March 6, 1978
Page 5619
ADDITIONAL EXPENDITURES BY THE COMMITTEE ON THE BUDGET
The Senate proceeded to consider the resolution (S. Res. 387) authorizing additional expenditures by the Committee on the Budget for inquiries and investigations, which had been reported from the Committee on Rules and Administration with amendments as follows:
On page 2, line 4, strike "$2,430,800" and insert "$2,406,500";
On page 2, line 12, strike "1978" and insert "1979";
So as to make the resolution read:
Resolved, That, in holding hearings, reporting such hearings, and making investigations as authorized by sections 134(a) and 136 of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946, as amended, in accordance with its jurisdiction under rule XXV of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee on the Budget is authorized from March 1, 1978, through February 28, 1979, in its discretion (1) to make expenditures from the contingent fund of the Senate, (2) to employ personnel, and (3) with the prior consent of the Government department or agency concerned and the Committee on Rules and Administration, to use on a reimbursable basis the services of personnel of any such department or agency.
Sec. 2. The expenses of the committee under this resolution shall not exceed $2,406,000, of which amount not to exceed $100,000 may be expended for the procurement of the services of individual consultants, or organizations thereof (as authorized by section 202(i) of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1948, as amended).
SEC. 3. The committee shall report its findings, together with such recommendations for legislation as it deems advisable, to the Senate at the earliest practicable date, but not later than February 28,
SEC. 4. Expenses of the committee under this resolution shall be paid from the contingent fund of the Senate upon vouchers approved by the chairman of the committee, except that vouchers shall not be required for the disbursement of salaries of employees paid at an annual rate.
The amendments were agreed to.
The resolution, as amended, was agreed to.
Mr. ROBERT C. BYRD. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the RECORD an excerpt from the report (No. 95-647) , explaining the purposes of the measure.
There being no objection, the excerpt was ordered to be printed in the RECORD, as follows:
Senate Resolution 387 as referred would authorize the Committee on the Budget from March 1, 1978, through February 28, 1979, to expend not to exceed $2,430,800 for a study of matters within its jurisdiction under rule XXV of the Standing Rules of the Senate, of which amount not to exceed $100,000 would be available for the procurement of the services of individual consultants or organizations thereof.
During the 8-month period from July 1, 1977, through February 28, 1978, the committee was authorized by Senate Resolution 159, agreed to June 14, 1977, to expend not to exceed $1,514,300 for the same or similar purposes. The committee estimates that the unobligated balance under that authorization as of February 28, 1978 (funds returnable to the Treasury), will be approximately $300,000.
The Committee on Rules and Administration has amended Senate Resolution 387(1) by reducing the requested amount from $2,430,800 to $2,406,500, a reduction of $24,300; and (2) by making a technical amendment.
Justification for the request is expressed in a letter addressed to Senator Claiborne Pell, chairman of the Committee on Rules and Administration, by Senator Edmund S. Muskie, chairman, and Senator Henry Bellmon, ranking minority member, of the Committee on the Budget, which letter (with accompanying budget) is as follows:
U.S. SENATE, COMMITTEE ON THE BUDGET,
Washington, D.C.,
January 31, 1978.
Hon. CLAIBORNE PELL,
Chairman,
Committee on Rules and Administration.
U.S. Senate,
Washington, D.C.
DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Committee on the Budget has reported S. Res. 387, a resolution requesting funding for inquiries and investigations for the committee for fiscal year 1979, which begins March 1, 1978. This resolution provides most of the funding for the Budget Committee and the budget process in the Senate.
This budget continues the commitments we have made to the Rules Committee in the past to limit the committee staff to the minimum level necessary to conduct the committee's work effectively. The number of staff provided for in this resolution is exactly the same as the number provided for in our present resolution. This budget does not request funds for additional staff positions. It contains an increase of about 7.02 percent compared to the annualized cost of the committee's present budget. This increase is slightly less than the 7.05 percent government-wide pay increase of October 1977.
This budget continues the unique feature the Rules Committee has approved in all Budget Committee funding resolutions since 1974. Of the total of 79 staff positions, 28 are for employment by each committee member of not more than two staff members to assist him in his committee work. This provision in our funding resolution originated prior to Senate adoption of S. Res. 60. It continues to be used by most members of the committee in lieu of the S. Res. 60-type allowance, which is now provided under authority of section 111 of the Legislative Appropriations Act.
A number of Senators on the committee have elected to use the Senate Resolution 60-type allowance in lieu of the appointment of staff under the committee's budget. As we promised your committee last year, the money contained in our budget for staff for those Senators who use the Senate Resolution 60-type allowance has not been spent for other purposes. That amount — $223,500 and the $40,000 earmarked in the current budget for the operation of subcommittees — will be returned to the Treasury at the end of this budget year. The subcommittee funds remain unexpended because subcommittees were not formed. These two items account for most of the budget balance the committee will return at the end of the year.
We have lived within the budget your committee has provided. We have returned the funds we promised to return if they were not used for Senators' assistants or subcommittees.
In all other regards the committee's operations have required virtually the full amount of the budget you granted us last year. For that reason, we ask your committee to grant us the full amount of our budget request this year as well. Like last year's budget, it provides a modest amount — $60,000 — for the operation of subcommittees, should they be formed. (Last year's budget contained $40,000 for the 8-month period which is $60,000 on an annual basis.) These subcommittee funds would be used for hearings and investigations by such subcommittees as may be formed. We are not asking for any additional staff for subcommittees. The subcommittees would be staffed by the committee's present staff members.
We are also including sufficient funds in the budget to appoint staff members to the Budget Committee staff in lieu of the Senate Resolution 60-type allowance. We continue to believe it is better for such personnel to be actually employed as members of the committee staff and will continue to encourage all members to use the committee's budget for that purpose.
To the extent that some members choose the Senate Resolution 60-type allowance instead, we will — as we have in all cases in the past — return the relevant portion of this budget to the Treasury at the end of the budget year. But we believe it more prudent to include these funds now, with the promise to return them if unused, than to leave Senators in the position of only being able to use the Senate Resolution 60-type allowance, even if later in the year they come to see the wisdom of employing people directly on the committee staff instead.
The funds provided by this budget will enable the committee to continue to meet its responsibilities to the Senate under the budget process. Now in its fourth year, the Budget Committee has demonstrated it can execute the responsibilities entrusted to it under the Budget Act to bring the budget under effective congressional control in a manner consistent with and helpful to the work of the other committees.
In order to meet its mission, the committee employs technical experts who analyze the President's budget, authorizing committee spending plans, economic conditions, and appropriation and revenue bills. These analysts present the Budget Committee and — through it — the Senate with the clearest possible picture and analysis of the competing priorities recommended for congressional action.
The committee workload has steadily increased since its inception and reached its heaviest burden yet this year. In addition to preparing the two regular concurrent resolutions on the budget, the committee had to report an extraordinary third budget resolution as well. The third resolution consumed weeks of committee effort and months of staff time.
Last year the chairman and ranking member of the committee made 93 floor statements interpreting the impact of specific legislation on the congressionally-approved budget. The committee nearly doubled its publications. which increased to 98 documents relating to the budget process. They include the weekly scorekeeping report, which is a key element in the committee's effort to keep each Senator informed regarding the budget status of bills during the legislative and appropriations process.
All of these documents and statements, as well as preparation of the hearings, markups, and conferences have been performed by the staff provided for in this resolution. Without the staff, these tasks could not have been performed.
Even before the adoption of Senate Resolution 4, the Budget Committee has always maintained a policy of according the minority at least 30 percent of the committee's staff. The present committee staff ratio is 69 percent majority and 31 percent minority in terms of both dollars and personnel. We also have all space and committee facilities on a two-thirds — one-third basis.
This same bipartisanship has permeated the committee's work, producing an overwhelming majority within the committee and the Senate on behalf of the budget resolutions. The staff of the majority and minority, funded In large part by this resolution, are key ingredients of that success.
Just as we seek no increase in staff in this budget, we do not anticipate asking the Rules Committee for additional staff next year. We believe this budget is adequate to our needs and that, if it is granted we will not need to return for a supplemental budget during the course of the year.
Although almost all committees have been very supportive of the budget process so far, no committee has been more so than the Rules Committee. Not only was the Budget Act developed and polished in the Committee on Rules, but our space and staff needs have been supported fully and consistently by the Committee on Rules. For our part, we have lived within our budgets and will continue to do so. We thank you for your support and ask your favorable consideration of this resolution.
Sincerely,
EDMUND S. MUSKIE Chairman.
HENRY BELLMON, Ranking Minority Member.