During the

week the Congress considered 24 legislative measures under "Suspension

of the rules." These "Suspension" measures are usually

non-controversial bills that require the support of at least two-thirds

of the House members in order for the legislation to be approved. Of the

24 suspensions considered last week there were several notable measures,

including:

Trade-related

legislation

Last week the

House passed the Bipartisan Trade Promotion Authority Act (H.R. 3005,

TPA). The bill gives the President expedited authority to negotiate reciprocal

trade bills with our foreign trading partners. Different from previous

trade authority bills, this year's legislation included a number of assurances

that Congress will have a proactive role in these discussions. Additionally,

it contained several provisions aimed at ensuring that fair and reciprocal

trade agreements are negotiated which provide greater benefits for our

domestic manufacturers.

Receiving particular

attention in the legislation is our domestic textile industry, which for

too long has been the step-child of trade negotiations.

Specifically

in the bill, Congress directed the Administration to: (1) reduce tariffs

on textiles and apparel in major exporting countries to the same as or

lower than those in the United States; (2) reduce or eliminate subsidies

that decrease market opportunities for U.S. exports of textiles and apparel

or unfairly distort trade; and, (3) ensure that countries that are members

of the WTO implement immediately all their obligations to provide effective

market access for U.S. exports of textiles and apparel.

Additionally,

one of the greatest threats to the domestic industry are transshipments

of illegal textile and apparel products into this country. As a part of

negotiations on TPA, this week Congress will consider the Customs Borders

Security Act (H.R. 3129) which authorizes an additional $9.5 million specifically

for increasing the number of agents and enforcement measures dedicated

to preventing illegal and fraudulent textile imports.

The Administration

pledged to use these resources and make the enforcement of existing U.S.

trade laws a top priority. To determine where weaknesses are at our borders,

the bill directs the Comptroller General to conduct an audit of the Customs

Service textile transshipment enforcement efforts.

Reauthorizing

the Trade Adjustment Assistance Program (H.R. 3008)

On Thursday,

the House passed legislation providing a two-year reauthorization for

the Trade Adjustment Assistance Program (H.R. 3008), which provides unemployment

compensation benefits and provides job training for workers dislocated

weeks in order to bridge the gap that currently exists between 78 weeks

of benefits and 104 weeks of job training.

The bill speeds

up the petition process from the current 60 days to 40 days. H.R. 3008

also provides $2 billion in FYs 2002 and 2003 for new benefit coverage

to workers affected by the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Budget Committee

hearing on homeland security

The Budget

Committee, on which I serve, held a hearing on Wednesday to examine ways

to improve our nation's preparedness against biological, chemical, and

nuclear terrorist threats. One of the primary functions of the Congress

is to make assessments of what may need to be done to enhance our preparedness

in the event of such an attack. These issues will shape much of the budget

debate for the next several years.

It is extremely

important that the Congress remain faithful to the fiscal responsibility

which we owe to the hardworking taxpayers, while ensuring that we are

fully prepared.

During the

hearing we explored the deficiencies in preparedness, our current status,

changes that have been recently made to address terrorist threats, what

additional resources may be needed, and what budgetary impact these issues

will have on the future spending of the Congress. This was the second

Budget Committee hearing held as part of a comprehensive review aimed

at helping the committee determine what our priorities should be and where

we should allocate resources as we write the budget for next year.

Regulatory

relief for Medicare providers

On Dec. 4,

with my strong support, the House of Representatives passed the Medicare

Regulatory and Contracting Reform Act of 2001 (H.R. 3391) by a unanimous

vote. H.R. 3391 was the result of work by the House Ways and Means Committee

and the House Energy and Commerce Committee, drawing on the invaluable

input of the healthcare provider community, the Administration and the

General Accounting Office. This important Medicare legislation now awaits

consideration in the Senate.

Increasingly,

doctors and other health care providers are faced with more regulations

and paperwork under Medicare. As a result, providers are spending increasing

amounts of time filling out required forms and decreasing amounts of time

caring for patients. Instead of continuing to struggle with burdensome

regulations and paper, some doctors are choosing to withdraw from the

Medicare program altogether, forcing their senior patients to either find

a new doctor or pay for their medical expenses out of their own pockets.

The Medicare

Regulatory and Contracting Reform Act of 2001 addresses these issues by

decreasing the regulatory burden placed on providers by the Medicare program,

enabling doctors and others providers to spend more of their time helping

patients. H.R. 3391 also takes sensible steps to educate providers and

clarify Medicare processes and provider rights, while protecting efforts

to eliminate waste, fraud, and abuse in Medicare.

Administrative

Simplification Compliance Act

On Dec. 4,

the House passed the Administrative Simplification Compliance Act (H.R.

3323) by a unanimous vote. Sectors of the health care industry and state

governments have stated they need additional time to make the technical

and procedural changes necessary to achieve compliance with the Health

Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA), which improved

the administrative efficiency of the health care