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 Labor was published in the Senate section on pages S10974-S10976 on Oct. 4, 2005.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS
By Mr. ALEXANDER (for himself and Mr. Cornyn):
S. 1815. A bill to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to prescribe the binding oath or affirmation of renunciation and allegiance required to be naturalized as a citizen of the United States, to encourage and support the efforts of prospective citizens of the United States to become citizens, and for other purposes; to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, Senator Cornyn and I are introducing legislation to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act. The legislation would be called the Strengthening American Citizenship Act.
Over the next several weeks, this body will be engaged in a debate about immigration reform. It is an essential debate which we must have in order to honor our commitment to the rule of law. I believe that real immigration reform must encompass three important steps.
First, we must secure our borders. Senators Cornyn, Kyl, McCain, and Kennedy have introduced differing legislation with that goal in mind.
Second, we need to create a legal status for foreign workers and foreign students who come here. Cornyn-Kyl and McCain-Kennedy also address the question of workers. Later this month, I intend to introduce legislation to ensure that our immigration system creates an appropriate legal status for and welcomes the more than 550,000 foreign students who study at our universities and who, incidentally, contribute to our high standard of living by doing so.
But there is a third step to any real immigration reform. After we secure our borders, after we create a legal status for foreigners who work here and study here, the third indispensable step is to help prospective citizens become Americans. That is why today I am introducing the Strengthening American Citizenship Act. I am pleased to be joined by Senator Cornyn in this effort.
The Strengthening American Citizenship Act helps legal immigrants who are prospective American citizens to learn our common language, our history, and our way of Government in the following ways: First, providing $500 grants for English courses; next, allowing prospective citizens who become fluent in English, not just basic in English, but fluent in English, to apply for citizenship 1 year early; next, providing for grants to organizations to provide courses in American history and civics; authorizing the creation of a new foundation to assist in those efforts; codifying the oath of allegiance to which new citizens swear when they are naturalized; asking the Department of Homeland Security to carry out a strategy to highlight the moving ceremonies in which immigrants become American citizens; and finally, establishing an award to recognize the contributions of new citizens to our great Nation.
This bill is about fulfilling the promise of our national motto that is written right above you, Mr. President, on the Senate wall: ``E Pluribus Unum,'' one from many. It is in the most visible place in the Senate Chamber. As a nation of immigrants, that motto--from many, one--
is very important to us. While our unique history makes us a diverse nation, we are still one American Nation. How do we do that? How do we as Americans take all of the magnificent diversity that is the United States and mold it into a single nation? We can be one nation because we are united by principles expressed in our founding documents, such as liberty, democracy, and the rule of law, and not by our multiple ancestries. We are united by our common language, English, and by our history of constantly struggling to reach the high ideals that we have set for ourselves as a nation.
Part of that American history is welcoming new immigrants to join our Nation. We are unique in the world in our attitude toward welcoming others. America is different because under our Constitution becoming an American can have nothing to do with ancestry. That is because America is an idea, not a race. An American can technically become a citizen of Japan, in rare cases, but would never be considered Japanese. But if a Japanese person wants to become a citizen of the United States, he or she must become an American.
Recently, I was privileged to witness as 99 immigrants from 46 different countries became Americans. It was on a Constitution Day ceremony. I have attended naturalization ceremonies in Nashville and across my State many times in the past. It is a moving experience that I recommend to all of my colleagues.
This naturalization ceremony a few weeks ago was a special one held at the Jefferson Memorial. The same ceremonies are held in courthouses across the country. I watched those 99 new Americans swear an oath of allegiance to this country. It is a powerful oath where they renounce allegiance to their former country and swear allegiance to ours and to the Constitution. It is the oath we will finally enshrine in law in this bill.
That oath is a part of our history. It dates back to the founding of our Nation almost 230 years ago. Those 99 new Americans who took that oath at the Jefferson Memorial a few weeks ago were basically taking the same oath George Washington gave to his soldiers in revolutionary times.
On May 12, 1778, as brave Americans were fighting for our freedom, George Washington himself, and his general officers, signed a very similar oath as they were camped at Valley Forge. Let me read a part of Washington's oath. This is a copy of the oath Washington took. The Archivist of the United States brought it to me. There is Washington's own signature. We can imagine the circumstances and imagine the times. It was in the early stages of the Revolutionary War. Things were not going very well. These soldiers were camped at Valley Forge and this was the oath Washington himself took and that he gave to his officers and required them to sign.
I, George Washington, Commander in chief of the Armies of the United States of America, do acknowledge the United States of America, to be Free, Independent and Sovereign States, and declare that the people thereof owe no allegiance or obedience to George the Third, King of Great Britain; and I renounce, refuse and abjure any allegiance or obedience to him; and I do swear that I will to the utmost of my power, support, maintain and defend the United States...
That is how George Washington and his officers swore allegiance to our country, and it has set the standard for American citizens from that time forward. Every American should learn about that standard.
Since I was elected to this body in 2002, I have been working to ensure that American children learn American history and civics. With the help of Democratic leader Senator Reid and many other Senators on both sides of the aisle, we passed legislation in December of 2003 to establish residential academies for teachers and congressional academies for students of American history and civics. Some are residential academies to help teachers and outstanding students learn more about these important subjects so they can pass it on to their students and classmates.
This year, I hope to pass a bill with Senator Kennedy to provide for improved testing of American history so we can determine where history is being taught well and where it is being taught poorly so improvements can be made. We also know that when testing is focused on a specific subject, States and school districts are more likely to step up to the challenge and improve performance. So we are beginning to make progress in reaching out to our children so that they understand what this country is all about.
There is another group of Americans we must also reach: New Americans. Last week, there was a report in Florida of a 27-year-old Guatemalan man who posed as an 18-year-old so he could attend public high school and learn English there. So we know immigrants are eager to learn our common language. That is why I, with Senator Cornyn, am introducing this bill to help legal immigrants who are prospective American citizens to learn our common language, our history, and our way of governing.
The Strengthening American Citizenship Act will, No. 1, provide education grants up to $500 for English courses to immigrants who declare intent to become American citizens. They might use these grants to take a class from a local nonprofit organization or a community college. It would also allow citizenship applicants who speak fluent English to meet the residency requirement after 4 years of living in the United States, rather than 5.
Secondly, our legislation would help prospective citizens learn more about the American way of life. It would do it in these two ways: One, establishing a foundation to support the activities of the Office of Citizenship, which is within the Department of Homeland Security, so that organizations that want to support and cooperate in efforts to reach out to prospective citizens can do so.
Second, it would provide for grants to organizations to provide classes in American history and civics. While new citizens are required to demonstrate a knowledge of American history and government in a test, helping them access a history or civics class will allow many to gain a richer understanding of our country and, by doing so, to feel more at home in the United States.
The third major area this legislation covers would be to codify this oath of allegiance which began with George Washington's oath at Valley Forge. The oath today is written only in Federal regulations, not in the law. This would give the oath the same standing as the Pledge of Allegiance and the national anthem.
Finally, we should celebrate our new citizens. Our legislation would instruct the Secretary of Homeland Security to develop and implement a strategy to raise public awareness of naturalization ceremonies. These ceremonies, which happen virtually every day in the United States, embody what it means to become an American. Every U.S. citizen, not just those from foreign countries, ought to see one. It is my hope that more of these ceremonies will be held in prominent locations and televised on C-SPAN.
We also would establish an award for citizens who have been naturalized within the last ten years and have made an outstanding contribution to the American nation. Our new citizens are often our best citizens, and this bill would give the President this responsibility so that we can recognize how new Americans play a critical role in the progress of our country.
We are a nation of immigrants. Almost all of us can trace our ancestry to some part of the globe quite far from here. Over the coming weeks this body will debate how to reform our immigration system. I believe comprehensive reform must include three things: No. 1, securing our borders; No. 2, creating a legal status for foreign workers and foreign students whom we welcome here; and, No. 3, helping prospective citizens become Americans.
The Strengthening American Citizenship Act fulfills that third objective. Comprehensive immigration reform must include efforts to help new Americans become a part of our national family.
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By Mr. SANTORUM:
S. 1816. A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow the manufacturing deduction provided by the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004 with respect to income attributable to domestic production activities in Puerto Rico; to the Committee on Finance.
Mr. SANTORUM. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce a bill to bring equity and fairness to the manufacturing and production activities in Puerto Rico. Earlier this Congress, my colleague from the House of Representatives, Delegate Luis Fortuno, introduced H.R. 2181 to extend section 199 to manufacturing and production activities in Puerto Rico.
In the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004, we enacted section 199 that provides a deduction for income attributable to certain manufacturing activities. However, section 199 currently applies only to manufacturing and production activities in the U.S., and does not extend to Puerto Rico. This bill merely places the manufacturing and production activities in Puerto Rico on even footing with those conducted within the United States. It contains the additional safeguard of assuring that the extension of this deduction is only available where the income of the company is subject to immediate U.S. tax.
I have worked with my colleague in the House as he has perfected this language to narrowly meet the needs of his constituents, and I am pleased to be able to help him move this legislation forward in the Senate. I urge my colleagues to support this provision and bring fairness to the treatment of these important and vital economic activities.
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By Mr. DeMINT:
S. 1817. A bill to suspend the Davis-Bacon Wage rate requirements for Federal contracts in areas declared national disasters; to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Mr. DeMINT. Mr. President, today I introduce the Cleanup and Reconstruction Enhancement Act, CARE Act, legislation that would free those trying to rebuild after emergencies from burdensome regulations imposed by the Davis-Bacon Act.
As Chairman of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Disaster Prevention and Prediction, I traveled to the gulf coast to see the destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina. My heart went out to the victims and their families, and my hope was to see the infrastructure there restored as quickly as possible to avoid further destruction and loss of life. Unfortunately, Federal law places barriers on our efforts to respond to Hurricane Katrina quickly and efficiently.
The Inspector General at the U.S. Department of Labor concluded in a May 2004 report that 84 percent of Davis-Bacon wage determination surveys take more than a year and a half to complete, forcing emergency projects to use outdated wage determinations and to suffer needless delays. The Davis-Bacon Act also prohibits the use of entry-level workers classified as ``helpers'' on federally funded projects, and artificially raises construction costs by up to 33 percent. Furthermore, the Davis-Bacon Act discourages many small businesses from bidding on public projects, because contractors who are unfamiliar with the complex set of laws and regulations often choose not to participate in reconstruction efforts or end up being cited or sued for naively violating laws.
For these reasons, Davis-Bacon regulations were suspended by Executive Order 11 days after Hurricane Katrina ravaged the Gulf Coast. Knowing what we know now, it is unconscionable for us to force victims of future disasters to suffer through any waiting period before we remove barriers to reconstruction. The CARE Act would automatically trigger a year-long suspension of Davis-Bacon Act rules in all future disaster sites that receive an emergency declaration from the President.
I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:
S. 1817
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 ``Cleanup and Reconstruction Enhancement Act'' or ``CARE Act''.
SEC. 2. SUSPENSION OF DAVIS-BACON WAGE REQUIREMENTS IN
NATIONAL DISASTER AREAS.
Section 3147 of title 40, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: ``In any area that the President determines to be a major disaster under section 102(2) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5122(2)), the provisions of this subchapter shall not apply for a period of 1 year from the date on which the President makes such determination.''.
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