Last week in Congress/
How our representatives voted
Updated: 08/03/08 8:09 AM
WASHINGTON — Here are the votes of Western New York’s four members of the House of Representatives on major legislation in Congress last week. A “Y” means the member voted for the measure; an “N” means the member voted against the measure; an “A” means the member did not vote. Key votes in the Senate were not available.
HOUSE
Improving Processing of Disability Claims by Veterans — The House on Wednesday passed the Veterans Disability Benefits Claims Modernization Act, sponsored by Rep. John Hall, D-N. Y., that would require modernizing the Department of Veterans Affairs to speed disability payments to injured veterans and their survivors. The vote was 429 yeas to 0 nays. Rep. Brian Higgins, D-Buffalo, Y; Rep. John R. “Randy” Kuhl Jr., R-Hammondsport; Rep. Thomas M. Reynolds, R-Clarence, Y; Rep. Louise M. Slaughter, D-Fairport, Y. Rejecting Greater Regulation of Commodity Markets — The House on Wednesday failed to pass the Commodity Markets Transparency and Accountability Act, sponsored by Rep. Collin Peterson, D-Minn., that would have expanded regulation of energy and agriculture commodity markets with a variety of measures. The vote was 276 yeas to 151 nays, short of the two-thirds majority required for approval. Higgins, Y; Kuhl, Y; Reynolds, N; Slaughter, Y. Authorizing FDA Regulation of Tobacco Products — The House on Wednesday passed the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, sponsored by Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., that would authorize the Food and Drug Administration to regulate tobacco products. The vote was 326 yeas to 102 nays, with a two-thirds majority required for approval. Higgins, Y; Kuhl, Y; Reynolds, N; Slaughter, Y. Expanding Consumer Product Safety Rules and Penalties — The House on Wednesday passed a conference report accompanying the Consumer Product Safety Modernization Act, sponsored by Rep. Bobby Rush, D-Ill., that would reauthorize the Consumer Product Safety Commission to operate with staff and funding increases and would widely expand safety rules for children’s products. The vote was 424 yeas to 1 nay. Higgins, Y; Kuhl, Y; Reynolds, Y; Slaughter, Y.
Information for this column is supplied by Targeted News Service.
