Copyright 2000 The Washington Post
The Washington
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May 7, 2000, Sunday, Final Edition
SECTION: SOUTHERN MARYLAND EXTRA; Pg. M10
LENGTH: 723 words
HEADLINE:
VOTES IN CONGRESS
BODY:
The following is a
report of how some major bills fared last week in Congress and how Southern
Maryland's representative, Steny H. Hoyer (D-5th District), and Democratic Sens.
Barbara A. Mikulski and Paul S. Sarbanes voted.
HOUSE
TRADE WITH AFRICA
For-309 / Against-110
The House approved on Thursday the conference report on a bill
(HR 434) providing increased access to U.S. markets to apparel and other goods
manufactured in sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean Basin and Central America. The
bill waives or lowers U.S. duties and quotas for products from more than 70
countries, with its greatest benefits going to manufacturers who use U.S. raw
materials to make their clothing. By 2008, African apparel exports to the United
States are projected to increase seventeen-fold under the free-trade measure, to
$ 4.2 billion annually. A yes vote was to approve the trade bill.
HOYER-YES
CHARTER SCHOOLS
For-397 / Against-20
The House approved on Wednesday a nonbinding measure (H Con Res
310) to declare a National Charter Schools Week. Charter schools are federally
funded, K-12 institutions that operate with a large degree of autonomy within
public systems. They use nontraditional approaches, including innovative
curricula, in pursuit of academic results. They are controversial because,
critics charge, they lack fiscal and academic accountability and undermine the
traditional public school system. Thirty-five states, the District of Columbia
and Puerto Rico have received more than $ 350 million in federal grants over the
past several years for charter schools. This year, more than 350,000 students
are enrolled in 1,700 charter schools. A yes vote was to boost the charter
school movement.
HOYER-YES
SENATE
NUCLEAR WASTE VETO
For-64 / Against-35
The Senate failed on Tuesday to override President Clinton's
veto of a bill (S 1287) to permanently store the nation's nuclear waste near
Yucca Mountain, Nev., 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas. Supporters needed 67
votes to defeat the veto and pass the bill. Under the bill, more than 4,250
metric tons of spent fuel, now in surface storage at power plants and defense
facilities, would be transported by rail and train to the Nevada site for
temporary storage above ground and then permanent burial by 2007. A yes vote was
to enact the bill.
MIKULSKI-NO SARBANES-NO
DEMOCRATS'
EDUCATION PLAN
For-45 / Against-54
Senators rejected on
Wednesday a Democratic plan for renewing the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act (ESEA), which is the main statute for federal funding of
K-12 education. The underlying GOP bill (S 2), which remained in debate, would
convert most categorical grants into block grants that states could spend with
minimal oversight if they meet broad objectives. In part, Democrats sought to
kill a GOP school voucher proposal. Also, they sought to preserve the existing
categorical grant structure for distributing approximately $ 14 billion annually
through the ESEA, about $ 8 billion of which goes to the nation's poorest
districts. A yes vote backed the Democrats' alternative.
MIKULSKI-YES
SARBANES-YES
MERIT PAY FOR TEACHERS
For-54 / Against-42
The Senate adopted on Thursday an amendment to S 2 (above)
enabling states and localities to use federal education grants to implement
teacher testing, merit pay and tenure reform programs. Over objections from
Democrats and the National Education Association, the GOP amendment authorizes
these initiatives along with other "teacher empowerment" programs at a cost of $
2 billion annually. A yes vote backed the teacher testing and merit pay
initiative.
MIKULSKI-NO SARBANES-NO
TEACHER HIRING
For-44 / Against-53
The Senate defeated on Thursday a
bid by Democrats to fund the third year of President Clinton's class-size
reduction program, which is helping local districts hire 100,000
elementary school teachers over six years. About 29,000 have
been hired to date. The underlying GOP-drafted bill (S 2, above) shifts targeted
funding of $ 1.7 billion from the hiring program to a block grant that could
fund programs such as merit pay, tenure reform and teacher testing (preceding
issue). A yes vote was to continue the Democrats' class-size reduction
categorical grant.
MIKULSKI-YES SARBANES-YES
LOAD-DATE: May 07, 2000
