By Sara Wyant

© Copyright Agri-Pulse Communications, Inc.
 

WASHINGTON, Feb. 18 – After debating into the early morning hours, the U.S. House of Represenatives returns Friday to vote on a spending package that would trim $61 billion in agency budgets for the final seven months of 2011. The current continuing resolution (CR) expires on March 4 and some expect that another stopgap spending bill may be required in order to prevent a government shutdown. Howver, Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) indicated Thursday that he will not accept a short-term extension without spending cuts.


Under an agreement reached late Thursday, nearly 100 amendments scheduled for floor consideration will have 10 minutes of debate time, while 8 others will have up to 60 minutes.

Amendments from Rep. Denny Rehberg (R-Mont.) and Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa) aim at preventing funds from being used to enforce the healthcare law passed last year.

 

Four other amendments will be debated for 20 minutes:

·         Stopping the Environmental Protection Agency from enforcing regulations related to various pollutants

·         Preventing the lease of Outer Continental Shelf areas for oil or gas production,

·         Blocking the transfer of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay,

·         Preventing enforcement of certain activities under the Consumer Product Safety Act.

 

On ethanol, Rep. John Sullivan (R-Okla.) will be able to offer an amendment to cut funding for implementation of EPA’s recent decisions to allow the use of E15.  Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz) will offer an amendment to prohibit federal funds for for the construction of an ethanol blender pump or an ethanol storage facility.

 

Another Flake amendment would prohibit funds made available by this Act from being used to pay the salaries and expenses of personnel of the Department of Agriculture to provide any benefit described in section 1001D(b)(1)(C)) to a person or legal entity if the average adjusted gross income of the person or legal entity exceeds $250,000. 

Rep. Ron Kind (D-Wisc.) offered an amendment that would prevent any funds to provide payments to the Brazil Cotton Institute. 
 
An amendment by Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) would prohibit funds from being used to develop, promulgate, evaluate, implement, provide oversight to, or backstop total maximum daiiy loads or watershed implementation plans for the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. 

 

For the full list of the 583 amendments initially offered: http://www.gop.gov/bill/112/1/hr1amendments

 

Here's the list of remaining amendments to be considered: 8, 13, 19, 23, 38, 42, 46, 47, 48, 49, 51, 54, 55, 79, 80, 83, 88, 89, 94, 99, 101, 109, 117, 120, 126, 127, 137, 141, 144, 145, 146, 149, 151, 154, 159, 164, 166, 172, 174, 177, 185, 199, 200, 207, 216, 217, 233, 241, 246, 251, 255, 261, 263, 266, 267, 268, 274, 280, 281, 296, 323, 329, 330, 331, 333, 336, 342, 344, 345, 348, 367, 369, 377, 392, 396, 400, 401, 405, 408, 409, 414, 424, 429, 430, 439, 445, 448, 463, 464, 465, 467, 471, 480, 482, 483, 495, 496, 497, 498, 504, 507, 515, 519, 524, 525, 526, 533, 534, 536, 543, 548, 552, 560, 563, 566, 567, 569, 570, 577, 578, and 583.

 

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