.C., Baltimore, Maryland; and Joe Aguiar, Fall River,
Massachusetts.
GLOBAL INTERNET FREEDOM
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law concluded
a hearing to examine global internet freedom, focusing on corporate
responsibility and the rule of law, after receiving testimony from Nicole
Wong, Google, Inc., Mountain View, California; Michael Samway, Yahoo! Inc.,
Miami, Florida; Arvind Ganesan, Human Rights Watch, Washington, D.C.; Mark
Chandler, Cisco Systems, Inc., San Jose, California; and Shiyu Zhou, Global
Internet Freedom Consortium, Bethesda, Maryland.
[Page: D633]
AMERICANS' RIGHT TO VOTE
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
protecting the constitutional right to vote for all Americans, after receiving
testimony from J. Bradley King, Office of the Secretary of State of Indiana
Election Division, Indianapolis; Jonah H. Goldman, Lawyers Committee for Civil
Rights Under Law, and Cleta Mitchell, Foley and Lardner, LLP, both of
Washington, D.C.; Pamela S. Karlan, Stanford Law School, Stanford, California;
and John Payton, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
(NAACP) Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc., New York, New York.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the intelligence
community.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
Joint Meetings
BUDGET RESOLUTION
Conferees agreed to file a conference report on the differences between the
Senate and House adopted versions of S. Con. Res. 70, setting forth the
congressional budget for the United States Government for fiscal year 2009 and
including the appropriate budgetary levels for fiscal years 2008 and 2010
through 2013.
2008/05/21
Daily Digest - Wednesday, May 21, 2008; pages D641 - D650
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
LOW-CARBON ECONOMY
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Subcommittee on Rural
Revitalization, Conservation, Forestry, and Credit concluded a hearing to
examine efforts to create jobs with climate solutions, focusing on the ways
agriculture and forestry can help lower costs in a low-carbon economy, after
receiving testimony from Dick Wittman, Agricultural Carbon Market Working
Group, and Derik Broekhoff, World Resources Institute, both of Washington, DC;
Laurie A. Wayburn, Pacific Forest Trust, San Francisco, California; Ruben N.
Lubowski, Environmental Defense Fund, New York, New York; and Steven Corneli,
NRG Energy, Inc., Princeton, New Jersey.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee ordered favorably
reported the following:
S. 2766, to amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to address certain
discharges incidental to the normal operation of a recreational vessel;
S. 1499, to amend the Clean Air Act to reduce air pollution from marine
vessels;
S. 2555, to permit California and other States to effectively control
greenhouse gas emissions from motor vehicles;
S. 2844, to amend the Federal Water Pollution Control Act to modify provisions
relating to beach monitoring, with amendments;
S. 2707, to amend the Chesapeake Bay Initiative Act of 1998 to provide for the
continuing authorization of the Chesapeake Bay Gateways and Watertrails
Network;
H.R. 3891, to amend the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Establishment
Act to increase the number of Directors on the Board of Directors of the
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation;
S. 1566, to amend the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 to improve that Act;
S. 2700, to amend the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 to double liability limits for
single-hull tankers and tank barges for 2009, with an amendment in the nature
of a substitute;
S. 2728, to establish the Twenty-First Century Water Commission to study and
develop recommendations for a comprehensive water strategy to address future
water needs, with an amendment;
H.R. 3248, to amend the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation
Equity Act: A Legacy for Users to make technical corrections, with an
amendment in the nature of a substitute;
H.R. 3986, to amend the John F. Kennedy Center Act to authorize appropriations
for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, with an amendment in
the nature of a substitute;
S. 2403, to designate the new Federal Courthouse, located in the 700 block of
East Broad Street, Richmond, Virginia, as the "Spottswood W. Robinson, III and
Robert R. Merhige, Jr. Federal Courthouse";
S. 2837, to designate the United States courthouse located at 225 Cadman Plaza
East, Brooklyn, NY as the "Theodore Roosevelt United States Courthouse";
S. 3009, to designate the Federal Bureau of Investigation building under
construction in Omaha, NE as the "J. James Exon Federal Bureau of
Investigation Building";
H.R. 1019, to designate the United States customhouse building located at 31
Gonzalez Clemente Avenue in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, as the "Rafael Martinez
Nadal United States Customhouse Building";
H.R. 4140, to designate the Port Angeles Federal Building in Port Angeles,
Washington, as the "Richard B. Anderson Federal Building";
H.R. 781, to redesignate Lock and Dam No. 5 of the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas
River Navigation System near Redfield, Arkansas, authorized by the Rivers and
Harbors Act approved July 24, 1946, as the "Colonel Charles D. Maynard Lock
and Dam".
TREATIES
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
Treaty Between the Government of the United States of America and the
Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Concerning Defense Trade Cooperation, done at Washington and London on June 21
and 26, 2007 (Treaty Doc. 110-07), and the Treaty Between the Government of
the United States of America and the Government of Australia Concerning
Defense Trade Cooperation, done at Sydney, September 5, 2007 (Treaty Doc.
110-10), after receiving testimony from John C. Rood, Acting Under Secretary
of State for Arms Control and International Security.
[Page: D643]
PRICE OF OIL
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
escalating price of crude oil, including S. 879, to amend the Sherman Act to
make oil-producing and exporting cartels illegal, after receiving testimony
from Robert A. Malone, BP America, John Hofmeister, Shell Oil Company, and
John E. Lowe, ConocoPhillips, all of Houston, Texas; Peter J. Robertson,
Chevron Corporation, San Ramon, California; and J. Stephen Simon, Exxon Mobil
Corporation, Irving, Texas.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Rules and Administration: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the nominations of Cynthia L. Bauerly, of Minnesota, who was
introduced by Senators Schumer and Klobuchar, and Caroline C. Hunter, of
Florida, and Donald F. McGahn, of the District of Columbia, who were
introduced by Senator Feinstein, each to be a Member of the Federal Election
Commission, after each nominee testified and answered questions in their own
behalf.
VETERANS HEALTH CARE LEGISLATION
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
pending veterans health care legislation, after receiving testimony from
Senator Durbin; Gerald M. Cross, Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Veterans
Affairs for Health; Carl Blake, Paralyzed Veterans of America, J. David Cox,
American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO, Cecelia McVey, Nurses
Organization of Veterans Affairs, and Sally Satel, American Enterprise
Institute, all of Washington, D.C.; Joseph L. Wilson, American Legion,
Indianapolis, Indiana; Joy J. Ilem, Disabled American Veterans, Cold Spring,
Kentucky; Christopher Needham, Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States,
Kansas City, Missouri; Stanley Luke, Helping Hands Hawaii, Honolulu; Donna
McCartney, National Association of Veterans' Research and Education
Foundations, Chevy Chase, Maryland; and Thomas J. Berger, Vietnam Veterans of
America, Silver Spring, Maryland.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/05/22
Daily Digest - Thursday, May 22, 2008; pages D651 - D661
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of General David H. Petraeus, USA, for reappointment to the grade
of general and to be Commander, United States Central Command, and Lieutenant
General Raymond T. Odierno, USA, for appointment to the grade of general and
to be Commander, Multi-National Force-Iraq, after each nominee testified and
answered questions in their own behalf.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Armed Services: Committee ordered favorably reported 144
nominations in the Army, Navy, and Air Force.
[Page: D654]
NOMINATION
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the nomination of Steven C. Preston, of Illinois, to be
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, after the nominee testified and
answered questions in his own behalf.
TRADE ENFORCEMENT ACT
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine S. 1919, to
establish trade enforcement priorities for the United States, to strengthen
the provisions relating to trade remedies, after receiving testimony from
Warren Maruyama, General Counsel, Office of the United States Trade
Representative; and Lael Brainard, Brookings Institution, John R. Magnus,
TradeWins LLC, and Robert D. Atkinson, Information Technology and Innovation
Foundation, all of Washington, D.C.
ANTI-DOPING TREATY
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
International Convention Against Doping in Sport, adopted by the United
Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization on October 19, 2005
(Treaty Doc.110-14), after receiving testimony from Scott M. Burns, Deputy
Director, Office of National Drug Control Policy, Executive Office of the
President; Joan Donoghue, Principal Deputy Legal Adviser, Department of State;
Jair Lynch, U.S. Olympic Committee, former Olympic Medalist, Washington, D.C.;
and Travis T. Tygart, United States Anti-Doping Agency, Colorado Springs,
Colorado.
SECURITY CLEARANCE PROCESS
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of
Columbia concluded a hearing to examine improving the security clearance
process, focusing on reform efforts to streamline, standardize, and update the
process, after receiving testimony from Brenda S. Farrell, Director, Defense
Capabilities and Management, Government Accountability Office; Clay Johnson,
III, Deputy Director for Management, Office of Management and Budget;
Elizabeth McGrath, Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Business
Transformation; John P. Fitzpatrick, Director, Special Security Center, Office
of the Director of National Intelligence; and Kathy L. Dillaman, Associate
Director, Federal Investigative Services Division, Office of Personnel
Management.
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR BACKLOGS
Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to
examine the status of probate backlogs at the Department of the Interior,
after receiving testimony from Carl J. Artman, Assistant Secretary of the
Interior for Indian Affairs; Gary Svanda, Madera City Council, Madera,
California; Robert Chicks, Stockbridge Munsee Band of Mohican Indians, Bowler,
Wisconsin; and Douglas Nash, Seattle University School of Law Institute for
Indian Estate Planning and Probate, Seattle, Washington.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
S. 2756, to amend the National Child Protection Act of 1993 to establish a
permanent background check system, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
S. 2982, to amend the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act to authorize
appropriations, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 1210, to extend the grant program for drug-endangered children;
S. Res. 563, designating September 13, 2008, as "National Childhood Cancer
Awareness Day";
S. Res. 567, designating June 2008 as "National Internet Safety Month"; and
The nominations of Elisebeth C. Cook, of Virginia, to be an Assistant Attorney
General for the Office of Legal Policy, Department of Justice, William T.
Lawrence, to be United States District Judge for the Southern District of
Indiana, and G. Murray Snow, to be United States District Judge for the
District of Arizona, and William Walter Wilkins, III, to be United States
Attorney for the District of South Carolina.
CIVIL LEGAL ASSISTANCE
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine efforts
to provide civil legal assistance to low-income Americans, focusing on the
Legal Services Corporation, and improvements needed in governance,
accountability, and grants management, and oversight, after receiving
testimony from Jeanette Franzel, Director, Financial Management and Assurance,
Government Accountability Office; Helaine M. Barnett, Washington, D.C., and
Jonann C. Chiles, Little Rock, Arkansas, both of the Legal Services
Corporation; Rebekah Diller, New York University School of Law Brennan Center
for Justice, New York, New York; Lora J. Livingston, American Bar Association
(ABA), Austin, Texas; Jo-Ann Wallace, National Legal Aid and Defender
Association, Washington, D.C.; Wilhelm H. Joseph, Jr., Maryland's Legal Aid
Bureau, Inc., Baltimore; and Kenneth F. Boehm, National Legal and Policy
Center, Falls Church, Virginia.
[Page: D655]
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Rules and Administration: Committee ordered favorably reported
the nominations of Cynthia L. Bauerly, of Minnesota, Caroline C. Hunter, of
Florida, and Donald F. McGahn, of the District of Columbia, each to be a
Member of the Federal Election Commission.
MEDICARE PART D
Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded a hearing to examine improving
the Medicare program for the most vulnerable, focusing on senior citizens at
risk, and including Medicare Part D and the Social Security Administration's
implementation of the low-income subsidy, after receiving testimony from
Barbara D. Bovbjerg, Director, Education, Workforce, and Income Security
Issues, Government Accountability Office; N. Joyce Payne, AARP, and Laura
Summer, Georgetown University Health Policy Institute, both of Washington,
D.C.; Lisa Emerson, Oregon Senior Health Insurance Benefits Assistance (SHIBA)
Program, Salem, Oregon; and Judy Korynasz, Hillsboro, Oregon.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/05/23
Daily Digest - Friday, May 23, 2008; pages D663 - D664
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/05/27
Daily Digest - Tuesday, May 27, 2008; pages D665 - D666
Committee Meetings
(Committee not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/05/29
Daily Digest - Thursday, May 29, 2008; pages D667 - D668
Committee Meetings
(Committee not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/06/02
Daily Digest - Monday, June 2, 2008; pages D669 - D674
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/06/03
Daily Digest - Tuesday, June 3, 2008 ; pages D675 - D680
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
MAJOR WEAPONS SYSTEMS
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
acquisition of major weapons systems by the Department of Defense, after
receiving testimony from John J. Young, Jr., Under Secretary of Defense for
Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics; and Katherine V. Schinasi, Managing
Director, Acquisition and Sourcing Management, Government Accountability
Office.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the nominations of Neel T. Kashkari, of California, to be
an Assistant Secretary of the Treasury, Christopher R. Wall, of Virginia, to
be an Assistant Secretary of Commerce, Michael E. Fryzel, of Illinois, to be a
Member of the National Credit Union Administration Board, Donald B. Marron, of
Maryland, to be a Member of the Council of Economic Advisers, Sheila McNamara
Greenwood, of Louisiana, and Susan D. Peppler, of California, both to be an
Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Joseph J. Murin, of
Pennsylvania, to be President, Government National Mortgage Association, and
Luis Aguilar, of Georgia, Troy A. Paredes, of Missouri, and Elisse Walter, of
Maryland, each to be a Member of the Securities and Exchange Commission, after
each nominee testified and answered questions in their own behalf.
ENERGY MARKET MANIPULATION
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine energy market manipulation and federal enforcement regimes,
after receiving testimony from Lee Ann Watson, Deputy Director, Division of
Investigations, Office of Enforcement, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission;
George Soros, Soros Fund Management, New York, New York; Michael Greenberger,
University of Maryland School of Law, Baltimore; Gerry Ramm, Inland Oil
Company, Ephrata, Washington, on behalf of the Petroleum Marketers Association
of America; and Mark Cooper, Consumer Federation of America, Washington, D.C.
HEALTH CARE REFORM
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine rising costs
and low quality in health care, focusing on the necessity for reform, after
receiving testimony from Paul B. Ginsburg, Center for Studying Health System
Change, and Arlene Holt Baker, American Federation of Labor and Congress of
Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), both of Washington, D.C.; Elizabeth A.
McGlynn, RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, California; and Felicia J. Fields,
Ford Motor Company, Dearborn, Michigan.
[Page: D677]
Joint Meetings
KOSOVO MINORITY COMMUNITIES
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Commission concluded a
hearing to examine the challenges to minority communities in Kosovo, after
receiving testimony from Knut Vollebaek, Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe, Vienna, Austria.
2008/06/04
Daily Digest - Wednesday, June 4, 2008; pages D681 - D690
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the nominations of Walter Lukken, of Indiana, who was
introduced by Senator Lugar, to be Chairman, and Bartholomew H. Chilton, of
Delaware, and Scott O'Malia, of Michigan, who was introduced by Senators
Domenici and Stabenow, each to be a Commissioner, all of the Commodity Futures
Trading Commission, after each nominee testified and answered questions in
their own behalf.
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Defense received testimony from
sundry public witnesses requesting funding for programs in the Department of
Defense appropriations bill for fiscal year 2009.
VEHICLE ROOF STRENGTH
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Consumer
Affairs, Insurance, and Automotive Safety concluded an oversight hearing to
examine passenger vehicle roof strength, after receiving testimony from
Senator Coburn; James F. Ports, Jr., Deputy Administrator, National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration, Department of Transportation; Stephen L. Oesch,
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, and Michael J. Stanton, Association of
International Automobile Manufacturers, Inc., both of Arlington, Virginia;
Robert Strassburger, Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, Joan Claybrook,
Public Citizen, and Jacqueline S. Gillan, Advocates for Highway and Auto
Safety, all of Washington, D.C.; and David A. Garcia, Endicott, New York.
CHINA IN AFRICA
Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on African Affairs concluded a
hearing to examine the engagement of China and its expanding role in Africa,
focusing on the implications for the policy of the United States, after
receiving testimony from Thomas J. Christensen, Deputy Assistant Secretary for
East Asian and Pacific Affairs, and James Swan, Deputy Assistant Secretary for
African Affairs, both of the Department of State; Elizabeth C. Economy,
Council on Foreign Relations, New York, New York; and J. Stephen Morrison,
Center for Strategic and International Studies, Washington, D.C.
TERRORISM DETAINEE POLICY
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine ways to
improve the detainee policy, focusing on handling terrorism detainees within
the American justice system, after receiving testimony from John C.
Coughenour, United States District Judge for the Western District of
Washington; James J. Benjamin, Jr., Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer and Feld, LLP,
New York, New York; Amos N. Guiora, University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of
Law, Salt Lake City; and Tom Malinowski, Human Rights Watch, and Benjamin
Wittes, Brookings Institution, both of Washington, D.C.
SYSTEMIC INDIFFERENCE TO INVISIBLE WOUNDS
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to
examine mental health care programs at Department of Veterans Affairs
facilities, focusing on treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder, after
receiving testimony from Norma Perez, Mental Health Integration Psychologist,
Central Texas Veterans Health Care System, Michael J. Kussman, Under Secretary
for Health, Ira Katz, Deputy Chief of Patient Care Services, Officer for
Mental Health, Rear Admiral Patrick W. Dunne, USN (Ret.), Acting Under
Secretary for Benefits, Veterans Benefits Administration, and Brad Mayes,
Director, Compensation and Pension Service, all of the Department of Veterans
Affairs.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/06/05
Daily Digest - Thursday, June 5, 2008; pages D692 - D698
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
STATE OF THE BANKING INDUSTRY (PART II)
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded hearings
to examine the state of the banking industry, after receiving testimony from
Sheila C. Bair, Chairman, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation; John C.
Dugan, Comptroller of the Currency, and John M. Reich, Director, Office of
Thrift Supervision, both of the Department of the Treasury; Joann M. Johnson,
Chairman, National Credit Union Administration; Donald L. Kohn, Vice Chairman,
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System; and Timothy J. Karsky, North
Dakota Department of Financial Institutions, Bismarck, on behalf of the
Conference of State Bank Supervisors.
OFF-HIGHWAY VEHICLE MANAGEMENT
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine off-highway vehicle management on public lands, after receiving
testimony from Henri Bisson, Deputy Director, Bureau of Land Management, and
Jayne Belnap, Research Ecologist, United States Geological Survey, both of the
Department of the Interior; Joel Holtrop, Deputy Chief, National Forest
System, Forest Service, Department of Agriculture; Edward Moreland, American
Motorcyclist Association, Washington, D.C.; Greg Mumm, BlueRibbon Coalition,
Rapid City, South Dakota; Nada Culver, Wilderness Society, Denver, Colorado;
Bradley Powell, Trout Unlimited, Payson, Arizona; Frank Adams, Nevada
Sheriffs' and Chiefs' Association, Mesquite.
TAX REFORM FOR SMALL BUSINESS
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the choices for
small business in advance of tax reform, focusing on Internal Revenue Service
Form 1040 Schedule C, Form 1065 Schedule K-1, and Schedule S, after receiving
testimony from Douglas A. Shackelford, University of North Carolina at Chapel
Hill Kenan-Flagler Business School; Eric J. Toder, Urban-Brookings Tax Policy
Center, and Samuel P. Starr, Georgetown University Law Center, both of
Washington, D.C.; and Dewey Martin, Husson College Accounting Department,
Hampden, Maine, on behalf of the National Federation of Independent Business.
COMMUNITY PREPAREDNESS FOR DISASTERS
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Ad Hoc Subcommittee
on State, Local, and Private Sector Preparedness and Integration concluded a
hearing to examine individual and community preparedness efforts for disasters
and emergencies, after receiving testimony from Dennis Schrader, Deputy
Administrator, National Preparedness Directorate, Federal Emergency Management
Agency, Department of Homeland Security; Russell Decker, Allen County
Emergency Management and Homeland Security, Lima, Ohio, on behalf of the
International Association of Emergency Managers; and Suzy DeFrancis, American
Red Cross, Washington, D.C.
[Page: D694]
PREDATORY LENDING IN INDIAN COUNTRY
Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to
examine predatory lending in Indian country, after receiving testimony from
Donna J. Gambrell, Director, Community Development Financial Institutions
Fund, Department of the Treasury; Jerilyn Decoteau, First Nations Development
Institute, Longmont, Colorado; W. Ron Allen, Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe,
Sequim, Washington, on behalf of the National Congress of American Indians;
Darwin Brokke, Citizens Community Credit Union, Devils Lake, North Dakota, on
behalf of the Credit Union National Association; John Barkley, Confederated
Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, Pendleton, Oregon; Jamie Fulmer,
Advance America Cash Advance Centers, Inc., Alexandria, Virginia, on behalf of
the Community Financial Services Association of America.
BUSINESS MEETING
Select Committee on Intelligence : Committee ordered favorably reported the
nomination of Michael E. Leiter, of the District of Columbia, to be Director
of the National Counterterrorism Center, Office of the Director of National
Intelligence.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/06/06
Daily Digest - Friday, June 6, 2008; pages D699 - D704
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
ARMS CONTROL
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of
Columbia concluded a hearing to examine the organizational structures of the
Department of State responsible for arms control, counterproliferation, and
nonproliferation, focusing on the processes they have in place for optimizing
national efforts, after receiving testimony from Patricia A. McNerney,
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Security and
Nonproliferation, and Linda S. Taglialatela, Deputy Assistant Secretary of
Human Resources, both of the Department of State.
Joint Meetings
EMPLOYMENT--UNEMPLOYMENT SITUATION
Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
employment-unemployment situation for May 2008, after receiving testimony from
Philip L. Rones, Deputy Commissioner, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Department
of Labor; Heidi Hartmann, Institute for Women's Policy Research, and Diana
Furchtgott-Roth, Hudson Institute, both of Washington D.C.; and Eileen
Appelbaum, Rutgers University Center for Women and Work, New Brunswick, New
Jersey.
2008/06/09
Daily Digest - Monday, June 9, 2008; pages D706 - D710
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
[Page: D707]
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/06/10
Daily Digest - Tuesday, June 10, 2008; pages D712 - D720
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
UNITED STATES-IRAQ NEGOTIATIONS
Committee on Armed Services: Committee met in closed session to receive a
briefing on the status of the United States-Iraq negotiations, focusing on a
strategic framework agreement and status of forces agreement from Brett
McGurk, Director for Iraq, National Security Council; Mark Kimmitt, Deputy
Assistant Secretary of Defense for Middle Eastern Affairs; and Chat Blakeman,
Office of Iraq Affairs, Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, Department of State.
NATIONAL STRATEGIES FOR EFFICIENT FREIGHT MOVEMENT
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Surface
Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety, and Security
concluded a hearing to examine national strategies for efficient freight
movement, after receiving testimony from Paul Brubaker, Administrator,
Research and Innovative Technology Administration, Department of
Transportation; Rear Admiral Richard M. Larrabee, Port Authority of New York
and New Jersey, and Astrid C. Glynn, New York State Department of
Transportation, on behalf of the American Association of State Highway and
Transportation Officials (AASHTO), both of New York, New York; Edward R.
Hamberger, Association of American Railroads, Washington, D.C.; and Glenn
Vanselow, Pacific Northwest Waterways Association, Portland, Oregon.
HEALTH INSURANCE COVERAGE
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine issues relative
to the 47 million Americans without health care insurance, focusing on the
current health care marketplace, after receiving testimony from Raymond Arth,
Phoenix Products, Inc., Avon Lake, Ohio, on behalf of the National Small
Business Association; Ronald A. Williams, Aetna, Inc., Hartford, Connecticut;
Mark A. Hall, Wake Forest University Health Sciences, Winston-Salem, North
Carolina; and Lisa Kelly, Lake Jackson, Texas.
COERCIVE INTERROGATION TECHNIQUES
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
efficacy of coercive interrogation techniques, focusing on the Federal Bureau
of Investigation's (FBI) role, after receiving testimony from Glenn A. Fine,
Inspector General, Valerie E. Caproni, General Counsel, Federal Bureau of
Investigation, and John E. Cloonan, former Federal Bureau of Investigation
Special Agent, West Caldwell, New Jersey, all of the Department of Justice;
Philippe Sands, University College London, London, United Kingdom; and Philip
B. Heymann, Harvard Law School, Cambridge, Massachusetts.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the intelligence
community.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/06/11
Daily Digest - Wednesday, June 11, 2008; pages D721 - D732
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
SPYWARE IMPLICATIONS
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the impact and policy implications of spyware on consumers
and businesses, including S. 1625, to protect against the unauthorized
installation of computer software, to require clear disclosure to computer
users of certain computer software features that may pose a threat to user
privacy, after receiving testimony from Eileen Harrington, Deputy Director,
Bureau of Consumer Protection, Federal Trade Commission; Arthur A. Butler,
Ater Wynne LLP, Seattle, Washington, on behalf of Americans for Fair
Electronic Commerce Transactions; Jerry Cerasale, Direct Marketing
Association, Inc., and Marc Rotenberg, Electronic Privacy Information Center,
both of Washington, D.C.; Benjamin Edelman, Harvard Business School, Boston,
Massachusetts; and Vincent Weafer, Symantec Corporation, Culver City,
California, on behalf of the Business Software Alliance.
SOVEREIGN WEALTH FUNDS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
sovereign wealth funds, government investment funds, funding by foreign
currency reserves, but managed separately from official currency reserves,
focusing on foreign policy consequences in an era of new money, after
receiving testimony from Jagdish Bhagwati, Council on Foreign Relations, New
York, New York; Daniel W. Drezner, Tufts University Fletcher School, Boston,
Massachusetts; and David Marchick, Carlyle Group, Washington, D.C.
[Page: D726]
PROTECTING AMERICANS
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee held a hearing to examine the effect on
consumers and consideration for the efforts of Congress, focusing on the
Supreme Court's treatment of laws that protect the health, safety, jobs, and
retirement of Americans, receiving testimony from Andy R. Anderson, Morgan,
Lewis and Bockius, LLP, Chicago, Illinois, on behalf of the United States
Chamber of Commerce; Thomas O. McGarity, University of Texas School of Law,
Austin; Richard M. Cooper, Williams and Connolly, LLP, Washington, D.C.;
Robert M. Lawless, University of Illinois College of Law, Champaign; Bridget
Robb, Gwynedd, Pennsylvania; and Maureen Kurtek, Pottsville, Pennsylvania.
Hearing recessed subject to the call.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of Paul G. Gardephe, and Cathy Seibel, both to be a United States
District Judge for the Southern District of New York, Kiyo A. Matsumoto, to be
United States District Judge for the Eastern District of New York, and Glenn
T. Suddaby, to be United States District Judge for the Northern District of
New York, after each nominee testified and answered questions in their own
behalf.
Joint Meetings
No joint committee meetings were held.
2008/06/12
Daily Digest - Thursday, June 12, 2008; pages D734 - D744
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
NATION'S INFRASTRUCTURE
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the condition of the infrastructure of the United States,
focusing on local perspectives from certain cities, including S. 1926, to
establish the National Infrastructure Bank to provide funding for qualified
infrastructure projects, after receiving testimony from Mayor Michael R.
Bloomberg, New York, New York; Mayor Shirley Franklin, Atlanta, Georgia; Mayor
John Peyton, Jacksonville, Florida; and Mayor Mark Funkhouser, Kansas City,
Missouri.
FREIGHT SECURITY
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Surface
Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety, and Security
concluded a hearing to examine supply chain security, focusing on the Secure
Freight Initiative and the implementation of 100 percent scanning of
U.S.-bound cargo containers, after receiving testimony from Jayson Ahern,
Deputy Commissioner, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Department of
Homeland Security; David Huizenga, Assistant Deputy Administrator, Office of
International Material Protection and Cooperation, Defense Nuclear
Nonproliferation, National Nuclear Security Administration, Department of
Energy; and Stephen L. Caldwell, Director, Homeland Security and Justice,
Government Accountability Office.
RENEWABLE FUELS POLICY AND FOOD PRICES
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded an oversight
hearing to examine the relationship between the United States renewable fuels
policy and food prices, after receiving testimony from Alexander Karsner,
Assistant Secretary of Energy for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy;
Joseph Glauber, Chief Economist, Department of Agriculture; Joe L. Outlaw,
Texas A&M University Agricultural and Food Policy Center, College Station;
Jason Pyle, Sapphire Energy, Inc., San Diego, California; Joachim von Braun,
International Food Policy Research Institute, Washington, D.C.; and Jack
Huttner, Genecor, Rochester, New York.
U.S. TRADE PREFERENCE PROGRAMS
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to examine the
United States trade preference programs, focusing on promoting economic
development in poor nations by providing duty-free export opportunities in the
United States, after receiving testimony from Loren Yager, Director,
International Affairs and Trade, Government Accountability Office; Grant D.
Aldonas, Split Rock International, Arlington, Virginia; and Edward Gresser,
Progressive Policy Institute, and Andrew Small, United States Conference of
Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Department of Justice, Peace, and Human Development,
both of Washington, D.C.
OIL AND NATURAL GAS PIPELINE
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
influence of energy issues on the foreign policy of the United States,
focusing on the East-West oil and natural gas pipeline corridor proposed to
stretch from Central Asia to European and global markets, after receiving
testimony from Zbigniew Brzezinski, former National Security Adviser, Center
for Strategic and International Studies, Leon Fuerth, George Washington
University Elliot School of International Affairs, and Zeyno Baran, Hudson
Institute Center for Eurasian Policy, all of Washington, D.C.; and Roman
Kupchinsky, AZEast Group, Mahwah, New Jersey.
[Page: D736]
U.S.-PAKISTAN STRATEGIC RELATIONSHIP
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services, and
International Security concluded a hearing to examine addressing the United
States-Pakistan strategic relationship, focusing on the national security of
the United States, after receiving testimony from Senator Feingold; Don Camp,
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian
Affairs; K. Alan Kronstadt, Specialist, South Asian Affairs, Congressional
Research Service, Library of Congress; Lisa Curtis, Heritage Foundation Asian
Studies Center, and Stephen P. Cohen, Brookings Institution, both of
Washington, D.C.; and Michael Krepon, University of Virginia Henry L. Stimson
Center, Charlottesville.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
H.R. 3480, to direct the United States Sentencing Commission to assure
appropriate punishment enhancements for those involved in receiving stolen
property where that property consists of grave markers of veterans;
S. Res. 576, designating August 2008 as "Digital Television Transition
Awareness Month"; and
The nominations of Helene N. White, of Michigan, and Raymond M. Kethledge, of
Michigan, each to be a United States Circuit Judge for the Sixth Circuit, and
Stephen Joseph Murphy III, to be United States District Judge for the Eastern
District of Michigan.
Joint Meetings
IRAQ WAR FUNDING
Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the future
costs of funding the war in Iraq, after receiving testimony from Montana
Governor Brian Schweitzer, Helena; and Christine Eibner, RAND Corporation,
Captain Tom Tarantino (Ret.) USA, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America
(IAVA), and William W. Beach, Heritage Foundation, all of Washington, D.C.
2008/06/13
Daily Digest - [Friday,] June 13, 2008; pages D745 - D746
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/06/16
Daily Digest - Monday, June 16, 2008; pages D747 - D752
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/06/17
Daily Digest - Tuesday, June 17, 2008; pages D753 - D760
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
ENERGY AND AGRICULTURE MARKETS
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Committee concluded a joint
hearing with the Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial
Services and General Government to examine the role, responsibilities, and
resource needs of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission on oversight of
futures and derivatives markets in energy and agriculture, after receiving
testimony from Walter Lukken, Acting Chairman, Commodities Futures Trading
Commission; Mark Cooper, Consumer Federation of America, and James C. May, Air
Transport Association of America, Inc., both of Washington, D.C.; Terrence A.
Duffy, Chicago Mercantile Exchange Group Inc., Chicago, Illinois; James
Newsome, New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc., New York, New York; and Charles
A. Vice, Intercontinental Exchange, Inc., Atlanta, Georgia.
INTERROGATION TECHNIQUES AND TREATMENT OF DETAINEES
Committee on Armed Services: Committee held a hearing to examine the origins
of aggressive interrogation techniques, focusing the Committee's inquiry into
the treatment of detainees in U.S. custody, receiving testimony from Richard
L. Shiffrin, former Deputy General Counsel for Intelligence, Lieutenant
Colonel Daniel J. Baumgartner, Jr., USAF (Ret.), Former Chief of Staff, Joint
Personnel Recovery Agency, Jerald F. Ogrisseg, former Chief, Psychology
Services, 336th Training Group, United States Air Force Survival School,
Alberto J. Mora, former General Counsel, United States Navy, Rear Admiral Jane
G. Dalton, USN (Ret.), former Legal Adviser to the Chairman, Joint Chiefs of
Staff, Lieutenant Colonel Diane E. Beaver, USA (Ret.), former Staff Judge
Advocate, Joint Task Force 170/JTF Guantanamo Bay, and William J. Haynes, II,
former General Counsel, all of the Department of Defense.
Hearing recessed subject to the call.
RENEWABLE ELECTRICITY RESOURCES
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the challenges and regional solutions to developing transmission for
renewable electricity resources, after receiving testimony from Senator Reid;
Kevin M. Kolevar, Assistant Secretary for Electricity Delivery and Energy
Reliability, and Stephen J. Wright, Administrator, Bonneville Power
Administration, both of the Department of Energy; Bryce Freeman, Wyoming
Infrastructure Authority, Cheyenne; Gary Hanson, South Dakota Public Utilities
Commission, Pierre; T. Boone Pickens, BP Capital, Dallas, Texas; Richard
Halvey, Western Governors Association, Denver, Colorado; William Kaul, Great
River Energy, Maple Grove, Minnesota; and Don Furman, American Wind Energy
Association, Washington, D.C.
LAND BILLS
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on National Parks
concluded a hearing to examine S. 1774 and H.R. 3022, bills to designate the
John Krebs Wilderness in the State of California, to add certain land to the
Sequoia-Kings Canyon National Park Wilderness, S. 2255, to amend the National
Trails System Act to provide for studies of the Chisholm Trail and Great
Western Trail to determine whether to add the trails to the National Trails
System, S. 2359, to establish the St. Augustine 450th Commemoration
Commission, S. 2943, to amend the National Trails System Act to designate the
Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail, S. 3017, to designate the Beaver
Basin Wilderness at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore in the State of
Michigan, S. 3010, to reauthorize the Route 66 Corridor Preservation Program,
S. 3045, to establish the Kenai Mountains-Turnagain Arm National Forest
Heritage Area in the State of Alaska, H.R. 1143, to authorize the Secretary of
the Interior to lease certain lands in Virgin Islands National Park, and S.
3096, to amend the National Cave and Karst Research Institute Act of 1998 to
authorize appropriations for the National Cave and Karst Research Institute,
after receiving testimony from Senator Boxer; Representative Christensen; Mark
Rey, Under Secretary of Agriculture for Natural Resources and Environment;
Karen Taylor-Goodrich, Associate Director, Visitor and Resource Protection,
National Park Service, Department of the Interior; and Jon Knechtel, Pacific
Northwest Trail Association, Sedro-Woolley, Washington.
U.S. ECONOMY
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the long-term
fiscal outlook of the United States economy, focusing on the federal debt,
health care costs, Social Security, and the gross domestic product (GDP),
after receiving testimony from Peter R. Orszag, Director, Congressional Budget
Office; and Gene L. Dodaro, Acting Comptroller General of the United States,
Government Accountability Office.
INTERNATIONAL DISASTER ASSISTANCE
Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on International Development and
Foreign Assistance, Economic Affairs and International Environmental
Protection concluded a hearing to examine international disaster assistance,
focusing on policy options, after receiving testimony from James B. Warlick,
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization
Affairs; James Kunder, Acting Deputy Administrator, U.S. Agency for
International Development; Edward C. Luck, United Nations, New York, New York;
and Mark L. Schneider, International Crisis Group, and Stewart Patrick,
Council on Foreign Relations, both of Washington, D.C.
[Page: D755]
RUSSIA, IRAN, AND U.S.-RUSSIAN NUCLEAR COOPERATION
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee met in closed session to receive a
briefing on Russia, Iran, and United States-Russian nuclear cooperation from
William J. Burns, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs.
PROTECTING INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
protecting consumers by protecting intellectual property, after receiving
testimony from Loren Yager, Director, International Affairs and Trade,
Government Accountability Office; Brian Monks, Underwriters Laboratories,
Inc., Melville, New York; Mike Rose, Johnson and Johnson Health Care Systems,
Inc., Fountainville, Pennsylvania; and Jeff Thurnau, Gates Corporation,
Denver, Colorado.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/06/18
Daily Digest - Wednesday, June 18, 2008; pages D762 - D770
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: COMMERCE, JUSTICE, SCIENCE, AND RELATED AGENCIES
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and
Related Agencies approved for full Committee consideration an original bill
making appropriations for Commerce, Justice, Science, and related agencies for
the fiscal year ending September 30, 2009.
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
Committee on Appropriations : Subcommittee on Homeland Security approved for
full Committee consideration an original bill making appropriations for the
Department of the Homeland Security for the fiscal year ending September 30,
2009.
SHIPMENT OF SENSITIVE MISSILE COMPONENTS
Committee on Armed Services: Committee met in closed session to receive a
briefing on the report titled "Investigation into the Shipment of Sensitive
Missile Components to Taiwan," also known as the "Donald Report" from Admiral
Kirkland H. Donald, USN, Director, Office of Naval Nuclear Propulsion, and
Deputy Administrator, Office of Naval Reactors, National Nuclear Security
Administration, Department of Energy.
WILDFIRE SEASON
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the preparedness of federal land management agencies for the 2008
wildfire season, after receiving testimony from Mark Rey, Under Secretary of
Agriculture for Natural Resources and Environment; James Cason, Associate
Deputy Secretary of the Interior; Ron Thatcher, National Federation of Federal
Employees' Forest Service Council, Libby, Montana; Casey Judd, Federal
Wildland Fire Service Association, Inkom, Idaho; and Deborah Miley, National
Wildlife Suppression Association, Lyons, Oregon.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Finance: Committee ordered favorably reported the following:
S.J. Res. 38, waiving certain provisions of the Trade Act of 1974 relating to
the appointment of a Deputy United States Trade Representative;
An original bill entitled "Iran Sanctions Act of 2008"; and
The nominations of Richard T. Morrison, and David Gustafson, both of Virginia,
and Elizabeth Crewson Paris, of the District of Columbia, each to be a Judge
of the United States Tax Court, Eric M. Thorson, of Virginia, to be Inspector
General, Department of the Treasury, Edwin Eck, of Montana, to be a Member of
the Internal Revenue Service Oversight Board, and Deanna Tanner Okun, of
Idaho, to be a Deputy United States Trade Representative, with the rank of
Ambassador, Executive Office of the President.
PROTECTING PERSONAL INFORMATION
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine protecting personal information, focusing on steps the
federal government has in place to ensure privacy, after receiving testimony
from Linda Koontz, Director, Information Management Issues, Government
Accountability Office; Hugo Teufel, III, Chief Privacy Officer, Department of
Homeland Security; Ari Schwartz, Center for Democracy and Technology,
Washington, D.C.; and Peter P. Swire, The Ohio State University Moritz College
of Law, Bethesda, Maryland.
IMPROVING ENERGY EFFICIENCY
Committee on Rules and Administration: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine improving energy efficiency, focusing on increasing the use of
renewable sources of energy, and reducing the "carbon footprint" of the
Capitol complex, after receiving testimony from Terrell G. Dorn, Director,
Physical Infrastructure Issues, Government Accountability Office; Stephen T.
Ayers, Acting Architect of the Capitol; and Brendan Owens, United States Green
Building Council, and Jean Carroon, National Trust for Historic Preservation
Sustainable Preservation Coalition, both of Washington, D.C.
FAIRNESS IN NURSING HOME ARBITRATION ACT
Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded a joint hearing with the
Committee on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and
Consumer Rights, to examine S. 2838, to amend chapter 1 of title 9 of United
States Code with respect to arbitration, after receiving testimony from Alison
E. Hirschel, National Consumer Voice for Quality Long Term Care, East Lansing,
Michigan; Kelley Rice-Schild, Floridean Nursing and Rehabilitation Center,
Miami, Florida, on behalf of the American Health Care Association and National
Center for Assisted Living; Stephen J. Ware, University of Kansas School of
Law, Lawrence; David W. Kurth, Burlington, Wisconsin; and Kenneth L. Connor,
Washington, D.C.
[Page: D764]
Joint Meetings
COMBATING SEXUAL EXPLOITATION OF CHILDREN
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: On Tuesday, June 17, 2008,
Commission concluded a hearing to examine combating sexual exploitation of
children, focusing on strengthening international law enforcement cooperation,
after receiving testimony from Timothy Williams, Deputy Director, National
Central Bureau of Interpol, and James E. Finch, Assistant Director, Cyber
Division, Federal Bureau of Investigation, both of the Department of Justice;
Shawn Bray, Unit Chief, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Cyber Crimes
Center, Department of Homeland Security; Tim Cranton, Microsoft Corporation,
Redmond, Washington; and Ernie Allen, National Center for Missing and
Exploited Children, Alexandria, Virginia.
2008/06/19
Daily Digest - Thursday, June 19, 2008; pages D772 - D780
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Appropriations: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
An original bill making appropriations for the Department of Homeland Security
for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2009; and
An original bill making appropriations for Commerce, Justice, Science, and
related agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2009.
Also, Committee approved its 302(b) subcommittee allocations of budget outlays
and new budget authority allocated to the Committee in S. Con. Res. 70,
setting forth the congressional budget for the United States Government for
fiscal year 2009 and including the appropriate budgetary levels for fiscals
years 2008 and 2010 through 2013.
RISK MANAGEMENT
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on Securities,
Insurance, and Investment concluded a hearing to examine risk management,
focusing on its implications for systemic risk at large financial
institutions, after receiving testimony from Donald L. Kohn, Board of
Governors of the Federal Reserve System; Erik Sirri, Director, Division of
Trading and Markets, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission; Scott M.
Polakoff, Senior Deputy Director and Chief Operating Officer, Office of Thrift
Supervision; Richard Bookstaber, Bridgewater Associates, New York, New York;
and Richard J. Herring, University of Pennsylvania Wharton School, and Kevin
M. Blakely, Risk Management Association, both of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
[Page: D774]
CRUISE SHIP SAFETY
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Surface
Transportation and Merchant Marine Infrastructure, Safety, and Security
concluded a hearing to examine cruise ship safety, focusing on potential steps
for keeping Americans safe at sea, after receiving testimony from Kendall
Carver, International Cruise Victims Association, Inc., Phoenix, Arizona;
Terry Dale, Cruise Lines International Association, Inc., Fort Lauderdale,
Florida; Evelyn Fortier, Rape Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN),
Washington, D.C.; and Ross A. Klein, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St.
John's College, St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of James Culbertson, of North Carolina, to be Ambassador to the
Kingdom of the Netherlands, who was introduced by Senators Dole and Burr,
David F. Girard-diCarlo, of Pennsylvania, to be Ambassador to the Republic of
Austria, who was introduced by Senator Specter, Kristen Silverberg, of Texas,
to be Representative of the United States of America to the European Union,
with the rank and status of Ambassador, who was introduced by Senator Cornyn,
John R. Beyrle, of Michigan, to be Ambassador to the Russian Federation, who
was introduced by Senator Levin, Asif J. Chaudhry, of Washington, to be
Ambassador to the Republic of Moldova, Tina S. Kaidanow, of the District of
Columbia, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Kosovo, Philip Thomas Reeker, of
the District of Columbia, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Macedonia, and
Marie L. Yovanovitch, of Connecticut, to be Ambassador to the Republic of
Armenia, who was introduced by former Senator Robert J. Dole, after the
nominees testified and answered questions in their own behalf.
FEDERAL PROTECTIVE SERVICE MANAGEMENT
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of
Columbia concluded a hearing to examine management challenges facing the
Federal Protective Service, focusing on a recent report from the Government
Accountability Office, after receiving testimony from Gary W. Schenkel,
Director, Federal Protective Service, United States Immigration and Customs
Enforcement, Department of Homeland Security; Mark L. Goldstein, Director,
Physical Infrastructure Issues, Government Accountability Office; and David L.
Wright, Federal Protective Service Union, AFGE, Excelsior Springs, Missouri.
MINER ACT
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Subcommittee on
Employment and Workplace Safety concluded a hearing to examine the efficacy of
the Mine Improvement and New Emergency Response Act (MINER)(Public Law
109-236), focusing on a two year review of mine safety, after receiving
testimony from Senator Rockefeller; Richard E. Stickler, Acting Assistant
Secretary of Labor, Mine Safety and Health Administration; Jeffery Kohler,
Associate Director for Mine Safety and Health Research, National Institute for
Occupational Safety and Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
Department of Health and Human Services; Dennis O'Dell, United Mine Workers of
America, Fairfax, Virginia; and Bruce Watzman, National Mining Association,
Washington, D.C.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
S. 1255, to protect Indian arts and crafts through the improvement of
applicable criminal proceedings, with an amendment;
S. 531, to repeal section 10(f) of Public Law 93-531, commonly known as the
"Bennett Freeze";
S. 1080, to develop a program to acquire interests in land from eligible
individuals within the Crow Reservation in the State of Montana;
S. 2489, to enhance and provide to the Oglala Sioux Tribe and Angostura
Irrigation Project certain benefits of the Pick-Sloan Missouri River basin
program;
S. 160, to provide for compensation to the Lower Brule and Crow Creek Sioux
Tribes of South Dakota for damage to tribal land caused by Pick-Sloan projects
along the Missouri River; and
S. 2494, to provide for equitable compensation to the Spokane Tribe of Indians
of the Spokane Reservation for the use of tribal land for the production of
hydropower by the Grand Coulee Dam, with an amendment.
LAW AND ORDER IN INDIAN COUNTRY
Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded a hearing to examine an
original bill to amend the Indian Law Enforcement Reform Act, the Indian
Tribal Justice Act, the Indian Tribal Justice Technical and Legal Assistance
Act of 2000, and the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to
improve the prosecution of, and response to, crimes in Indian country, after
receiving testimony from Senator Thune; Gretchen C.F. Shappert, United States
Attorney, Western District of North Carolina, Department of Justice; Pat
Ragsdale, Director, Office of Justice Services, Indian Affairs, Department of
the Interior; Ron His Horse Is Thunder, Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, Fort Yates,
North Dakota; Joe A. Garcia, National Congress of American Indians, and Walter
E. Lamar, Lamar Associates, both of Washington, D.C.; and Kelly Gaines Stoner,
Oklahoma City University School of Law, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
[Page: D775]
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence : Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the intelligence
community.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
Joint Meetings
ILLEGAL DRUGS
Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the drug
policy of the United States, focusing on the economic impact, societal costs,
and policy responses, after receiving testimony from Peter Reuter, University
of Maryland School of Public Policy and Department of Criminology, College
Park; John M. Walsh, Washington Office on Latin America, Washington, D.C.; and
Anne J. Swern and Norma Fernandes, both of Kings County, Brooklyn, New York.
2008/06/20
Daily Digest - Friday, June 20, 2008; pages D781 - D788
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
NOMINATION
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the nomination of Elaine C. Duke, of Virginia, to be Under
Secretary for Management, Department of Homeland Security, after the nominee
testified and answered questions in her own behalf.
Joint Meetings
No joint committee meetings were held.
2008/06/23
Daily Digest - Monday, June 23, 2008; pages D790 - D796
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/06/24
Daily Digest - Tuesday, June 24, 2008; pages D798 - D810
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: DEPARTMENTS OF LABOR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, EDUCATION,
AND RELATED AGENCIES
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services,
Education, and Related Agencies approved for full Committee consideration an
original bill making appropriations for the Departments of Labor, Health and
Human Services, Education, and related agencies for the fiscal year ending
September 30, 2009.
CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTS ON TRANSPORTATION SECTOR
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine climate change impacts on the transportation sector,
focusing on ways to ensure safe, efficient, and reliable performance of the
highway, transit, rail, maritime, pipeline, and aviation networks, after
receiving testimony from Vice Admiral Thomas J. Barrett, USN (Ret.), Deputy
Secretary of Transportation; James M. Turner, Deputy Director, National
Institute of Standards and Technology, and Thomas C. Peterson, Senior
Scientist, Climate Services Division, National Climatic Data Center, National
Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service, National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), both of the Department of Commerce; Mead
Treadwell, Chairman, United States Arctic Research Commission; John D.
Porcari, Maryland Department of Transportation, Hanover, Maryland, on behalf
of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials; G.
Edward Dickey, Loyola College, Baltimore, Maryland, on behalf of the National
Academies; and David Friedman, Union of Concerned Scientists, Edward R.
Hamberger, Association of American Railroads, and John M. Meenan, Air
Transport Association of America, Inc., all of Washington, D.C.
[Page: D801]
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee ordered
favorably reported the following:
S. 2907, to establish uniform administrative and enforcement procedures and
penalties for the enforcement of the High Seas Driftnet Fishing Moratorium
Protection Act and similar statutes;
An original bill entitled, "The National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Authorization Act of 2008";
S. 3160, to reauthorize and amend the National Sea Grant College Program Act;
and
Sundry promotion lists in the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
and the United States Coast Guard.
TRADE FUNCTIONS
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to examine
trade functions, focusing on U.S. Customs and Border Protection and other
trade agencies, after receiving testimony from W. Ralph Basham, Commissioner,
U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and Julie L. Myers, Assistant Secretary,
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, both of the Department of Homeland
Security; Timothy E. Skud, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Tax,
Trade, and Tariff Policy; Daniel R. Pearson, Vice Chairman, United States
International Trade Commission; and Warren Maruyama, General Counsel, Office
of the United States Trade Representative.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
H.R. 176, to authorize the establishment of educational exchange and
development programs for member countries of the Caribbean Community
(CARICOM), with amendments;
H.R. 2553, to amend the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 to
provide for the establishment and maintenance of existing libraries and
resource centers at United States diplomatic and consular missions to provide
information about American culture, society, and history, with amendments;
S. 2120, to authorize the establishment of a Social Investment and Economic
Development Fund for the Americas to provide assistance to reduce poverty,
expand the middle class, and foster increased economic opportunity in the
countries of the Western Hemisphere;
S. 2166, to provide for greater responsibility in lending and expanded
cancellation of debts owed to the United States and the international
financial institutions by low-income countries, with amendments;
S. 3097, to amend the Vietnam Education Foundation Act of 2000;
S. 3168, to authorize United States participation in the replenishment of
resources of the International Development Association;
S. 3169, to authorize United States participation in, and appropriations for
the United States contribution to, the eleventh replenishment of the resources
of the African Development Fund;
International Convention Against Doping in Sport, adopted by the United
Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization on October 19, 2005
(Treaty Doc.110-14); and
The nominations of Liliana Ayalde, of Maryland, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of Paraguay, John R. Beyrle, of Michigan, to be Ambassador to the
Russian Federation, Eric J. Boswell, of the District of Columbia, to be
Director of the Office of Foreign Missions, and to have the rank of Ambassador
during his tenure of service, Asif J. Chaudhry, of Washington, to be
Ambassador to the Republic of Moldova, James Culbertson, of North Carolina, to
be Ambassador to the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Rosemary Anne DiCarlo, of the
District of Columbia, to be an Alternate Representative of the United States
of America to the Sessions of the General Assembly of the United Nations
during her tenure of service as Alternate Representative of the United States
of America for Special Political Affairs in the United Nations and to be
Alternate Representative of the United States of America for Special Political
Affairs in the United Nations, with the rank of Ambassador, David F.
Girard-diCarlo, of Pennsylvania, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Austria,
John Melvin Jones, of Virginia, to be Ambassador to the Co-operative Republic
of Guyana, Tina S. Kaidanow, of the District of Columbia, to be Ambassador to
the Republic of Kosovo, Lyndon L. Olson, Jr., of Texas, to be a Member of the
United States Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy, Philip Thomas Reeker,
of the District of Columbia, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Macedonia,
Kristen Silverberg, of Texas, to be Representative of the United States of
America to the European Union, with the rank and status of Ambassador, Lezlee
J. Westine, of Virginia, to be a Member of the United States Advisory
Commission on Public Diplomacy, and sundry promotion lists in the Foreign
Service.
COMMODITY MARKETS
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine ending excessive speculation in commodity markets, focusing
on legislative options, after receiving testimony from Walter Lukken, Acting
Chairman, United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission; James Newsome,
New York Mercantile Exchange, Inc., New York, New York; Michael W. Masters,
Masters Capital Management, LLC, Atlanta, Georgia; William F. Quinn, Committee
on the Investment of Employee Benefit Assets, Bethesda, Maryland; James J.
Angel, Georgetown University McDonough School of Business, Washington, D.C.;
and Michael Greenberger, University of Maryland School of Law, Baltimore.
[Page: D802]
ANTIMICROBIALS IN THE U.S.
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the public health impacts of antimicrobial resistant
bacterial infections in the United States, focusing on current antimicrobials
and continued development of new solutions for the future protection against
infectious diseases, after receiving testimony from Fred C. Tenover, Director,
Office of Antimicrobial Resistance, Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention, and Rear Admiral Linda Tollefson, Assistant Commissioner for
Science, United States Food and Drug Administration, both of the Department of
Health and Human Services; Jay P. Graham, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of
Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland; Lyle Vogel, American Veterinary Medical
Association, Schaumburg, Illinois; Patrick J. Brennan, University of
Pennsylvania Health System, Philadelphia, on behalf of the Society for
Healthcare Epidemiology of America; Barry I. Eisenstein, Cubist
Pharmaceuticals, Lexington, Massachusetts; and Brandon Noble, Chester Springs,
Pennsylvania.
CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law concluded
a hearing to examine the issue of genocide from Nuremberg to Darfur, focusing
on accountability for crimes against humanity, after receiving testimony from
Gayle E. Smith, ENOUGH Project, and Diane Orentlicher, American University
Washington College of Law, both of Washington, D.C.; Joey Cheek, Team Darfur,
Greensboro, North Carolina; and Daoud Ibrahim Hari, Baltimore, Maryland.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/06/25
Daily Digest - Wednesday, June 25, 2008; pages D811 - D820
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: EIA
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development
concluded a hearing to examine proposed budget estimates for fiscal year 2009
for the Energy Information Administration (EIA), focusing on forecasts for oil
and gasoline prices, after receiving testimony from Guy Caruso, Administrator,
Energy Information Administration, Department of Energy.
AFGHANISTAN
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a closed hearing to examine
the current situation in Afghanistan, after receiving testimony from General
Dan K. McNeill, USA (Ret.), former Commander, North Atlantic Treaty
Organization (NATO) International Security Assistance Force.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee ordered favorably
reported the nominations of Neel T. Kashkari, of California, to be an
Assistant Secretary of the Treasury, Christopher R. Wall, of Virginia, to be
an Assistant Secretary of Commerce, Sheila McNamara Greenwood, of Louisiana,
to be an Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Susan D.
Peppler, of California, to be an Assistant Secretary of Housing and Urban
Development, Joseph J. Murin, of Pennsylvania, to be President, Government
National Mortgage Association, Luis Aguilar, of Georgia, Troy A. Paredes, of
Missouri, and Elisse Walter, of Maryland, all to be Members of the Securities
and Exchange Commission, Donald B. Marron, of Maryland, to be a Member of the
Council of Economic Advisers, and Michael E. Fryzel, of Illinois, to be a
Member of the National Credit Union Administration Board.
[Page: D813]
FUTURE ENERGY NEEDS
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the increased global energy demand, focusing on the challenges for
meeting future energy needs, while developing new technologies to address
current and future global climate change, after receiving testimony from
Raymond L. Orbach, Under Secretary of Energy for Science; Neil Hirst,
International Energy Agency, Paris, France; Tom Wilson, Electric Power
Research Institute Global Climate Change Research, Palo Alto, California; and
Raymond J. Kopp, Resources for the Future, and Karan Bhatia, General Electric
Company, both of Washington, D.C.
FEDERAL ROLE FOR SURFACE TRANSPORTATION
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the future federal role for surface transportation, focusing on
safety, maintenance, and expansion needs for the capacity and reliability of
the highway freight system, after receiving testimony from Bruce E. Seely,
Michigan Technological University, Houghton; Lance R. Grenzeback, Cambridge
Systematics Inc., Cambridge, Massachusetts; Kathleen F. Marvaso, American
Automobile Association (AAA), and Deron Lovaas, Natural Resources Defense
Council, both of Washington, D.C.; Samuel R. Staley, Reason Foundation, Los
Angeles, California; and Alan E. Pisarski, Falls Church, Virginia.
PAKISTAN
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine a new
strategy for an enhanced partnership with Pakistan, after receiving testimony
from Richard A. Boucher, Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central
Asian Affairs; Mitchell Shivers, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of
Defense for Asian and Pacific Affairs; Mark S. Ward, Senior Deputy Assistant
Administrator for Asia, U.S. Agency for International Development; General
Anthony C. Zinni, USMC (Ret.), former Commander in Chief, United States
Central Command, Falls Church, Virginia; and Wendy J. Chamberlain, Middle East
Institute, Washington, D.C.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee ordered
favorably reported the following:
S. 1924, to amend chapter 81 of title 5, United States Code, to create a
presumption that a disability or death of a Federal employee in fire
protection activities caused by any of certain diseases is the result of the
performance of such employee's duty, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
H.R. 5683, to make certain reforms with respect to the Government
Accountability Office, with amendments;
S. 3013, to provide for retirement equity for Federal employees in nonforeign
areas outside the 48 contiguous States and the District of Columbia, with
amendments;
S. 3175, to amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency
Assistance Act to reauthorize the predisaster hazard mitigation program, to
make technical corrections to that Act, with amendments;
S. 2382, to require the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management
Agency to quickly and fairly address the abundance of surplus manufactured
housing units stored by the Federal Government around the country at taxpayer
expense, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 2148, to provide for greater diversity within, and to improve policy
direction and oversight of, the Senior Executive Service, with an amendment in
the nature of a substitute;
S. 2816, to provide for the appointment of the Chief Human Capital Officer of
the Department of Homeland Security by the Secretary of Homeland Security;
S. 3015, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located
at 18 S. G Street, Lakeview, Oregon, as the "Dr. Bernard Daly Post Office
Building";
H.R. 5395 and S. 2622, bills to designate the facility of the United States
Postal Service located at 11001 Dunklin Drive in St. Louis, Missouri, as the
"William 'Bill' Clay Post Office Building";
H.R. 5479, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 117 North Kidd Street in Ionia, Michigan, as the "Alonzo Woodruff
Post Office Building";
H.R. 4185, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 11151 Valley Boulevard in El Monte, California, as the "Marisol
Heredia Post Office Building";
H.R. 5528, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 120 Commercial Street in Brockton, Massachusetts, as the "Rocky
Marciano Post Office Building";
H.R. 3721, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 1190 Lorena Road in Lorena, Texas, as the "Marine Gunnery Sgt. John
D. Fry Post Office Building";
[Page: D814]
H.R. 5517, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 7231 FM 1960 in Humble, Texas, as the "Texas Military Veterans Post
Office";
H.R. 5168, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 19101 Cortez Boulevard in Brooksville, Florida, as the "Cody Grater
Post Office Building";
S. 3082, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located
at 1700 Cleveland Avenue in Kansas City, Missouri, as the "Reverend Earl Abel
Post Office Building"; and
The nomination of Elaine C. Duke, of Virginia, to be Under Secretary for
Management, Department of Homeland Security.
OVERSEAS TRAVEL PRIVACY VIOLATIONS
Committee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on the Constitution concluded a
hearing to examine practices by the Department of Homeland Security at ports
of entry of the United States, focusing on laptop searches and other
violations of privacy faced by Americans returning from overseas travel, after
receiving testimony from James Jay Carafano, Heritage Foundation, and Peter P.
Swire, Ohio State University Moritz College of Law, on behalf of the Center
for American Progress Action Fund, both of Washington, D.C.; Larry Cunningham,
Bronx District Attorney Office, Bronx, New York; Susan K. Gurley, Association
of Corporate Travel Executives, Alexandria, Virginia; Farhana Y. Khera, Muslim
Advocates, and Lee Tien, Electronic Frontier Foundation, both of San
Francisco, California; and Nathan A. Sales, George Mason University School of
Law, Arlington, Virginia.
HOME HEATING OIL PRICES
Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine solutions to address the rise in home heating oil prices,
after receiving testimony from David F. Johnson, Deputy Assistant Secretary of
Energy for Petroleum Reserves; Jennifer Brooks, Penquis, Bangor, Maine; Sandra
Farrell, Northboro Oil Company, Northboro, Massachusetts; Michael J. Ferrante,
Massachusetts Oilheat Council, Wellesley Hills, Massachusetts; and Michael D.
Stoddard, Environment Northeast, Portland, Maine.
Joint Meetings
SKYROCKETING OIL PRICES
Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the rapid
rise of crude oil prices, focusing on the impact energy prices will have on
the American public and the United States economy, after receiving testimony
from Daniel Yergin, Cambridge Energy Research Associates, Frederick Joutz,
George Washington University, and John A. Laitner, American Council for an
Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), all of Washington, D.C.
[Page: D818]
CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY MODERNIZATION ACT
Conferees met to resolve the differences between the Senate and House passed
versions of H.R. 4040, to establish consumer product safety standards and
other safety requirements for children's products and to reauthorize and
modernize the Consumer Product Safety Commission, but did not complete action
thereon, and recessed subject to the call.
2008/06/26
Daily Digest - Thursday, June 26, 2008; pages D822 - D831
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Appropriations : Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
An original bill making appropriations for the Departments of Labor, Health
and Human Services, Education, and related agencies for the fiscal year ending
September 30, 2009.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of Nelson M. Ford, of Virginia, to be Under Secretary of the Army,
Joseph A. Benkert, of Virginia, to be an Assistant Secretary, Sean Joseph
Stackley, of Virginia, to be an Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and Frederick
S. Celec, of Virginia, to be Assistant to the Secretary for Nuclear and
Chemical and Biological Defense Programs, all of the Department of Defense,
after each nominee testified and answered questions in their own behalf.
[Page: D825]
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Armed Services: Committee ordered favorably reported the
nominations of General David H. Petraeus, USA, for reappointment to the grade
of general and to be Commander, United States Central Command, Lieutenant
General Raymond T. Odierno, USA, for appointment to the grade of general and
to be Commander, Multi-National Force-Iraq, and 2,121 nominations in the Army,
Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps.
INTERNATIONAL TAX REFORM
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the foundation
of international tax reform, focusing on worldwide, territorial, and related
corporate tax issues, after receiving testimony from James R. Hines, Jr.,
University of Michigan Law School, Ann Arbor; Stephen E. Shay, Ropes and Gray,
Boston, Massachusetts; and Robert H. Dilworth, McDermott, Will, and Emery,
LLP, Washington, D.C.
TERRORIST ATTACK AFTERMATH
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine nuclear terrorism, focusing on the federal response for
providing medical care and meeting basic needs in the aftermath of an attack,
after receiving testimony from R. David Paulison, Administrator, Federal
Emergency Management Agency, Department of Homeland Security; Rear Admiral W.
Craig Vanderwagen, Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Services for
Preparedness and Response; Paul McHale, Assistant Secretary of Defense for
Homeland Defense and Americas' Security Affairs; and James H. Schwartz,
Arlington County Fire Department, Arlington, Virginia, on behalf of the
International Association of Fire Chiefs.
NATION'S FINANCIAL CHALLENGES
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services, and
International Security concluded a hearing to examine addressing the nation's
financial challenges, focusing on reliable, useful, and timely financial and
performance information in developing and implementing strategies to control
the current and future spending of federal government programs and polices,
after receiving testimony from Gene L. Dodaro, Acting Comptroller General of
the United States, Government Accountability Office; Daniel I. Werfel, Deputy
Controller, Office of Management and Budget; Kenneth E. Carfine, Fiscal
Assistant Secretary, Department of the Treasury; and David M. Walker, former
Comptroller General of the United States, Peter G. Peterson Foundation, Robert
L. Bixby, Concord Coalition, James Horney, Center on Budget and Policy
Priorities, and Maurice P. McTigue, George Mason University Mercatus Center,
all of Washington, D.C.
CAPTA
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Subcommittee on Children
and Families concluded a hearing to examine reauthorization of the Child Abuse
Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) (Public Law 93-247), focusing on
protecting children and strengthening families, after receiving testimony from
Cheryl Anne Boyce, Chief, Child Abuse and Neglect Program, Division of
Development Translational Research, National Institute of Mental Health,
National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services; Karen
Foley-Schain, Connecticut Children's Trust Fund, Hartford; Tanya Long, Parents
Anonymous, Inc., Columbus, Ohio; and Caren Kaplan, American Humane
Association, Denver, Colorado.
INDIAN COUNTRY HEALTH SERVICES
Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to
examine access to contract health services in Indian country, after receiving
testimony from Robert G. McSwain, Director, Indian Health Service, Department
of Health and Human Services; H. Sally Smith, National Indian Health Board,
Washington, D.C.; Marlene Krein, Mercy Hospital, Devils Lake, North Dakota;
Stacy Dixon, Susanville Indian Rancheria, Susanville, California; Jefferson
Keel, Chickasaw Nation, Ada, Oklahoma, on behalf of the National Congress of
American Indians; Linda Holt, Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board,
Portland, Oregon; and Brenda E. Shore, United South and Eastern Tribes, Inc.,
Nashville, Tennessee.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
S. 2979, to exempt the African National Congress from treatment as a terrorist
organization;
H.R. 5690, to remove the African National Congress from treatment as a
terrorist organization for certain acts or events, provide relief for certain
members of the African National Congress regarding admissibility, with an
amendment;
[Page: D826]
S. 2892, to promote the prosecution and enforcement of frauds against the
United States by suspending the statute of limitations during times when
Congress has authorized the use of military force;
S. 1211, to amend the Controlled Substances Act to provide enhanced penalties
for marketing controlled substances to minors, with an amendment in the nature
of a substitute;
S. Res. 594, designating September 2008 as "Tay-Sachs Awareness Month"; and
The nominations of Paul G. Gardephe, to be United States District Judge for
the Southern District of New York, Kiyo A. Matsumoto, to be United States
District Judge for the Eastern District of New York, Cathy Seibel, to be
United States District Judge for the Southern District of New York, Glenn T.
Suddaby, to be United States District Judge for the Northern District of New
York, Kelly Harrison Rankin, to be United States Attorney for the District of
Wyoming, and Clyde R. Cook, Jr., to be United States Marshal for the Eastern
District of North Carolina.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
S. 2969, to amend title 38, United States Code, to enhance the capacity of the
Department of Veterans Affairs to recruit and retain nurses and other critical
health-care professionals;
S. 3023, to amend title 38, United States Code, to require the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs to prescribe regulations relating to the notice to be
provided claimants with the Department of Veterans Affairs regarding the
substantiation of claims, with amendments;
S. 2617, to increase, effective as of December 1, 2008, the rates of
compensation for veterans with service-connected disabilities and the rates of
dependency and indemnity compensation for the survivors of certain disabled
veterans; and
An original bill to provide technical corrections to S. 22, the Post 9/11
Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2007.
NOMINATION
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nomination of Christine O. Hill, to be Assistant Secretary of Veterans Affairs
for Congressional Affairs, after the nominee, who was introduced by Senator
Dole, testified and answered questions in her own behalf.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/06/27
Daily Digest - Friday, June 27, 2008; pages D833 - D836
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/06/30
Daily Digest - Monday, June 30, 2008; pages D837 - D838
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/07/07
Daily Digest - Monday, July 7, 2008; pages D840 - D846
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/07/08
Daily Digest - Tuesday, July 8, 2008; pages D847 - D852
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 Energy and Water Development for the fiscal year ending
September 30, 2009.
WATER BILLS
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Water and Power
concluded a hearing to examine S. 2842, to require the Secretary of the
Interior to carry out annual inspections of canals, levees, tunnels, dikes,
pumping plants, dams, and reservoirs under the jurisdiction of the Secretary,
S. 2974, to provide for the construction of the Arkansas Valley Conduit in the
State of Colorado, H.R. 3323, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to
convey a water distribution system to the Goleta Water District, and S. 3189,
to amend Public Law 106-392 to require the Administrator of the Western Area
Power Administration and the Commissioner of Reclamation to maintain
sufficient revenues in the Upper Colorado River Basin Fund, after receiving
testimony from Senator Allard; Robert W. Johnson, Commissioner, Bureau of
Reclamation, Department of the Interior; Jennifer Gimbel, Colorado Department
of Natural Resources Water Conservation Board, Denver; Dan Keppen, Family Farm
Alliance, Klamath Falls, Oregon; Bill Long, Southeastern Colorado Water
Conservancy District, Las Animas.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/07/09
Daily Digest - Wednesday, July 9, 2008; pages D854 - D862
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry: Committee ordered favorably
reported the nominations of Walter Lukken, of Indiana, to be Chairman, and
Bartholomew H. Chilton, of Delaware, and Scott O'Malia, of Michigan, both to
be a Commissioner, all of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
APPROPRIATIONS: DOT, HUD, AND RELATED AGENCIES
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban
Development, and Related Agencies approved for full Committee consideration an
original bill making appropriations for the Department of Transportation,
Department of Housing and Urban Development, and related agencies for the
fiscal year ending September 30, 2009.
OTC CREDIT DERIVATIVES MARKET
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Subcommittee on Securities,
Insurance, and Investment concluded a hearing to examine reducing risks and
improving oversight in the over-the-counter (OTC) credit derivatives market,
after receiving testimony from Patrick M. Parkinson, Deputy Director, Division
of Research and Statistics, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System;
James A. Overdahl, Chief Economist, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission;
Kathryn E. Dick, Deputy Comptroller for Credit and Market Risk, Comptroller of
the Currency, Administrator of National Banks, Department of the Treasury;
Darrell Duffie, Stanford University Graduate School of Business, Stanford,
California; Craig S. Donohue, Chicago Mercantile Exchange Group (CME) Group
Inc., and Edward J. Rosen, Clearing Corporation, both of Chicago, Illinois;
and Robert Pickel, International Swaps and Derivatives Association,
Washington, D.C.
[Page: D856]
ONLINE ADVERTISING PRIVACY
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the privacy implications of online behavioral advertising,
which is the practice of collecting information about an individual's online
activities in order to serve advertisements that are tailored to that
individual's interests, after receiving testimony from Lydia Parnes, Director,
Bureau of Consumer Protection, Federal Trade Commission; Jane Horvath, Google
Inc., Leslie Harris, Center for Democracy and Technology, and Wayne Crews,
Competitive Enterprise Institute, all of Washington, D.C.; Bob Dykes, NebuAd,
Inc., Redwood City, California; Chris Kelly, Facebook, Palo Alto, California;
and Michael D. Hintze, Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, Washington.
FISHING SAFETY
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Oceans,
Atmosphere, Fisheries, and Coast Guard concluded a hearing to examine fishing
safety, focusing on policy implications of cooperatives and vessel
improvements, after receiving testimony from Commander Christopher Woodley,
13th Coast Guard District Staff, United States Coast Guard, Department of
Homeland Security; James Sanchirico, University of California at Davis
Department of Environmental Science and Policy; Leslie J. Hughes, North
Pacific Fishing Vessel Owners' Association, John Bundy, Glacier Fish Company,
Michael Hyde, American Seafoods Group, and Donna Parker, Arctic Storm
Management Group, all of Seattle, Washington; and David E. Frulla, Kelley Drye
and Warren LLP, Washington, D.C., on behalf of the Fishing Company of Alaska.
LANDS BILLS
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Public Lands and
Forests concluded a hearing to examine S. 2443 and H.R. 2246, bills to provide
for the release of any revisionary interest of the United States in and to
certain lands in Reno, Nevada, S. 2779, to amend the Surface Mining Control
and Reclamation Act of 1977 to clarify that uncertified States and Indian
tribes have the authority to use certain payments for certain noncoal
reclamation projects, S. 2875, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to
provide grants to designated States and tribes to carry out programs to reduce
the risk of livestock loss due to predation by gray wolves and other predator
species or to compensate landowners for livestock loss due to predation, S.
2898, and H.R. 816, bills to provide for the release of certain land from the
Sunrise Mountain Instant Study Area in the State of Nevada, S. 3088, to
designate certain land in the State of Oregon as wilderness, S. 3089, to
designate certain land in the State of Oregon as wilderness, to provide for
the exchange of certain Federal land and non-Federal land, S. 3157, to provide
for the exchange and conveyance of certain National Forest System land and
other land in southeast Arizona, and S. 3179, to authorize the conveyance of
certain public land in the State of New Mexico owned or leased by the
Department of Energy, after receiving testimony from Senator Kyl; Alice C.
Williams, Associate Administrator for Infrastructure and Environment, National
Nuclear Security Administration, Department of Energy; Michael Nedd, Assistant
Director, Minerals, Realty and Resource Protection, Danny Lytton, and Ed
Bangs, all of the Bureau of Land Management, Department of the Interior; Joel
Holtrop, Deputy Chief, National Forest System, U.S. Forest Service, Department
of Agriculture; George Edwards, Montana Department of Livestock, Helena; David
Salisbury, Resolution Copper Mining, LLC, Superior, Arizona; Shan Lewis, Inter
Tribal Council of Arizona, Phoenix; Roger Featherstone, EARTHWORKS, Tucson,
Arizona; and Charles C. Price, Daniel, Wyoming.
IRAN
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
strategic challenges posed by Iran, after receiving testimony from William J.
Burns, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs.
MEDICARE VULNERABILITIES
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Permanent
Subcommittee on Investigations concluded a hearing to examine Medicare
vulnerabilities, focusing on payments for claims with the identification
numbers of deceased doctors, after receiving testimony from Herb B. Kuhn,
Deputy Administrator, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and Robert
Vito, Regional Inspector General for Evaluation and Inspections, Office of
Inspector General, both of the Department of Health and Human Services; and
Bill Gray, Deputy Commissioner of Systems, Social Security Administration.
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE OVERSIGHT
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee continued oversight hearings to examine
the Department of Justice, receiving testimony from Michael B. Mukasey,
Attorney General, Department of Justice.
Hearings recessed subject to the call.
VETERANS DISABILITY COMPENSATION
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to
examine veterans disability compensation, focusing on undue delay in the
claims processing system, after receiving testimony from Rear Admiral Patrick
W. Dunne, USN (Ret.), Acting Under Secretary for Benefits, and Michael
Walcoff, Deputy Under Secretary for Benefits, both of the Veterans Benefits
Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs; Kerry Baker, Disabled American
Veterans, Cold Spring, Kentucky; J. David Cox, American Federation of
Government Employees, AFL-CIO, and William Rollins, Paralyzed Veterans of
America, both of Washington, D.C.; and Howard Pierce, Problem-Knowledge
Couplers (PKC) Corporation, Burlington, Vermont.
[Page: D857]
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee ordered favorably reported the
nomination of Christine O. Hill, of Georgia, to be an Assistant Secretary of
Veterans Affairs for Congressional Affairs.
Joint Meetings
No joint committee meetings were held.
2008/07/10
Daily Digest - Thursday, July 10, 2008: pages D864 - D872
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Appropriations : Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
An original bill making appropriations for the Department of Transportation,
Department of Housing and Urban Development, and related agencies for the
fiscal year ending September 30, 2009;
An original bill making appropriations for Energy and Water Development for
the fiscal year ending September 30, 2009; and
An original bill making appropriations for Financial Services and General
Government for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2009.
EPA OVERSIGHT
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on Clean Air and
Nuclear Safety concluded an oversight hearing to examine the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA), focusing on implementing the renewable fuel standard,
after receiving testimony from Robert J. Meyers, Principal Deputy Assistant
Administrator, Office of Air and Radiation, Environmental Protection Agency;
Steven G. Chalk, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Energy for Renewable Energy;
John Pierce, E.I. DuPont de Nemours and Company, Inc., Wilmington, Delaware;
Scott Faber, Grocery Manufacturers Association, Washington, D.C.; and
Nathanael Greene, Natural Resources Defense Council, New York, New York.
TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine issues and
options for the transportation infrastructure, focusing on current surface
transportation policies and programs, after receiving testimony from Peter R.
Orszag, Director, Congressional Budget Office; and Jayetta Z. Hecker,
Director, Physical Infrastructure Issues, Government Accountability Office.
[Page: D866]
TREATIES
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
Protocol Amending the Convention Between the United States of America and
Canada with Respect to Taxes on Income and on Capital done at Washington on
September 26, 1980, as Amended by the Protocols done on June 14, 1983, March
28, 1984, March 17, 1995, and July 29, 1997, signed on September 21, 2007, at
Chelsea (the "Proposed Protocol") (Treaty Doc. 110-15), Convention Between the
Government of the United States of America and the Government of Iceland for
the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with
Respect to Taxes on Income, and accompanying Protocol, signed on October 23,
2007, at Washington, D.C. (Treaty Doc. 110-17), Convention Between the
Government of the United States of America and the Government of the Republic
of Bulgaria for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal
Evasion With Respect to Taxes on Income, with accompanying Protocol, signed at
Washington on February 23, 2007 (the "Proposed Treaty"), as well as the
Protocol Amending the Convention Between the Government of the United States
of America and the Government of the Republic of Bulgaria for the Avoidance of
Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion With Respect to Taxes on
Income, signed at Sofia on February 26, 2008 (Treaty Doc. 110-18),
International Convention on the Control of Harmful Anti-Fouling Systems on
Ships, 2001 (the "Convention") (Treaty Doc. 110-13), 1996 Protocol to the
Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and
Other Matter (the "London Convention"), done in London on November 7, 1996,
the Protocol was signed by the United States on March 31, 1998, and entered
into force on March 24, 2006 (Treaty Doc. 110-05), Protocol Concerning
Pollution from Land-Based Sources and Activities (the "Protocol") to the
Convention for the Protection and Development of the Marine Environment of the
Wider Caribbean Region, with Annexes, done at Oranjestad, Aruba, on October 6,
1999, and signed by the United States on that same date (Treaty Doc. 110-01),
Amendments to the Constitution and Convention of the International
Telecommunication Union (Geneva, 1992), as Amended by the Plenipotentiary
Conference (Kyoto, 1994) and the Plenipotentiary Conference (Marrakesh, 2002),
Together with the Declarations and Reservations by the United States, all as
contained in the Final Acts of the Plenipotentiary Conference (Antalya, 2006)
(Treaty Doc. 110-16), Amendments to the Constitution and Convention of the
International Telecommunication Union (Geneva, 1992), as amended by the
Plenipotentiary Conference (Kyoto, 1994) and the Plenipotentiary Conference
(Minneapolis, 1998), together with the declarations and reservations by the
United States, all as contained in the Final Acts of the Plenipotentiary
Conference (Marrakesh, 2002) (Treaty Doc. 109-11), 1995 Revision of the Radio
Regulations, with appendices, signed by the United States at Geneva on
November 17, 1995 (the "1995 Revision"), together with declarations and
reservations of the United States as contained in the Final Acts of the World
Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-95) (Treaty Doc. 108-28), Amendments to the
Constitution and Convention of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU)
(Geneva, 1992), as amended by the Plenipotentiary Conference (Kyoto, 1994),
together with declarations and reservations by the United States as contained
in the Final Acts of the Plenipotentiary Conference (Minneapolis, 1998)
(Treaty Doc. 108-05), and 1992 Partial Revision of the Radio Regulations
(Geneva, 1979), with appendices, signed by the United States at
Malaga-Torremolinos on March 3, 1992 (the "1992 Partial Revision"), together
with declarations and reservations of the United States as contained in the
Final Acts of the World Administrative Radio Conference for Dealing with
Frequency Allocations in Certain Parts of the Spectrum (WARC-92) (Treaty Doc.
107-17), after receiving testimony from Emily S. McMahon, Deputy Chief of
Staff, Joint Committee on Taxation, United States Congress; Michael F.
Mundaca, Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for International Tax
Affairs; and David A. Balton, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Oceans and
Fisheries, Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific
Affairs, and Richard C. Beaird, Senior Deputy Coordinator for International
Communications and Information Policy, Bureau of Economic and Business
Affairs, both of the Department of State.
ISLAMIST EXTREMISM
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the roots of violent Islamist extremism and efforts to
counter it, after receiving testimony from Michael Leiter, Director, National
Counterterrorism Center; Maajid Nawaz, Quilliam Foundation, Essex, United
Kingdom; Peter P. Mandaville, George Mason University Center for Global
Studies, Fairfax, Virginia; and Zeyno Baran, Hudson Institute, and Fathali M.
Moghaddam, Georgetown University Department of Government, both of Washington,
D.C.
[Page: D867]
PASSPORT FILES PRIVACY
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine issues
relative to passport files, focusing on privacy protection for all Americans,
after receiving testimony from Harold W. Geisel, Acting Inspector General, and
Mark W. Duda, Assistant Inspector General for Audits, both of the Office of
Inspector General, Department of State; and Marc Rotenberg, Electronic Privacy
Information Center, Ari Schwartz, Center for Democracy and Technology, and
Alan Charles Raul, Sidley Austin LLP, all of Washington, D.C.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the intelligence
community.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
Joint Meetings
RETIREMENT SECURITY
Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded a hearing to examine public
pension plans, focusing on the need to strengthen retirement security and
economic growth, after receiving testimony from Barbara D. Bovbjerg, Director,
Education, Workforce, and Income Security, Government Accountability Office;
William Pryor, Los Angeles County Employees Retirement Association Board of
Investments, Pasadena, California, on behalf of the National Conference on
Public Employee Retirement Systems; Sherrill Neff, Quaker BioVentures,
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Christian E. Weller, University of
Massachusetts Boston, on behalf of the Center for American Progress.
2008/07/11
Daily Digest - Friday, July 11, 2008; pages D874 - D880
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
[Page: D876]
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/07/14
Daily Digest - Monday, July 14, 2008; pages D881 - D886
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/07/15
Daily Digest - Tuesday, July 15, 2008; pages D887 - D898
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
SEMIANNUAL MONETARY POLICY REPORT
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the semiannual "Monetary Policy Report to the Congress",
after receiving testimony from Ben S. Bernanke, Chairman, Board of Governors
of the Federal Reserve System.
U.S. FINANCIAL MARKETS
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine recent developments in United States financial markets and
regulatory responses to those developments, after receiving testimony from
Henry M. Paulson, Jr., Secretary of the Treasury; Ben S. Bernanke, Chairman,
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System; former Representative
Christopher Cox, Chairman, United States Securities and Exchange Commission.
SUMMER AIR TRAVEL
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Subcommittee on Aviation
Operations, Safety, and Security concluded a hearing to examine the 2008
summer air travel season, focusing on addressing congestion and delay, after
receiving testimony from Hank Krakowski, Chief Operating Officer, Air Traffic
Organization, Federal Aviation Administration, and Tyler Duvall, Acting Under
Secretary for Policy, both of the Department of Transportation; Susan Fleming,
Director, Physical Infrastructure Issues, Government Accountability Office;
and John M. Meenan, Air Transport Association of America, Inc., Washington,
D.C.
[Page: D889]
ENERGY MARKET
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine S. 3233, to promote development of a 21st century energy system to
increase United States competitiveness in the world energy technology
marketplace, and S. 2730, to facilitate the participation of private capital
and skills in the strategic, economic, and environmental development of a
diverse portfolio of clean energy and energy efficiency technologies within
the United States, to facilitate the commercialization and market penetration
of the technologies, after receiving testimony from Alexander Karsner,
Assistant Secretary of Energy for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy; John
Denniston, Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield, and Byers, Menlo Park, California;
Jeanine Hull, Dykema Gossett, PLLC, Washington, D.C.; Dan W. Reicher,
Google.org, Mountain View, California; and Jeffrey Eckel, Hannon Armstrong,
Annapolis, Maryland.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine international
enforcement of intellectual property rights and American competitiveness,
after receiving testimony from Andy Lack, SONY BMG Music Entertainment, and
Jeff Kindler, Pfizer, Inc, both of New York, New York; John H. Barton,
Stanford Law School, Stanford, California; and J. Walter Cahill, International
Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Pictures Technicians, Artists
and Allied Crafts of the United States, Its Territories and Canada, AFL-CIO,
CLC, Washington, D.C.
CRISIS IN ZIMBABWE
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
crisis in Zimbabwe and prospects for its resolution, after receiving testimony
from Jendayi Frazer, Assistant Secretary, Bureau of African Affairs,
Department of State; Katherine J. Almquist, Assistant Administrator, Bureau
for Africa, United States Agency for International Development (USAID); Tom
Melia, Freedom House, Washington, D.C.; and Michelle D. Gavin, Council on
Foreign Relations, New York, New York.
NOMINATION
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the nomination of Gus P. Coldebella, of Massachusetts, to
be General Counsel, Department of Homeland Security, after the nominee
testified and answered questions in his own behalf.
AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT COVERAGE
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the Americans with Disabilities Act (Public Law 101-336),
focusing on ways to determine the proper scope of its coverage, after
receiving testimony from Chai Feldblum, Georgetown University Law Center
Federal Legislation Clinic, Michael Eastman, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Terry
W. Hartle, American Council on Education, and Andrew Grossman, Heritage
Foundation, all of Washington, D.C.; Samuel R. Bagenstos, Washington
University Law School, Saint Louis, Missouri; Sue Gamm, Public Consulting
Group, Chicago, Illinois; Carey L. McClure, Griffin, Georgia; and Jo Anne
Simon, Brooklyn, New York.
GOOGLE-YAHOO AGREEMENT
KCommittee on the Judiciary: Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and
Consumer Rights concluded a hearing to examine the Google-Yahoo agreement,
focusing on the future of internet advertising, after receiving testimony from
David Drummond, Google Inc., Mountain View, California; Michael Callahan,
Yahoo!, Sunnyvale, California; Brad Smith, Microsoft Corporation, Redmond,
Washington; Matthew Crowley, Yellowpages.com, Glendale, California; and Tim
Carter, AsktheBuilder.com, Cincinnati, Ohio.
[Page: D890]
Joint Meetings
GUANTANAMO BAY DETAINEES
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Commission concluded a
hearing to examine the Supreme Court's recent decision in Boumediene v. Bush ,
focusing on foreign terrorism suspects held at the Guantanamo Bay detention
facility, after receiving testimony from Matthew C. Waxman, Columbia Law
School, New York, New York; and Gabor Rona, Human Rights First, and Jeremy
Shapiro, Brookings Institution, both of Washington, D.C.
2008/07/16
Daily Digest - Wednesday, July 16, 2008; pages D899 - D910
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
APPROPRIATIONS: NIH
Committee on Appropriations: Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services,
and Education, and Related Agencies concluded a hearing to examine proposed
budget estimates for fiscal year 2009 for the National Institutes of Health,
after receiving testimony from Elias A. Zerhouni, Director, National
Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services.
IRAQ NEGOTIATIONS
Committee on Armed Services: Committee met in closed session to receive a
briefing on the status of negotiations with Iraq on a strategic framework
agreement and a status of forces agreement from Lieutenant General Douglas E.
Lute, USA, Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor for
Iraq and Afghanistan, and Christopher C. Straub, Deputy Assistant Secretary
for Middle Eastern Affairs, both of the Department of Defense; and Richard J.
Schmierer, Deputy Assistant Secretary and Coordinator for Iraq, Bureau of Near
Eastern Affairs, Department of State.
LAND BILLS
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Subcommittee on Public Lands and
Forests concluded a hearing to examine S. 2354, to direct the Secretary of the
Interior to convey 4 parcels of land from the Bureau of Land Management to the
city of Twin Falls, Idaho, S. 3065, to establish the Dominguez-Escalante
National Conservation Area and the Dominguez Canyon Wilderness Area, S. 3069,
to designate certain land as wilderness in the State of California, S. 3085,
to require the Secretary of the Interior to establish a cooperative watershed
management program, H.R. 3473, to provide for a land exchange with the City of
Bountiful, Utah, involving National Forest System land in the Wasatch-Cache
National Forest and to further land ownership consolidation in that national
forest, H.R. 3490, to transfer administrative jurisdiction of certain Federal
lands from the Bureau of Land Management to the Bureau of Indian Affairs, to
take such lands into trust for Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians of the Tuolumne
Rancheria, H.R. 3651, to require the conveyance of certain public land within
the boundaries of Camp Williams, Utah, to support the training and readiness
of the Utah National Guard, H.R. 2632, to establish the Sabinoso Wilderness
Area in San Miguel County, New Mexico, and S. 2448, to amend the Surface
Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 to make certain technical
corrections, after receiving testimony from Senator Boxer; Brent Wahlquist,
Director, Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, and Henri
Bisson, Deputy Director, and Avra Morgan, Reclamation Drought Coordinator,
Office of Program and Policy Services, both of the Bureau of Reclamation, all
of the Department of the Interior; Joel Holtrop, Deputy Chief, National Forest
System, United States Forest Service, Department of Agriculture; Jan
McCracken, Delta County, Delta, Colorado; and Tom Hinz, Greater Gallatin
Watershed Council, Bozeman, Montana.
[Page: D901]
NUCLEAR PLANTS LICENSING AND RELICENSING
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on Clean Air and
Nuclear Safety concluded a hearing to examine the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission's licensing and relicensing processes for nuclear power plants,
after receiving testimony from Dale E. Klein, Chairman, Gregory B. Jaczko,
Peter B. Lyons, and Kristine L. Svinicki, each a Commissioner, and Hubert T.
Bell, Inspector General, all of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission; David
A. Christian, Dominion Nuclear, Glenn Allen, Virginia; Anthony R. Pietrangelo,
Nuclear Energy Institute, and Joseph Romm, Center for American Progress Action
Fund, both of Washington, D.C.; Richard Webster, Eastern Environmental Law
Center, Newark, New Jersey; and H. John Gilbertson, Jr., Goldman, Sachs and
Company, Chicago, Illinois.
SIX-PARTY TALKS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a closed hearing to
examine North Korea's declaration and the Six-Party Talks on North Korea's
nuclear weapons program, after receiving testimony from Christopher R. Hill,
Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs.
GLOBAL NUCLEAR DETECTION
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine global nuclear detection architecture--an integrated system
of radiation detection equipment and interdiction activities, focusing on ways
to build domestic defenses to combat a possible future attack, after receiving
testimony from Chuck Gallaway, Deputy Director, and Mark Mullen, Assistant
Director, Architecture Directorate, both of the Domestic Nuclear Detection
Office, Department of Homeland Security; David C. Maurer, Acting Director,
Natural Resources and Environment, Government Accountability Office; Dana A.
Shea, Specialist in Science and Technology Policy, Resources, Science, and
Industry Division, Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress; and
Robert F. Nesbit, MITRE Corporation, Bedford, Massachusetts.
HUMAN CAPITAL CRISIS AT THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of
Columbia concluded a hearing to examine the human capital crisis at the
Department of State, focusing on the Department's efforts to hire, develop,
position, and support a dedicated corps of Foreign Service, Civil Service, and
locally employed staff to effectively meet the global implications,
challenges, standards of operational readiness, and the worldwide mission of
the Department, after receiving testimony from Harry K. Thomas, Director
General of the Foreign Service and Director of Human Resources, Department of
State; and John K. Naland, American Foreign Service Association (AFSA), and
Ronald E. Neumann, American Academy of Diplomacy, both of Washington, D.C.
CHILDHOOD OBESITY (PART I)
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Subcommittee on Children
and Families held a hearing to examine childhood obesity, focusing on the
declining health of America's next generation (Part I), receiving testimony
from Jeffrey Levi, Trust for America's Health (TFAH), and Bruce Lesley, First
Focus, both of Washington, D.C.; Francine Kaufman, University of Southern
California, Los Angeles; and Margaret Grey, Yale University School of Nursing,
New Haven, Connecticut.
[Page: D902]
Hearing recessed subject to the call.
U.S. DETAINEE/TERRORISM POLICIES
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
Administration's detainee policies and the global fight against terrorism,
focusing on legal foundations and the military justice and federal court
systems, after receiving testimony from Kate Martin, Center for National
Security Studies, and David B. Rivkin, Jr., Baker Hostetler, LLP, both of
Washington, D.C.; and Colonel Will A. Gunn, USAF (Ret.), Fort Belvoir,
Virginia.
U.S. CAPITOL POLICE
Committee on Rules and Administration: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine administrative and management operations of the United States Capitol
Police, after receiving testimony from Phillip D. Morse, Sr., Chief of Police,
United States Capitol Police; Richard A. Stana, Director, Homeland Security
and Justice, Government Accountability Office; and Matthew A. Tighe, Fraternal
Order of Police U.S. Capitol Police Labor Committee, Washington, D.C.
RETIREMENT SAVINGS
Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded a hearing to examine smart
ways Americans can save for their retirement, after receiving testimony from
Gregory T. Long, Executive Director, Federal Retirement Thrift Investment
Board; Christian E. Weller, University of Massachusetts Boston Department of
Public Policy and Public Affairs; J. Mark Iwry, Brookings Institution, and
David C. John, Heritage Foundation, both on behalf of the Retirement Security
Project, and John Gannon, Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, all of
Washington, D.C.; and Bruce R. Bent, The Reserve, New York, New York.
Joint Meetings
RACISM IN OSCE
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Commission concluded a
hearing to examine racism in the 21st century, focusing on understanding
global challenges and implementing solutions, addressing non-violent and
violent forms of racial and ethnic discrimination in the 56 North American and
European countries that make up the Organization for Security and Co-operation
in Europe (OSCE) region, including racist and xenophobic political platforms,
worrying increases in hate crimes, and inequalities in housing, education,
employment, and the justice system, after receiving testimony from Anastasia
Crickley, OSCE Chair-in-Office Personal Representative on Combating Racism,
Xenophobia, and Discrimination Against Christians and Members of Other
Religions, Maynooth, Ireland; Gay McDougall, United Nations, Washington, D.C.;
and John Payton, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
(NAACP) Legal Defense and Educational Fund, New York, New York.
2008/07/17
Daily Digest - Thursday, July 17, 2008; pages D911 - D918
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Appropriations: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
An original bill making appropriations for the Department of State, foreign
operations, and related programs for the fiscal year ending September 30,
2009;
[Page: D912]
An original bill making appropriations for Agriculture, Rural Development,
Food and Drug Administration, and related agencies for the fiscal year ending
September 30, 2009; and
An original bill making appropriations for military construction and the
Department of Veterans Affairs, and related agencies for the fiscal year
ending September 30, 2009.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee ordered favorably
reported the following:
An original bill entitled, "The Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability
and Divestment Act of 2008".
HIGHWAY SAFETY
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine ways to make the nation's highways safer for travelers, after
receiving testimony from Jeffrey F. Paniati, Executive Director, Federal
Highway Administration, Department of Transportation; Katherine A. Siggerud,
Managing Director, Physical Infrastructure Issues, Government Accountability
Office; Susan Martinovich, Nevada Department of Transportation, Carson City,
on behalf of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation
Officials; Jacqueline S. Gillan, Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety,
Washington, D.C.; and Robert C. Johns, University of Minnesota Center for
Transportation Studies, Minneapolis.
HEALTH CARE QUALITY
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine leveraging
innovation to improve health care quality for all Americans, focusing on the
federal government's long-term fiscal challenges with the rising costs of
health care, after receiving testimony from Peter R. Orszag, Director,
Congressional Budget Office; Richard Hillestad, RAND Corporation, Santa
Monica, California; George C. Halvorson, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan and
Hospitals, Oakland, California; and Gail R. Wilensky, Project HOPE, Bethesda,
Maryland.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of Mimi Alemayehou, of the District of Columbia, to be United
States Director of the African Development Bank, Kenneth L. Peel, of Maryland,
to be United States Director of the European Bank for Reconstruction and
Development, Miguel R. San Juan, of Texas, to be United States Executive
Director of the Inter-American Development Bank, who was introduced by Senator
Hutchison, and Patrick J. Durkin, of Connecticut, to be a Member of the Board
of Directors of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, after the
nominees testified and answered questions in their own behalf.
OFFSHORE TAX HAVENS
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Permanent
Subcommittee on Investigations held a hearing to examine financial
institutions located in tax haven countries, focusing on ways to strengthen
United States domestic and international tax enforcement efforts, receiving
testimony from Douglas Shulman, Commissioner, Internal Revenue Service,
Department of the Treasury; Kevin J. O'Connor, Associate Attorney General,
Department of Justice; Martin Liechti and Mark Branson, both of UBS, Zurich,
Switzerland; Shannon Marsh, Fort Lauderdale, Florida; and William Wu, Forest
Hills, New York.
Hearing recessed until Friday, July 25, 2008.
FEMA
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Ad Hoc Subcommittee
on Disaster Recovery concluded a hearing to examine major disaster recovery
and assessing the performance of the Federal Emergency Management Agency
(FEMA) since October 2007, after receiving testimony from Harvey E. Johnson,
Deputy Administrator and Chief Operating Officer, FEMA, Department of Homeland
Security; Major General Tod M. Bunting, Kansas Emergency Management and
Homeland Security, Topeka; Stephen Sellers, Governor's Office of Emergency
Services, Mather, California; David Maxwell, Arkansas Department of Emergency
Management, North Little Rock; and James H. Bassham, Tennessee Emergency
Management Agency, Nashville.
TRIBAL IMPLEMENTATION OF ADAM WALSH ACT
Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to
examine tracking sex offenders in Indian country, focusing on tribal
implementation of the Adam Walsh Act (Public Law 109-248), after receiving
testimony from Ron Suppah, Sr., Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs
Reservation of Oregon, Warm Springs; Isidro B. Lopez, Tohono O'odham Nation,
Sells, Arizona; Robert Moore, Rosebud Sioux Tribe, Mission, South Dakota;
William Gregory, Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians, Harbor Springs,
Michigan, on behalf of the 12 federally recognized Michigan tribes; and
Jacqueline Johnson, National Congress of American Indians, Washington, D.C.
[Page: D913]
Joint Meetings
CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION
Conferees met to resolve the differences between the Senate and House passed
versions of H.R. 4040, to establish consumer product safety standards and
other safety requirements for children's products and to reauthorize and
modernize the Consumer Product Safety Commission, but did not complete action
thereon, and recessed subject to the call.
2008/07/21
Daily Digest - Monday, July 21, 2008; pages D919 - D922
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Foreign Relations: On Thursday, July 17, 2008, Committee
concluded a hearing to examine the nominations of Mimi Alemayehou, of the
District of Columbia, to be United States Director of the African Development
Bank, Kenneth L. Peel, of Maryland, to be United States Director of the
European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Miguel R. San Juan, of
Texas, to be United States Executive Director of the Inter-American
Development Bank, and Patrick J. Durkin, of Connecticut, to be a Member of the
Board of Directors of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, after the
nominees testified and answered questions in their own behalf.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/07/22
Daily Digest - Tuesday, July 22, 2008; pages D923 - D930
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Armed Services: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of Michael Bruce Donley, of Virginia, to be Secretary, General
Norton A. Schwartz, for reappointment to the grade of general and to be Chief
of Staff, who was introduced by Senator Stevens, and General Duncan J. McNabb,
for reappointment to the grade of general and to be Commander, United States
Transportation Command, who was introduced by Senator Conrad, all of the
United States Air Force, Department of Defense, after the nominees testified
and answered questions in their own behalf.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Armed Services: Committee ordered favorably reported 1,981
nominations in the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps.
GLOBAL WARMING
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine global warming, focusing on an update on the science of climate change
and its implications, after receiving testimony from Roy W. Spencer,
University of Alabama in Huntsville; Kevin E. Trenberth, National Center for
Atmospheric Research, Boulder, Colorado; and Jason Burnett, Washington, D.C.
INDIAN GOVERNMENTS AND TAX CODE
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine Indian
governments and the tax code, focusing on maximizing tax incentives for
economic development, after receiving testimony from Dante Desiderio, National
Congress of American Indians, Washington, D.C.; Donald Laverdure, Crow Nation
Executive Branch, Crow Agency, Montana; and Wayne Shammel, Cow Creek Band of
Umpqua Tribe of Indians, Roseburg, Oregon.
ENERGY SECURITY
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine ways for the United States to gain energy security,
focusing on the importation and exportation of oil, development of new energy
resources, and ways for the United States to be less dependent on foreign oil,
including S. 3303, to require automobile manufacturers to ensure that not less
than 80 percent of the automobiles manufactured or sold in the United States
by each manufacturer operate on fuel mixtures containing 85 percent ethanol,
85 percent methanol, or biodiesel, after receiving testimony from T. Boone
Pickens, BP Capital Management, Dallas, Texas; Gal Luft, Institute for the
Analysis of Global Security (IAGS), and Geoffrey Anderson, Smart Growth
America, both of Washington, D.C.; and Joseph Dagher, University of Maine,
Orono.
PAY-FOR-PERFORMANCE SYSTEMS
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of
Columbia concluded a hearing to examine improving worker performance relating
to a review of pay-for-performance systems in the federal government, after
receiving testimony from Linda M. Springer, Director, Office of Personnel
Management; Richard A. Spires, Deputy Commissioner, Operations Support,
Internal Revenue Service, Department of the Treasury; Gale Rossides, Deputy
Administrator, Transportation Security Administration, Department of Homeland
Security; Ronald P. Sanders, Associate Director, Human Capital, Office of the
Director of National Intelligence; Bradley Bunn, Program Executive Officer,
National Security Personnel System, Department of Defense; J. Christopher
Mihm, Managing Director, Strategic Issues, Government Accountability Office;
Carol A. Bonosaro, Senior Executives Association, John Gage, American
Federation of Government Employees (AFL-CIO), Colleen M. Kelley, National
Treasury Employees Union, and Jonathan D. Breul, IBM Center for The Business
of Government, all of Washington, D.C.; and Charles H. Fay, Rutgers University
School of Management and Labor Relations, Piscataway, New Jersey.
INTELLIGENCE
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee held closed hearings on
intelligence matters, receiving testimony from officials of the intelligence
community.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
Joint Meetings
KAZAKHSTAN'S FUTURE CHAIRMANSHIP
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Commission concluded a
hearing to examine Kazakhstan's preparation for its future chairmanship of the
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSEC) in 2010, focusing
on plans, priorities, and challenges that face the OSEC region, after
receiving testimony from Richard A. Boucher, Assistant Secretary of State for
South and Central Asian Affairs; Askar Tazhiev, Embassy of Kazakhstan, and
Martha Olcott, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, both of Washington,
D.C.; and Andrea Berg, Human Rights Watch, Berlin, Germany.
2008/07/23
Daily Digest - Wednesday, July 23, 2008; pages D931 - D940
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
DEFENSE CONTRACTING IN IRAQ
Committee on Appropriations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
adequacy of defense contracting oversight for Operation Iraqi Freedom, after
receiving testimony from Gordon England, Deputy Secretary, Gordon S. Heddell,
Acting Inspector General, and General Benjamin S. Griffin, Commanding Officer,
United States Army Materiel Command, all of the Department of Defense.
REDUCING GASOLINE DEMAND
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the status of existing federal programs targeted at reducing gasoline
demand, focusing on additional proposals for near-term gasoline demand
reductions, after receiving testimony from Steven G. Chalk, Deputy Assistant
Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, and David L. Greene,
Corporate Fellow, Transportation Science and Energy Division, Oak Ridge
National Laboratory, both of the Department of Energy; John A. Laitner,
American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), Washington, D.C.;
Steve Winkelman, Center for Clean Air Policy, Port Chester, New York; and
Edward R. Buiel, Axion Power International, Inc., New Castle, Pennsylvania.
MIDWEST FLOODS
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the recent floods in the Midwestern United States, focusing on ways to
determine what happened and how to improve managing risk and responses in the
future, after receiving testimony from Senators Grassley, Durbin, and
McCaskill; and John Paul Woodley, Jr., Assistant Secretary for Civil Works,
and Brigadier General Michael J. Walsh, Division Commander, Mississippi Valley
Division, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, both of the Department of the Army,
Department of Defense.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Finance: Committee ordered favorably reported the following:
S.J. Res. 41, approving the renewal of import restrictions contained in the
Burmese Freedom and Democracy Act of 2003.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of James Christopher Swan, of California, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of Djibouti, Alan W. Eastham, Jr., of Arkansas, to be Ambassador to
the Republic of the Congo, W. Stuart Symington, of Missouri, to be Ambassador
to the Republic of Rwanda, who was introduced by Senators Klobuchar and
McCaskill, and John A. Simon, of Maryland, to be Representative of the United
States of America to the African Union, with the rank and status of
Ambassador, all of the Department of State, after the nominees testified and
answered questions in their own behalf.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of Tatiana C. Gfoeller-Volkoff, of the District of Columbia, to be
Ambassador to the Kyrgyz Republic, Richard G. Olson, Jr., of New Mexico, to be
Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates, David D. Pearce, of Virginia, to be
Ambassador to the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, and Michele Jeanne
Sison, of Maryland, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Lebanon, all of the
Department of State, after the nominees testified and answered questions in
their own behalf.
UNITED NATIONS PEACEKEEPING
Committee on Foreign Relations: Subcommittee on International Operations and
Organizations, Democracy and Human Rights concluded a hearing to examine
United Nations peacekeeping operations, focusing on opportunities and
challenges for the administration of the next president of the United States,
after receiving testimony from Brian Hook, Acting Assistant Secretary of State
for International Organization Affairs; Brett D. Schaefer, Heritage Foundation
Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom, and William J. Durch, Henry L. Stimson
Center, both of Washington, D.C.; and Nancy Soderberg, University of North
Florida, Jacksonville.
INFORMATION SHARING
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine information sharing, including the actions that have been
taken to guide the design and implementation of the Information Sharing
Environment (ISE), and to report its progress, the characteristics of state
and local fusion centers and the extent to which federal efforts are helping
to address some of the challenges centers reported, and the progress made in
developing streamlined policies and procedures for designating, marking,
safeguarding, and disseminating sensitive but unclassified information, after
receiving testimony from Eileen R. Larence, Director, Homeland Security and
Justice Issues, Government Accountability Office; Charles E. Allen, Under
Secretary of Homeland Security for Intelligence and Analysis, and Chief
Intelligence Officer; James M. Thomas, Connecticut Department of Emergency
Management and Homeland Security, Hartford; and Thomas E. McNamara,
Information Sharing Environment, and Jeffrey H. Smith, Arnold and Porter LLP,
both of Washington, D.C.
[Page: D934]
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the nominations of Carol A. Dalton, Anthony C. Epstein, and
Heidi M. Pasichow, all of the District of Columbia, all to be an Associate
Judge of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, who were introduced
by Representative Norton, after the nominees testified and answered questions
in their own behalf.
CHILDHOOD OBESITY
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Subcommittee on Children
and Families concluded hearings to examine childhood obesity, focusing on the
declining health of America's next generation (Part II), after receiving
testimony from Joseph W. Thompson, Arkansas Surgeon General, Little Rock, on
behalf of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Center to Prevent Childhood
Obesity; Philip J. Dwyer, Central Connecticut Coast YMCA, New Haven; Susan K.
Neely, American Beverage Association, Washington, D.C.; and Jonathan Miller,
Ypsilanti, Michigan.
SUPREME COURT DECISIONS
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
impact of Supreme Court decisions, focusing on recent decisions on corporate
misconduct and laws regulating corporations, after receiving testimony from
Elizabeth Bartholet, Harvard Law School, Cambridge, Massachusetts; Patricia
Ann Millett, Akin Gump Strauss Hauer and Feld, LLP, Washington, D.C.; and Osa
Marie Schultz, Cordova, Alaska.
NOMINATIONS
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
nominations of J. Patrick Rowan, of Maryland, and Jeffrey Leigh Sedgwick, of
Massachusetts, both to be an Assistant Attorney General, Department of
Justice, and William B. Carr, Jr., of Pennsylvania, to be a Member of the
United States Sentencing Commission, after the nominees testified and answered
questions in their own behalf.
NATIONAL GUARD AND RESERVES VA OUTREACH
Committee on Veterans' Affairs: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to
examine the Department of Veterans Affairs, focusing on responding to the
needs of returning United States National Guard and Reserve members, after
receiving testimony from Donald Nelson, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense
for Reserve Affairs; Bradley G. Mayes, Director, Compensation and Pension
Service, Veterans Benefits Administration, and Major General Marianne
Mathewson-Chapman, (Ret.) Army National Guard, Coordinator of National Guard,
Reserve and Families, VHA OEF/OIF Outreach Office, Veterans Health
Administration, both of the Department of Veterans Affairs; Joseph R. Scotti,
West Virginia University, Morgantown; Colonel Bradley A. Livingston, Montana
National Guard, Fort Harrison; Lieutenant Colonel John Boyd, Vermont Army
National Guard, Colchester; Sergeant Roy Meredith, Maryland Army National
Guard, Annapolis; and Major Cynthia M. Rasmussen, Combat Stress Officer,
Sexual Assault Response Coordinator, 88th Regional Readiness Command, Fort
Snelling, Minnesota.
NURSING HOME CARE
Special Committee on Aging: Committee concluded a hearing to examine
person-centered health care at nursing homes, focusing on reforming services
and improving the quality of care, after receiving testimony from Bill Thomas,
University of Maryland Baltimore Erickson School, Ithaca, New York; Robert
Jenkens, GREEN HOUSE Project, Arlington, Virginia; Melinda Abrams,
Commonwealth Fund, New York, New York; Eric A. Coleman, University of Colorado
at Denver and Health Sciences Center; Edna Hess, Lebanon Valley Brethren Home,
Palmyra, Pennsylvania; Diana White, Portland State University Institute on
Aging, Portland, Oregon; and Zoe Valentine Holland, Lincoln, Nebraska.
[Page: D935]
Joint Meetings
FAMILY ECONOMIC ISSUES
Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded a hearing to examine escalating
household costs, static family income growth, and falling home prices,
focusing on ways to help American families to deal with economic issues in a
skillful and efficient manner, after receiving testimony from Elizabeth
Warren, Harvard Law School, Cambridge, Massachusetts; Jared Bernstein,
Economic Policy Institute, and David Kreutzer, Heritage Foundation, both of
Washington, D.C.; and Kristen Lewis, American Human Development Project, New
York, New York.
2008/07/24
Daily Digest - Thursday, July 24, 2008; pages D941 - D948
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
IRAN
Committee on Armed Services: Committee met in closed session to receive a
briefing on Iran from Dolores A. Powers, Deputy Iran Mission Manager, Alan R.
Pino, National Intelligence Officer for the Near East, and William J. Keller,
Deputy National Intelligence Officer for Weapons of Mass Destruction, all of
the Office of the Director of National Intelligence; Jeffrey D. Feltman,
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Near Eastern
Affairs; and James R. Clapper, Jr., Under Secretary for Intelligence, Michael
G. Vickers, Assistant Secretary for Special Operations/Low-Intensity Conflict
and Interdependent Capabilities, and Lieutenant General Carter F. Ham, USA,
Director, J-3 Operations Directorate, Joint Chiefs of Staff, all of the
Department of Defense.
CAYMAN ISLANDS AND OFFSHORE TAX ISSUES
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the Cayman
Islands, focusing on offshore tax issues, including the nature and extent of
United States persons' involvement with Ugland House registered entities and
the nature of such business, the reasons that U.S. persons conduct business in
the Cayman Islands, information available to the U.S. government regarding
U.S. persons' Cayman activities, and the U.S. government's compliance and
enforcement efforts, after receiving testimony from Michael Brostek, Director,
Strategic Issues, Government Accountability Office; Frank Ng, Commissioner,
Large and Mid-Sized Businesses, Internal Revenue Service, Department of the
Treasury; and Jack A. Blum, Baker and Hostetler, Washington, D.C.
HIGHWAY PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS
Committee on Finance: Subcommittee on Energy, Natural Resources, and
Infrastructure concluded a hearing to examine tax and financing aspects of
highway public-private partnerships, including the benefits, costs, and
trade-offs of highway public-private partnerships, the ways public officials
have identified and acted to protect the public interest in these
arrangements, and the federal role in highway public-private partnerships and
potential changes in this role, after receiving testimony from Edward D.
Kleinbard, Chief of Staff, Joint Committee on Taxation; JayEtta Z. Hecker,
Director, Physical Infrastructure Issues, Government Accountability Office;
Pat Choate, Manufacturing Policy Project, Washington, Virginia; Linda E.
Carlisle, White and Case LLP, Washington, D.C.; and Dennis J. Enright, NW
Financial, Jersey City, New Jersey.
IMPROVING FEDERAL PROGRAM MANAGEMENT
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Subcommittee on
Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services, and
International Security concluded a hearing to examine ways to improve federal
program management using performance information, after receiving testimony
from Bernice Steinhardt, Director, Strategic Issues, Government Accountability
Office; Marcus C. Peacock, Deputy Administrator, Environmental Protection
Agency; Jim Dyer, Chief Financial Officer and Performance Improvement Officer,
United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission; Scott Pace, Associate
Administrator for Program Analysis and Evaluation, National Aeronautics and
Space Administration (NASA); Daniel A. Tucker, Deputy Assistant Secretary of
Veterans Affairs for Budget; Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley, Annapolis; and
Donald F. Kettl, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.
[Page: D943]
TRIBAL COURTS
Committee on Indian Affairs: Committee concluded an oversight hearing to
examine tribal courts and the administration of justice in Indian country,
after receiving testimony from Pat Ragsdale, Director, Office of Justice
Services, Bureau of Indian Affairs, and Joe Little, Associate Deputy Director,
Office of Justice Services-Division of Tribal Justice Support, both of the
Department of the Interior; Roman J. Duran, Jicarilla Apache Nation Courts,
Albuquerque, New Mexico, on behalf of the National American Indian Court
Judges Association; Joseph Thomas Flies-Away, Hualapai Judiciary, Peach
Springs, Arizona; Theresa M. Pouley, Tulalip Tribal Court Judge, Tulalip,
Washington, on behalf of the Northwest Tribal Court Judges Association; John
St. Clair, Shoshone and Arapaho Tribal Court of the Wind River Indian
Reservation, Fort Washakie, Wyoming; and Dorma L. Sahneyah, Hopi Tribal Chief
Prosecutor, Kykotsmovi, Arizona.
CRIMES ASSOCIATED WITH POLYGAMY
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine crimes
associated with polygamy, focusing on the need for a coordinated state and
federal response, after receiving testimony from Senator Reid; Gregory A.
Brower, United States Attorney, District of Nevada, and Brett L. Tolman,
United States Attorney, District of Utah, both of the Department of Justice;
Terry Goddard, Arizona Attorney General, Phoenix; Greg Abbott, Texas Attorney
General, Austin; Stephen Singular, Denver, Colorado; Dan Fischer, Sandy, Utah;
and Carolyn Jessop, West Jordan, Utah.
Joint Meetings
SMALL MARKET DRUGS
Joint Economic Committee: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the
escalating prices of certain prescription drugs, focusing on the impact on the
pharmaceutical market, hospital budgets, and patients' medical bills,
especially people with rare diseases, after receiving testimony from Madeline
M. Carpinelli, University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy PRIME Institute,
and Alan L. Goldbloom, Children's Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota, both of
Minneapolis; and Danielle Foltz, Providence, Rhode Island.
2008/07/25
Daily Digest - Friday, July 25, 2008; pages D950 - D956
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
NOMINATION
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the nomination of James A. Williams, of Virginia, to be
Administrator of General Services Administration, after the nominee, who was
introduced by Senator Warner and former Secretary of Homeland Security Thomas
J. Ridge, testified and answered questions in his own behalf.
OFFSHORE TAX HAVENS
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Permanent
Subcommittee on Investigations concluded a hearing to examine financial
institutions located in offshore tax havens, focusing on ways to strengthen
United States domestic and international tax enforcement efforts, after
receiving testimony from Steven Greenfield, New York, New York; and Peter S.
Lowy, Beverly Hills, California.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/07/26
Daily Digest - Saturday, July 26, 2008; pages D958 - D960
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
Joint Meetings
No joint committee meetings were held.
2008/07/27
Daily Digest - Sunday, July 27, 2008, pages D961 - D962
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
No committee meetings were held.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/07/28
Daily Digest - Monday, July 28, 2008; pages D963 - D966
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
NOMINATIONS
Committee on Armed Services: Committee met in closed session to receive a
briefing related to Air Force nominations from members of the intelligence
community.
No Joint hearings noted.
2008/07/29
Daily Digest - Tuesday, July 29, 2008; pages D968 - D980
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
EXECUTIVE SESSION
Committee on Armed Services: Committee met in closed session to consider
pending intelligence matters, receiving testimony from Robert M. Gates,
Secretary, and Admiral Michael G. Mullen, USN, Chairman, Joint Chiefs of
Staff, both of the Department of Defense.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
REGULATORY AND OVERSIGHT STRUCTURE OF INSURANCE INDUSTRY
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the state of the insurance industry, focusing on the
current regulatory and oversight structure, after receiving testimony from
Steven M. Goldman, New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance, Trenton, on
behalf of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners; Travis B.
Plunkett, Consumer Federation of America, Alessandro Iuppa, Zurich North
America, on behalf of the American Insurance Association, and Franklin W.
Nutter, Reinsurance Association of America, all of Washington, D.C.; John
Pearson, Baltimore Life Insurance Company, Owings Mills, Maryland, on behalf
of the American Council of Life Insurers; George A. Steadman, Rutherfoord
Inc., Roanoke, Virginia, on behalf of the Council of Insurance Agents and
Brokers; Tom Minkler, Clark-Mortenson Agency, Keene, New Hampshire, on behalf
of the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of America, Inc.; and Richard
M. Bouhan, National Association of Professional Surplus Lines Offices, Ltd.,
Kansas City, Missouri.
NOMINATION
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation: Committee concluded a
hearing to examine the nomination of John P. Hewko, of Michigan, to be an
Assistant Secretary of Transportation, after the nominee testified and
answered questions in his own behalf.
EPA
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Subcommittee on Clean Air and
Nuclear Safety concluded a hearing to examine the Environmental Protection
Agency's (EPA) Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR), focusing on a recent court
decision and its implications, after receiving testimony from Brian McLean,
Director, Office of Atmospheric Programs, Office of Air and Radiation, U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency; Jared Snyder, New York State Department of
Environmental Conservation, Albany; Christopher Korleski, Ohio Environmental
Protection Agency, Columbus; Eric B. Svenson, Jr., Public Service Enterprise
Group, and John D. Walke, Natural Resources Defense Council, both of
Washington, D.C.; and William H. Spence, PPL Corporation, Allentown,
Pennsylvania.
U.S. TRADE POLICY
Committee on Finance: Committee concluded a hearing to examine the future of
United States trade policy, focusing on perspectives from former United States
Trade Representatives, after receiving testimony from former United States
Senator William E. Brock, Brock Offices, Annapolis, Maryland; and Mickey
Kantor, Mayer Brown, Carla A. Hills, Hills and Company, and Charlene
Barshefsky, Wilmer Hale, all of Washington, D.C.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Foreign Relations: Committee ordered favorably reported the
following:
S. 3263, to authorize appropriations for fiscal years 2009 through 2013 to
promote an enhanced strategic partnership with Pakistan and its people;
S. 3052, to provide for the transfer of naval vessels to certain foreign
recipients;
S. Res. 618, recognizing the tenth anniversary of the bombings of the United
States embassies in Nairobi, Kenya and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and
memorializing the citizens of the United States, Kenya, and Tanzania whose
lives were claimed as a result of the al Qaeda led terrorist attacks;
[Page: D970]
CCW Protocol on Explosive Remnants of War (the "CCW Protocol V") (Treaty Doc.
109-10(C)), with one understanding and one declaration;
The Amendment to Article 1 of the 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 "CCW Amendment")
(Treaty Doc. 109-10(B)), with one declaration;
The Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of
Armed Conflict (the Convention) concluded on May 14, 1954, and entered into
force on August 7, 1956 with accompanying report from the Department of State
(Treaty Doc. 106-01(A)), with four understandings and one declaration;
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) 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 (Treaty Doc.
105-01(B)), with one reservation, one understanding, and one declaration;
Protocol on Blinding Laser Weapons (Protocol IV) Additional to the 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 (Treaty Doc. 105-1(C)) with one understanding and one declaration;
International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism (the
"Convention"), adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on April 13,
2005, and signed on behalf of the United States of America on September 14,
2005 (Treaty Doc. 110-04), with one reservation, four understandings, and one
declaration;
Amendment to the Convention on the Physical Protection of Nuclear Material
(the "Amendment"). A conference of States Parties to the Convention on the
Physical Protection of Nuclear Material, adopted on October 28, 1979, adopted
the Amendment on July 8, 2005, at the International Atomic Energy Agency in
Vienna (Treaty Doc. 110-06), with one reservation, three understandings, and
one declaration;
Protocol of 2005 to the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts
against the Safety of Maritime Navigation (the "2005 SUA Protocol") (Treaty
Doc. 110-08), with one reservation, five understandings, and one declaration;
The Protocol of 2005 to the Protocol for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts
against the Safety of Fixed Platforms Located on the Continental Shelf (the
"2005 Fixed Platforms Protocol") (together, "the Protocols"), adopted by the
International Maritime Organization Diplomatic Conference in London on October
14, 2005, and signed by the United States of America on February 17, 2006
(Treaty Doc. 110-08), with one reservation, four understandings, and one
declaration;
Agreement on Extradition between the United States of America and the European
Union (EU), signed on June 25, 2003 at Washington, together with twenty-two
bilateral instruments which subsequently were signed between the United States
and each European Union Member State in order to implement the Agreement with
the EU. The Agreement includes an explanatory note which is an integral part
of the Agreement (Treaty Doc. 109-14), with one condition and one declaration
made with respect to each treaty;
Extradition Treaty between the United States of America and the Government of
the Republic of Latvia, signed on December 7, 2005, at Riga (Treaty Doc.
109-15), with one declaration;
Extradition Treaty between the United States of America and the Government of
the Republic of Estonia, signed on February 8, 2006, at Tallinn (Treaty Doc.
109-16), with one declaration;
Extradition Treaty between the United States of America and the Government of
Malta, signed on May 18, 2006, at Valletta, that includes an exchange of
letters that is an integral part of the treaty (Treaty Doc. 109-17), with one
declaration;
Extradition Treaty between the United States of America and Romania (the
"Extradition Treaty" or the "Treaty") (Treaty Doc. 110-11), with one
declaration;
The Protocol to the Treaty between the United States of America and Romania on
Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters (the "Protocol"), both signed at
Bucharest on September 10, 2007 (Treaty Doc. 110-11), with one declaration;
Extradition Treaty between the Government of the United States of America and
the Government of the Republic of Bulgaria (the "Extradition Treaty" or the
"Treaty") (Treaty Doc. 110-12), with one declaration;
The Agreement on Certain Aspects of Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal
Matters between the Government of the United States of America and the
Government of the Republic of Bulgaria (the "MLA Agreement"), both signed at
Sofia on September 19, 2007 (Treaty Doc. 110-12), with one declaration;
Convention Between the Government of the United States of America and the
Government of the Republic of Bulgaria for the Avoidance of Double Taxation
and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion With Respect to Taxes on Income, with
accompanying Protocol, signed at Washington on February 23, 2007 (the
"Proposed Treaty"), as well as the Protocol Amending the Convention Between
the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the
Republic of Bulgaria for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention
of Fiscal Evasion With Respect to Taxes on Income, signed at Sofia on February
26, 2008 (Treaty Doc. 110-18), with a declaration;
[Page: D971]
Mutual Legal Assistance between the United States of America and the European
Union (EU), signed on June 25, 2003, at Washington, together with 25 bilateral
instruments that subsequently were signed between the United States and each
European Union Member State in order to implement the Agreement with the EU,
and an explanatory note that is an integral part of the Agreement (Treaty Doc.
109-13), with one declaration made with respect to each treaty;
Treaty Between the Government of the United States of America and the
Government of the Kingdom of Sweden on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal
Matters, signed at Stockholm on December 17, 2001 (Treaty Doc. 107-12), with
one declaration;
Treaty between the United States of America and Malaysia on Mutual Legal
Assistance in Criminal Matters, signed on July 28, 2006, at Kuala Lumpur
(Treaty Doc. 109-22), with one declaration;
1992 Partial Revision of the Radio Regulations (Geneva, 1979), with
appendices, signed by the United States at Malaga-Torremolinos on March 3,
1992 (the "1992 Partial Revision"), together with declarations and
reservations of the United States as contained in the Final Acts of the World
Administrative Radio Conference for Dealing with Frequency Allocations in
Certain Parts of the Spectrum (WARC-92) (Treaty Doc. 107-17), with four
declarations and reservations;
1995 Revision of the Radio Regulations, with appendices, signed by the United
States at Geneva on November 17, 1995 (the "1995 Revision"), together with
declarations and reservations of the United States as contained in the Final
Acts of the World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-95) (Treaty Doc. 108-28),
with five declarations and reservations;
International Convention on the Control of Harmful Anti-Fouling Systems on
Ships, 2001 (the "Convention") (Treaty Doc. 110-13), with two declarations;
1996 Protocol to the Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by
Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter (the "London Convention"), done in London
on November 7, 1996. The Protocol was signed by the United States on March 31,
1998, and entered into force on March 24, 2006 (Treaty Doc. 110-05), with two
declarations and one understanding;
Protocol Concerning Pollution from Land-Based Sources and Activities (the
"Protocol") to the Convention for the Protection and Development of the Marine
Environment of the Wider Caribbean Region, with Annexes, done at Oranjestad,
Aruba, on October 6, 1999, and signed by the United States on that same date
(Treaty Doc. 110-01), with two declarations;
Protocol Amending the Convention Between the United States of America and
Canada with Respect to Taxes on Income and on Capital done at Washington on
September 26, 1980, as Amended by the Protocols done on June 14, 1983, March
28, 1984, March 17, 1995, and July 29, 1997, signed on September 21, 2007, at
Chelsea (the "proposed Protocol") (Treaty Doc. 110-15), with one declaration
and one condition,
Convention Between the Government of the United States of America and the
Government of Iceland for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention
of Fiscal Evasion with Respect to Taxes on Income, and accompanying Protocol,
signed on October 23, 2007, at Washington, D.C (Treaty Doc. 110-17), with one
declaration; and
The nominations of Alan W. Eastham, Jr., of Arkansas, to be Ambassador to the
Republic of the Congo, Tatiana C. Gfoeller-Volkoff, of the District of
Columbia, to be Ambassador to the Kyrgyz Republic, Richard G. Olson, Jr., of
New Mexico, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United
States of America to the United Arab Emirates, David D. Pearce, of Virginia,
to be Ambassador to the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, John A.
Simon, of Maryland, to be Representative of the United States of America to
the African Union, with the rank and status of Ambassador, Michele Jeanne
Sison, of Maryland, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Lebanon, James
Christopher Swan, of California, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Djibouti,
W. Stuart Symington, of Missouri, to be Ambassador to the Republic of Rwanda,
and Marie L. Yovanovitch, of Connecticut, to be Ambassador to the Republic of
Armenia, all of the Department of State, and John O. Agwunobi, of Florida,
Julius E. Coles, of Georgia, Morgan W. Davis, of California, and John W.
Leslie, Jr., of Connecticut, all to be a Member of the Board of Directors of
the African Development Foundation, Mimi Alemayehou, of the District of
Columbia, to be United States Director of the African Development Bank,
Patrick J. Durkin, of Connecticut, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of
the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, Peter Robert Kann, of New Jersey,
and Michael Meehan, of Virginia, both to be a Member of the Broadcasting Board
of Governors, Kenneth L. Peel, of Maryland, to be United States Director of
the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and Miguel R. San Juan,
of Texas, to be United States Executive Director of the Inter-American
Development Bank.
[Page: D972]
PAYROLL TAX ABUSE
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Permanent
Subcommittee on Investigations concluded a hearing to examine the magnitude of
outstanding payroll tax debt, focusing on the policies and procedures that are
used to collect unpaid payroll taxes, after receiving testimony from Steven J.
Sebastian, Director, Financial Management and Assurance, Government
Accountability Office; and Linda Stiff, Deputy Commissioner for Services and
Enforcement, Internal Revenue Service, Department of the Treasury.
OSHA
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions: Subcommittee on
Employment and Workplace Safety concluded a hearing to examine the
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), focusing on protecting
workers from dangerous dust at the workplace, after receiving testimony from
Senator Chambliss; Edwin G. Foulke, Jr., Assistant Secretary of Labor for
Occupational Safety and Health Administration; John S. Bresland, Chairman CEO,
United States Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board; Amy Beasley
Spencer, National Fire Protection Association, Quincy, Massachusetts; Richard
W. Prugh, Chilworth Technology, Inc., Plainsboro, New Jersey; and Graham
Harris Graham, Imperial Sugar Company, Sugarland, Texas.
MUSIC AND RADIO IN THE 21ST CENTURY
Committee on the Judiciary: Committee concluded a hearing to examine music and
radio in the 21st century, focusing on assuring fair rates and rules across
various platform--frameworks on which applications may be run, including S.
256, to harmonize rate setting standards for copyright licenses under section
112 and 114 of title 17, United States Code, S. 2500, to provide fair
compensation to artists for use of their sound recordings, and S. 1353, to
nullify the determinations of the Copyright Royalty Judges with respect to
webcasting, to modify the basis for making such a determination, after
receiving testimony from Senators Wyden and Corker; John L. Simson,
SoundExchange, Washington, D.C.; Jeffrey S. Harleston, Geffen Records, Santa
Monica, California, on behalf of the Recording Industry Association of
America; Joe Kennedy, Pandora Media, Inc., Oakland, California; John Ondrasik,
Los Angeles, California; and Matt Nathanson, San Francisco, California.
BUSINESS MEETING
Select Committee on Intelligence: Committee met in closed session to consider
pending intelligence matters.
Committee recessed subject to the call.
Joint Meetings
COLLEGE OPPORTUNITY AND AFFORDABILITY ACT
Conferees agreed to file a conference report on the differences between the
Senate and House passed versions of H.R. 4137, to amend and extend the Higher
Education Act of 1965.
AZERBAIJAN: HUMAN RIGHTS AND DEMOCRATIZATION
Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe: Commission concluded a
hearing to examine human rights and democratization in Azerbaijan, focusing on
the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the Council
of Europe's numerous concerns, including freedom of the media, political
prisoners and the conduct of elections, after receiving testimony from David
J. Kramer, Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor;
Yashar Aliyev, Ambassador of the Republic of Azerbaijan to the United States,
Washington, D.C.; and Chris Walker, Freedom House, New York, New York.
2008/07/30
Daily Digest - Wednesday, July 30, 2008; pages D981 - D994
Committee Meetings
(Committees not listed did not meet)
ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING
Committee on Appropriations: Committee announced the following subcommittee
changes:
Subcommittee on Defense: Senators Inouye (Chairman), Byrd, Leahy, Harkin,
Dorgan, Durbin, Feinstein, Mikulski, Kohl, Murray, Cochran, Stevens, Specter,
Domenici, Bond, McConnell, Shelby, Gregg, and Hutchison.
Senator Byrd, as chairman of the Committee, and Senator Cochran, as ranking
minority member of the Committee, are ex officio members of all subcommittees
of which they are not regular members.
EXECUTIVE SESSION
Committee on Armed Services: Committee met in closed session to consider
pending intelligence matters, receiving testimony from General Norton A.
Schwartz, USAF, Commander, United States Transportation Command, Department of
Defense.
[Page: D983]
LAND BILLS
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine S. 1816, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to establish a
commemorative trail in connection with the Women's Rights National Historical
Park to link properties that are historically and thematically associated with
the struggle for women's suffrage, S. 2093, to amend the Wild and Scenic
Rivers Act to designate a segment of the Missisquoi and Trout Rivers in the
State of Vermont for study for potential addition to the National Wild and
Scenic Rivers System, S. 2535, to revise the boundary of the Martin Van Buren
National Historic Site, S. 2561, to require the Secretary of the Interior to
conduct a theme study to identify sites and resources to commemorate and
interpret the Cold War, S. 3011, to amend the Palo Alto Battlefield National
Historic Site Act of 1991 to expand the boundaries of the historic site, S.
3113, to reinstate the Interim Management Strategy governing off-road vehicle
use in the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, North Carolina, pending the
issuance of a final rule for off-road vehicle use by the National Park
Service, S. 3148, to modify the boundary of the Oregon Caves National
Monument, S. 3158, to extend the authority for the Cape Cod National Seashore
Advisory Commission, S. 3226, to rename the Abraham Lincoln Birthplace
National Historic Site in the State of Kentucky as the "Abraham Lincoln
Birthplace National Historical Park", S. 3247, to provide for the designation
of the River Raisin National Battlefield Park in the State of Michigan, and
H.R. 5137, to ensure that hunting remains a purpose of the New River Gorge
National River, after receiving testimony from Senators Levin, Clinton, and
Dole; Daniel N. Wenk, Deputy Director, National Park Service, Department of
the Interior; Joel Holtrop, Deputy Chief, National Forest System, U.S. Forest
Service, Department of Agriculture; Warren Judge, North Carolina Board of
Commissioners, Dare County; Derb S. Carter, Jr., Southern Environmental Law
Center, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, on behalf of sundry organizations; Coline
Jenkins, Elizabeth Cady Stanton Trust, Greenwich, Connecticut; and William H.
Braunlich, Monroe County Historical Society, Monroe County, Michigan.
NOMINATION
Committee on Environment and Public Works: Committee concluded a hearing to
examine the nomination of Thomas J. Madison, of New York, to be Administrator
of the Federal Highway Administration, Department of Transportation, after the
nominee, who was introduced by Senator Schumer, testified and answered
questions in his own behalf.
BUSINESS MEETING
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs: Committee ordered
favorably reported the following:
S. 2583, to amend the Improper Payments Information Act of 2002 (31 U.S.C.
3321 note) in order to prevent the loss of billions in taxpayer dollars, with
an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 3341, to reauthorize and improve the Federal Financial Assistance
Management Improvement Act of 1999;
H.R. 3068, to prohibit the award of contracts to provide guard services under
the contract security guard program of the Federal Protective Service to a
business concern that is owned, controlled, or operated by an individual who
has been convicted of a felony, with an amendment in the nature of a
substitute;
H.R. 404, to require the establishment of customer service standards for
Federal agencies, with an amendment in the nature of a substitute;
S. 3328, to amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to provide for a one-year
extension of other transaction authority;
S. 3241, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located
at 1717 Orange Avenue in Fort Pierce, Florida, as the "CeeCee Ross Lyles Post
Office Building";
H.R. 6150, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 14500 Lorain Avenue in Cleveland, Ohio, as the "John P. Gallagher
Post Office Building";
H.R. 6085, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 42222 Rancho Las Palmas Drive in Rancho Mirage, California, as the
"Gerald R. Ford Post Office Building";
H.R. 5477, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 120 South Del Mar Avenue in San Gabriel, California, as the "Chi
Mui Post Office Building";
H.R. 5631, to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service
located at 1155 Seminole Trail in Charlottesville, Virginia, as the "Corpora |
