Beyond the first 100 days. (104th Congress)

Most would agree that the 104th Congress got off to a "good news" start as the new Republican majority in the House of Representatives methodically checked off items from its "Contract with America." Even the Senate, despite its more deliberative (i.e., "slower") procedures, obliged early on many of the contract provisions.

Early on, Congress obligated itself to live by the laws it imposes on the private sector and put an end to most unfunded mandates on state and local governments. Even before that, in the House a number of rules changes were adopted: auditing the books, cutting the number of standing committees and shrinking committee staffs by one-third.

Then came the heavy lifting on issues long buried by previous Congresses - regulatory reform (including private property right protections), welfare reform, litigation reform, line-item veto, and sweeping tax policy changes. IPAA was an active participant in a large business coalition helping get the "contract" legislation through the House.

Although an impressive start has been made, much remains to be done. Several key contract provisions, passed by the House, are pending in the Senate. The contract's tax cut measures have been wrapped up in the larger balanced budget debate, and are the subject of wide disagreement between House and Senate leaders.

While much of the early focus was on the "Contract with America," a great deal more was going on in Congress, including many issues that are part of the Independent Producer Agenda.

National Security

As Congress was leaving for a four-day recess in February, the Clinton administration released its report on the IPAA petition that launched an investigation into the impact of crude oil imports on national security.