THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, February 22, 1995 TAG: 9502220467
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A3 EDITION: FINAL
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Long : 141 lines
Here's how area members of Congress were recorded on major roll call votes in the week ending Feb. 17.
HOUSE
Crime bill: By a vote of 238 for and 192 against, the House authorized $10 billion over five years in block grants to help cities and towns fight crime. Localities can spend their grant as they see fit.
The Republican bill (HR 728) repeals parts of a massive crime bill enacted last year under Democratic guidance, including about $8 billion in categorical grants for hiring local police. However, the new measure permits communities to spend the money on police hiring if that is a local priority.
A yes vote was to use block grants, not categorical grants, to distribute $2 billion annually in federal crime-fighting funds.
Herbert H. Bateman, R-Va. Yes
Owen B. Pickett, D-Va. No
Robert C. Scott, D-Va. No
Norman Sisisky, D-Va. No
Eva Clayton, D-N.C. No
Walter Jones Jr., R-N.C. Yes
Categorical grants: By a vote of 196 for and 235 against, the House rejected a Democratic amendment to set aside $7.5 billion in HR 728 (above) for hiring up to 100,000 local police. The measure sought to preserve a key provision of the Democratic crime bill enacted last year.
President Clinton recently said he would veto the new GOP bill if it discontinues categorical grants for putting police on the streets.
A yes vote was to continue categorical grants for police hiring.
Bateman No
Pickett Yes
Scott No
Sisisky Yes
Clayton Yes
Jones No
Abortion issue: By a vote of 164 for and 266 against, the House refused to specify protection of abortion clinics as a permissible use of crime-fighting grants. The underlying bill (HR 728, above) permitted spending for any law enforcement purpose including guarding abortion facilities. However, amendment backers wanted clinic protection to be listed just as school protection is specified in the bill.
A yes vote was to adopt the amendment.
Bateman No
Pickett No
Scott Yes
Sisisky No
Clayton Yes
Jones No
National security: By a vote of 241 for and 181 against, the House passed a ``Contract With America'' bill (HR 7) that puts a Republican stamp on administration and Congressional national security policies.
The bill seeks to limit American involvement in United Nations peacekeeping operations, in part by limiting U.S. financial support of the U.N. and curbing a president's power to put U.S. troops under U.N. command. It calls for admitting certain former Iron Curtain nations into NATO and expanding U.S. security commitments in eastern Europe.
It authorizes $1.5 million for a commission to evaluate the nation's security.
A yes vote was to pass the GOP ``National Security Revitalization Act.''
Bateman Yes
Pickett No
Scott No
Sisisky No
Clayton No
Jones Yes
Star Wars'' revisited: Voting 218 for and 212 against, the House killed a plan to revive the development of space-based anti-missile systems as a top defense priority. This occurred during debate on the military plank of the GOP ``Contract With America'' (HR 7, above). It marked the first House rejection a key contract provision.
A yes vote opposed a top-priority commitment to space-based anti-missile systems.
Bateman No
Pickett Yes
Scott Yes
Sisisky Yes
Clayton Yes
Jones No
SENATE
Committee funding: By a vote of 91 for and two against, senators approved a two-year budget of about $100 million for Senate committee expenses, including staff salaries, hearings, domestic and foreign travel, equipment and general operating costs. The measure (SJ Res 73) covers all panels except the separately funded Ethics Committee.
The $100 million budget is about 13 percent below the committee funding resolution approved two years ago at the beginning of the 103rd Congress.
The new measure authorizes 947 committee staff positions, down about 20 percent from the level authorized two years ago, and cost-of-living salary hikes of 2 percent in 1995 and 2.4 percent in 1996. The present top salary for committee aides is $130,915.
A yes vote was to approve the committee funding resolution.
John W. Warner, R-Va. Did not vote
Charles S. Robb, D-Va. Yes
Jesse A. Helms, R-N.C. No
Lauch Faircloth, R-N.C. Did not vote
Social Security: Senators voted 57 for and 41 against to table (kill) an amendment putting language into the Constitution to protect Social Security against spending cuts. The vote occurred during debate on a measure (HJR 1) amending the Constitution to require a balanced budget by 2002. Democrats said specific constitutional language is needed to protect Social Security despite GOP vows that it is sacrosanct.
A yes vote opposed writing protection for Social Security into the Constitution.
Warner Yes
Robb Yes
Helms Yes
Faircloth Yes
Disaster aid: By a vote of 70 for and 28 against, the Senate tabled (killed) an amendment to permit deficit spending for disaster aid by simple rather than three-fifths majority votes in Congress.
A yes vote was to kill the amendment.
Warner Yes
Robb Yes
Helms Yes
Faircloth Yes
Capital budget: By a vote of 59 for and 38 against, the Senate tabled (killed) a measure allowing the federal government's capital budget, but not its operating budget, to be unbalanced.
The purpose was to make it easier to borrow for long-term infrastructure projects, just as red ink is permitted for states' capital expenditures notwithstanding state balanced budget requirements.
A yes vote was against deficit spending for long-term capital projects.
Warner Yes
Robb Yes
Helms Did not vote
Faircloth Yes
Thomas Reports Inc. by CNB