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.
“CHILD ABDUCTION PREVENTION ACT” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Justice was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E681-E682 on April 3, 2003.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
CHILD ABDUCTION PREVENTION ACT
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speech of
HON. SHEILA JACKSON-LEE
of texas
in the house of representatives
Thursday, March 27, 2003
The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 1104) to prevent child abductions, and for other purposes:
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Chairman, I rise in reluctant support of H.R. 1104, the Child Abduction Prevention Act. I support H.R. 1104 reluctantly because while the resolution improves upon the AMBER Alert system, it is not a clean AMBER Alert Bill.
The provisions of H.R. 1104 that improve the AMBER Alert system are critical steps in making America safer for children. The AMBER Alert provisions of H.R. 1104 direct the Attorney General to assign a National Amber Alert Coordinator. The Coordinator will establish minimum standards for the issuance of AMBER Alerts, including the extent of dissemination of alerts. The minimum standards will require vital information relating to the special needs of the child, including the child's health care needs, to be provided to the appropriate law enforcement and public health officials. Also, the dissemination of the AMBER Alert will be limited to the geographic area most likely to facilitate the recovery of the abducted child.
H.R. 1104 also requires the Secretary of Transportation to provide grants to states for the development or improvement of AMBER Alert communication or notification systems along America's highways. It requires the Attorney General to provide grants to States for the development or enhancement of programs and activities for support of the AMBER Alert communications plans.
I whole-heartedly support all of the AMBER Alert provisions of H.R. 1104. These provisions improve the AMBER Alert system and help to reduce the likelihood that children who are kidnapped will also be physically abused, sexually abused, or murdered. These provisions also improve the chances that abducted children will be returned to their families.
I have reservations about supporting H.R. 1104 because it is not a clean AMBER Alert bill. I believe that the Amendments to the bill dealing with prison sentence guidelines, pretrial release, and law enforcement investigation powers should be dealt with in separate legislation.
More importantly, the extraneous provisions will delay the ultimate passage of the AMBER Alert Bill. Every day that goes by without a national AMBER Alert system in place puts the lives of children at risk. According to an October 2002 U.S. Department of Justice Report titled the National Incidence Studies of Missing, Abducted, Runaway, and Thrownaway Children (NISMART Report), 12,222 children were the victims of traditional kidnappings in the year 1999 alone. That amounts to approximately 33 children kidnapped nationwide per day.
While the members of the House debate extraneous amendments, hundreds of children are being kidnapped and murdered. As the Chair of the Congressional Children's Caucus, I strongly believe that the best way to save children's lives is to vote in support of H.R. 1104, even if I do so reluctantly.
That is why, Mr. Chairman, I reluctantly vote in favor of H.R. 1104.
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