WASHINGTON – Here’s how Maine’s members of Congress were recorded on major roll call votes in the week ending Sept. 10.

HOUSE Overtime rules

The House on Sept. 9 voted, 223 for and 193 against, to block new overtime rules for higher income workers that the administration put into effect last month. This occurred as the House passed a fiscal 2005 funding bill (HR 5006) for the Department of Labor and other agencies. The vote left intact the new rules as they apply to workers earning up to $23,600 a year.

Democrats say the rules will take overtime eligibility away from up to six million workers now eligible to receive it. But the administration says only about 100,000 workers with professional duties, most of whom earn above $100,000, would lose eligibility.

The Fair Labor Standards Act guarantees overtime pay of “time and a half” above 40 hours per week for qualified workers.

A yes vote backed the amendment.

Rep. Tom Allen, D-1, voted yes. Rep. Michael Michaud, D-2, voted yes.

Pension disclosures

Voting 268 for and 148 against, the House on Sept. 8 required notification of workers when their company’s defined-benefit pension plan becomes seriously underfunded. Under present law, companies must report troubled plans only to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., the federal agency that uses taxpayer funds to bail out bankrupt plans.

Under this amendment, the PBGC would be required to share information about a failing plan with the employees and retirees whose assets are at risk. The vote occurred during debate on HR 5006 (above).

A yes vote backed disclosure to workers.

Allen and Michaud voted yes.

Cost of Medicare

Voting 195 for and 216 against, the House on Sept. 9 defeated a Democratic bid to penalize the administration by $84,500 for misleading Congress on the projected cost of adding a prescription drug benefit to Medicare. Congress enacted the Medicare benefit in 2003 after the administration said it would cost $400 billion over 10 years. It later came to light that the administration had internally projected a cost of at least $530 billion but withheld that figure from Capitol Hill, in apparent violation of a 1912 law requiring the executive branch to provide Congress with the information it needs for legislative decisions.

The $84,500 targeted by this amendment to HR 5006 (above) represented part of the salary of the official responsible for withholding the true projection.

A yes vote backed the amendment.

Allen and Michaud voted yes.

SENATE

Port security funds

Voting 45 for and 49 against, the Senate on Sept. 9 refused to increase spending for protecting U.S. ports against terrorists by $150 million, or 50 percent, in fiscal 2005. This left $300 million for port security in the Department of Homeland Security’s 2005 budget of about $33 billion. The bill (HR 4567) was headed for passage and a House-Senate conference committee.

Sen. Olympia Snowe, R, voted no. Sen. Susan Collins, R, voted no.

First responders

Senators on Sept. 9 blocked, 46 for and 45 against, a plan to shift $70 million in HR 4567 (above) from payments to government consultants to state and local first responders. The money was to have been used for upgrading communications systems so that police and firefighters could talk directly to one another during crises, which many first responders could not do at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.

Under this amendment, the $70 million was to have been transferred from an account to pay outside consultants for developing a human resources system for the Department of Homeland Security.

A yes vote was to block the transfer of $70 million to first responders.

Snowe and Collins voted yes.

Civil Service jobs

The Senate on Sept. 8 voted, 49 for and 47 against, to block an administration plan to privatize 1,200 civil service positions in the Department of Homeland Security. The individuals specialize in detecting fraud by aliens applying for immigration benefits. Amendment backers said the job of adjudicating immigration benefits and conducting criminal background checks is inherently governmental, while foes said private workers could discharge it more efficiently at lower cost. The vote occurred during debate on HR 4567 (above).

A yes vote was to block privatization.

Snowe and Collins voted yes.