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	Friday, June 29, 2007
	Congressman Clay’s Capitol Hill Report
By Rep. Wm. Lacy Clay Member of Congress
	This week, the House passed FY2008 appropriations bills for the Interior & the Environment, and Financial Services.  We also passed important voter protection legislation that I was proud to cosponsor.  On Monday, I was very pleased to announce some good news for North St. Louis County, the relocation of the National Archives and Records Center to Spanish Lake.  We saved over 500 federal jobs in St. Louis which were at risk of moving elsewhere.  Yesterday, I issued a floor statement in the House in support of an amendment to strip funding from Vice President Cheney’s office in reaction to his absurd claim that he is not part of the executive branch.  A portion of it appears below. Finally, I want to wish you and your family a safe and happy Fourth of July as we celebrate America’s 231st birthday. -Lacy Effort to Strip Funding for Cheney's Office After Vice President Defies Executive Order Chairman Responds to Vice President's Claim That He Is Not Part of Executive Branch, Asserts that Cheney is Not Above the LawHere is an excerpt from a floor statement that I issued on Thursday in response to Vice President Cheney’s absurd claim that his office is not part of the Executive Branch and his continued defiance of an executive order regarding the protection of classified documents. Over the last six years, Mr. Cheney has shown contempt for the constitution and a complete lack of respect for Congress.  He should know that no one, not even the Vice President, is above the law. STATEMENT OF CONGRESSMAN WM. LACY CLAY SUPPORTING AN AMENDMENT BY REP. EMANUEL TO H.R. 2829MR. SPEAKER,   AS CHAIRMAN OF THE OVERSIGHT SUBCOMMITTEE ON INFORMATION POLICY, CENSUS, AND NATIONAL ARCHIVES, I RISE IN STRONG SUPPORT OF THE AMENDMENT OFFERED BY MY COLLEAGUE FROM ILLINOIS, MR. EMANUEL. THIS AMENDMENT WOULD ELIMINATE FUNDING FOR THE OFFICE OF THE VICE PRESIDENT IN LIGHT OF THE VICE PRESIDENT’S REFUSAL TO COMPLY WITH EXECUTIVE ORDER 12958.EXECUTIVE ORDER 12958, REQUIRES THE INFORMATION SECURITY OVERSIGHT OFFICE (ISOO) WITHIN THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION TO ESTABLISH A UNIFORM SYSTEM TO PROTECT CLASSIFIED NATIONAL SECURITY INFORMATION THROUGHOUT THE EXECUTIVE BRANCH. IN 2004, THE OFFICE OF THE VICE PRESIDENT REFUSED TO SUBMIT TO AN ON-SITE INSPECTION.  IN DOING SO, IT MADE THE ASTONISHING CLAIM THAT IT WAS NOT AN EXECUTIVE BRANCH ENTITY AND THEREFORE NOT COVERED BY THE EXECUTIVE ORDER.  MOREOVER, WE LEARNED THIS WEEK THAT THE VICE PRESIDENT’S STAFF HAS PROPOSED AMENDING THE EXECUTIVE ORDER TO ELIMINATE THE ISOO.  CONGRESS SHOULD NOT TOLERATE THIS EFFORT BY THE VICE PRESIDENT TO EXEMPT HIS OFFICE FROM OVERSIGHT AND RETALIATE AGAINST THE AGENCY CHARGED WITH MAINTAINING OUR NATION’S MOST SENSITIVE SECRETS.  THE VICE PRESIDENT IS MAKING A MOCKERY OF THE LAW AND OUR SYSTEM OF CHECKS AND BALANCES.  IF THE OFFICE OF THE VICE PRESIDENT INSISTS UPON DEFINING ITSELF AS NOT BEING AN EXECUTIVE BRANCH ENTITY, THEN CLEARLY IT SHOULD NOT BE FUNDED LIKE ONE.   Voter Intimidation & Deceptive Election Practices ActWill Prohibit and Punish Misinformation, Combat Dirty Tricks on Election Day For years, in Missouri and across the nation, minority and low-income voters have been subjected to persistent, orchestrated efforts to deceive, disenfranchise and intimidate them on Election Day. That’s why I was pleased to cosponsor H.R. 1281, the Deceptive Practices and Voter Intimidation Prevention Act, which passed the House this week.  The bill, which was authored by my friends Congressman Rahm Emanuel (D) Illinois, and Senator Barack Obama (D) Illinois, elevates deceptive election practices to a felony, punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.  It also requires the Department of Justice to provide voters with accurate election information when allegations of deceptive practices are confirmed.  The new legislation defines "deceptive election day practices" as knowingly communicating false election-related information with the intent to disenfranchise another person.  Voting is one of our most fundamental constitutional rights, and we shouldn't allow citizens to be deceived by deliberate misinformation or dirty tricks. National Archives & Records Administration to Stay in St. Louis New Site Is Big Win for North CountyOn Monday, I announced that the General Services Administration has secured 23.5 acres of land at 1829 Dunn Road for the construction of a state of the art 520,000 square foot facility that will house the new National Archives and Records Administration's National Personnel Records Center. Over 500 federal jobs that had been at risk to move elsewhere will remain in St. Louis. This is great news for Spanish Lake, Bellefontaine Neighbors and St. Louis County. We fought hard to keep these good jobs in our community, and now, we not only keep all the jobs, this site will also generate new development at a prime location in North County. The NARA complex is currently part of the Federal Records Center in Overland, at 9700 Page Avenue, which is slated for closure by the Base Realignment and Closing Commission. The National Personnel Records Center is one of NARA's largest operations with a central repository of personnel-related records for both military and civil service employees. It houses over 57 million military service records for veterans from the late 1890s through 2002.  Appropriations Highlights Interior & Environment Bill Will Protect National ParksFinancial Services Plan Will Help Consumers, Boost Support for Small Businesses We have a responsibility to protect our environment for future generations and I’m proud to support this legislation that will help rid our communities of environmental hazards, provide clean water, and preserve and improve our national parks and wilderness areas. The FY2008 Interior and the Environment Appropriations bill includes new resources and support for environmental and conservation programs including the Clean Water State Revolving Fund, which supports projects that improve drinking water quality in communities across America; Sewer and Water Grants to support the construction and improvement of water systems in local communities; and new resources for the Superfund hazardous waste clean-up program. The legislation also makes climate change research a key priority, boosting federal investment in climate change research at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Interior Department by 53 percent. Finally, the bill makes the improvement of National Parks a top priority and increases funding for National Wildlife Refuges.The Financial Services-General Services Appropriation will protect consumers, strengthen our economy and help small business maintain access to affordable capital.  Our bill rescues the Small Business Administration from the Bush Administration’s proposed cuts.  It also lowers the cost of small business loans to make capital available and more affordable for small and start-up businesses. We also acted to strengthen the Consumer Product Safety Commission to better protect the American people from the risk of serious injuries or death resulting from faulty product design and manufacturing.  Finally, I supported an increase of $36.3 million for the Federal Trade Commission to ramp up consumer protection activities, particularly investigations of predatory sub-prime lenders and preventing identity theft. Media contact is Steven Englehardt, @ 314.383.5240 (office), 314.504.4029(cell) or at (steven.englehardt@mail.house.gov.) # #