The Greenville News from Greenville, South Carolina • Page 16

I 16A ffhc gntf nuillc News Thursday, May 18, 1989 i Congress glumly nears budget embrace Texas hit with brunt of tornados The Associated Press A tornado ravaged a small town THE ASSOCIATED PRESS A tractor-trailer rig rests on its side after being blown Interstate 35 by a storm near Jarrell, Texas Wednesday on one-shot revenue infusions such as asset sales, and on sleight-of-hand maneuvers such as claiming a $1.8 billion saving by pushing the Postal Service "off-budget." On the spending side, the measure would hold defense spending to $299.2 billion, $2.5 billion more than last year but $4.2 billion less than the amount needed to keep up with inflation. Overall, domestic programs fared better, getting nearly $4 billion more than needed to defray inflation. Education, space, science, law enforcement, health and low-income assistance programs would be given enough money to expand over last year. Growth would be restrained for energy, environment, transportation, agriculture and commerce initiatives. Foreign affairs programs would reach $16.7 billion, enough to keep current with inflation.

The package assumes federal military and civilian workers would receive 3.6 percent pay raises. Annual cost-of-living increases for recipients of Social Security and other income-support programs would be granted in full. To find savings, the plan would pare Medicare growth by $2.3 billion, an amount expected to come from reducing payments to hospitals and doctors. Changes worth, $1.1 billion would have to be made in federal pension and other programs, and a change in the WASHINGTON (AP) Congress moved Wednesday within one step of giving its final blessing to a $1.17 trillion fiscal 1990 budget, a package that moves money from defense to domestic programs while taking only a weak whack at the deficit. The House approved the spending plan on a bipartisan 241-185 vote, and the Senate was expected to follow suit.

A Senate vote was foreseen as early as Wednesday evening. It would be the earliest date since 1978 that Congress has disposed of the blueprint it uses to guide its spending and taxing legislation. The ease with which the usually contentious work was accomplished was because the plan's foundation was cemented last month in a pact between President Bush and congressional leaders. But lawmakers still showed no enthusiasm for the budget. Even proponents have said its asserted savings $28 billion would leave much work in tackling the government's long-term deficit problems.

"Solving the deficit problem is a marathon," said House Budget Committee Chairman Leon Pan-etta, D-Calif "And with this budget, we've taken the first mile." Critics have complained that the budget's claim of cutting the deficit to $99.7 billion is largely founded on giddily optimistic economic assumptions that make the shortfall look smaller than it is, way the Department of Veterans Affairs sells housing loans would raise $496 million. Credit would be taken for $850 million in savings by shifting some agriculture payments from 1990 to this year. And $477 million would be saved by taking credit for unused food stamps. Many of the savings called for in the plan are likely to trigger congressional battles over the coming months. For example, the budget calls for $5.3 billion in new tax receipts, but the nature of those levies is expected to prompt prolonged fencing between Bush and the Democrats who control Congress.

The budget says the government would pocket $5.7 billion by selling assets such as loan portfolios and $2.7 billion by raising fees for certain federal services. But, again, lawmakers must yet thrash out which assets and fees would be affected. The plan would allow Congress and the Bush administration to claim to have obeyed the Gramm-Rudman law's requirement that the projected fiscal 1990 deficit be no more than $100 billion. Under current projections, the deficit for fiscal 1989, which ends Sept. 30, is expected to surpass $160 billion.

The package was defended by supporters as a healthy prelude to the bipartisan cooperation that will be needed for deficit reduction efforts for fiscal 1991, when Gramm-Rudman sets a deficit ceiling of $64 billion. near Austin and rescuers plucked residents from trees, homes and cars in the flood-stricken Dallas area as Texas bore the brunt of severe storms that soaked the Southwest and Northeast Wednesday. Elsewhere, rivers and creeks overflowed their banks in New Jersey after two days of record heavy rain, chasing dozens of people from their homes. The weather claimed at least three lives in Texas. The predawn tornado cut a swath seven miles long and a mile wide through Jarrell, killing one person and injuring at least two dozen.

Fifteen homes and an apartment complex were destroyed in the town of 1,000 people 40 miles from Austin. "All we have left is our lives," said W.G. Schurhammer, whose apartment building was destroyed. "I was up, watching the storm. I heard a lightning bolt.

It was like hell, that's what it was like," said Jerry Waters, who lived in the building. Sheriff Jim Boutwell said it appeared more than one tornado touched down because there were some parallel areas of damage. A 42-year-old woman died of a broken neck when the tornado hit her mobile home. Hospitals in Georgetown and Temple reported 24 people sought treatment. Floodwaters in the Dallas area, which got nearly six inches of rain in less than 24 hours, sent hundreds of residents to shelters.

Police, firefighters and others rescued scores of people from cars and homes. One rescue attempt ended in tragedy. Firefighters, secured with ropes strung to telephone poles, spent 2y2 hours trying to reach a woman whose car was swept off a bridge into a Dallas creek. The woman waited atop the car. "The car started rocking and she got back into the car and at that time the car fell into the creek.

It floated for a few minutes and went down," said firefighter Dennis Ground. Her body was found a half-mile away. In suburban Grand Prairie, the body of an elderly man was recovered from a truck in a creek, said police Lt. James Gatlin. Flood warnings went up in northern New Jersey on Wednesday.

Dozens of peole were forced from their homes because of rising water on the Passaic River. Newark got .71 inches of rain Wednesday and 2.11 inches on Tuesday, breaking records that had stood for up to 49 years. rim -m w. ii v.iir finiv i taw 1 ftatofeaaistteiiaiai LOOK FOR THE 30 IGNS AND TACCE AN EXTRA OUR ENTIRE STOCK OF ALREADY REDUCED CURRENT SUMMER MEN'S, WOMEN'S AND CHILDREN'S APPAREL AND ACCESSORIES FOR A TOTAL SAVINGS OF THE ORIGINAL PRICES HANDBAGS SCARVES LADIES' BELTS FASHION JEWELRY SLEEPWEAR INTIMATE APPAREL LADIES'AND MEN'S SHOES MEN'S SPORTSWEAR MEN'S CLOTHING FURNISHINGS YOUNG MEN'S SPORTSWEAR BOYS'8-20 SPORTSWEAR CHILDREN'S FASHIONS MISSES' UPDATED SPORTSWEAR MISSES' COORDINATES SEPARATES MISSES'BLOUSES KNITWEAR MISSES' DRESSES SUITS THOROUGHBRED SPORTSWEAR MISSES' STATUS WEEKEND WEAR PETITES'SPORTSWEAR PETITES' DRESSES 9 LARGE SIZE SPORTSWEAR DRESSES PRG 30Off. JUNIOR SPORTSWEAR DRESSES The Home Store and Fine Jewelry Items not included.

Sorry, no mail, phone, or pecicil orders. Intermediate markdowns have been taken. Limited quantities in some instances. SHOP HILLCREST (803-585-3311) MCALISTER (803-235-2521): MONDAY-SATURDAY 10-9; SUNDAY 2.