Jasper Packard: “this is not a Republican Internet system. This is a bipartisan, bicameral system. The Members of the CyberCongress…”

“this is not a Republican Internet system. This is a bipartisan, bicameral system. The Members of the CyberCongress roster, the Internet Caucus roster, is made up of 50 Members of the House and Senate on both sides of the aisle, and they strongly urge that we proceed forward with the Web page and the Internet system. This motion to recommit will mean that the team of computer experts who are helping individual Members, each of us, put their Web site on the Internet will be eliminated in this motion to recommit. This team not only helps the committees install their own Web pages, but it helps train our colleagues and their staff on how to use the Internet for their Web sites. Mr. Chairman, this recommittal will harm the House's ability to use the Internet and make information available to our constituents. This funding is for two or three people who support Members and committee staff to present material in a clear and relevant way to the American people. This is a policy issue, not an issue of funding, and should be dealt with in the policy forum, not through this bill. Currently 12 inquiries are received daily by HIR which reflect a growing demand on this service. I urge my colleagues in a bipartisan way to reject this motion to recommit because it will hurt our colleagues' individual offices as they move toward the Internet.”