Washington Digest
House Still Struggles To Pass Energy Fix
Last updated Saturday, July 26, 2008 5:45 PM CDT in News
By Steve Tetreault
The Morning News
WASHINGTON - The House continued to struggle last week to pass legislation aimed at reducing $4 per gallon gasoline.
Lawmakers rejected a bill that would have sold about 70 million barrels of easily refinable light crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the nation's emergency stockpile.
The release would have amounted to 10 percent of the stockpile, about three days supply. Democrats who pushed the bill said it would serve to drive down the price of gasoline in the short term while Congress seeks other solutions.
The light crude oil would be replaced in the stockpile with cheaper, heavy oil.
The bill gained a 268-157 majority vote. But Democratic leaders brought it to the floor under a special "suspension" procedure that permitted no amendments and required a two-thirds vote for passage.
Democrats have been trying to pass energy bills under suspension in part to prevent Republican amendments to expand oil drilling in the Outer Continental Shelf. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., has strongly opposed expanded drilling.
Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, said releasing oil from the strategic reserve was an "energy gimmick," and the House should be tackling more comprehensive solutions - including offshore oil drilling.
First District Rep. Marion Berry, D-Gillett, 4th District Rep. Mike Ross, D-Prescott, and 2nd District Rep. Vic Snyder, D-Little Rock, voted for the bill. Third District Rep. John Boozman, R-Rogers, voted against it.
Housing Bill Passed
The House passed a long-in-the-works mortgage rescue bill, 272-152. The Senate was expected to complete the bill and send it to the White House over the weekend.
For homeowners facing foreclosure, the centerpiece is a program that could allow them to refinance into more affordable fixed-rate loans backed by the Federal Housing Administration.
It also includes $15 billion in tax breaks including a $7,500 credit for some first-time homebuyers.
The bill would send $3.9 billion in grants to cities to buy up foreclosed homes and prepare them for resale.
It also gives the Treasury Department the authority to extend borrowing credits if necessary to prop up Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, government chartered firms that own or guarantee nearly $5 trillion in mortgages and whose collapse could crash the economy.
Supporters said the bill sends a signal that jittery housing markets are being made sound. Some critics said the bill in the process will reward speculators and unscrupulous lenders. Others expressed unhappiness with the terms of the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac bailouts.
Berry, Ross and Snyder voted for the bill. Boozman voted against it.
Bridge Repairs Approved
The House voted for a $1 billion bill to speed repairs on deteriorating bridges. It was introduced almost a year ago, following the Aug. 1, 2007, collapse of the Interstate 35 bridge in Minneapolis that killed 13 people.
Besides the funding, the bill would revamp the way the government monitors bridges. It would require states to use federal money in bridge repair accounts solely for bridge repairs, whereas they can shift that money to other needs under current law.
The White House opposed the bill, saying the government already spends adequate sums on bridges. Congress in 2005 authorized $4.5 billion for bridge repairs this year.
The vote for the bill was 367-55. Boozman, Berry, Ross and Snyder voted for it.
AIDS Bill Passed
A bill that passed the House and was sent to President Bush would authorize a big increase in federal funding to fight AIDS and other diseases overseas.
The global AIDS bill approved $48 billion over five years, a jump from $15 billion authorized in current law.
Activists however said they doubted that Congress would be able to afford following through and appropriating that much money for the effort.
The vote was 303-115 for passage. Critics were worried about the costs.
Boozman, Berry, Ross and Snyder voted for the bill.
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