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U.S. Congress is Back, May Consider Internet Gambling Ban Again

WASHINGTON -- Congress in its final five weeks could make another run at banning Internet gambling and approve a plan for a second Las Vegas airport.

Congress returned today after taking August off for political conventions and campaigning. Members face a long list of unresolved issues but a short calendar: Target adjournment for the year is Oct. 6.

After that, Democrats and Republicans in numerous close races all over the nation want to hit the campaign trail clutching a list of accomplishments from this year's session.

"What you are going to see in September is the setting of the political stage for the elections this fall," Senator Richard Bryan, Democrat-Nevada, said. "There's a lot of jockeying. This is the first time since 1952 that both houses of Congress and the presidency are really in play. The margins are very thin."

Among the Nevada-related issues that could see some action:

Internet gambling: Lobbyists for the American Gaming Association say the House is likely to again vote on a ban of cyber-casinos, possibly next week. The House already voted 245-159 on July 17 to outlaw Internet gambling, but the bill failed without a two-thirds majority. The bill's supporters, including Nevada's two House members, want to vote again under rules that require a simple majority vote.

"I'm very enthusiastic about that -- I think we'll get that done," Representative Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., said.

Second Southern Nevada airport. A proposal to transfer federal land to the county for an airport about 30 miles south of Las Vegas in the Ivanpah Valley has passed the House and its chances are still good in the Senate, said Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., the assistant Democratic leader.

"I think we have a good shot at it this year," Reid said.

Reid and other Democratic leaders today huddled with President Clinton at the White House to discuss budget priorities.

Fire-restoration money. Congress could approve emergency federal money for Western states scorched by wildfires this year, including Nevada.

"We sure need it," Reid said. "Montana is basically burning down and South Dakota is having the worst fires it's ever had. We have problems all over the West."

It's unclear how much money Nevada might get. The state still has not received about $17 million it needed for restoration after fires last year. More than 500,000 acres have burned this year, and Nevada now needs $20 million to $25 million, Rep. Jim Gibbons, Republican-Nev., said.

"That number could rise," Gibbons said.

Among the Nevada-related legislation that is not likely to surface again this year are a Yucca Mountain bill that sets a timeline for nuclear waste shipments to Nevada and a bill that bans gambling on college sports.

The Yucca bill failed in the Senate by a narrow margin to get enough votes to ensure an override of a presidential veto. The legislation's strongest advocate, Sen. Frank Murkowski, R-Alaska, has said the bill was dead until a new president occupies the White House.

The betting ban affects only Nevada, because the state is the only one that allows wagers on college sports. The bill seems popular among many senators, and insiders say it likely will pass -- next year.

"I'd say it looks as if it would be difficult to squeeze it into the calendar as the Senate gets set to go home and campaign," American Gaming Association lobbyist Wally Chalmers said.

The Senate also likely will not vote on Nevada Judge Linda Riegle, a federal bench nominee, Reid said. The Senate's record of confirming judges has generated controversy, including allegations of racism and political blockades of some judges.

Still, three of four Nevada nominees were confirmed this year: Johnnie Rawlinson is now a judge on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, and Kent Dawson and Roger Hunt are now U.S. District Court judges for Nevada.

Reid said Riegle, a federal bankruptcy judge in Las Vegas, will be confirmed next year as a U.S. district judge.

Congress also is set to tackle a number of national issues before members flee Washington until next year:

Appropriations bills. So far the House and Senate have passed eight of 13 annual spending bills that keep the government running, although President Clinton has signed only two into law. The bills allocate money to such departments as defense, agriculture, interior and housing. Congress and Clinton will be gunning to finalize the bills by Oct. 1, when the 2001 fiscal year begins.

Important money for Nevada is wrapped in a number of the bills, including multimillion-dollar budgets for federal operations in Nevada such as Nellis Air Force Base and the Bureau of Land Management; $205 million in federal highway money; and up to $413 million for the federal study and development of Yucca Mountain, the proposed burial site 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas for the nation's nuclear waste.

Patients bill of rights. The House passed a strongly worded bill that makes it easier for patients in health maintenance organizations to see their own doctors and gives them rights to sue the HMOs. But the Senate version doesn't go nearly that far, and a conference committee of both House and Senate members has not yet ironed out the differences.

"Of equal importance to what is being done in these final weeks is what is not being done," Berkley said, predicting, "Unfortunately we'll have no patients bill of rights."

Insiders agree it is doubtful the two houses and party leaders will strike a deal. Others say political pressure could break the impasse.

"If there is a breakthrough in public perception that the Republicans are holding that up -- which they are -- that may force them to let that go," Bryan said.

Prescription drugs. Nationwide, candidates have seized on this issue as skyrocketing medication costs pummel seniors. The greatest sticking point between Democrats and Republicans seems to be just how many seniors should be eligible for Medicare coverage of their prescription medications.

"The Republicans are really beginning to panic. Their arrogance is disappearing," said Reid, who added Democratic political momentum would play in the party's favor in the final days of Congress. "I think we'll see a softening of Republican positions on the patients bill of rights and prescription drugs."

But despite the political rhetoric, it's unclear how much progress Congress could make on the complicated topic in just a few weeks.

"The issue is one that, if we put our minds to it, we can get it accomplished," Gibbons, Nevada's lone Republican in Congress, said. "Hopefully we can put aside some of the partisanship that seems to prevail this time of year."

Trade with China. The Senate is scheduled as early as Thursday to begin debate on a measure that would permanently open China to U.S. products. Most senators support the bill, passed by the House in May. Clinton and business groups also support the bill; labor unions have opposed it. Bryan supports the bill; Reid said he is undecided.

Raising minimum wage. House Speaker Dennis Hastert last week said Republicans were willing to compromise with Democrats who want to increase the $5.15 minimum wage by $1 an hour through two 50-cent hikes over the next two years. Hastert said he will go along with the proposal if Democrats agree to $76 billion in tax cuts for small businesses that would suffer under the wage hike.

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