Joe Barton: “I will not be long-winded. Let me simply say, we do not oppose the Inslee amendment on the motion to instruct the…”

“I will not be long-winded. Let me simply say, we do not oppose the Inslee amendment on the motion to instruct the conferees. We are prepared to accept it. We think it is an amendment that has merit, obviously, as we have heard from the other gentleman from Washington (Mr. Hastings), the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Spratt) who just spoke. These are issues that are serious and that need to be addressed. We can say that we had no intention to put in any language on this issue in the conference report unless we did have concurrence and agreement of the States and the Department of Energy. It is an issue that we are working on seriously. It is unlikely that there will be specific language on this issue in the conference report, but certainly, if we consider it, we will work with the gentleman who offered the motion to make sure that the States involved are consulted with. Let me indicate at the outset that this side is prepared to accept the motion. As the gentleman knows, it is nonbinding. Let me also inform the gentleman that this issue is not one that either the Chairman of the conference from the other body or I are actively seeking to put into the conference report. Having said that, DOE's high level waste problem is a complex issue that deserves the attention of the Congress.”