Daily Whipline

November 30, 2010

Whipline

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Floor Schedule and Procedure

• H. Res. 1736 – Providing for consideration of the Motion to Concur in the Senate amendments to H.R. 4783 - Claims Resolution Act of 2010 (Rep. Perlmutter – Rules):  The rule provides for the consideration of the Senate amendments to H.R. 4783.  The rule makes in order a motion offered by the chair of the Committee on Natural Resources that the House concur in the Senate amendments.  The rule provides one hour of debate on the motion, with 50 minutes equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on Natural Resources and 10 minutes equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on Ways and Means. The rule waives all points of order against consideration of the motion.  The rule provides that the Senate amendments shall be considered as read.  Debate on the rule will be managed by Rep. Perlmutter, and consideration will proceed as follows:
  
  • One hour of debate on the rule.
  • Possible vote on a Democratic Motion ordering the previous question. Members are urged to vote yes.
  • Vote on adoption of the rule. Members are urged to vote yes.


• Motion to Concur in the Senate amendments to H.R. 4783 - Claims Resolution Act of 2010 (Rep. Rahall – Natural Resources): Pursuant to H.Res.1736, debate on the motion to concur in the Senate amendment will be managed by Natural Resources Committee Chairman Nick Rahall and Ways and Means Committee Chairman Sander Levin or their designees.  Consideration of the motion will proceed as follows:
  
  • One hour of general debate on the motion to concur.
  • Vote on the motion to concur.  Members are urged to VOTE YES.


• Suspension Bills: Today, the House will consider several bills on the Suspension calendar.  Bills considered on the Suspension calendar are debatable for 40 minutes; may not be amended; and require a two-thirds vote for passage.  If a recorded vote is requested, it will be postponed.

1. H.Res. 1585 - Honoring and recognizing the exemplary service and sacrifice of the 60th Air Mobility Wing, the 349th Air Mobility Wing, the 15th Expeditionary Mobility Task Force, and the 615th Contingency Response Wing civilians and families serving at Travis Air Force Base, California (Rep. Garamendi - Armed Services)


2. H.Res. __ - Recognizing and honoring the National Guard on the occasion of its 374th anniversary (Rep. Latta - Armed Services)


3. H.Res. 1217 - Honoring Fort Drum's soldiers of the 10th Mountain Division for their past and continuing contributions to the security of the United States (Rep. Owens - Armed Services)


4. H.Res. 1724 - Commending the City of Jacksonville, Arkansas, for its outstanding support in creating a unique and lasting partnership with Little Rock Air Force Base, members of the Armed Forces stationed there and their families, and the Air Force (Rep. Snyder - Armed Services)


5. H.Res. 1430 - Honoring and saluting golf legend Juan Antonio "Chi Chi" Rodriguez for his commitment to Latino youth programs of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (Rep. Baca - Education and Labor)


6. H.Res. 1638 - Supporting the goals and ideals of National GEAR UP Day (Rep. Fattah - Education and Labor)


7. H.Res. 1598 - Expressing support for the designation of the month of October as National Work and Family Month (Rep. McCarthy (NY) - Education and Labor)


8. H.Res. 1576 - Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that a National Day of Recognition for Parents of Special Needs Children should be established (Rep. Burton - Education and Labor)


9. H.Res. 1313 - Expressing support for designation of May as "Child Advocacy Center Month" and commending the National Child Advocacy Center in Huntsville, Alabama, on their 25th anniversary in 2010 (Rep. Griffith - Education and Labor)


10. H.Con.Res. 323 - Supporting the goal of ensuring that all Holocaust survivors in the United States are able to live with dignity, comfort, and security in their remaining years (Rep. Wasserman Schultz - Education and Labor)


11. H.Res. 1690 - Supporting the observance of American Diabetes Month (Rep. DeGette - Energy and Commerce)


12. S. 2847 - CALM Act (Sen. Whitehouse - Energy and Commerce)


13. H.Res. 1735 - Condemning North Korea in the strongest terms for its unprovoked military attack against South Korea on November 23, 2010 (Rep. Berman - Foreign Affairs)


14. H.R. 6411 - To provide for the approval of the Agreement Between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of Australia Concerning Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy (Rep. Ros-Lehtinen - Foreign Affairs)


15. H.Res. 527 - Commending the NATO School for its critical support of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) efforts to promote global peace, stability, and security (Rep. Tanner - Foreign Affairs)


16. H.Res. 528 - Commending the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies for its efforts to promote peace, stability and security throughout North America, Europe, and Eurasia (Rep. Tanner - Foreign Affairs)


17. H.R. 6398 - To require the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to fully insure Interest on Lawyers Trust Accounts (Rep. Doggett - Financial Services)


18. H.Con.Res. 325 - Supporting the goals and ideals of National Homeless Persons' Memorial Day (Rep. Hastings (FL) - Financial Services)


19. H.R. 5866 - Nuclear Energy Research and Development Act of 2010 (Rep. Gordon - Science and Technology)


20. H.Res. 1622 - Honoring the historic contributions of veterans throughout all conflicts involving the United States (Rep. Baca - Veterans' Affairs)


21. H.R. 5953 - To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to display in each facility of the Department of Veterans Affairs a Women Veterans Bill of Rights (Rep. Filner - Veterans' Affairs)


22. H.Res. 1644 - Expressing support for designation of a "National Veterans History Project Week" (Rep. Kind - Veterans' Affairs)

Bill Summary & Key Issues

Summary of Senate Amendment to H.R. 4783: Claims Resolution Act of 2010

H.R. 4783, as amended by the Senate, resolves claims against the government related to the Cobell class action lawsuit, the Pigford class action lawsuit, as well as tribal water rights claims for the White Mountain Apache, Crow, Taos Pueblo, and Aamodt Tribes.  The bill is fully offset as described below. 

Title I:  Cobell Settlement.

This title contains funding to implement the terms of the settlement in the Cobell class action lawsuit resolving claims against the government regarding the government’s management and accounting for over 500,000 individual Indians’ trust accounts.   This provision is estimated to cost $3.412 billion.

Title II:  Pigford Settlement.

This title contains funding to implement the terms of the settlement in the Pigford lawsuit resolving claims against the government.  It includes anti-fraud provisions.  This provision is estimated to cost $1.15 billion. 

The estimated cost of Titles III – VII is $834 million.

Title III:  White Mountain Apache Tribe Water Rights Quantification Settlement

This title resolves the White Mountain Apache Tribe’s water related claims against the United States and state water users, provide certainty to non-Indian water users in Arizona, and provide needed drinking water to the Tribe.

Title IV:  Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement    

This title resolves the Crow Montana water related claims against the United States.  It quantifies the Tribe’s water right and provides funding for the rehabilitation of the Crow Irrigation System and the construction of a drinking water system, as well as associated operation and maintenance costs. 

Title V: Taos Pueblo Indian Water Rights Settlement

This title resolves the water related claims of Taos Pueblo against the United States and state water users.  The settlement quantifies the Pueblo’s water rights and provides funding to the Pueblo to acquire water rights and rehabilitate water infrastructure. 

Title VI Aamodt Litigation Water Rights Settlement

This title resolves the water rights claims of four separate Pueblos against the United States and state water users and would settle the longest water adjudication litigation.   The settlement quantifies the tribal water rights claims and provides funding for the construction of a drinking water system that will provide water to Indian and non-Indian customers in a rural area where no water system currently exists.  The settlement also provides funding to the Pueblos for the acquisition of water rights and water development purposes. 

Title VII Reclamation Water Settlements Fund

This title provides partial funding for the Reclamation Water Settlements Fund that was established in connection with settlement of the Navajo Nation’s water related claims against the United States in New Mexico in P.L. 111-11.  The settlement benefits include construction of the Navajo-Gallup drinking water system for Navajo Nation citizen’s and their non-Indian neighbors who currently must haul water to their homes.

Title VIII General Funding Provisions

Unemployment Insurance Reform/TANF Extension. This provision adopts anti-fraud measures that reduce the number of overpayments of UI benefits by allowing Treasury to offset tax refunds by the amount of UI overpayments to the individual.  TANF and related programs are extended with minor technical changes and a new one-time data collection provision.   Together, these proposals would reduce overall spending by $2.699 billion.

Customs User Fees and Continued Dumping and Subsidy Offset Act (CDSOA).

This provision would extend customs user fees through September 30, 2019 (a period sufficient to generate $2.0 billion in fees).  It would also terminate any additional payments collected under the 2000 CDSOA provision (also known as the Byrd Amendment) prior to October 1, 2007 that have not been liquidated. Together, these proposals would generate $2.135 billion.

 USDA Surplus.  This provision rescinds $562 million of surplus funds at USDA.

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