Ron Kind: “Speaking again as a member of the freshman task force that has been working on this issue, I can certainly state for the…”

“Speaking again as a member of the freshman task force that has been working on this issue, I can certainly state for the record that we have not been party to any negotiations as far as a schedule, as far as the form in which the legislation will be brought up. It is my understanding that the gentleman from Maine (Mr. Allen), who is one of the cochairs of our task force, has not been privy to any discussions with the majority leadership on this important issue as well. So if negotiations are ongoing, we would certainly request to be included, since it is our bill that will be the base bill when this eventually does get taken up.”