[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 207 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 207

  Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives with regard to 
  community renewal through community- and faith-based organizations.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 15, 1999

Mr. Pitts submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the 
                Committee on Education and the Workforce

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives with regard to 
  community renewal through community- and faith-based organizations.

Whereas, while the steady economic growth and low inflation in the United States 
        has yielded unprecedented prosperity, many American citizens have not 
        benefited from this prosperity and continue to be socioeconomically 
        disadvantaged;
Whereas millions of our fellow citizens who live in the inner cities and rural 
        communities continue to be plagued by social breakdown, economic 
        disadvantage, and educational failure that fosters hopelessness and 
        despair;
Whereas our most intractable pathologies--crime, drug addiction, teen pregnancy, 
        homelessness, and youth violence--are each being addressed by small, and 
        sometimes unrecognized, community- or faith-based organizations, whose 
        expertise should not be ignored;
Whereas these nonprofit organizations have local experts who are moving 
        individuals from dependency to self-sufficiency and restoring the lives 
        of men, women, and families across the country;
Whereas many community- and faith-based organizations are offering the American 
        public a new vision of compassion, designed to encourage volunteerism, 
        strengthen the community, and care for the poor and vulnerable;
Whereas private sector investment in capital development--social and economic--
        in the most poverty stricken pockets across the country is key to long-
        term renewal of urban centers and distressed rural communities;
Whereas economic growth attracts new businesses, provides stability to 
        neighborhoods, as well as provides jobs that yield income to support 
        families and nurture self-respect;
Whereas over 100 bipartisan Members of Congress have cosponsored H.R. 815, the 
        American Community Renewal Act, which targets the 100 poorest 
        communities in the Nation for pro-growth tax benefits, regulatory 
        relief, brownfields cleanup, and home-ownership opportunities that 
        combine to create jobs, hope, and a sense of community;
Whereas the President and the Vice President, along with congressional 
        organizations such as the Renewal Alliance, have recognized the 
        importance of community renewal and have recently promoted strategies 
        designed to rebuild communities to empower faith-based organizations on 
        the front lines of renewal in our country; and
Whereas a concerted effort to empower community institutions, encourage 
        community renewal, and implement educational reform will help those who 
        reside in inner cities and distressed rural communities to gain their 
        share of America's prosperity: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) extends gratitude to the private nonprofit 
        organizations and volunteers whose commitment to meet human 
        needs in areas of poverty is key to long-term renewal of urban 
        centers and distressed rural communities;
            (2) seeks to empower the strengths of America's 
        communities, local leaders, and mediating institutions such as 
        its families, schools, spiritual leaders, businesses and 
        nonprofit organizations;
            (3) should work to empower community- and faith-based 
        organizations to promote effective solutions to the social, 
        financial, and emotional needs of urban centers and rural 
        communities, and the long-term solutions to the problems faced 
        by our culture; and
            (4) should work with the Senate and the President to 
        support a compassionate grassroots approach to addressing the 
        family, economic, and cultural breakdown that plagues many of 
        our Nation's urban and rural communities.
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