The Congressional Record is a unique source of public documentation. It started in 1873, documenting nearly all the major and minor policies being discussed and debated.
“STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS” mentioning the U.S. Dept of Agriculture was published in the Senate section on pages S349-S351 on Feb. 5, 2002.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS
By Mr. HOLLINGS (for himself and Mr. Thurmond):
S. 1910. A bill to suspend temporarily the duty on certain extruders, castings, TDO Tenders, Transport/winders, and slitters; to the Committee on Finance.
Mr. HOLLINGS. Madam President, today, I, along with Senator Thurmond, introduce duty suspension legislation designed to permit imports of machinery into the United States duty free. This machinery is not made in the United States. Therefore, their importation will not displace domestic sourcing. Moreover, because of the nature of the products at issue, they will assist in the creation of additional jobs in the United States.
I believe that this is the most appropriate use of such legislation. The imported product will not displace any that is manufactured in the United States. Moreover, the imported product will assist in enhancing American productive capacity. I am therefore hopeful that this new capacity can be used to supply both domestic and foreign needs and will increase employment in the United States.
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By Mr. INHOFE (for himself and Mr. Cleland):
S. 1911. A bill to amend the Community Services block Grant Act to reauthorize national and regional programs designed to provide instruction activities for low-income youth; to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Mr. INHOFE. Madam President, every summer since 1968 the National Youth Sports Program, NYSP, has enabled thousands of children, ages ten to sixteen, the opportunity to develop their athletic, academic and leadership skills in a character-building environment. Utilizing both private and public resources, the NYSP successfully partners with the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, HHS, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, HUD, and 200 institutions of higher learning across the country to provide an enriching summer experience for kids from disadvantaged backgrounds.
Each participant in the National Youth Sports Program engages with a caring, dedicated adult volunteer while being exposed to the skills, discipline, and self-esteem that organized sports provide. Each student also receives academic enrichment in the classroom, instruction on healthy living and drug and alcohol abuse prevention, leadership training, and a comprehensive medical exam. Collegiate athletes and others from the community volunteer for the five-week program to nurture kids and promote their development of body and mind. The improvement of physical fitness through a variety of daily activities from swimming to soccer is a key component of the program. Using the vehicle of high-energy sports, each student is able to learn valuable life lessons. The academic portion of the National Youth Sports Program has evolved since its beginnings to include special enrichment for math and science and useful computer training. To encourage life-long health and physical fitness, substance abuse prevention training is incorporated at several program sites, and every child receives a thorough medical exam by a local doctor. Quality medical attention is a luxury that many of these children do not otherwise have.
President Bush has encouraged our Nation to come together to build communities of character. The National Youth Sports Program is truly a nation-wide community effort. In forty-nine states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, volunteers give their time to help young people strive for their best, develop body and mind, and build strong character.
In support of the continued success and vision of the National Youth Sports Program, today I am introducing the K.I.D.S. Act: Keeping Inspiration and Development Strong. This bill amends the Community Services Block Grant Act to reauthorize appropriations for the National Youth Sports Program at $20 million for Fiscal Year 2003 and provides for its authorization through Fiscal Year 2008. I urge my colleagues to join me in support of this legislation and to make the development of our Nation's greatest resource, children, a national priority.
I ask unanimous consent that the bill be printed in the Record.
Their being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:
S. 1911
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Keep Inspiration and Development Strong Act'' or the ``KIDS Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds that--
(1) since 1968, when the National Youth Sports Program
(referred to in this Act as the `Program') began, the Program has provided a character-building environment for low-income children to develop athletic, educational, and leadership skills;
(2)(A) the Program utilizes community resources, private funding, and public funding to carry out the Program's goals; and
(B) for every $1 in Federal funds appropriated for the Program, the Program receives nearly $3 from private sources, through cash contributions or services provided at Program sites;
(3)(A) the continued investment of Federal resources in the Program is in the Nation's best interest, especially given a recent increase in child obesity in the United States; and
(B) the Surgeon General's report to the President, published in the fall of 2000 and entitled ``Promoting Better Health for Young People Through Physical Activity and Sports'', indicated that child obesity had doubled in the preceding 20 years;
(4)(A) the Program enhances the health of children by providing quality medical care; and
(B) in 2001, 77,106 medical examinations were administered at Program sites for children who might otherwise not have visited a doctor;
(5) the Program encourages educational growth in children by exposing the children to a collegiate atmosphere at an early age and establishing higher education as a natural life goal for the children;
(6) the Program is truly a national program, expanding in 2001 to college and university campuses in 49 States, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; and
(7) the Nation can best prepare the children of the United States to embrace their future by encouraging healthy bodies and healthy minds.
SEC. 3. REAUTHORIZATION.
Section 682(g) of the Community Services Block Grant Act
(42 U.S.C. 9923(g)) is amended to read as follows:
``(g) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section
$20,000,000 for fiscal year 2003 and such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 2004 through 2008.''.
Mr. CLELAND. Madam President, the National Youth Sports Program, NYSP, is an educational partnership that has worked successfully for 33 years. It provides at-risk children, ages 10-16, a 5-week summer program offering sports and academic enrichment at U.S. colleges and universities nationwide. Begun in 1969 as a sports enrichment program, the NYSP now reaches beyond athletics to offer academic instruction, substance abuse prevention, and character education. Originally offered at two higher ed institutions, last year the program served over 73,000 participants at 196 host colleges and universities in 49 States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. For many of these young people, it was their first opportunity to experience a college or university campus from the inside.
In order to enhance the educational commitment of the NYSP, selected programs at 123 sites across the Nation now include special emphasis on math and science skills. In addition, NYSP programs serving older participants, those from ages 13-16, help them enhance their computer skills and academic performance through reading and writing activities that offer mentoring opportunities to younger NYSP participants.
For over three decades the National Youth Sports Program has been a model of what a successful collaboration should be. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the U.S. Department of Housing and urban Development, HUD, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, USDA, which provides a hot, USDA-approved meal to NYSP students each day, and the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA, have worked together to provide a wholesome summer experience to over 1.7 million participants who have passed through the program since its inception. And over time, local medical communities have joined in. In 2000, over 74,300 medical examinations were administered free of charge or at a reduced rate. If a health problem is found, as is the case in approximately one-third of the examinations, the child is referred for adequate follow-up treatment. During the summer session, children who are injured or become ill during NYSP activities are covered by health insurance and treated by a certified medical professional.
The National Youth Sports Program is a vital and effective investment in our youth. This program has successfully leveraged Federal funding to secure substantial matching community investments. For every one dollar provided by the Federal Government, two dollars are provided by participating colleges and universities, local public and private businesses, the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the National Youth Sports Program Fund and other National Governing Bodies of amateur sport.
Today I join my distinguished colleague from Oklahoma, Senator Inhofe, in introducing legislation to reauthorize the National Youth Sports Program and to increase its funding authorization to $20 million. This increase in funding will allow 4,500 additional at-risk youth to participate in this effective program and 15 new program sites to serve communities where disadvantaged youth are in need of nurturing and support. In addition, a $3 million increase in NYSP funding will increase the number of program sites offering math and science instruction as well as expand the NYSP's highly successful senior program, which emphasizes and encourages leadership skills and character education.
The NYSP is a program which, year after year, has provided our Nation's youth with the opportunity to utilize the best resources our colleges and universities have to offer and to develop the skills necessary to succeed. At a time when President Bush has called for a renewed commitment to national service, the NYSP, with almost 1500 volunteers, is an outstanding example of what community service is all about. For three decades the National Youth Sports Program has provided a positive and enriching experience and a safe haven for some of this Nation's most vulnerable youth. This highly effective and successful program is deserving of Congress's support.
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By Mr. SMITH of Oregon:
S. 1912. A bill to amend the Endangered Species Act of 1973 to require the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce to give greater weights to scientific or commercia data that is empirical or has been field-tested or peer-reviewed, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
Mr. SMITH of Oregon. Madam President, today I am introducing legislation that, if enacted, could prevent another tragic situation like the farmers and ranchers of the Klamath Basin experienced last year. The Act, the ``Sound Science for Endangered Species Decisionmaking Act of 2002,'' would require independent scientific peer review of certain actions taken by the regulatory agencies under the Endangered Species Act. In addition, it would require the Secretary of the Interior and the Secretary of Commerce to give greater weight to scientific or commercial data that is empirical or has been field-
tested or peer-reviewed.
As many of you may recall, I have come to the floor of the Senate on many occasions over the last year to plead the case of the farmers and ranchers in the Klamath Basin. Last year, field-level biologists with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service developed two separate biological opinions on the operation of the Klamath Project, as it related to suckers and coho salmon, respectively.
Taken together, these two biological opinions sought to both raise the lake level of Upper Klamath Lake and increase flows in the Klamath River, at the time the Basin was experiencing a severe drought. On April 6, the Bureau of Reclamation announced that the agency would deliver no water to most of the agricultural lands that had received irrigation water from the Federal project for almost one hundred years.
I cannot begin to describe for you the human toll that these biological opinions exacted on the farmers and ranchers in the Klamath Basin. Suicides and foreclosures have both occurred. Those who still have their farms lost most of their farm income last year, many depleting their life savings to hold onto their land. Ranchers were forced to sell off livestock herds. Stable farm worker communities were decimated as families moved to find work.
The real tragedy is that none of this had to occur.
Just this week, the National Research Council found that key decisions regarding the operation of the federal Klamath Project had no clear scientific or technical support. In fact, the Council went so far as to say that, ``the committee concludes that there is no substantial scientific foundation at this time for changing the operation of the Klamath Project to maintain higher water levels in Upper Klamath Lake for the endangered sucker populations or higher minimum flows in the Klamath River mainstem for the threatened coho population.''
In other words, the two key decisions that deprived farmers of their water were not justified by the science.
This situation should never be repeated. Decisions of this magnitude under the Endangered Species Act must be peer reviewed, and some standard for the science used in these decisions must be established.
I was in Klamath Falls the day after the decision was made to cut off water to the farmers. I will never forget the anguish on the faces of the people I met with that day. Many were World War II veterans who received homesteads in this Basin after the war.
Our constituents deserve better from their government. They will get it if this bill is enacted. I urge my colleagues to join me in cosponsoring this bill. I've submitted for the Record an editorial from today's Oregonian newspaper that describes this situation, and expresses support for the House companion bill. I ask unanimous consent that the article be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:
Victory for Klamath Farmers
Scientists find no basis for decision to withhold water from farms for threatened fish during historic drought
Klamath Basin farmers insisted throughout last year's bitter drought and intense environmental battle that the government had no good reason to hold back their irrigation water for federally protected fish.
Now it seems they were right. A panel of top scientists convened by the National Academy of Sciences has concluded in an interim report that there was ``no sound scientific basis'' for withholding irrigation water from more than 1,000 farmers last summer.
The report by the independent panel of 12 scientists changes dramatically the national debate over the Klamath Basin. Suddenly, the farmers are on the high ground, having endured a summer of emotional stress and financial loss due to the federal government's decision to keep extra water in Klamath Lake for endangered suckers and in the Klamath River for threatened coho salmon.
The scientists said there is no evidence that to protect the suckers it was necessary to hold back irrigation water and keep the level of Klamath Lake relatively high. Further, they said a second decision to send warm lake water downriver, rather than to irrigators, may have actually harmed coho by increasing the river's temperature.
These findings aren't a green light to open wide the irrigation headgates, in good water years and bad ones. However, President George W. Bush vowed in an appearance in Portland last month that he would get more water to farmers--and now he's got a stronger hand to do so.
The scientists suggested that in the short term that lake and river levels be held to standards in place from 1990 to 1999. They also emphasized that the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which recently proposed a farmer-first, fish-and-wildlife-second water plan for the Klamath Basin, should not draw down the lake and river below levels of the last decade.
Now the burden of recovering fish shifts from the farmers to where it really belongs--to a broad effort to improve fish habitat and water quality throughout the Klamath Basin, restore wetlands that naturally filter the water and install screens to protect fish from getting sucked into canals.
The report also should help persuade Congress to approve pending bills to fund Klamath projects and provide more relief to farmers. Too, it may provide impetus for a bill proposed by Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore., to require independent scientific review of all government decisions to protect endangered species.
The federal biologist who ordered the withholding of Klamath water said last summer they were required by law to err on the side of imperiled species. While that's true, what happened in the Klamath last summer is beginning to look like an awful and avoidable error.
The decision to keep extra water in Klamath Lake and Klamath River cost the regional economy $134 million, according to a report from Oregon State university and University of California at Berkeley. It wiped out thousands of jobs, shoved farms into bankruptcy and foreclosure, and caused tremendous stress and uncertainty in families throughout the Klamath country.
For these farmers and their families, it must be small consolation to be told now that they were right all along.
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