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[Page: H5343] GPO's PDF---
(Mr. HOYER asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)
Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I rise for the purpose of inquiring of the distinguished majority whip the schedule for tomorrow, and I will be pleased to yield to my friend, the distinguished majority whip.
Mr. BLUNT. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. HOYER. I yield to the gentleman from Missouri.
[Page: H5344] GPO's PDF
Mr. BLUNT. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Maryland, my good friend, the Democratic whip for yielding to me.
Mr. Speaker, the House will convene on Monday at 12:30 p.m. for morning hour and 2 p.m. for legislative business and will consider several measures under suspension of the rules, and a final list of those bills will be sent to Members' offices by the end of this week.
[Time: 18:45]
Mr. Speaker, any votes called on those measures will be rolled until 6:30 p.m.
On Tuesday, we may consider additional legislation under suspension of the rules as well as the conference report on S. 342, the Keeping the Children and Families Safe Act. Next week we expect to consider several bills under a rule, including H.R. 8, the Death Tax Permanency Act; H.R. 1528, the Taxpayers Protection and IRS Accountability Act; and H.R. 660, the Small Business Health Fairness Act.
I would like to note for all Members that we are making a change to schedules that were sent to offices at the beginning of the year, and we do not plan to have votes next Friday, June 20.
Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for the information he provided us. I would like to ask a number of questions about bills that we see on the horizon, to see whether or not they may be scheduled in the near future.
The Associated Health Plans, can you tell us what day we might consider that bill, and how the bill will be considered, and whether or not we will be allowed a substitute and/or amendment?
Mr. BLUNT. If the gentleman will continue to yield, we intend to bring that bill to the floor this coming week, I think on Wednesday or Thursday.
Mr. HOYER. Does the gentleman have any information as to whether or not the minority would be allowed a substitute to that bill?
Mr. BLUNT. We look forward to a fair and full debate on that bill. Our rules generally leave that to the Committee on Rules, but if the proposed substitute is within the rules of the House, that is normally the procedure.
Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the gentleman's remarks and I hope that we will be able to get a substitute and such amendments as we might deem to be appropriate to be considered by the full House.
On the State tax bill, can you tell us when we might consider that bill and also the status of any rule?
Mr. BLUNT. Again, I have announced that we intend to bring that bill to the floor next week. Again I would expect that would be on Wednesday or Thursday.
Mr. HOYER. Do you know which would come first, the associated health plans or the State tax?
Mr. BLUNT. I do not know which will come first.
Mr. HOYER. The IRS Accountability Act, can you tell us what day we might consider that bill and under what type of rule?
Mr. BLUNT. We are working with the Committee on Ways and Means on that bill and intend to have that bill up the two heavy working days, Wednesday and Thursday of next week.
Mr. HOYER. Medicare prescription drugs, there has been a lot of activity on that, and I know that a lot of work is going on in the Senate and here in the House. Can you tell us about when we can expect to see the Medicare prescription drug legislation considered in the committee of jurisdiction and then on the floor?
Mr. BLUNT. If the gentleman will continue to yield, this is one of the most important topics we will deal with, one of the most important debates we will have this year. Both the Committee on Ways and Means and the Committee on Energy and Commerce have been working hard for months now on a bill. That bill appears to be very near completion. We hope to have that bill on the floor before we take a district work break later this month.
Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman.
Appropriations bills, I know we have started to mark up appropriations bills in the committee. When do you expect the first appropriations bills may come to the floor, now that some of the subcommittees are beginning to mark up their bills, and how many bills do you expect to consider before the July 4 district work period?
Mr. BLUNT. As the gentleman knows, the Committee on Appropriations has begun to move forward on these bills. Two bills, Military Construction and Homeland Security, were able to mark up their bills this week. We believe the Committee on Appropriations will have several additional markups in the next week. I would anticipate that we would have some of these appropriations bills on the floor this month.
Mr. HOYER. Lastly, Mr. Whip, the child tax credit, we have just instructed the conference committee to pass the Senate bill out of conference on a bipartisan vote. I do not see the chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means, but is there any feel when that bill might come out of conference?
Mr. BLUNT. Mr. Whip, I do not have any specific feel for that, but I have heard that the other body has indicated a willingness to go to conference fairly quickly on that. I would expect that conference to move in the relatively near future.
Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, would it be fair to expect that we would consider that conference committee prior to the July 4 district work period?
Mr. BLUNT. It is always difficult to expect anything out of a conference committee, but it is certainly possible it could happen that quickly; but it is possible that is a little quicker than the conference could move. That would be some time within the next 2 weeks. I do not think that is impossible, but I think it might be a little optimistic.
Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, reclaiming my time, I thank the gentleman for his comments, and I would simply say from our side of the aisle, and I know I speak for the leader and myself, in light of the fact that the House has urged the conference committee to report out the Senate bill, and in light of the fact that the Senate passed it 94-2, it would seem to be a relatively easy matter if the conferees followed the instructions of the House to pass the Senate bill. I believe the Senate would probably concur in that judgment, and we could have a bill out of here perhaps as early as next week.
Mr. BLUNT. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. HOYER. I yield to the gentleman from Missouri.
Mr. BLUNT. I would only say that the motion to instruct was a much narrower decision than the vote on the bill itself. There were many Members not making that vote. Certainly the motion to instruct did carry, but perhaps it was because of those elevators that Members were stuck in.
Mr. HOYER. Reclaiming my time, I do not know about everybody else, but of course had the gentleman who complained made the vote, we would have had one more vote on our side, as the gentleman indicated.
Mr. BLUNT. I would not want to overclaim where our votes were, but I was told we had more people in the elevator getting here. I think the gentleman's comments about time and ability to get to the floor were well taken, and I am sure the Speaker and the leaders on both sides of the aisle will take that under serious consideration.
Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. HOYER. I yield to the gentleman from Virginia.
Mr. MORAN of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman. I missed the vote as well. There was a thunderstorm. I was caught in traffic, and I had no idea that such a quick gavel would be called on such an important vote. Had I been present, I would have voted ``aye.''
Mr. HOYER. Mr. Speaker, it is almost an avalanche of support for the position of this side, and some enlightened souls on your side of the aisle, and so perhaps we ought to conclude before we have such an overwhelming majority that there will be no alternative but to follow those instructions.
Mr. BLUNT. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?
Mr. HOYER. I yield to the gentleman from Missouri.
Mr. BLUNT. By the speed of some of the things we do, my friend, a couple of Members stepping up in 10 minutes of time is almost an avalanche. The gentleman may be right about that.
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