[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 442 Agreed to House (ATH)]







107th CONGRESS
  2d Session
H. RES. 442

 Supporting responsible fatherhood and encouraging greater involvement 
 of fathers in the lives of their children, especially on Father's Day.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 12, 2002

  Mr. Sullivan (for himself and Ms. Carson of Indiana) submitted the 
following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Education 
                           and the Workforce

                             June 12, 2002

  Committee on Education and the Workforce discharged; considered and 
                               agreed to

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Supporting responsible fatherhood and encouraging greater involvement 
 of fathers in the lives of their children, especially on Father's Day.

Whereas 40 percent of children who live in fatherless house-holds in the United 
        States have not seen their fathers in at least 1 year, and 50 percent of 
        such children have never visited their fathers' homes;
Whereas approximately 50 percent of all children born in the United States spend 
        at least half of their childhood in families without father figures;
Whereas 3 out of 4 adolescents in the United States report that they do not have 
        adults in their lives that serve as positive role models;
Whereas children who are apart from their biological fathers are, in comparison 
        to other children, 5 times more likely to live in poverty, and more 
        likely to bring weapons and drugs into the classroom, commit other 
        crimes, drop out of school, commit suicide, abuse alcohol or drugs, and 
        become pregnant as teenagers;
Whereas the Federal Government spends billions of dollars to address these 
        social ills and very little to promote responsible fatherhood;
Whereas the promotion of responsible fatherhood should not--

    (1) denigrate the standing or parenting efforts of single mothers, 
whose efforts are heroic;

    (2) lessen the protection of children from abusive parents;

    (3) cause women to remain in, or enter into, abusive relationships; or

    (4) compromise the health or safety of a custodial parent;

Whereas children with fathers at home tend to do better in school, to be less 
        prone to depression, and to have more successful relationships;
Whereas boys and girls alike demonstrate greater self-control and ability to 
        take initiative when fathers are actively involved in their upbringing;
Whereas promoting responsible fatherhood can help increase the chances that 
        children will grow up with two caring parents;
Whereas a broad array of America's leading family and child-development experts 
        agree that it is in the best interests of children, and the Nation as a 
        whole, to encourage more two-parent, father-involved families;
Whereas in a study of fathers' interaction with their children in intact two-
        parent families, nearly 90 percent of the fathers surveyed said that 
        being a father is the most ful-filling role a man can have;
Whereas according to a 1996 Gallup poll, 90.3 percent of Americans agree that 
        fathers make a unique contribution to their children's lives;
Whereas married fathers are more likely to have a close, enduring relationship 
        with their children than unmarried fathers;
Whereas the promotion of responsible fatherhood is a bipartisan issue; and
Whereas Father's Day is the third Sunday in June: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) urges men to understand the level of responsibility 
        fathering a child requires, especially in the encouragement of 
        the academic, moral, and spiritual development of children;
            (2) recognizes the need to encourage active involvement of 
        fathers in the rearing and development of their children;
            (3) encourages each father to devote time, energy, and 
        resources to his children, recognizing that children need not 
        only material support, but even more importantly, a secure and 
        nurturing family environment;
            (4) commends the millions of fathers who serve as 
        wonderful, caring parents for their children, while also 
        recognizing that there are children who will have no one with 
        whom to celebrate on Father's Day;
            (5) urges mothers to encourage fathers to play an active 
        role in child-rearing;
            (6) calls on fathers across the Nation to use Father's Day 
        to reconnect and rededicate themselves to their children's 
        lives, to spend Father's Day with their children, and to 
        express their love and support for their children; and
            (7) urges American institutions, and government entities at 
        every level, to promote public policies that encourage and 
        support the efforts of, and remove barriers to, responsible 
        fatherhood.
                                 <all>