Area Votes in Congress

WASHINGTON - Here is how Philadelphia-area members of Congress were recorded on major roll-call votes last week:

House

Suits against OPEC.

The House passed, 324-84, a bill (HR 6074) authorizing the U.S. attorney general to sue the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries under U.S. antitrust laws for monopolistic practices. The 13 OPEC members are Algeria, Angola, Ecuador, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Venezuela. The bill is now before the Senate.

A yes vote was to pass the bill.

Voting yes: Robert A. Brady (D., Pa.), Michael N. Castle (R., Del.), Charles W. Dent (R., Pa.), Chaka Fattah (D., Pa.), Jim Gerlach (R., Pa.), Tim Holden (D., Pa.), Frank A. LoBiondo (R., N.J.), Patrick Murphy (D., Pa.), H. James Saxton (R., N.J.), Allyson Y. Schwartz (D., Pa.), Joe Sestak (D., Pa.) and Christopher H. Smith (R., N.J.).

Voting no: Joseph R. Pitts (R., Pa.).

Not voting: Robert E. Andrews (D., N.J.).

Energy, business, personal tax breaks.

Voting 263-160, the House passed a bill (HR 6049) providing $55.5 billion in tax breaks for purposes such as spurring the production of non-fossil fuels, promoting energy conservation, stimulating business activity, and helping homeowners and the working poor.

A yes vote was to pass the bill.

Voting yes: Andrews, Brady, Castle, Dent, Fattah, Gerlach, Holden, LoBiondo, Murphy, Schwartz, Sestak and Smith.

Voting no: Pitts and Saxton.

Farm bill veto.

Voting 316-108, the House overrode President Bush's veto of a five-year, $289 billion farm bill (HR 2419) that extends the existing system of payments and subsidies for growers of major crops such as cotton, corn, rice, wheat and soybeans; expands nutrition programs such as food stamps and school lunches; promotes land conservation and rural development; provides funding for fruit and vegetable growers, and spurs development of renewable fuels such as cellulose-based ethanol. This vote overrode his veto of 14 of the bill's 15 sections.

A yes vote was to override the presidential veto.

Voting yes: Andrews, Brady, Fattah, Gerlach, Holden, Murphy, Schwartz and Sestak.

Voting no: Castle, Dent, LoBiondo, Pitts, Saxton and Smith.

Senate

Farm bill veto.

By a tally of 82-13, the Senate joined the House (HR 2419, above) in voting to override President Bush's veto of a $289 billion farm bill that renews subsidies for growers of major crops while also funding conservation and nutrition programs and taxpayer support for fruit and vegetable growers, among other programs.

A yes vote was to enact HR 2419.

Voting yes: Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D., Del.), Thomas Carper (D., Del.), Bob Casey (D., Pa.), Frank Lautenberg (D., N.J.), Robert Menendez (D., N.J.) and Arlen Specter (R., Pa.).

This week.

Congress is in Memorial Day recess until the week of June 2, when both chambers will take up the fiscal 2009 budget resolution and possibly bills to head off mortgage foreclosures and reform agencies related to the housing market.