Senate sends GOP bills to president's desk

By Ramsey Cox - 09/24/12 02:00 PM ET

Before leaving for the November elections, the Senate accepted House changes to two bills, ensuring that the legislation is on its way to the president’s desk.

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) introduced the Government Charge Card Abuse Prevention Act, S. 300, and Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) introduced the Hazardous Waste Electronic Manifest Establishment Act, S. 710.

Grassley’s bill creates stricter guidelines and accountability for government agencies’ use of charge cards by federal employees. He drafted the bill after the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office reported fraudulent and questionable purchases by federal workers, including jewelry, gambling, cruises and even the tab at strip clubs and legalized brothels.

“This bill is about accountability,” Grassley said when the Senate approved his measure. “The public trust has been violated by abusive use of government charge cards. The federal bureaucracy needs to improve the way it manages the use of these cards.”

At issue are charge cards used by authorized federal employees for small-scale items needed for official business, such as office supplies or travel cards, which are issued to federal employees to pay for official travel expenses. The point of the bill is to stop the misuse of funds, which costs taxpayers money.

Sens. Tom Carper (D-Del.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) and Jon Tester (D-Mont.) co-sponsored S. 300.

Thune’s bill would modernize the way the federal government and states track the shipment of hazardous waste by going paperless.

The Environmental Protection Agency requires businesses properly document the shipment of waste materials to ensure they are disposed of properly under existing environmental law. The bill would allow them to file electronically rather than using carbon copy paper manifests.

"With an over $14 trillion national debt and a projected $1.43 trillion deficit for this year, Congress ought to be looking for ways to streamline and modernize federal government programs to save taxpayer dollars," Thune said. "This common-sense legislation to modernize the way hazardous waste is tracked will increase the efficiency and effectiveness of these programs by improving public safety and reducing burdensome paperwork requirements on the private sector."

Sens. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), James Inhofe (R-Okla.), Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) and Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) co-sponsored S. 710.