minimis waste contributors, le and small businesses with limited

The subcommittee examined the current liability system and eval proposed by a wide variety of group timony from advocates of various a ical Manufacturers Association ICM fense Council [NRDC], the National [NFPA), and Industrial Compliance "fair share" or proportional liability would pay for cleanups roughly pro that they contributed to a site (advo other approach would largely abandon ability in favor of entirely EPA-adminis sites (advocated by NFPA, among others alternative would come primarily from w third approach is a hybrid system which two plans by expanding the fund through ing companies to become eligible for reim their sites from the expanded fund (advoca pliance).

Department's ability dentified by the submaster plan that would

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The subcommittee also heard testimony from a Resources for the Future, an organization that eval approaches to the liability issue based on a set of ing: Speed of cleanup; amount of transaction costs; voluntary cleanups at non-Superfund sites; use of "derate potenture waste management; fairness; and financial is, includthe government, the trust fund, and PRPs. In addit committee heard testimony from Rev. Benjamin Chav tive director of the National Association for the Ad Colored Peoples [NAACP), concerning the negative ing liability scheme has had on minority communities proportionate number of Superfund sites are Because the administration is currently discussions on liability reform, the sub testimony from the Environ

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properly balance consumer access and consumer protection. Some were troubled by FDA's alleged bias against supplements-citing, for example, FDA's delay in approving a health claim for folic acid d prevention of birth defects. However, others were troubled by DA's lack of regulation and enforcement over products on the ...ket that may be unsafe or labeled in a misleading or fraudulent - What became clear was that the Congress has failed to consistent direction to FDA over the years on regulating dieSupplements.

ts.-The subcommittee's hearing made clear that access "supplements that provide promising health benefits can ontribute much to public health. At the same time, consumers to be protected from harmful products and fraudulent claims. pected to carefully weigh these concerns as it continues As regulations for these substances.

-The hearing on "FDA's Regulation of Dietary Supas held on July 20, 1993.

arm Industry's Use of Alternative Agricultural Practices sffect on Food Prices.

In June 1993, the National Academy of Sciences .....ental Working Group reported that pesticide resiSpread in the U.S. diet and were consumed regu...ricans, including infants and children. Environ

334

further that America's food supply was not safe pesticide residues (indeed they concluded that Americans eat pesticide residues at every meal) Children in the United States receive up to 35 Ketime doses of certain carcinogenic pes

cultural problems associated with pesticides e on the farming industry to switch to alterhods that reduce or eliminate pesticide use. ained several alternative methods-bio

In October 1993, DOE published in the Federal Register a solicitation for interested parties to participate in a project definition study of the National Biomedical Tracer Facility [NBTF]. The DOE's failure to proceed with this study was one of the issues raised by the subcommittee at its 1992 hearing. Unfortunately, the subcommittee's investigation revealed that the October 1993 solicitation process is substantively and procedurally defective. DOE did not follow its own internal procedures implementing OMB Circular A-76 concerning procurement of commercial services and products. In addition, the information-gathering process incorporated in the solicitation precludes the DOE and the Congress from receiving information concerning the ability of DOE's own laboratories to fulfill the requirements expected of the NBTF. For example, the subcommittee investigation revealed that existing DOE facilities may be able to accomplish the proposed tasks at a fraction of the expected $100 million cost of a new, stand-alone facility.

b. Benefits. In a December 1993 hearing before the subcommittee, the Department of Energy [DOE] committed to restructure the financing and management of its DOE isotope program. DOE concedes that the program's revolving fund arrangement now in place is not functional and will prepare legislative recommendations to restructure the fund. DOE committed to proceed with completion of a project at Los Alamos National Laboratory to ensure a U.S. source of critical medical isotopes, and also committed to ensure a domestic source of stable, nonradioactive isotopes which are produced at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. In addition, DOE committed to expand its ongoing project definition study of the need for accelerator-derived radioisotopes from the NBTF to include an examination of the DOE's own laboratories.

c. Hearings.—A hearing was held on December 6, 1993, entitled "Department of Energy's Isotope Production and Distribution Program."

HUMAN RESOURCES AND INTERGOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS

SUBCOMMITTEE

1. Review of the Federal Government's Fragmented Social Service Programs.

a. Summary. Our inner cities are less pleasant and more dangerous now than at any time prior to 1960. Today 30 percent of children in central cities and 26 percent of children in rural towns live in poverty. In 1991, the Federal Government spent an average of $13 for every American over the age of 65, and $1 for every American under the age of 18.

In 1982, in Minneapolis, 25 percent of the children attending public schools came from female headed households. Today, that percentage is 50 percent. By 1997, the percentage of Minneapolis children coming from female headed households in the public school system is projected to be 75 percent. Moreover, in 1983, 46 percent of all African American children under 18 years of age, resided in families whose incomes were below the poverty level, and three-fourths of whose children were in families headed by females. In addition to increasing poverty, and female headed households, we also saw an unprecedented rise in joblessness, drug use, juve

nile crime, violence, and HIV infection. In response to these pressing social problems, the Federal Government has created a patchwork of narrow categorical programs aimed at these and other complex and interrelated problems. These programs have produced overlapping services, isolated efforts, and high administrative costs. The Federal Government allocates money through an array of more than 600 different grant programs. Congress funds some 150 education and training grant programs, 100 social service grant programs, and more than 80 health care grant programs. These overlapping grant programs often produce a mismatch between the services poor families can get, and what they actually need.

The Federal Government needs to restructure existing mechanisms and formulate smarter strategies to maximize the return on current investments. We need to coordinate and consolidate existing programs in order to maximize their effectiveness. The Federal Government should explore ways of making funding more flexible in order to allow recipients more creativity in solving social problems.

b. Benefits.-Administrative savings at all levels; greater flexibility to design solutions; more effective concentration of limited resources; and programs that work for their customers.

c. Hearings.-A hearing entitled "America's Urban Crisis" was held on May 20, 1993.

2. Emergency Wards and the Drug Crisis.

a. Summary.-On April 23, 1993, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration of the Department of Health and Human Services, issued its annual report detailing hospital emergency room visits caused by the use of illegal drugs. The report found, that while overall casual use of illegal drugs had decreased, the Nation's emergency rooms are experiencing an unprecedented increase of visits and admissions due to heroin and cocaine use. Major northeastern cities which have traditionally served as ports of entry for illicit narcotics traffic, including New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore, experienced some of the heaviest increases in emergency room visits associated with drug use.

b. Benefits.-The hearing demonstrated the inappropriateness and economic inefficiency of utilizing emergency room resources for treatment of nonemergency substance abuse problems. The hearing also raised concerns about the necessity of alterations in the pattern of emergency room usage prior to introduction of a health care reform system.

c. Hearings. The subcommittee held a hearing on May 26, 1993, entitled, "Increased Drug Abuse: The Impact on the Nation's Emergency Rooms."

3. Monitoring the Department of Education's Implementation of the Federal Direct Student Loan Program.

a. Summary. The Federal Direct Student Loan Program ["FDSLP"] seeks to reform the guaranteed student loan program through a direct lending and a flexible repayment option. FDSLP will replace the 7,800 lenders, 46 guarantee agencies, and numerous services and secondary markets that participate in the current student loan system, with a single lender-the Department of Edu

cation-which will provide Federal financial assistance directly to educational institutions. The Department estimates that when FDSLP is fully implemented, the program will reduce the Federal Government's expenditures by $2-$4 billion.

Given the Department's longstanding management problems, highlighted by the GAO's placement of the current guaranteed student loan program in its high-risk series, the subcommittee was concerned about how the Department intended to implement and manage FDSLP. According to the GAO, there has been a shortage of qualified personnel at the Department of Education with the requisite financial or accounting backgrounds to administer the $13 billion portfolio in new loans each year. Indeed, GAO concluded that last year, the Department's mismanagement of the guaranteed student loan program contributed to its $2.7 billion in loan defaults.

The subcommittee conducted a review of the Department's ability to implement FDSLP. The major problem identified by the subcommittee was the absence of a detailed master plan that would coordinate the availability of resources, training, technical assistance, financial management, procurement, contracting, and other support systems needed to meet the July 1, 1994, implementation deadline, and effectively manage and transition both the guaranteed student loan program and FDSLP.

The subcommittee has requested the Department to submit its management plan by December 20, 1994. The subcommittee continues to monitor the Department's activities with respect to FDSLP. b. Benefits. The subcommittee's continuous oversight has compelled the Department to improve its organization and coordination of the implementation of FDSLP. If successfully implemented the FDSIP will save $2-$4 billion.

c. Hearings.—A hearing on FDSLP was conducted on June 10, 1993.

4. FDA's Regulation of Dietary Supplements.

a. Summary.-Millions of Americans regularly consume vitamins, minerals, herbs, and other dietary supplements. Growing scientific evidence suggests that certain supplements, such as antioxidants (e.g., vitamin E), can help prevent cancer and other diseases. Although the Food and Drug Administration [FDA] believes that most supplements are safe when consumed in moderate potencies, several products have caused death and illness. In 1989, at least 1,500 cases of eosinophilia myalgia syndrome [EMS], including 38 deaths, were linked to a contaminated batch of L-tryptophan, an amino acid. In 1991, under the leadership of the late Representative Ted Weiss (D-NY), the subcommittee held a hearing on the EMS outbreak and FDA's lax regulation of L-tryptophan.

In June 1993, as required by the Dietary Supplement Act of 1992 (Public Law 102-571), FDA published proposed regulations governing nutrition labeling and nutrient content and health claims for dietary supplements. FDA also published an advance notice of proposed rulemaking seeking comments on how it should regulate dietary supplements.

At the hearing, many witnesses testified that FDA's proposed regulations and advance notice of proposed rulemaking do not