To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to prepare a feasibility study with respect to the Mokelumne River, and for other purposes.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, March 30, 2006, at 10 a.m. to mark up an original bill entitled ``Foreign Investment and National Security Act of 2006.''

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on March 30, 2006, at 2:30 p.m. to conduct a hearing on ``McKinney-Vento Act Reauthorization and Consolidation of HUD's Homeless Programs.''

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation be authorized to meet on Thursday, March 30, 2006, at 10 a.m., on pending Committee business.

Mr. President. I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation be authorized to meet on Thursday, March 30, 2006, at 2:30 p.m., on Competition and Convergence.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Foreign Relations be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, March 30, 2006, at 9:30 a.m. to hold a hearing on The Hidden Cost of Oil.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on the Judiciary be authorized to meet to conduct a markup on Thursday, March 30, 2006, at 9:30 a.m. in the Dirksen Senate Office Building Room 226.

Agenda

I. Nominations: Norman Randy Smith to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Ninth Circuit; Michael A. Chagares to be United States Circuit Judge for the Third Circuit; Patrick J. Schiltz to be U.S. District Court Judge for the District of Minnesota; Gray Hampton Miller to be United States District Judge

for the Southern District of Texas; Steven G. Bradbury to be an Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel; Sharee M. Freeman to be Director, Community Relations Service, U.S. Department of Justice; Jeffrey L. Sedgwick to be Director of the Bureau of Justice Statistics, U.S. Department of Justice.

II. Bills: S. 1768, A bill to permit the televising of Supreme Court proceedings--Specter, Leahy, Cornyn, Grassley, Schumer, Feingold, Durbin; S. 829, Sunshine in the Courtroom Act of 2005--Grassley, Schumer, Cornyn, Leahy, Feingold, Durbin, Graham, DeWine, Specter; S. 489, Federal Consent Decree Fairness Act--Alexander, Kyl, Cornyn, Graham, Hatch; S. 2039, Prosecutors and Defenders Incentive Act of 2005--Durbin, Specter, DeWine, Leahy, Kennedy, Feinstein, Feingold, Schumer; S. 2292, A bill to provide relief for the Federal judiciary from excessive rent charges--Specter, Leahy, Cornyn, Feinstein, Biden; S. 2453, National Security Surveillance Act of 2006--Specter; S. 2455, Terrorist Surveillance Act of 2006--DeWine, Graham.

III. Matters: S.J. Res. 1, Marriage Protection Amendment--Allard, Sessions, Kyl, Hatch, Cornyn, Coburn, Brownback; S. Res. 398, A resolution relating to the censure of George W. Bush; Feingold.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Veterans' Affairs be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, March 30, 2006, to hear the legislative presentations of the National Association of State Directors of Veterans Affairs, the AMVETS, the American Ex-Prisoners of War and the Vietnam Veterans of America. The hearing will take place in room 106 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building at 10 a.m.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations be authorized to meet on Thursday, March 30, 2006, at 10 a.m., for a hearing entitled ``Neutralizing The Nuclear and Radiological Threat: Securing the Global Supply Chain (Part Two).''

The PRESIDING, OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

select committee on intelligence

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Select Committee on Intelligence be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on March 30, 2006 at 2:30 p.m. to hold a closed hearing.

Mr. President. I ask unanimous consent that the Subcommittee on Disaster Prevention and Prediction be authorized to meet on Thursday, March 30, 2006, at 11 a.m., on National Polar-Orbiting Operational Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) Oversight.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce and the District of Columbia be authorized to meet on Thursday, March 30,2006 at 2:30 p.m, for a hearing entitled, ``Fulfilling the Promise? A Review of Veterans' Preference in the Federal Government?''

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Subcommittee on Personnel be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on March 30, 2006, at 2 p.m., in open session to receive testimony on reserve component personnel policies in review of the Defense authorization request for fiscal year 2007.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Subcommittee on Water and Power be authorized to meet during the session of the Senate on Thursday, March 30 at 2:30 p.m.

The purpose of the hearing is to receive testimony on S. 1577, to facilitate the transfer of Spearfish Hydroelectric Plant Number 1 to the city of Spearfish, SD; S. 1962 and H.R. 4000, bills to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to revise certain repayment contracts with the Bostwick Irrigation District in Nebraska, the Kansas Bostwick Irrigation District No. 2, the Frenchman-Cambridge Irrigation District, and the Webster Irrigation District No. 4, all a part of the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program; S. 2028, to provide for the reinstatement of a license for a certain Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Project; S. 2035, to extend the time required for construction of a hydroelectric project in the State of Idaho; S. 2054, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study of water resources in the State of Vermont; S. 2205, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain parcels of land acquired for the Blunt Reservoir and Pierre Canal features of the initial stage of the Oahe Unit, James Division, SD, to the Commission of Schools and Public Lands and the Department of Game, Fish, and Parks of the State of South Dakota for the purpose of mitigating lost wildlife habitat, on the condition that the current preferential leaseholders shall have an option to purchase the parcels from the Commission; and H.R. 3812, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to prepare a feasibility study with respect to the Mokelumne River, and for other purposes.

Mr. President, I would like to announce for the information of the Senate and the public that a hearing has been scheduled before the Subcommittee on Water and Power of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

The hearing will be held on Thursday, March 30, 2006 at 2:30 p.m. in Room SD-366 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building.

The purpose of the hearing is to receive testimony on S. 1577, to facilitate the transfer of Spearfish Hydroelectric Plant Number 1 to the city of Spearfish, SD, and for other purposes; S. 1962 and H.R. 4000, bills to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to revise certain repayment contracts with the Bostwick Irrigation District in Nebraska, the Kansas Bostwick Irrigation District No. 2, the Frenchman- Cambridge Irrigation District, and the Webster Irrigation District No. 4, all a part of the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program, and for other purposes; S. 2028, to provide for the reinstatement of a license for a certain Federal Energy Regulatory Commission project; S. 2035, to extend the time required for construction of a hydroelectric project in the State of Idaho, and for other purposes; S. 2054, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study of water resources in the State of Vermont; S. 2205, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to convey certain parcels of land acquired for the Blunt Reservoir and Pierre Canal features of the initial stage of the Oahe Unit, James Division, SD, to the Commission of Schools and Public Lands and the Department of Game, Fish, and Parks of the State of South Dakota for the purpose of mitigating lost wildlife habitat, on the condition that the current preferential leaseholders shall have an option to purchase the parcels from the Commission, and for other purposes; and H.R. 3812, to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to prepare a feasibility study with respect to the Mokelumne River, and for other purposes.

Because of the limited time available for the hearing, witnesses may testify by invitation only. However, those wishing to submit written testimony for the hearing record should send two copies of their testimony to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, United States Senate, Washington, DC 20510-6150.

For further information, please contact Nate Gentry or Steve Waskiewicz.

subcommittee on public lands and forests

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3812) to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to prepare a feasibility study with respect to the Mokelumne River, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3812, introduced by the distinguished chairman of the Resources Committee, the gentleman from California (Mr. Pombo), authorizes a Federal feasibility study on creating more water storage.

Rapid population growth and salt intrusion into the underlying aquifer have prompted officials in San Joaquin County, California, to seek a more dependable and reliable water supply for the region. The study in this legislation will examine ways to capture flood flows from an area river in order to develop 65,000 acre feet of potential water supplies.

This water storage study will thoroughly examine all the issues surrounding the development of this new water resource, and expressly protects State water law and current permits and agreements. Above all, this legislation serves as the first step towards the development of much-needed water supplies.

I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in favor of H.R. 3812, a bill authored because in San Joaquin County, California, water supplies are being depleted. The region suffers from highly significant groundwater overdraft and saline intrusion, affecting agricultural, residential and commercial water users. This bill provides a much needed solution to a growing problem. H.R. 3812 authorizes $3.3 million in Federal funding to complete studies that will examine additional surface water supplies, and improve water supply reliability and environmental protection for the Bay-Delta Region. Led by the Bureau of Reclamation, the project's multi-year evaluation would involve the participation and cooperation of a wide range of regional stakeholders and would provide information important to statewide water resource and environmental protection efforts. Areas aided by this bill include Stockton, Lodi, Lockeford, Clements, Waterloo, Farmington, Linden, Wallace, Camp Seco and Valley Springs. A clean, safe water supply is essential to sustain our growing communities. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this important legislation.

Mr. President, I would like to announce for the information of the Senate and the public that a hearing has been scheduled before the Subcommittee on Public Lands and Forests of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

The hearing will be held on Wednesday, April 5, at 2:30 p.m. in room SD-366 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building.

The purpose of the hearing is to review the 2005 wildfire season and the Federal land management agencies' preparations for the 2006 wildfire season.

Because of the limited time available for the hearings, witnesses may testify by invitation only. However, those wishing to submit written testimony for the hearing record should send two copies of their testimony to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, United States Senate, Washington, DC 20510-6150.

For further information, please contact Frank Gladics or Sara Zecher.