Judd Gregg: “let me begin to address this issue. I know Senator Hollings is on his way to the floor, the ranking Democrat, who has…”

“let me begin to address this issue. I know Senator Hollings is on his way to the floor, the ranking Democrat, who has worked so conscientiously on this, along with his staff and my staff. This is the appropriations bill which covers some very core agencies that the Federal Government has responsibility for, specifically areas of Justice, things like the FBI, the DEA, the INS; areas within Commerce--many areas, of course, are covered by the Commerce Department including, of course, the census issue. Equally important, in fact more important in many ways are ITA and NOAA, two agencies that deal with the manner in which the U.S. economy functions and the manner in which our environment is reviewed. We try to stay ahead of weather conditions. In addition, this bill has the State Department--obviously the State Department is a core function of the Federal activity--and the judiciary, which is the third branch of the Government, that is also under this bill, along with a number of independent agencies, agencies like the FCC and the FTC and the Small Business Administration. So this is a bill that has broad reach and is a very significant item for the Senate to take up. This funding bill has been put together as a result of the hard work of a lot of people. I especially thank my ranking member, Senator Hollings, whose input and assistance is always invaluable on this issue. His background and knowledge of the questions which are raised on this bill are extraordinary.”