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Area Votes in Congress

WASHINGTON - Here is how Philadelphia-area members of Congress were recorded on major roll-call votes last week: House Housing rescue. Voting 272-152, the House sent the Senate a bill (HR 3221) that authorizes a standby taxpayer bailout of the private firms Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, allows up to 400,000 mortgages to be reworked into government-backed loans, allows $7,50

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

House

Housing rescue.

Voting 272-152, the House sent the Senate a bill (HR 3221) that authorizes a standby taxpayer bailout of the private firms Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, allows up to 400,000 mortgages to be reworked into government-backed loans, allows $7,500 tax credits to certain first-time home buyers, and grants $4 billion to help communities and nonprofits acquire and market vacant properties.

A yes vote was to pass the bill.

Voting yes: Robert E. Andrews (D., N.J.), Robert A. Brady (D., Pa.), Michael N. Castle (R., Del.), Chaka Fattah (D., Pa.), Tim Holden (D., Pa.), Patrick Murphy (D., Pa.), Allyson Y. Schwartz (D., Pa.), Joe Sestak (D., Pa.), and Christopher H. Smith (R., N.J.).

Voting no: Charles W. Dent (R., Pa.), Jim Gerlach (R., Pa.), Frank A. LoBiondo (R., N.J.), Joseph R. Pitts (R., Pa.), and H. James Saxton (R., N.J.).

Global AIDS funding.

Voting 303-115, the House passed a bill (HR 5501) authorizing $50 billion over five years for U.S. support of international programs to combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis in sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean, Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America.

A yes vote was to pass the bill.

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

Voting no: LoBiondo and Pitts.

Not voting: Saxton.

Bridge-safety inspections.

Voting 367-55, the House passed a bill (HR 3999) to upgrade bridge inspections at a cost of $2 billion between 2008-2012. The bill awaits Senate action.

A yes vote was to pass the bill.

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

Senate

Housing rescue.

Voting 72-13, the Senate approved a House-passed bill (HR 3221) that would potentially bail out Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and provide mortgage relief for homeowners. President Bush has said he will sign the measure.

A yes vote was to pass the bill.

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

Not voting: Thomas Carper (D., Del.).

Oil-market speculation.

Voting 50-43, the Senate failed to reach 60 votes needed to end GOP blockage of a bill (S 3268) directing the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to curb "excessive speculation" in the oil-futures market, in part by setting higher margin requirements, requiring more public disclosure and working more closely with other countries' regulators.

A yes vote was to advance the bill.

Voting yes: Biden, Carper, Casey, Lautenberg and Menendez.

Voting no: Specter.

This week.

The House will take up energy measures and a bill concerning pay discrimination, while the Senate will debate the Low-Income Energy Assistance Program.