The House : Burton Wilderness

The House passed, 342 for and 69 against, and sent to the Senate a bill (HR 1373) to name part of the Point Reyes National Seashore near San Francisco after the late Rep. Phillip Burton (D-San Francisco), who was a leading environmentalist in Congress.

Supporter John Seiberling (D-Ohio) said: “Phil, I know that, wherever you are, you are looking on the work that this Congress and this House have done to protect wilderness areas and smiling. This is our way of saying thanks.”

Opponent Robert Walker (R-Pa.) noted that this marks the first naming of a National Park Service unit after a member of Congress, and that the Interior Department opposes setting such a precedent.

The measure would establish the Phillip Burton Wilderness in California.

How They Voted Yea Nay No vote Rep. Dreier (R) x Rep. Martinez (D) x Rep. Moorhead (R) x Rep. Roybal (D) x Rep. Torres (D) x

NASA Budget

By a vote of 369 for to 36 against, the House adopted an amendment to freeze the fiscal 1986 National Aeronautics and Space Administration budget at its 1985 level of $7.51 billion.

This is $350 million below the 1986 NASA budget sought by both the Administration and the Democrat-controlled House Committee on Science and Technology.

The bill (HR 1714) was sent to the Senate.

It was the first major 1986 authorization bill to be voted on this year by the House, and thus the first test of the “freeze” approach to deficit-reduction.

Across-the-board freezes on a departmental budget almost always have been rejected by Congress, because they trample on too many pet programs of individual lawmakers.

However, the margin of this vote indicated that such a drastic strategy may fare better this year as members become increasingly frustrated by their inability to control federal spending.

Supporter Dan Glickman (R-Kans.) said, “We are bleeding to death because of high deficits, and if we do not start (corrective action) here, we will never start anywhere.”

Opponent Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) said it was wrong to inaugurate the freeze approach with the NASA budget, because that is “the one agency that is advancing our science and technology . . . which is the future of our country.”

How They Voted Yea Nay No vote Rep. Dreier (R) x Rep. Martinez (D) x Rep. Moorhead (R) x Rep. Roybal (D) x Rep. Torres (D) x