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“PROVISIONS WITH RESPECT TO INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNIZED HUMAN RIGHTS, REFUGEE, AND OTHER FOREIGN RELATIONS” mentioning the U.S. Dept of State was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H12281-H12283 on Oct. 4, 1996.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
PROVISIONS WITH RESPECT TO INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNIZED HUMAN RIGHTS,
REFUGEE, AND OTHER FOREIGN RELATIONS
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to take from the Speaker's table the bill (H.R. 4036) making certain provisions with respect to internationally recognized human rights, refugees, and foreign relations, with Senate amendments, thereto and concur in the Senate amendments.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The Clerk read the Senate amendments, as follows:
Senate amendments:
Page 2, strike out all after line 4 over to and including line 6 on page 4.
Page 4, line 7, strike out ``103'' and insert ``101''.
Page 4, strike out all after line 20, over to and including line 17 on page 6.
Page 6, line 18, strike out ``105'' and insert ``102''.
Page 7, line 3, strike out ``106'' and insert ``103''.
Page 8, line 10, strike out ``107'' and insert ``104''.
Page 12, after line 2 insert:
TITLE III--CLAIBORNE PELL INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND
PUBLIC POLICY
SEC. 301. SHORT TITLE.
This title may be cited as the ``Claiborne Pell Institute for International Relations and Public Policy Act''.
SEC. 302. GRANT AUTHORIZED.
In recognition of the public service of Senator Claiborne Pell, the Secretary of Education is authorized to award a grant, in accordance with the provisions of this title, to assist in the establishment and operation of the Claiborne Pell Institute for International Relations and Public Policy, located as Salve Regina University, Newport, Rhode Island, including the purchase and renovation of facilities to house the Institute.
SEC. 303. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year 1997 such sums, not to exceed $3,000,000, as may be necessary to carry out this title.
SEC. 304. EFFECTIVE DATE.
This title shall take effect on the date of enactment of this Act.
TITLE IV--GEORGE BUSH SCHOOL OF GOVERNMENT AND PUBLIC SERVICE
SEC. 401. SHORT TITLE.
This title may be cited as the ``George Bush School of Government and Public Service Act''.
SEC. 402. GRANT AUTHORIZED.
In recognition of the public service of President George Bush, the Secretary of Eduation is authorized to make a grant in accordance with the provisions of this Act to assist in the establishment of the George Bush Fellowship Program, located at the George Bush School of Government and Public Service of the Texas A & M University.
SEC. 403. GRANT CONDITIONS.
No payment may be made under this title except upon an application at such time, in such manner, and containing or accompanied by such information as the Secretary of Education may require.
SEC. 404. APPROPRIATIONS AUTHORIZED.
There are authorized to be appropriated such sums, not to exceed $3,000,000, as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this title.
SEC. 405. EFFECTIVE DATE.
This title shall take effect on October 1, 1996.
TITLE V--MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
SEC. 501. EDMUND S. MUSKIE FOUNDATION.
In recognition of the public service of Senator and Secretary of State Edmund S. Muskie, the Secretary of Education is authorized to award a grant in accordance with the provisions of this Act to assist in the establishment of the Edmund S. Muskie Foundation, located in Washington, DC, by providing assistance to support the foundation, including assistance to be used for awarding stewardships, supporting the Muskie archives, and supporting the Edmund S. Muskie Institute of Public Affairs.
SEC. 502. CALVIN COOLIDGE MEMORIAL FOUNDATION GRANT.
(a) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Foundation.--The term ``Foundation'' means the Calvin Coolidge Memorial Foundation.
(2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of Education.
(b) Grant Authorized.--The Secretary is authorized to made a grant in the amount of $1,000,000 in accordance with the provisions of this section to the Foundation.
(c) Grant Conditions.--
(1) Application.--No payment may be made under this section except upon an application at such time, in such manner, and containing or accompanied by such information as the Secretary may require.
(2) Use of grant funds.--Funds received under this section may be used for any of the following purposes:
(A) To increase the endowment of the Foundation.
(B) To conduct educational, archival, or preservation activities of the Foundation.
(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary $1,000,000, without fiscal year limitation, to carry out the provisions of this section.
(e) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect on October 1, 1996.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. (during the reading). Without objection, the Senate amendments are considered as read and printed in the Record.
There was no objection.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the initial request of the gentleman from New Jersey?
Mr. ROHRABACHER. Mr. Speaker, reserving the right to object, I would like to ask my good friend and colleague from New Jersey to explain to me the provisions in this bill concerning abortion and what protections we would have against, let us say, in China, for example, where there are forced abortions?
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman will yield, the language in this legislation that dealt with coercive abortion was stripped in the Senate. The issue was already covered by the CR, which had an identical provision. We are concurring with the Senate in taking that language out of the bill, so there is nothing in the bill on that subject.
Mr. ROHRABACHER. Mr. Speaker, continuing my reservation of objection, some people were concerned that anyone who wanted to immigrate from China would just get pregnant and come back over here.
The second thing is, what groups are protected by this act? I understand this gives certain immigration treatment to certain groups.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman will yield further, the language of the bill extends to Russian Jews, evangelicals, and to some of the people in Southeast Asia a very basic amount of protection for 1 year. As a matter of fact, this too mirrors exactly the human rights and refugee provisions in the CR, and because this had broad bipartisan support, it was kept in.
Mr. ROHRABACHER. Mr. Speaker, further reserving the right to object, I would ask the gentleman, is there a cap on this?
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. No, there is not.
Mr. ROHRABACHER. How many people would be affected by this?
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. It is unclear.
Mr. ROHRABACHER. Is it possible we are talking about more than 100,000 people?
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. No, not at all. As a matter of fact, the annual cap negotiated between the administration and Congress is far less than 100,000 in its totality.
Mr. Speaker, this act consists of several human rights refugee and education provisions. I am proud to sponsor this legislation along with House International Relations Committee Chairman Ben Gilman and Ranking Democratic Member Lee Hamilton, as well as Tom Lantos, Howard Berman, Henry Hyde, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, and Bill Goodling. The administration does not oppose the legislation.
H.R. 4036 extends the authority of USIA to include Tibetan and Burmese exiles in its scholarship programs, and requires USIA to take appropriate steps to involve prodemocracy and human rights leaders in exchange programs with countries whose people do not fully enjoy freedom and democracy. It also requires that the State Department's Country Reports on Human Rights Practices include reports on each country's votes on resolutions before the U.N. Human Rights Commission, as well as its treatment of refugees. The latter provision is designed to enhance efforts to persuade other countries in the Western Hemisphere and elsewhere to accept their fair share of the world's refugee population, rather than leaving the brunt of the burden on the United States and a few other nations.
The act extends for 1 year an extremely important policy relating to refugees in certain high-risk categories, such as Jews and evangelical Christians from the former Soviet Union and Southeast Asians who have suffered persecution for their wartime associations with the United States.
Also, the act provides that the United States should not give foreign assistance, other than humanitarian assistance, to Mauritania unless that country rigorously enforces its laws against human chattel slavery.
H.R. 4036 also authorizes the Secretary of Education to make grants for the Pell Institute, the Bush Fellowships, the Muskie Foundation, and the Coolidge Memorial Foundation. A Pell amendment deleted section 102, providing for reports on the Cuban Government's methods of enforcing its 1994 and 1995 immigration agreements with the United States.
The administration opposed an earlier version of this provision on the ground that it already provides such reports. We are agreeing to drop this provision only because we have been assured that these reports will continue to be provided. Originally, the agreement negotiated with the Senate was that a reference to the Cuba human rights reports would be placed in report language rather than in the text of the bill itself. Because the procedure under which this law is enacted does not provide for committee reports, it is important to place in the Record the continued expectation of the Subcommittee on International Operations and Human Rights that our Government will continue to monitor and report to Congress on the treatment of people against whom the Castro regime enforces these two agreements. The reports are an important manifestation of congressional concern about the human rights of persons against whom enforcement measures are taken.
I would like to extend my deep gratitude to Senator Helms and his staff, who shepherded this important human rights bill through the Senate. In particular, Chief Counsel Tom Kleine of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee has demonstrated his willingness and ability to work effectively with people representing a wide range of viewpoints in order to ensure that our law reflects the right answers to important questions of public policy. Senator Lott and Senator Nickles and their respective staffs have also been extremely helpful. I also thank the Democratic staff of the Foreign Relations Committee for working with us on this bipartisan effort.
Mr. BALDACCI. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 4036. Included in this legislation are provisions to create the Edmund S. Muskie Foundation. We were all deeply saddened earlier this year when Senator Muskie passed away. This legislation provides a worthy tribute to one of the Nation's greatest statesmen and legislators.
As part of its work, the Muskie Foundation will make environmental stewardship awards. Senator Muskie played a crucial role in the drafting and adoption of every major piece of environmental legislation that was signed into law during his tenure in the Senate. He was one of the first to recognize the tremendous harm that humans were doing to their environment. He educated his colleagues in the Congress, as well as the American people, and helped them to understand that we needed to change our ways. The result of his efforts was landmark legislation to clean up our Nation's air and water. The Muskie Foundation's environmental stewardship awards will help to ensure that Senator Muskie's legacy will live on.
The Muskie Foundation will also assist the Muskie Archives at Bates College in Lewiston, ME, to ensure that future generations will have access to Senator Muskie's papers. The foundation will work with the Muskie Institute for Public Policy at the University of Southern Maine to promote the study of policy development. And the foundation will engage in other programs and activities in which Senator Muskie had an abiding interest.
Mr. Speaker, as a freshman Member of Congress from the State of Maine, I was privileged to be able to turn to Senator Muskie for encouragement and advice. He was a mentor to me, and to countless others of my generation. I am pleased that we are honoring him today, and I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.
Mr. ROHRABACHER. Mr. Speaker, I withdraw my reservation of objection.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the initial request of the gentleman from New Jersey?
There was no objection.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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