As a result, many legislators contend that holding out for improvements to the budget plays better back home than getting it done on time.

The legislators contend that the merger could hamper competition and result in higher telephone rates.

Morevover, these legislators contend, the parliaments in their three republics have declared their own laws supreme over Soviet law, making such a committee irrelevant.

Democratic legislators contended that the offices were not needed and duplicated the work of existing state agencies.

Some environmental groups and Democratic legislators contend that the state should not be giving away its credits, but retiring them permanently to reduce future pollution.

Some legislators and many fair-credit advocates contend, however, that there are loopholes in the Banking Department regulations.

Privately, many legislators, particularly those in the New York City region, contend that they are struggling to make ends meet.

These legislators contend that civil rights and social welfare legislation are needed in the nation to which members of the armed forces will return.

Several conservative legislators and intelligence experts contend that Moscow is continuing to pursue such research.

When the indictments were first issued, black legislators contended that their black colleagues were unfairly singled out.