Baseball's steroid policy was again on trial before Congress Wednesday and Senator John McCain's committee wants a new agreement with stiff penalties as soon as possible. Baseball commissioner Bud Selig and union chief Donald Fehr were the targets of questions from the Senate Commerce Committee, as were officials from the NFL, NBA and NHL, but the focus was clearly on baseball. Fehr, in particular, was on the hot seat after the union earlier this week revealed plans for a counter-offer to Major League Baseball's proposed stricter penalties. Selig, in April, developed a three strikes and your out plan that features a 50-game suspension for first-time offenders, 100 games for a second violation and a lifetime ban for a third offense. The union responded earlier this week with penalties that include a 20-game punishment for a first offense, 75 games for a secondary violation and the possibility of a lifetime ban -- under Selig's discretion -- for a third offense. The current policy calls for a 10-day suspension for a first offense and 30 days for a second positive test. A third violation features a 60-day penalty and fourth-time offenders will be suspended for one year. All penalties are without pay. McCain was unhappy with the progress of the negotiations between the parties and has suggested that Congress will enact some type of legislation if an agreement -- likely one that sides more toward Selig's plan -- is not reached soon. "Don't you get it?" McCain questioned Fehr. "Don't you get it that this is an issue which is greater than the issue of collective bargaining. It's about young Americans who are tempted to take these substances into their bodies and some of them commit suicide. Don't you understand that this is an issue of such transcendent importance that you should have acted months ago? "There should have been some agreement months ago. We wouldn't be having this hearing...if you had come to some agreement. The patience of this body...is at an end. Now, could you give me a definitive date when you will reach a final agreement with Mr. Selig, not associated with any other collective bargaining issue?" Responded Fehr, after stating why it took so long for the union to respond to the April proposal, "Can I give you a precise date? No. Do I expect to know within the reasonably near future whether that will be done? Yes. Would I expect it to be by the end of the World Series? I would certainly hope so." The World Series is expected to end by no later than October 30. "The last thing that members of this committee want to do is pass legislation, but we're at the end of the line," McCain stated. "How many more Rafael Palmeiros is there going to be? "We're at the end here and I don't want to do it, but we need an agreement and we need it soon. It's not complicated. It's not complicated. All sports fans understand it. I suggest you act and act soon." There have been nine positive tests so far this year, with Baltimore's Rafael Palmeiro being the highest profile player suspended. Palmeiro told Congress in March, "I have never used steroids, period."