Jeff Bingaman: “One concern I have had here is under the language of the bill which he is proposing to the Senate, we exempt independent…”

“One concern I have had here is under the language of the bill which he is proposing to the Senate, we exempt independent regulatory agencies from the purview of the bill. So we are saying that if the Nuclear Regulatory Commission wishes to impose expensive, onerous requirements on a State, town or tribal government, to ensure safety in the handling of nuclear waste, that is fine. We have no objection. No point of order can be raised. And we are certainly not suggesting one in this bill. But Congress cannot do that. Congress cannot consider legislation to do that unless it is willing to waive a point of order. So we are essentially denying to the Congress the very powers that we are leaving in the independent regulatory agency at the Federal level. I have great difficulty understanding the logic of denying Congress the very authority which the Constitution gives it to this area and requiring somebody who comes to the Senate floor or some committee that reports legislation to the Senate floor requiring them to overcome a procedural hurdle before they can, in fact, have their proposed legislation considered on its merits.”