1033 



been overridden easily. This bill was passed in the Senate by a vote 

 of 75 to 15 and in the Honse by a vote 370 to 13. I am confident that 

 the automatic impact grant provisions would have survived a Presi- 

 dential veto. In any event, the conferees felt the necessity of expiing:ing 

 from this bill those provisions which helped the State of Louisiana. 



How does the conference report do that ? It does it by adding two 

 requirements : that the "new or improved public facilities and public 

 services'' to be funded by automatic grants are required as a direct 

 result of "new or expanded" Outer Continental Shelf activities, which 

 completely ignores anything that has gone on in the past or is presently 

 ongoing. That is No. 1. Second, the conference report requires that there 

 be no loan money available under other sections of the bill. 



Mr. President, the State of Louisiana does not wish to borrow money 

 from the Federal Government under the conditions herein imposed. 

 In the first place Louisiana does not get any better interest rate under 

 this bill. We get the same interest rate thatVe would if w^e borrow^ the 

 money from the Federal Government as we do if we go out on the 

 bond market and borrow the money. The only difference in the two 

 source of loans is that we get the benefit of all these Federal regulations 

 and the benefit of the restrictions on the use of the money if we bor- 

 row from the Federal Government. 



AVliat they are telling us, in a great feeling of magnanimity in this 

 bill, is that we cannot be given the grant money wdiich is set aside for 

 us until we have borrowed money that we can get anyway under the 

 same bill. In my view, Louisiana is not going to borrow the money. 



Why were the loan provisions put in the conference report ? To bene- 

 fit other States which are just getting involved in OCS activity. In- 

 deed, Alaska will do very well under this bill, because in areas where 

 there is no city, where there is not an existing infrastructure, the right 

 to borrow money from the Government in order to create a new town 

 is a very valuable right. 



This move is not true in areas that already have existing cities, exist- 

 ing infrastructures, and existing drilling. 



Mr. President, I realize that once a conference report comes to the 

 floor of the Senate, it cannot be beaten ; that one cannot makes a mo- 

 tion to amend it. There is not much on can do, other than to do as I am, 

 to express my severe disappointment ; to put the Senate on notice that 

 there will be another day; that we will come back and try again at 

 which time I am sure we will be met with the statement, "All that has 

 been agreed to ; all that has been settled," as indeed I thought it was 

 back in 1975. We will try again. I do not know what kind of luck we 

 will have. 



I know better than to try to make a motion now to do anything. The 

 rules do not provide for amendment of a conference report. To try to 

 beat this conference report on the floor of the Senate would be a non- 

 productive venture. But at least I have said what I think should be said. 



I do not think the people of mv State are p-ointr to forget this ad- 

 ministration for what they have done to this bill, if indeed the admin- 

 istration gets the chance to put themselves un for consideration in my 

 State. I say that with some degree of confidence. I say that as someone 

 who is not going to let the administration's deeds be forgotten. I do 

 not think they would be forgotten anvway, because the people of my 

 State are well aware of the administration's activities. 



