Senate Votes to Go Forward on Asbestos Bill

Washington, DC, February 8, 2006--The Senate on Tuesday voted overwhelmingly to consider a bill to halt asbestos lawsuits and create a $140 billion fund for people suffering from asbestos-related diseases, but many hurdles to the bill's approval remained. For years, asbestos fibers were widely used for their insulating and fire-retardant capabilities, but they are linked to lung-scarring diseases, including cancer. Hundreds of thousands of asbestos injury claims have been filed, helping to push into bankruptcy some 70 U.S. companies, including W.R. Grace & Co., Armstrong World Industries and USG Corp. Bill supporters won an important victory on Tuesday with the 98-1 defeat of a procedural attempt to kill it. The lopsided vote came after Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat, dropped his objections and encouraged others to join him in bringing the measure to the floor. The bill's co-sponsor, Pennsylvania Republican Sen. Arlen Specter, said he knew other threats could still prove fatal to the controversial legislation. "There are lot of people against this bill who will use every opportunity they can find to defeat it, so I am prepared for anything," he told reporters. Debate on the bill was scheduled to start on Wednesday. Reid, whose earlier objection had forced Tuesday's procedural vote, made clear his decision to back debate was in no way an endorsement of the bill. Aides said Reid would use all available parliamentary tools to fight it. "It will not provide justice to victims of asbestos exposure," Reid declared before the vote. "It deprives victims of their legal rights and gives them a trust fund that will not work and will not provide adequate compensation." The bill, co-sponsored by Vermont Democrat Patrick Leahy, would create a $140 billion trust fund for people suffering from asbestos-related diseases. The fund would be financed by asbestos defendant companies and their insurers. In exchange, the companies would no longer have to face asbestos lawsuits in court. Senate Budget Committee Chairman Judd Gregg has said he may object to the bill because of its potential impact on U.S. taxpayers if the trust fund runs out of money. Specter insisted there was no threat to the taxpayer. "This bill is airtight. The federal government has no financial obligation," he declared. The measure passed the Senate Judiciary Committee in May, but has divided lawmakers from both parties, split industry groups and struggled to gain momentum. Earlier on Tuesday military veterans and victims of asbestos-related diseases fanned out in the U.S. Capitol to plead for and against the bill. Representatives of veterans' groups told reporters that they cannot sue their former employer -- the federal government -- over asbestos exposure that happened in military facilities. This, they said, was why they in particular needed a compensation fund. But victims of asbestos-related diseases said they had collected 150,000 signatures, including those of many veterans, against the bill. They said it would allow companies to write down asbestos liabilities while cheating victims. In the House of Representatives, a different approach is under consideration. The House bill would allow asbestos suits to go forward only if claimants meet certain medical criteria.