WASHINGTON — Here's how area members of Congress voted on major roll calls the week of June 2, 9 and 16, 2008.
HOUSE
1. 2009-2013 FEDERAL BUDGET: Voting 214 for and 210 against, the House on June 5 approved the conference report on a five-year Democratic budget (S Con Res 70) that for 2009 projects $3.06 trillion in spending, a $340.4 billion deficit and $216.8 billion in interest payments on the national debt.
Over five years the measure would fully fund President Bush's defense and national security requests, spend more than he seeks for domestic and entitlement programs, allow his tax cuts for the wealthiest filers to expire after 2010 and extend his middle-class tax cuts if Congress finds a way to offset the lost revenue.
A yes vote was to approve the budget plan.
John Tierney, D-Salem — Yes
Nike Tsongas, D-Lowell — Yes
John Olver, D-Amherst — Yes
Richard Neal, D-Springfield — Yes
James McGovern, D-Worcester — Yes
Barney Frank, D-Newton — Yes
Edward Markey, D-Malden — Yes
Michael Capuano, D-Somerville — Yes
Stephen Lynch, D-Boston — Yes
William Delahunt, D-Quincy — Yes
2. PUBLIC-SCHOOL RENOVATIONS: Voting 250 for and 164 against, the House on June 4 passed a bill (HR 3021) establishing a new federal program that would authorize $33.2 billion in fiscal years 2009-2013 for grants to renovate and modernize public schools. The nation's poorest schools would have priority in receiving the funds, which could be spent for projects such as removing asbestos and lead and improving air quality and lighting. The funds could not be used for maintenance.
The bill also authorizes $500 million between 2009 and 2013 to repair Gulf Coast public schools damaged by hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005.
A yes vote was to pass the bill.
Tierney — Yes
Tsongas — Yes
Olver — Yes
Neal — Yes
McGovern — Yes
Frank — Yes
Markey — Yes
Capuano — Yes
Lynch — Yes
Delahunt — Yes
3. BUSH IMPEACHMENT BID: The House on June 11 voted, 251 for and 166 against, to send to committee, or shelve, a resolution (H Res 1258) sponsored by Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, presenting 35 articles of impeachment against President Bush. As a privileged resolution, the measure was not debatable.
Many of the articles dealt with Bush's handling of war in Iraq, while others concerned topics such as the administration's disclosure of Valerie Plame's identity as a CIA operative, its harsh interrogation of enemy combatants, Bush's use of presidential "signing statements" to disregard statutory language, the administration's alleged politicization of U.S. attorneys' offices, its warrantless surveillance of U.S. citizens and Bush's inept response to Hurricane Katrina.
A yes vote was to shelve the impeachment bid.
Tierney — Yes
Tsongas — Yes
Olver — Yes
Neal — Yes
McGovern — Yes
Frank — Yes
Markey — Yes
Capuano — Yes
Lynch — Yes
Delahunt — Yes
4. EXTENDED JOBLESS BENEFITS: Voting 274 for and 137 against, the House on June 12 passed a bill (HR 5749) providing 13 additional weeks of jobless checks for those who have used up their initial allotments, or 26 more weeks in states with at least a 6 percent unemployment rate.
The filing period would end Feb. 1, 2009. The bill's projected $6.2 billion fiscal 2008 cost would be added to the national debt.
Jobless checks average $300 per week. The bill waives the federal requirement of at least 20 weeks' work to qualify for extended benefits, but allows each state to set its own rules.
A yes vote was to pass the bill.
Tierney — Yes
Tsongas — Yes
Olver — Yes
Neal — Yes
McGovern — Yes
Frank — Yes
Markey — Yes
Capuano — Yes
Lynch — Yes
Delahunt — Yes
5. AMTRAK SPENDING BOOST: Voting 311 for and 104 against, the House on June 11 authorized a $14.9 billion rail-passenger budget for fiscal 2009-2013. Now before the Senate, the bill (HR 6003) would provide nearly $10 billion for Amtrak, about twice the agency's pre-2007 rate of spending, and $5 billion for state intercity projects. The Amtrak breakdown over five years is $4.2 billion for capital improvements, $3 billion for operating subsidies, $1.7 billion for debt repayment and $1 billion for station and train compliance with disability laws.
The bill allows the private sector to propose high-speed rail service that would compete with Amtrak in the Northeast and other regions.
A yes vote was to pass the bill.
Tierney — Yes
Tsongas — Yes
Olver — Yes
Neal — Yes
McGovern — Yes
Frank — Yes
Markey — Yes
Capuano — Yes
Lynch — Yes
Delahunt — Yes
6. 2009 SPACE BUDGET: Voting 409 for and 15 against, the House on June 18 passed a bill (HR 6063) authorizing a $20.2 billion budget for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in fiscal 2009, up from $17.3 billion in 2008. In part, the bill funds U.S. support of the International Space Station, climate research, Mars exploration, space shuttle missions through 2010 and the development of a new manned-space vehicle scheduled for launch in 2015. The bill is now before the Senate.
A yes vote was to pass the bill.
Tierney — Yes
Tsongas — Yes
Olver — Yes
Neal — Yes
McGovern — Yes
Frank — Yes
Markey — Yes
Capuano — Yes
Lynch — Yes
Delahunt — Yes
7. FEDERAL EMPLOYEES' FAMILY LEAVE: Voting 278 for and 146 against, the House on June 19 passed a bill (HR 5781) establishing a new benefit for federal civil servants and congressional employees under the 1993 Family and Medical Leave Act. The benefit would consist of four weeks' leave with pay following the birth, adoption or fostering of a child. These workers now can take such leave, but without pay unless they tap into unused annual-leave or sick-pay allotments. The new leave is projected to benefit about 1 percent of the federal workforce at a cost of $190 million annually.
A yes vote was to pass the bill.
Tierney — Yes
Tsongas — Yes
Olver — Yes
Neal — Yes
McGovern — Yes
Frank — Yes
Markey — Yes
Capuano — Yes
Lynch — Yes
Delahunt — Yes
8. FARM BILL VETO: By a tally of 317 for and 109 against, the House on June 18 voted to override President Bush's veto of a $289 billion, five-year farm bill (HR 6124) that renews subsidies for growers of major crops while also funding conservation and nutrition programs and taxpayer support for fruit and vegetable growers, among hundreds of other programs. The bill also requires country-of-origin labeling of food on grocery shelves.
This vote followed a House vote last month that overrode a presidential veto of essentially the same bill.
A yes vote was to override the veto.
Tierney — Yes
Tsongas — Yes
Olver — Yes
Neal — Yes
McGovern — Yes
Frank — Yes
Markey — Yes
Capuano — No
Lynch — Yes
Delahunt — Yes
9. PRIMATES TRAFFICKING BAN: Voting 302 for and 96 against, the House on June 17 passed a bill (HR 2964) making it a federal crime to import, export, buy, sell or otherwise deal in interstate commerce with nonhuman primates such as monkeys and chimpanzees. Federal regulations and the laws of many states already outlaw such trafficking.
The bill, which awaits Senate action, would exempt those with federal permits or licenses to handle primates.
A yes vote was to pass the bill.
Tierney — Yes
Tsongas — Yes
Olver — Yes
Neal — Yes
McGovern — Yes
Frank — Yes
Markey — Yes
Capuano — Yes
Lynch — Yes
Delahunt — Yes
10. $162.5 BILLION WAR FUNDING: Voting 268 for and 155 against, the House on June 19 approved an amendment to HR 2642 that would appropriate $162.5 billion to pay Iraq-Afghanistan war costs well into 2009. Now before the Senate, the bill prohibits the construction of permanent U.S. bases in Iraq and requires the Iraqi government to match U.S.-taxpayer funding of Iraq reconstruction projects. The cost of the bill would be added to the national debt.
A yes vote backed the war funding.
Tierney — No
Tsongas — No
Olver — No
Neal — No
McGovern — No
Frank — No
Markey — No
Capuano — No
Lynch — No
Delahunt — No
11. NEW GI BILL, JOBLESS CHECKS: Voting 416 for and 12 against, the House on June 19 approved an amendment to HR 2642 to establish a new GI Bill for veterans with at least three years' duty who enlisted after 9/11, which would pay four years' college tuition at a level up to the top public tuition in their state. The bill also would fund 13 more weeks of jobless checks for the long-term unemployed along with programs such as flood relief in the Midwest, levee reconstruction in New Orleans and global food aid.
The bill's $95 billion cost, including $62 billion over ten years for the GI benefit and $8.2 billion for jobless checks, would be added to the national debt. The bill is now before the Senate.
A yes vote backed the amendment.
Tierney — Yes
Tsongas — Yes
Olver — Yes
Neal — Yes
McGovern — Yes
Frank — Yes
Markey — Yes
Capuano — Yes
Lynch — Yes
Delahunt — Yes
12. GOVERNMENT SPY POWERS: Voting 293 for and 129 against, the House on June 20 sent the Senate a bill (HR 6304) to renew the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) through 2012 and grant conditional immunity to certain telecommunications firms that helped the government spy on Americans after 9/11 outside the limits of FISA. The bill would permit surveillance without specific warrants on totally foreign communications passing through U.S. switching points; authorize the secret FISA court to issue blanket warrants for surveillance of communications between U.S. and foreign locations and continue the existing requirement that strictly domestic spying targeting Americans be authorized by the FISA court on a case-by-case basis.
The bill establishes FISA as the exclusive basis for intelligence spying, debunking the Bush administration doctrine that presidents have inherent executive authority to conduct surveillance.
A yes vote was to pass the bill.
Tierney — No
Tsongas — No
Olver — No
Neal — No
McGovern — No
Frank — No
Markey — No
Capuano — No
Lynch — No
Delahunt — No
SENATE
1. GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE: The Senate on June 2 voted, 74 for and 14 against, to begin debate on a bill (S 3036) that would establish a cap-and-trade system to sharply reduce the U.S. share of the greenhouse-gas emissions that help cause global warming and climate change. Democratic leaders later shelved the bill in response to Republican delaying tactics, such as compelling clerks to read aloud the entire 490-page bill.
The bill targets approximately 2,100 factories, power plants, transportation systems and other entities that account for about 85 percent of America's contribution to global warming. The bill requires them to reduce aggregate emissions by 18 percent by 2020 and nearly 70 percent by 2050. Under cap-and-trade, these targeted polluters would receive federal emission allowances, or permits, that they could sell to one another as long as they stay collectively under a federal cap that would be gradually lowered. The government would auction the pollution permits, using proceeds for purposes such as developing alternative fuels, reducing the deficit and providing tax relief to help the poor pay utility bills.
A yes vote was to advance the bill.
Sen. Edward Kennedy — Did Not Vote
Sen. John Kerry — Yes
2. 2009-2013 FEDERAL BUDGET: Voting 48 for and 45 against, the Senate on June 4 approved the conference report on a five-year Democratic budget (S Con Res 70, above) that raises the national-debt ceiling by $800 billion to about $10.5 trillion. The budget projects $3.06 trillion in spending and a $340.4 billion deficit in 2009. The fiscal plan would extend Bush's middle-class tax cuts if Congress finds a way to offset the lost revenue but would allow his top-bracket tax cuts to expire after 2010.
Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., voted yes. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., did not vote.
A yes vote was to approve the Democratic budget.
Kennedy — DNV
Kerry — Yes
3. WINDFALL PROFITS: Voting 51 for and 43 against, the Senate on June 10 failed to reach 60 votes to end GOP blockage of a bill (S 3044) that would levy a 25-percent tax on profits generated by the five largest oil companies judged unreasonable by historical standards and which are not invested in expanding refinery capacity or developing renewable sources of energy.
The bill also would repeal $17 billion in energy-company tax breaks that a Republican-led Congress enacted several years ago to spur oil and gas production. Additionally, the bill sets stricter trading rules for energy speculators, makes it a federal crime to manipulate oil and gas prices during national emergencies, and empowers the government to sue OPEC nations for limiting supplies or fixing prices.
A yes vote was to advance the bill.
Kennedy — DNV
Kerry — Yes
4. MEDICARE'S DOCTOR PAYMENTS: Voting 54 for and 39 against, the Senate on June 12 failed to reach 60 votes needed to end GOP blockage of a bill (S 3101) that would avert the administration's 10.6 percent cut in Medicare payments to physicians set for July 1. The bill would raise reimbursement rates by 1.1 percent in 2009.
The bill also would lower the co-payment rate for mental-health coverage from 50 percent to 20 percent, the same rate as for physical care. The bill's projected $19.8 billion, six-year cost would be offset mainly by cuts in the privately run, federally subsidized Medicare Advantage program.
A yes vote was to advance the bill.
Kennedy — DNV
Kerry — Yes
5. ENERGY AND BUSINESS TAX BREAKS: Voting 50 for and 44 against, the Senate on June 10 failed to reach 60 votes needed to end GOP blockage of a bill (HR 6049) providing $55.5 billion in business, education, personal and energy tax breaks. The bill would renew or originate breaks for purposes such as spurring the production of non-fossil fuels, promoting energy conservation, spurring business research and development, expanding child tax credits for the working poor, defraying the cost of college tuition and allowing homeowners who do not itemize returns to deduct property taxes.
One disputed provision would set new deductions for lawyers trying contingency-fee cases.
The bill's cost would be offset by tightening accounting rules on multinationals and closing offshore tax shelters used by some U.S. hedge-fund managers.
A yes vote was to advance the bill.
Kennedy — DNV
Kerry — Yes
6. FARM BILL VETO: Voting 80 for and 14 against, the Senate on June 18 joined the House (above) in overriding President Bush's veto of a $289 billion, five-year farm bill (HR 6124) that renews subsidies for growers of major crops while also funding fruit and vegetable growers food programs and requiring country-of-origin food labeling. About two-thirds of spending in the bill is for food and nutrition programs.
A yes vote was to enact the bill.
Kennedy — DNV
Kerry — Yes
7. ENERGY AND BUSINESS TAX BREAKS: Voting 52 for and 44 against, the Senate on June 17 failed to reach 60 votes needed to end GOP blockage of a bill (HR 6049) providing $55.5 billion over ten years in business, education, personal and energy tax breaks. The bill's largest category is $17 billion in credits to promote renewable fuels, energy efficiency and clean-coal technology.
A yes vote was to advance the bill.
Kennedy — DNV
Kerry — Yes
8. SUBPRIME MORTGAGE FORECLOSURES: Voting 21 for and 69 against, the Senate on June 19 refused to kill a proposed new program in which mortgage holders would refinance hundreds of thousands of at-risk home loans in return for Federal Housing Administration backing of the reworked loans. The vote retained the program as part of a pending bill (HR 3221) to help homeowners, lenders and communities recover from the U.S. housing collapse.
The so-called "Hope for Homeowners" program would rescue up to 500,000 mortgages, totaling $300 billion, that are now headed for default. The Congressional Budget Office estimates the program would cost taxpayers $2.7 billion over five years, based on the projected failure rate of the reworked loans.
A yes vote was to kill the program.
Kennedy — DNV
Kerry — No
