Nuclear waste issue high on list for returning Congress

WASHINGTON -- The topic of burying nuclear waste in Nevada is likely to be the subject of early debates in Congress this year.

Nevada's four members of Congress joined the rest of the nation's lawmakers who began heading back to work on Capitol Hill today after a two-month break.

Among the issues they plan to tackle this year: Medicare, managed health care, campaign finance reform, juvenile crime and gun control.

But Nevadans also can expect another round of animated and tense debate in the Senate on the details of a plan to ship 77,000 tons of the nation's nuclear waste to Yucca Mountain, 90 miles northwest of Las Vegas.

The Yucca debate could surface as early as next week, said Tina Kreisher, a spokeswoman for Sen. Frank Murkowski, R-Alaska, the bill's primary sponsor.

"We're operating on the assumption that we will come up early in the session," said Kreisher, also a spokeswoman for the Senate Energy and Natural Resources committee. Murkowski is committee chairman.

Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., said the bill's supporters don't have enough votes to override a presidential veto of the bill, which President Clinton has promised.

Reid, the Senate Minority Whip, and Sen. Richard Bryan, D-Nev., plan to continue vigorous opposition to the Yucca proposal.

"I don't think (Yucca debates) are going to end this year," Reid said. "It will be an ongoing issue. It won't fade away into oblivion."

Bryan was scheduled to return this afternoon from an eight-nation trip in Africa.

"We've been ready and roaring to go whenever they bring (Yucca) up," Bryan spokesman David Lemmon said.

Bryan was traveling in his new capacity as Senate Intelligence Committee chairman. This is Bryan's last year in the Senate. Bryan is one of several Senate Democrats vacating their seats this year.

Lemmon said Bryan will be busy. Among the issues he will pursue: protecting the privacy of people's financial information, boxing reform and protecting the Black Rock Desert north of Reno.

The Senate likely will pick up another Nevada-related issue this week: the National Collegiate Athletic Association is pushing a betting ban on college athletics. The ban would hurt Nevada, where casinos reap millions on legal bets on college games.

Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., and Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., plan to unveil their betting ban legislation Wednesday. Their opposition includes powerful gaming lobbyists, as well as Nevada's four-member delegation.

"They should be going after illegal gambling, not legal gambling," Reid said. "I don't think this will go away quickly either. It's an effort to embarrass the state of Nevada."

The Senate this week likely will take action on a Republican proposal to overhaul bankruptcy laws and may vote on citizenship for Elian Gonzalez, the Cuban boy who may be returned to his father in Cuba. The House has no votes scheduled this week.

Rep. Jim Gibbons said Congress this year should be able to deliver a tax cut and still preserve social security.

"We have to make sure we protect our budget surplus in a way that does not fuel large government spending programs," Gibbons said.

Gibbons, who sits on the House Intelligence Committee, this month took a trip to Australia where he toured an intelligence center operated jointly by America and Australia that gathers military information about Asian Pacific nations.

"We have to have the right level of intelligence so we know how to structure our military," Gibbons said.

Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., intends to focus on health issues -- she supports Clinton's call for Medicare to cover prescription drugs, and the patient's bill of rights, which the House passed last year.

The patient's bill of rights would expand protections for patients covered by health maintenance organizations. Berkley also said she supports a tax cut.

"We have an obligation to return the American taxpayer's money while still paying down the national debt and protecting social security and Medicare," Berkley said from New York City. Berkley was traveling today with other freshmen lawmakers visiting the New York Stock Exchange.

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