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ABC News: Senate set for key vote on asbestos fund
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Senate set for key vote on asbestos fund
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ReutersFeb 14, 2006 — By Susan Cornwell
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Legislation to create an
industry-financed $140 billion compensation fund for Americans
sickened by asbestos diseases faced a showdown vote in the U.S.
Senate on Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist said.
More than 70 U.S.
companies, including W.R.
Grace and Co.
and USG Corp., have been pushed into bankruptcy proceedings by
tens of thousands of injury claims.
Asbestos is a strong, fire-retardant fibrous mineral that
was widely used in building insulation until the 1970s.
Experts
say tiny pieces of it could be inhaled and cause cancer.
Frist, a Tennessee Republican, said lawmakers would vote on
a procedural objection to creating the asbestos fund on the
grounds that it could force U.S.
taxpayers to pick up some
costs, in violation of budget rules.
The vote on the procedural objection from Sen.
John Ensign,
a Nevada Republican, ...
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