Senate Floor Activity - Thursday, June 16, 2016

The President pro tempore called the Senate to order at 10 a .m., the Chaplain offered a prayer, and the President pro tempore led the Senate in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America.

The Journal

Pursuant to the order of yesterday, the Journal of the proceedings of the Senate was deemed approved to date.

Certain Procedures Dispensed With

Pursuant to the order of yesterday, the morning hour being deemed expired, and the times for the recognition of the two leaders being reserved.

Transaction of Morning Business

Pursuant to the order of yesterday, the Senate proceeded to a period for the transaction of morning business.

Legislative Business (Thursday, June 16)

H.R. 2578 (Rep. Culberson): Making appropriations for the Departments of Commerce and Justice, Science, and Related Agencies for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2016, and for other purposes.

-- Considered by Senate.

-- The committee substitute withdrawn by Unanimous Consent.

-- Motion by Senator McConnell to commit to Senate Committee on the Judiciary with instructions to report back forthwith with the following amendment (SA 4750) made in Senate.

-- Cloture motion on the McConnell motion to commit the bill to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary with instructions to report back forthwith with the following amendment (SA 4750) presented in Senate.

S.Amdt. 4685 (Sen. Shelby): In the nature of a substitute.

-- Amendment pending in Senate.

-- SA 4685 fell when the committee reported substitute amendment was withdrawn.

-- Amendment SA 4685 proposed by Senator Shelby.

S.Amdt. 4686 (Sen. Shelby): To make a technical correction .

-- Amendment pending in Senate.

-- SA 4686 fell when SA 4685 fell.

S.Amdt. 4720 (Sen. Feinstein): To authorize the Attorney General to deny requests to transfer a firearm to known or suspected terrorists.

-- Amendment SA 4720 proposed by Senator McConnell for Senator Feinstein to Amendment SA 4685.

-- Cloture motion on amendment SA 4720 presented in Senate.

S.Amdt. 4749 (Sen. Cornyn): To Secure our Homeland from radical Islamists by Enhancing Law enforcement Detection ("SHIELD").

-- Amendment SA 4749 proposed by Senator McConnell for Senator Cornyn to Amendment SA 4720.

-- Cloture motion on amendment SA 4749 presented in Senate.

S.Amdt. 4750 (Sen. Murphy): To ensure that all individuals who should be prohibited from buying a firearm are listed in the national instant criminal background check system and require a background check for every firearm sale.

-- Amendment SA 4750 proposed by Senator McConnell for Senator Murphy.

S.Amdt. 4751 (Sen. Grassley): To address gun violence and improve the availability of records to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System.

-- Amendment SA 4751 proposed by Senator McConnell for Senator Grassley to Amendment SA 4750 (the instructions of the motion to commit).

-- Cloture motion on amendment SA 4751 (to the instructions of the motion to commit) presented in Senate.

S.Amdt. 4752 (Sen. McConnell): To change the enactment date.

-- Amendment SA 4752 proposed by Senator McConnell to Amendment SA 4751.

H.R. 3209 (Rep. Paulsen): To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to permit the disclosure of certain tax return information for the purpose of missing or exploited children investigations.

-- Senate Committee on Finance discharged by Unanimous Consent.

-- Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent.

-- Message on Senate action sent to the House.

S. 524 (Sen. Whitehouse): To authorize the Attorney General and Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants to address the national epidemics of prescription opioid abuse and heroin use, and to provide for the establishment of an inter-agency task force to review, modify, and update best practices for pain management and prescribing pain medication, and for other purposes.

-- Measure laid before Senate by unanimous consent.

-- Motion to disagree to the House amendments to the Senate bill, agree to the request for conference, and the Presiding Officer appoint the following conferees: Grassley, Alexander, Hatch, Sessions, Leahy, Murray, Cornyn, and Wyden made in Senate.

-- Cloture motion on the motion to disagree to the House amendments to the Senate bill, agree to the request for conference, and the Presiding Officer appoint the following conferees: Grassley, Alexander, Hatch, Sessions, Leahy, Murray, Cornyn, and Wyden presented in Senate.

-- Cloture on the motion to disagree to the House amendments to the Senate bill, agree to the request for conference, and the Presiding Officer appoint the following conferees: Grassley, Alexander, Hatch, Sessions, Leahy, Murray, Cornyn, and Wyden invoked in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 95 - 1. Record Vote Number: 100

-- Senate disagrees to the House amendments to the Senate bill, agrees to the request for conference, and the Presiding Officer appoints the following conferees: Grassley, Alexander, Hatch, Sessions, Leahy, Murray, Cornyn, and Wyden.

-- Motion by Senator Shaheen to instruct Senate conferees agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 66 - 29. Record Vote Number: 101

-- Motion by Senator Whitehouse to instruct Senate conferees agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 70 - 24. Record Vote Number: 102

-- Message on Senate action sent to the House.

S. 2348 (Sen. Hatch): To implement the use of Rapid DNA instruments to inform decisions about pretrial release or detention and their conditions, to solve and prevent violent crimes and other crimes, to exonerate the innocent, to prevent DNA analysis backlogs, and for other purposes .

-- Passed Senate with amendments by Unanimous Consent.

-- Message on Senate action sent to the House.

S. 2577 (Sen. Cornyn): To protect crime victims' rights, to eliminate the substantial backlog of DNA and other forensic evidence samples to improve and expand the forensic science testing capacity of Federal, State, and local crime laboratories, to increase research and development of new testing technologies, to develop new training programs regarding the collection and use of forensic evidence, to provide post-conviction testing of DNA evidence to exonerate the innocent, to support accreditation efforts of forensic science laboratories and medical examiner offices, to address training and equipment needs, to improve the performance of counsel in State capital cases, and for other purposes.

-- Measure laid before Senate by unanimous consent.

-- The committee amendments agreed to by Unanimous Consent.

-- Passed Senate with amendments by Voice Vote.

-- Message on Senate action sent to the House.

S.Amdt. 4727 (Sen. Grassley): To require the Attorney General to evaluate the performance of the Department of Justice in seeking and recovering restitution for victims under all Federal restitution provisions, to require recipients of DNA backlog capacity and enhancement grants to report on how they actually used their grant funds, and to prevent duplicative grants.

-- Amendment SA 4727 proposed by Senator Cornyn for Senator Grassley.

-- Amendment SA 4727 agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

S. 2808 (Sen. Inhofe): To amend the John F. Kennedy Center Act to authorize appropriations for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

-- Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent.

S. 2815 (Sen. Casey): To establish the United States Semiquincentennial Commission, and for other purposes.

-- Senate Committee on the Judiciary discharged by Unanimous Consent.

-- Passed Senate without amendment by Unanimous Consent.

-- Message on Senate action sent to the House.

S.Res. 495 (Sen. Enzi): A resolution recognizing the Boy Scouts of America on the 100th anniversary of the organization being granted a Federal charter and for the long history of heritage and service of the Boy Scouts of America.