On January 1, 1997, the aviation system in the United States received a serious blow when the aviation excise taxes lapsed. Together, these taxes--the 10-percent passenger ticket tax; the 6.25-percent cargo waybill tax; the $6.00 per…

this is to express my deep concern over a decision President Clinton made last year concerning the Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996, but it has only recently come to light. When President Clinton signed the…

In short, farmers are now being told that they must pay taxes on income that they have not received. I repeat that, Mr. President. Our farmers are now being told by the Internal Revenue Service that they are to pay taxes on income that…

From the time that I first became involved in national politics, it has seemed to me that, for mature adults, under most circumstances, the law was not an appropriate method of determining what are ultimately moral choices for the people…

for the two of us who represent the State of Washington in the U.S. Senate, this is a day that is both joyous and sad. It is sad because on December 31 of this year, we will miss the company of Dr. Jack Lein who, for decades, has…

The National Park Service is not set up to be the manager of the extensive and varied kinds of buildings that are found on the Presidio, very expensive to keep up, very expensive in requiring a great deal of sensitivity to lease or to rent…

Within the programs authorized in S. 1994, the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill, are allocations for noise mitigation. Under the Airport Improvement Program [AIP], the Federal Aviation Administration [FAA] has allocated…

our journey to this point on this bill has been long and tortured. And at the end of the road I find a product that, from the Washington State perspective, is greatly improved from the measure that passed out of committee and immeasurably…

we, of course, will take a careful look at this amendment. It is on a subject of which this Senator is well aware, as a member of the Commerce Committee, of which the Senator from South Dakota is chairman. It does address a very real need…

a week ago, I was the only Member of this body to vote against a mild resolution of support for our military operations in Iraq last week. I did so, Mr. President, because it seemed to me that our response fell between two more appropriate…

Washington State is not unlike many other Western States in that a significant portion of its land is in public ownership. In many cases, the ownership is Federal, State, and private in the form of a checkerboard pattern across wide areas…

I will explain each of these amendments briefly, and, if further discussion is desired, we will separate it out. This first amendment is proposed on behalf of Senator Chafee as the chairman of the Committee on Environment and Public Works…

I bring before the Senate today the fiscal year 1997 Department of the Interior and related agencies appropriations bill. This bill, as reported by the Appropriations Committee, totals $12,617,764,000 in discretionary budget authority and…

like many citizens across the country, the residents of Washington State have witnessed a dramatic increase in drug smuggling and drug abuse throughout Washington State in recent years. Unfortunately, these negative trends are continuing…

this amendment is bad policy from top to bottom. If enacted, it would hurt U.S. companies and destroy jobs. It is, I am afraid, motivated more by political considerations than anything else. Under generally accepted tax principles in the…

last evening my vote was the only negative vote on the resolution relating to the President's military intervention earlier this week in Iraq. As there was little if any time last night to explain the reason for that vote, I intend to do…

Today the Senate will pass legislation to amend the Safe Drinking Water Act to give State and local communities the flexibility to ensure that consumers have safe drinking water, and send it to the President for his signature. For the past…

on the other hand, what I do know and what I feel confident in stating is that our present welfare system is a tragic and destructive failure. At the very least, the present system has been accompanied by a massive increase in the very…

there are some occasions in this body in which a bit of institutional memory is truly of value. And, in my case, I have a memory which has been reinforced by reading the Congressional Record of the creation of the Nuclear Waste Policy Act…

along the southwest coast of Washington State, Highway 105 runs adjacent to Willapa Bay from Raymond to Aberdeen and provides an alternative route to Highway 101. While this route serves as the only direct access for residents of the…

I believe sometimes we have these problems by a misuse of terms. And in this connection, a few years back, when drug policy was a higher order of priority, we had what was, I think, misnamed as a ``war on drugs,'' sincerely carried out by…

Mr. President, each of these appropriations bills with which we deal is long and very much detailed. Sometimes it is difficult even for Members, much less the general public, to have a true understanding of what is contained in them. For…

That $12 billion increase in defense as a whole is over how long a period of time?

It seems to me, Mr. President--and I ask for the comments of the Senator from Georgia on this--that during the course of this last half-hour or so, there have been perhaps five different, but related, themes. I wonder if my understanding…

Micro enterprise loans help people become self-sufficient and lift themselves out of poverty. Micro credit programs extend small loans to the poor for self-employment projects that generate income. These programs generally offer various…