Jim Inhofe: “first let me thank the ranking member of the committee for all the hard work and effort he has been put into this bill.…”

“first let me thank the ranking member of the committee for all the hard work and effort he has been put into this bill. I remind Members that we spent the weekend working on amendments. We actually had an office in the Hart Building that was open and staffed by both the majority and the minority. They waded through a lot of amendments. To move this bill along, I again encourage Members to bring their amendments down. I will not mention the names of the Senators because it may not be appropriate. I encourage Members to come down to speak on the amendments which are going to require some discussion. We have an amendment to clarify the travel reimbursement for troops retroactive to September 25. We have an amendment on seatbelts which imposes sanctions on States that don't have primary seatbelt laws. We have amendments such as one on sanctions relating to drunk drivers, an amendment on changes to the Indian roads program, an amendment to clarify the new highway safety core program dollars which can be used for additional lanes or two-lane roads, and one to grant exemptions for 90,000 pounds on Federal aid highways--to a higher level to allow for lumber trucks and garbage trucks going to landfills. We have a lot of amendments. I think there are about 35 amendments because staff came down and worked over the weekend on those amendments. I think it would be appropriate for them to come down right now, and not to offer their amendment but to discuss their amendment.”