Jim Inhofe: “I rise today to discuss my legislation, S. 880, the Fuels Regulatory Relief Act, which passed Congress today, and…”

“I rise today to discuss my legislation, S. 880, the Fuels Regulatory Relief Act, which passed Congress today, and according to the Administration should be signed into law shortly. This bill was passed in the Senate by unanimous consent on June 23, 1999, and passed by the House with amendments, on July 21, 1999. I appreciate the speediness with which the House acted on this legislation and the support of my good friend Chairman Tom Bliley. Unfortunately the Senate is forced to act just as quickly on this legislation because of delays created by the administration. In early 1998, I raised concerns to the administration regarding the security risks posed by disseminating the worst-case scenario data on the Internet. The FBI agreed with my concerns. Despite the acknowledgment of the risks involved the administration did not cooperate with Congress to fix this problem until the eleventh hour. Because of the urgency in passing this legislation I have decided that a conference would not be beneficial.”