Mr. Chairman: Thank you for the opportunity to make a short statement. Let me first congratulate you on the legislative pace you have set for the committee. We are at the mid-point of the 1st Session of the 108th Congress, and already, as Chairman, you have held six hearings, including three oversight hearings, and two hearings on legislative proposals before the Committee, and successfully concluded two mark-up sessions.

As my colleague knows, the chairman of a committee does not always control the agenda or the pace of the committee's business. Often, we can only respond to those issues that arise during our tenure. During the brief time that I was chairman, the committee dealt with the after-shocks of 9-11, the displacement and stress of the anthrax incident, and the start of construction on the Capitol Visitor Center.

While I was pleased to have seen the enactment of the Help America Vote Act during my tenure, those four issues together did not leave a lot of time for our regular oversight or many other legislative initiatives.

I commend you for getting the Committee back on track in its oversight responsibilities and for conducting some of the most thought-provoking hearings on rules changes that the Committee has conducted in recent years.

Today's topic is another example of a rules change designed to expedite and improve the workings of the Senate. While I admire my colleagues' efforts in this regard, I do have some concerns about how this proposal would actually work and whether it might, unintentionally, result in a shift in power from the Senate to executive branch agencies.

As a Senator who does not sit on the Appropriations Committee, I share the concerns about the proliferation of unauthorized appropriations which can circumvent the authority and expertise of the authorizing committees.

However, as a Senator from a small state, I am grateful that the Appropriations Committee has repeatedly recognized the value and importance of many Connecticut projects and institutions by providing earmarked funding for them. There is no doubt that if left to the head of an agency, or a bureaucrat deep in its bowels, some of these small projects would be overlooked.

It is simply difficult for small institutions and projects from smaller states to get the attention of government agencies when competing against large state interests or multinational conglomerations.

The Appropriations Committee provides the appropriate forum for allowing all states, and all Senators, to make their case and compete equally for funding. Efforts to thwart the use of earmarks, or to make it more difficult for appropriators to direct spending as the Senate sees fit, may unintentionally work to shift the power over spending decisions from the Senate to the executive branch.

I do not believe that is my colleague's intent, but it is a possible result of this proposed rules change. I look forward to the testimony of our colleague, and the congressional budget office, and look forward to working with the Chairman and Senator McCain and others on this important issue.