the crisis in Iraq has been created because of the appalling behavior of a man bent on defying the legitimate directives he agreed to as the defeated leader of a ruthless and rogue army. For months, if not years, Saddam Hussein has been…

I thank the Members on the other side. We all know that, because of matters which we won't continue to debate here, our ISTEA or highway reauthorization measure has not gone forward. We will not be able to resolve the many difficult…

I commend the chairman on his herculean effort to address the myriad of policy issues he has faced this year, but I am wary about the fast track we seem to be on to decrease our defense resourcing while simultaneously increasing our…

I rise today to present to my colleagues what I think is a compromise that will help us get over a very difficult situation. I am very proud to be a member of the Environment and Public Works Committee and to have joined with the…

I advise my colleagues that after long negotiations, I think we have reached an agreement on the measure to reauthorize the Small Business Administration for the next 3 fiscal years to continue vitally important programs and to add new…

With your assistance, we have established a $40 million plant genome initiative within the National Science Foundation [NSF] that will be focused on economically significant crops. To facilitate the development of a comprehensive plant…

In addition, under title III, the Secretary is required, in making individual grants, to give higher priority to a proposal that is multi-state, multi-institutional, or multidisciplinary. While the overall Food Genome Strategy will be…

I understand that it is your intention that the plant genome initiative and the animal genome initiative will not be scientific free-for-alls, if you will, that fund any research project that happens to have genome in the proposal. Rather…

Since the NSF has $40 million for a plant genome initiative, there have been some questions raised concerning which agency, NSF or USDA, would serve as the lead agency for the national plant genome initiative. In the managers amendment…

The report accompanying S. 1150 makes clear that the committee intends that the Secretary utilize funds from the initiative for future agriculture and food systems, established under title III of the bill, for the plant genome initiative…

I have been waiting all week to talk about some very, very important things in the highway and transportation reauthorization bill, also known as ISTEA or NEXTEA. I am disappointed we have been unable to move to that bill because I think…

I rise today on a very, very important mission, and that is to highlight the important work of the March of Dimes and its over 3 million dedicated volunteers across America. I thank and congratulate them on the most worthwhile of…

a number of items in the conference report or statement of the managers require further clarification or correction due to printers' errors. The items are as follows: Within the housing certificate fund, the legislation requires HUD to…

The conference report does mistakenly identify the purpose of Jackson, MS, grant. The economic development initiative grant for the city of Jackson should be used for the purposes as Senator Cochran describes them.

I appreciate the concerns and efforts of the Senator from Iowa in this area. I share his concern about preserving elderly rural housing and that any adverse effect on elderly residents be minimized. Clearly, we expect that there will be…

I agree with my colleagues. In accommodating HUD's desire to streamline the tenant participation process, the Congress in no way intends to minimize the importance of meaningful and effective participation of project residents and others…

I believe research, as outlined in this bill, will begin to improve our understanding of the relationship between particulate exposure and adverse health effects. The funding and direction provided in the bill will put into place a needed…

The research program is intended to build on the research that is planned or underway at the EPA, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Academy of Sciences [NAS], Health Effects Institute and several other public…

The Committee intends that funds appropriated to the fair housing initiatives program for enforcement of title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968, as amended, which prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of housing…

I have mentioned only briefly my appreciation for the work of my ranking member, Senator Mikulski. Truly, there is no better person to have in a very complicated matter like this than to have someone of Senator Mikulski's ability…

The bill provides renewal policies for projects which undergo restructuring under the mark-to-market program and those which do not. Briefly, for fiscal year 1998, the conferees have approved a 1-year extension of the basic rent renewal…

my friend Senator D'Amato, the chairman of the Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, is entirely correct. His statements are consistent with the intent of the conferees to devolve decisionmaking responsibility to the State and…

the statements of the chairman of the Committee of Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs are indeed consistent with the intent of the conferees. Indeed, devolving responsibility and decisionmaking to the State and local level is one of the…

In addressing the Senators' concerns, it is my expectation that the Secretary of HUD will use the same procedures outlined in the mark-to-market legislation for those properties affected by the nonrenewal policy. The Secretary should not…

To handle the workload and complexity of transactions under mark-to-market, a significant amount of flexibility is provided to the PAE's. However, it is expected that the Secretary establish strict and coherent guidelines to ensure that…