[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 141 (Monday, October 3, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          STATEMENT ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

      By Mrs. MURRAY:
  S. 2492. A bill to ensure that all timber-dependent communities 
qualify for loans and grants from the Rural Development Administration; 
to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.


                      RURAL DEVELOPMENT AMENDMENTS

  Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce legislation 
that will put in place an important piece of the Northwest Economic 
Adjustment Initiative. This bill is important to my State and region 
because it makes an existing program work better for people working to 
transition historically timber-dependent economies.
  One of the centerpieces of the Northwest Economic Adjustment 
Initiative is the Rural Development administration. This agency 
administers many programs tailored specifically to foster small 
business growth and community development in small town America. There 
are three programs in particular--essential community facilities loans, 
business enterprise loans, and business enterprise grants--that have 
been targeted on the Pacific Northwest. Unfortunately, these programs 
are tailored in such a way that some communities fall through the 
cracks. Some towns, such as Aberdeen and Pt. Angeles on the Olympic 
Peninsula, are not eligible for funds under these programs because of 
arbitrary population standards.
  This bill repairs this flaw in the law. It does this by requiring 
special consideration of communities having populations of not more 
than 25,000. If this bill is enacted into law, Pt. Angeles and 
Aberdeen, as well as other towns in the region, will be eligible for 
grants and loans under the programs I mentioned above.
  The Clinton administration has been working diligently since last 
year with the governors of Washington, Oregon, and California to 
identify existing programs, improvements to such programs, and other 
initiatives that communities can use to help chart an economic course 
for the future. As part of his economic diversification program, he 
proposed, and the Senate has approved, significant increases in RDA 
appropriations. But the joint Federal-State working group also 
identified changes that could make the program work better. Today we 
propose to make such a change.
  Under these amendments to the Rural Development Act, towns and 
counties in rural areas adjacent to national forests, and people within 
them, will have access to needed resources. These programs makes sense: 
it puts resources in the hands of people who know what to do with them; 
it minimizes overhead; and focuses narrowly on the problems without a 
lot of red tape.
  Mr. President, I would like to commend the excellent work of Senator 
Leahy of Vermont, the chairman of the Agriculture Committee, and his 
staff in helping put this bill together. This is a good bill, and I 
urge all my colleagues to support its passage.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. GREGG:
  S. 2493. A bill to improve senior citizen housing safety; to the 
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.


                   senior citizens housing safety act

 Mr. GREGG. Mr. President, today I am introducing the Senior 
Citizens Housing Safety Act, a bill that will end the terror that 
unfortunately runs rampant throughout many housing projects 
specifically designated for elderly and disabled residents. In my home 
State of New Hampshire, most people are still afforded the luxury of 
not having to lock their front door before turning in for the evening. 
However, many elderly residents of public housing facilities in my 
State and across America have been forced to not only lock their front 
doors, but are literally being held prisoner in their own homes. I 
believe this is outrageous. I have received numerous complaints from 
residents of elderly housing facilities throughout New Hampshire who 
are worried about their personal safety in housing specifically 
reserved for them.
  Under current housing laws nonelderly persons considered disabled, 
because of past drug and alcohol abuse problems, are eligible to live 
in section 8 housing designated for the elderly. This mixing of 
populations may have filled up the housing projects across the country, 
but it has opened a Pandora's Box of trouble. Simply put, young, 
recovering alcoholics and drug addicts are not compatible with elderly 
persons. Many of these young people hold all night, loud parties, shake 
down many of the elderly residents for money, sell drugs within the 
housing facility, and generally disturb the right to the peaceful 
enjoyment of the premises by other tenants.
  This problem has occurred because the definition of handicapped under 
the Fair Housing Act was amended in 1988 to include recovering 
alcoholics and drug addicts. Under the mixed population rules of 1992, 
Congress determined that the elderly and disable should be housed 
together. Historically, disabled individuals have lived in complexes 
for the elderly because the apartments there--one-bedroom units 
equipped with such features as handrails--best fit their needs. 
However, drug addicts and alcoholics who are considered disabled do not 
have the same needs. Many elderly persons hope to retire in a community 
surrounded by persons their won age, elderly people who choose to live 
a peaceful existence in the company of their peers. I want to restore 
that hope and this legislation will attack this problem with a two-tier 
approach.
  First, my legislation will institute a front-end screening process. 
This will prevent nonelderly individuals, classified as disabled 
because they are recovering from alcoholism and drug addiction, from 
becoming eligible for housing that is designated for the elderly. It 
simply says they cannot live in housing designated for the elderly. 
Additionally, it will prevent the further mixing of two groups that are 
obviously incompatible. This will not, however, exclude these 
nonelderly, disabled individuals from the housing I believe they need 
and deserve.

  Second, my legislation will force local public housing agencies to 
evict nonelderly individuals occupying the facility who engage on three 
separate documented occasions in activities that threaten the health, 
safety, or right to peaceful enjoyment of the premises by other tenants 
and involves the use of drugs or alcohol.
  This process, by no means circumvents the current housing eviction 
procedure. Under current law the public housing agency could evict 
these persons after one infraction if deemed necessary. It simply 
mandates that these nonelderly individuals be evicted after three 
incidents which threaten the health, safety, or right to peaceful 
enjoyment of the premises by other tenants.
  This is a simple bill that prevents the mixing of two populations who 
have proved incompatible.
  This bill will restore order in housing projects designated for 
elderly and disabled tenants by screening out nonelderly alcoholics and 
drug addicts, as well as evicting those nonelderly persons who 
continuously raise havoc within the housing project. I urge my 
colleagues to support this important bill. 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. 2493

       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 ``Senior Citizen Housing 
     Safety Act''.

     SEC. 2. SENIOR CITIZEN HOUSING SAFETY.

       (a) Limitation on Occupancy in Public Housing Designated 
     for Elderly Families.--
       (1) In general.--Section 7(a) of the United States Housing 
     Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437e(a)) is amended--
       (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``Not-withstanding any 
     other provision of law'' and inserting ``Subject only to the 
     provisions of this subsection'';
       (B) in paragraph (4), by inserting ``, except as provided 
     in paragraph (5)'' before the period at the end; and
       (C) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
       ``(5) Limitation on occupancy in projects for elderly 
     families.--
       ``(A) Occupancy limitation.--Notwithstanding any other 
     provision of law, a dwelling unit in a project (or portion of 
     a project) that is designated under paragraph (1) for 
     occupancy by only elderly families or by only elderly and 
     disabled families shall not be occupied by--
       ``(i) any person with disabilities who is not an elderly 
     person and whose history of use of alcohol or drugs 
     constitutes a disability; or
       ``(ii) any person who is not an elderly person and whose 
     history of use of alcohol or drugs provides reasonable cause 
     for the public housing agency to believe that the occupancy 
     by such person may interfere with the health, safety, or 
     right to peaceful enjoyment of the premises by other tenants.
       ``(B) Required statement.--A public housing agency may not 
     make a dwelling unit in such a project available for 
     occupancy to any person or family who is not an elderly 
     family, unless the agency acquires from the person or family 
     a signed statement that no person who will be occupying the 
     unit--
       ``(i) uses (or has a history of use of) alcohol; or
       ``(ii) uses (or has a history of use of) drugs;

     that would interfere with the health, safety, or right to 
     peaceful enjoyment of the premises by other tenants.''.
       (2) Lease provisions.--Section 6(l) of the United States 
     Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437d(l)) is amended--
       (A) in paragraph (5), by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (B) by redesignating paragraph (6) as paragraph (7); and
       (C) by inserting after paragraph (5) the following new 
     paragraph:
       ``(6) provide that any occupancy in violation of the 
     provisions of section 7(a)(5)(A) or the furnishing of any 
     false or misleading information pursuant to section 
     7(a)(5)(B) shall be cause for termination of tenancy; and''.
       (b) Eviction of Nonelderly Tenants Having Drug or Alcohol 
     Use Problems From Public Housing Designated for Elderly 
     Families.--Section 7(c) of the United States Housing Act of 
     1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437e(c)) is amended to read as follows:
       ``(c) Standards Regarding Evictions.--
       ``(1) Limitation.--Any tenant who is lawfully residing in a 
     dwelling unit in a public housing project may not be evicted 
     or otherwise required to vacate such unit because of the 
     designation of the project (or a portion of the project) 
     pursuant to this section or because of any action taken by 
     the Secretary or any public housing agency pursuant to this 
     section.
       ``(2) Requirement to evict nonelderly tenants for 3 
     instances of prohibited activity involving drugs or 
     alcohol.--With respect to a project (or portion of a project) 
     described in subsection (a)(5)(A), the public housing agency 
     administering the project shall evict any person who is not 
     an elderly person and who, during occupancy in the project 
     (or portion thereof), engages on 3 separate occasions 
     (occurring after the date of the enactment of the Housing and 
     Community Development Act of 1994) in any activity that 
     threatens the health, safety, or right to peaceful enjoyment 
     of the premises by other tenants and involves the use of 
     alcohol or drugs.
       ``(3) Rule or construction.--The provisions of paragraph 
     (2) requiring eviction of a person may not be construed to 
     require a public housing agency to evict any other persons 
     who occupy the same dwelling unit as the person required to 
     be evicted.''.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. PRESSLER:
  S. 2494. A bill to amend title 18 of the United States Code regarding 
false identification documents; to the Committee on the Judiciary.


                        false identification act

  Mr. PRESSLER. Mr. President, I am pleased to introduce legislation 
designed to attack a growing problem: the use of false identification 
documents [IDs] by young people under 21 years of age.
  Several years ago, Congress conditioned Federal highway funding on 
the requirement that States have a minimum drinking age of at least 21 
years. Since then, all 50 States have come into compliance. One 
consequence has been a dramatic increase in the use of false IDs by 
young people under 21 years of age to illegally purchase alcoholic 
beverages. An underground black market supplying cheap documents has 
developed to satisfy this demand. The prevalence of counterfeit IDs 
poses a growing menace to the licensed beverage industry. It is time 
for Congress to act on this problem.
  The bill I am introducing today attacks this problem in three ways. 
First, it reduces, from five to three, the number of false 
identification documents that must be in an individual's possession 
before a prison sentence, a fine, or both, can be imposed under Federal 
law. Second, it requires a prison sentence, a fine, or both for anyone 
convicted of using the mail to send a false ID to someone under 21 
years of age. Third, the bill directs the U.S. Attorney General to 
establish a temporary pilot program for States to adopt an ID that is 
resistant to counterfeiting and tampering.
  Mr. President, let me explain each of these provisions in more 
detail. The first provision tightens current Federal law which provides 
penalties for knowingly possessing or transferring unlawfully five or 
more false identification documents. The number of false IDs necessary 
to trigger this law would be reduced from five to three. Someone 
convicted under this provision would face a fine of up to $15,000, 
imprisonment of up to 3 years, or both.
  This bill is not directed at someone under 21 years of age who 
possesses one or two false IDs. These days, it is far too easy and 
cheap to buy a fake ID. A recent report by the U.S. Department of 
Health and Human Services stated that minors can get State driver's 
license in Times Square in New York City for $10 to $15 each. Young 
people always have attempted to buy alcohol at an early age. I doubt 
Congress can do anything to stop this practice.
  But Congress can make false documents more difficult to obtain by 
cracking down on those in the business of illegally producing and 
transferring false ID's. By stiffening federal penalties, high-volume 
production and distribution of false ID's should be deterred.
  The second provision of this bill creates a new penalty for using the 
mails to distribute false ID's. Under this provision, anyone who 
knowingly sends an identification document showing an individual to be 
21 years old or older through the mails--without first verifying the 
individual's actual age--can be imprisoned for up to 1 year, be fined, 
or both. Verification can be satisfied by viewing a certification or 
other written communication confirming the age of the individual being 
identified.
  This provision attempts to stem the interstate distribution of false 
ID's. Forty-six States currently have laws prohibiting youths from 
misrepresenting their age in order to purchase alcohol. But nothing 
prohibits minors from obtaining false ID's from other States through 
the mail. Tough Federal action is necessary. This provision will affect 
businesses specializing in mail-order false ID's.
  The final provision of this bill directs the U.S. Attorney General to 
establish a pilot program in three States to develop and study 
identification documents which are resistant to counterfeiting and 
tampering. Five million dollars over 3 fiscal years is authorized for 
this purpose. After 3 years, the Attorney General shall report to 
Congress on the performance of the pilot program and recommend whether 
to extend the program to all States on a voluntary or mandatory basis.
  This last provision is critical to solving the problems presented by 
false identification documents. With modern computer graphic programs, 
counterfeiting a driver's license is child's play for a sophisticated 
computer user. Today's Washington Times contains a front-page article 
entitled ``Fake ID's Surmount High-Tech Obstacles: Underage Drinkers 
Flock To Buy Them''. The article describes how easily falsified 
identification documents can be created by computers and the steps 
various States are taking in response. Maryland driver's licenses now 
include a hologram, two separate pictures and a magnetic strip in an 
effort to make counterfeiting more difficult. However, even these 
measures are being duplicated with relative ease.
  Newer techniques must be explored and developed if this homegrown 
industry is going to be defeated. Creating an identification card which 
is difficult to counterfeit and virtually tamperproof would have far-
reaching implications in other areas as well. Illegal immigrants no 
longer would be able to defraud Federal and State governments of untold 
amounts per year. Welfare fraud could be reduced substantially. This 
modest investment has the potential to save taxpayers billions of 
dollars each year.
  To conclude, Mr. President, let me say this legislation has the 
support of the National Licensed Beverage Association and the South 
Dakota Retail Liquor Dealers Association. I urge my colleagues to join 
them in supporting this legislation.
  I further ask that an article from the Washington Times be included 
in the Record at this point. I also ask consent that the bill be 
printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                                S. 2494

       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 ``False Identification Act of 
     1994''.

     SEC. 2. MINIMUM NUMBER OF DOCUMENTS FOR CERTAIN OFFENSE.

       Section 1028 of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)(3), by striking ``five'' and 
     inserting ``3''; and
       (2) in subsection (b)(1)(B), by striking ``five'' and 
     inserting ``3''.

     SEC. 3. REQUIRED VERIFICATION OF MAILED IDENTIFICATION 
                   DOCUMENTS.

       (a) In General.--Chapter 83 of title 18, United States 
     Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:

     ``Sec. 1739. Verification of identification documents

       ``(a) Whoever knowingly sends through the mails any 
     unverified identification document which bears a birth date--
       ``(1) purporting to be that of the individual named in the 
     document; and
       ``(2) showing that individual to be 21 years of age or 
     older;
     when in fact that individual has not attained the age of 21 
     years, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more 
     than one year, or both.
       ``(b) As used in this section--
       ``(1) the term `unverified', with respect to an 
     identification document, means that the sender has not 
     personally viewed a certification or other written 
     communication confirming the age of the individual to be 
     identified in the document from--
       ``(A) a governmental entity within the United States or any 
     of its territories or possessions; or
       ``(B) a duly licensed physician, hospital, medical clinic 
     within the United States; and
       ``(2) the term ``identification document'' means a card, 
     certificate, or paper intended to be used primarily to 
     identify an individual.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of chapter 83 of title 18, United States Code, is 
     amended by adding at the end the following new item:

``1739. Verification of identification documents.''.

       (c) Conforming Amendment.--Section 3001(a) of title 39, 
     United States Code, is amended by striking ``or 1738'' and 
     inserting ``1738, or 1739''.

     SEC. 4. PILOT PROGRAM ON USE OF CERTAIN DRIVERS' LICENSES AS 
                   DOCUMENTS ESTABLISHING BOTH EMPLOYMENT 
                   AUTHORIZATION AND IDENTITY.

       (a) In General.--The Attorney General shall establish a 
     pilot program under which, in the case of up to three States 
     which provide for the issuance of drivers' licenses (and 
     related identification documents) in accordance with a system 
     described in subsection (b), a driver's license or similar 
     identification document issued by the States in accordance 
     with subsection (b) shall be treated, for purposes of section 
     274A(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as a document 
     described in paragraph (1)(B) of such section.
       (b) System Requirements.--The system for the issuance of 
     licenses or documents must--
       (1) be in a form which is resistant to counterfeiting and 
     tampering, such as tamper-proof laminates and photographs, 
     holograms, or magnetic stripes containing such data as 
     physical characteristics;
       (2) include on the driver's license or other form of 
     identification the applicant's social security account 
     number, which number the State has confirmed with the Social 
     Security Administration as being the number issued to the 
     applicant; and
       (3) require that an applicant for a driver's license or 
     other form of identification be issued a temporary driver's 
     license or other form of identification upon demonstrating 
     qualification therefore, and that the driver's license or 
     other form of identification be mailed to the residence 
     address of the applicant after a waiting period of no more 
     than 30 days in which the State has used reasonable means to 
     confirm the identification information presented by the 
     applicant.
       (c) Report.-- Not later than 3 years after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, the Attorney General shall submit a 
     report to the Congress on the performance of the pilot 
     program under this section and on whether such program should 
     be extended (on a voluntary or mandatory basis) to all 
     States.
       (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized 
     to be appropriated $5,000,000 to carry out the purposes of 
     this section for each of fiscal years 1995, 1996, and 1997.
                                  ____


               [From the Washington Times, Oct. 3, 1994]

 Fake IDs Surmount High-tech Obstacles--Underage Drinkers Flock to Buy 
                                  Them

                           (By Matt Neufeld)

       The high-tech revolution has helped boost one local cottage 
     industry with a potentially lethal product: fake 
     identification cards for underaged drinkers.
       Illegal, falsified ID cards are prevalent among underage 
     drinkers, especially college students, and their production 
     flourishes no matter how many steps authorities take to make 
     them difficult to copy, police and government officials say.
       ``Fake IDs are rampant,'' said Trina Leonard, an aide to 
     Montgomery County Council member Gail Ewig, who is also 
     chairwoman of the Maryland Underage Drinking Prevention 
     Coalition. ``Fake IDs are an enormous problem among teen-
     agers because they frequently are a passport to death and 
     injury for kids.''
       The use and manufacture of fake IDs has been a concern of 
     parents, police and state motor vehicle authorities for 
     decades. The problem surfaced again after Friday's 
     announcement that three of the four Walt Whitman High School 
     girls involved in the Sept. 6 double-fatal car crash in 
     Potomac were carrying fake IDs.
       The girls did not use their IDs that night, Montgomery 
     County police said, but relied instead on another way in 
     which teens procure alcohol: They had an adult buy 2\1/2\ 
     cases of beer for them from a liquor store in Georgetown the 
     night of the crash.
       One mother of a boy who knew the girls later found four 
     different phony IDs in her own son's wallet, she told 
     friends.
       Even as states take dozens of precautions in preparing 
     high-technology licenses designated to be difficult to copy, 
     technology-savvy students and underground counterfeiters 
     match the authorities' steps in meticulous and frustrating 
     ways.
       ``It continues to be a problem, because, as police say, no 
     matter how tough they get, kids are smart and they always 
     find a way to get them,'' said Tim Kime, a spokesman for the 
     Washington Regional Alcohol Program, a private advocacy 
     group.
       ``We live in the age of computers, and you can do wonderful 
     things with a computer. You get the right background [cloth], 
     the picture, the laminator, and you've got a pretty good 
     ID,'' said Sgt. David Dennison, who heads the Prince George's 
     County police collision analysis and reconstruction unit. The 
     unit's responsibilities include drunken driving and underage 
     drinking.
       ``You bet there's some computer geniuses out there at these 
     colleges who find it very easy to do,'' Sgt. Dennison said. 
     ``If they can print money with computers, driver's licenses 
     aren't that hard.''
       In the Potomac crash, driver Elizabeth Clark, 16, and a 
     front seat passenger, Katherine Zirkle, 16, were killed when 
     Elizabeth's 1987 BMW hit a tree along River Road at 12:55 
     a.m.
       Two friends riding in the back seat, Elinor ``Nori'' 
     Andres, 15, and Gretchen Sparrow, 16, were hospitalized with 
     serious injuries but were released last week.
       Police said Elizabeth had a blood-alcohol level of .17 
     percent, nearly double the .10 percent level that state law 
     defines as driving while intoxicated. Katherine's blood-
     alcohol level as .03 percent, police said.
       In Maryland, minors with a blood-alcohol level of .02 
     percent can have their licenses taken on the spot.
       Detecting homegrown phony IDs isn't always easy, 
     authorities say.
       ``In fact, some police officers on the street couldn't tell 
     the different unless they thoroughly examine them. You can be 
     fooled,'' said Sgt. John Daly of the Metropolitan Police 
     check and fraud division.
       Earlier this year, Maryland introduced driver's licenses 
     with holograms, two separate pictures and a magnetic strip in 
     an effort to counter the counterfeiters.
       ``But the kids are duplication those,'' said Ms. Leonard, 
     the Montgomery council aide. ``A police officer told me that 
     [soon] after those came out, a kid took electrical tape and 
     put it on fake ID.''
       Although many high school students have fake IDs, police 
     find that most of them are manufactured, distributed and used 
     by college students. The IDs are bought, sold and distributed 
     through an underground black market spread by word of mouth.
       Area students often make or procure fake IDs in the form of 
     licenses from far-away states such as Iowa or Kansas, 
     thinking local businesses won't know the difference. A widely 
     known legal guidebook available to businesses shows up-to-
     date pictures of licenses from every state, but police say 
     that many merchants are too lazy to consult it.
                                  ____


                     Three Charged in Fake-ID Scam

       Charlottesville.--Three former University of Virginia 
     students have been charged in what police said was a scheme 
     to pass stolen student identification cards and fraudulent 
     checks.
       Police at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 
     said the ring operated in two states. Based in 
     Charlottesville, it included several former members of Alpha 
     Phi Alpha, a service fraternity at the University of Virginia 
     that was suspended in 1992 after a hazing incident.
       Investigators believe the students stole about 400 UNC-
     Chapel Hill ID cards in January to pass stolen or 
     counterfeited checks and to get state ID cards in North 
     Carolina and Virginia.
       North Carolina authorities last week charged Canu C. 
     DiBona, 21, of Durham, N.C., with one count of felony 
     financial transaction card theft. Marcus A. Tucker, 23, of 
     Charlottesville was arrested Sept. 15 on several charges, 
     including felony financial transaction card theft and two 
     counts of forgery.
       Authorities said Phillipe Zamore, 21, also of 
     Charlottesville also was implicated in the scheme. He was 
     arrested in April and charged with felony larceny after 
     attempting to use an illegally obtained credit card at a 
     University of Virginia bookstore.
       Authorities said more arrests are expected.
       Investigators said the cards reportedly have turned up as 
     far away as New York and Florida. Near the UNC-Chapel Hill 
     campus alone, the ring has used up to $20,000 in bad checks, 
     Lt. Clay Williams of the campus police said.
       Police said members of the alleged ring used sophisticated 
     equipment to read information on magnetic tape on the backs 
     of the IDs, and even printed their own checks with a laser 
     printer.
       ``All these kids are smart--that's what's striking about 
     this,'' Lt. Williams said. ``We have very intelligent young 
     men--extremely computer literate, highly articulate--that 
     could be upstanding professionals in the community, but 
     instead they chose the lure of fast money.''
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. MURKOWSKI (for himself, Mr. Bond, Mr. Chafee, Mr. Cochran, 
        Mr. Coverdell, Mr. Craig, Mr. D'Amato, Mr. DeConcini, Mr. 
        Dorgan, Mr. Durenberger, Mr. Feingold, Mr. Gorton, Mr. Inouye, 
        Mr. Hatch, Mr. Helms, Mr. Jeffords, Mr. Kohl, Mr. Lautenberg, 
        Mr. Leahy, Mr. Levin, Mr. Lugar, Mr. Mack, Mr. McCain, Ms. 
        Moseley-Braun, Mr. Robb, Mr. Rockefeller, Mr. Shelby, Mr. 
        Simon, Mr. Specter, Mr. Stevens, Mr. Thurmond, and Mr. 
        Wofford):
  S. 2495. A bill to establish a congressional commemorative medal for 
organ and tissue donors and their families; to the Committee on 
Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.


                    gift of life congressional medal

 Mr. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I introduce legislation to 
create a Gift of Life Congressional Medal. I am pleased that Senator 
Rockefeller and 29 of my colleagues are cosponsoring this bill. This 
medal will recognize the compassion and courage of organ and tissue 
donating families and encourage others to make a similar sacrifice. 
Each day eight Americans on organ transplant lists will die. In 
addition, every 20 minutes another name is added to the list of those 
awaiting transplants. The need for organ and tissue donors is serious 
and becoming more desperate with each passing day.
  Many of us ask; how much can one person matter? A single organ and 
tissue donor can touch the lives of 50 or more people. Donated kidneys 
can spare two recipients a lifetime of dialysis. The heart, liver, and 
lungs can save the lives of four more people. Donated corneas can give 
two people the gift of sight. Donated bone allows surgeons to repair 
injured joints or limbs threatened by cancer or trauma. Skin grafts 
will save burn victim's lives and speed their healing.
  This bill will authorize the Treasury to strike a medal to be 
presented to the families of organ and tissue donors. Each family of an 
organ or tissue donor would be offered the medal and would have the 
option of accepting or declining it. Documentation of eligibility would 
be submitted to the Secretary of the Treasury by the individual, family 
or procurement agency, on behalf of the donating family. The Gift of 
Life medal would be fully funded by private donations and recognize 
donors and their families at no cost to the Treasury.
  By recognizing the generosity of donating families, a Gift of Life 
commemorative medal could increase the number of organ and tissue 
donations and save lives as well as money. Thousands of beneficiaries 
have been removed from Medicare's End Stage Renal Disease Program after 
successful kidney transplants. Yet, 20,000 patients remain on dialysis 
at the cost of $390 million per year in Federal Medicare dollars.
  This bill is the brainchild of Donmichael Taube, of Chicago, IL, the 
recipient of a kidney transplant. Because of organ transplant network 
rules all organ and tissue donations are made anonymously. Donmichael 
has sought a way for transplant recipients to thank those who have been 
so generous. The Gift of Life commemorative medal would be one way that 
our country can express our gratitude to the donors and their families 
on behalf of the recipients. In addition, by creating and awarding this 
medal, Congress can draw attention to the desperate need for organ and 
tissue donors.

  This proposal is similar to H.R. 1012 proposed by Representative Pete 
Stark, with one important difference. My bill, at the recommendation of 
Jens Saakvitne and David McGuire, medical doctors of Life Alaska, Inc., 
would expand the scope of Representative Stark's bill to include tissue 
donors. As they stated in a letter to me:

       it seems inappropriate to treat donor families differently 
     in thanking them when the family has no control over the 
     manner of death that decides what donation options can be 
     presented. Each family gave all they could in order to save 
     the life or livelihood of another human being.

  Life Alaska, Inc., based in Anchorage, is Alaska's only nonprofit 
tissue donation agency.
  I would also like to submit for the Record an article published in 
Encore Magazine detailing the story of just one organ donor family. One 
of my staff members had the opportunity to speak with the author of 
this article, Susan Warwick. Since the death of her son and the 
subsequent decision to donate his organs, Susan has become a staunch 
advocate for organ donation. She stated that in her experience too 
often donating families receive little or no feedback about the success 
and progress of the organ recipients. In her opinion the Gift of Life 
Congressional Medal would be an excellent way for the country to convey 
our gratitude and respect to the donating families.
  I would also like to submit for the Record just three of the many 
letters that my office has received supporting this legislation.
  There are many pieces to the transplantation puzzle: Procurement 
police, organ and tissue procurement networks, immunosuppressive drugs, 
and gifted medical teams, but they mean nothing without the most 
important piece of the transplantation puzzle--the organ or tissue 
donors and their families. These brave people, in their time of 
greatest need, reach out to complete strangers and offer the ultimate 
gift--the gift of life. The Gift of Life Congressional Medal will 
encourage that final piece of the puzzle to fall into place by 
recognizing the contribution of donors to their fellow Americans and to 
our country. I urge my colleagues to join me as original cosponsors to 
the Gift of Life Congressional Medal Act.
  I ask unanimous consent that additional material be printed in the 
Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                              Andy's Story

                         (By Susan B. Warwick)

       It was 1992, and one of those cloudy, humid days in July 
     that linger in the midwest. My ``almost 18-year-old'' son, 
     Andy, was getting ready for work--a construction job that he 
     loved because it was working for his girlfriend's father. 
     Andy was going to take his new motorcycle to Lisa's house and 
     follow her dad to the site. Fate intervened tragically.
       The police arrived at my work around 8 a.m. to tell me that 
     my son had been in an accident. The doctors at Terre Haute 
     (Indiana) Union Hospital needed me immediately.
       Andy had been riding motorcycles and scooters for several 
     years. He was a safe motorcycle driver. He took the local 
     motorcycle safety course and always wore his helmet. I never 
     worried about him on his cycle; behind the wheel on my car, 
     he was dangerous! So, although I knew it must be serious, I 
     did not dream that on this day I would live through every 
     parent's nightmare.
       I rushed into the emergency ward and was ushered to a 
     private room. There, waiting, was a nurse, doctor, and police 
     officer. The medical staff explained what happened to Andy 
     and let me be with him. As soon as I saw him I knew that my 
     first born son would not make it through the day. I suppose a 
     mother knows these things. The young doctor said Andy's 
     condition was critical. ``There's always hope. But, if the 
     worst happens, would you consider organ donation?'' I don't 
     think I let him finish his question.
       ``Of course! Take anything you can! Andy and I have always 
     talked about organ donation. It's what we both would want.''
       That was the easiest thing I had to think about that day. I 
     didn't realize until later how lucky I was simply because 
     Andy and I did talk about it; I didn't have to make an 
     unprepared decision. It was a ``given.''
       As the progressed, Andy was transferred to the intensive 
     care unit. Andy's father, stepmother, and my 16-year-old son, 
     Scott, lived in Birmingham, Alabama. They rushed to the 
     airport and arrived in Terre Haute by late afternoon. 
     Unfortunately, Lisa was vacationing in Mexico and couldn't 
     come home immediately.
       Nurses gave us a special room close to my son. They 
     explained the procedures for organ donation and the system 
     that the Indiana Organ Procurement Organization (IOPO) 
     followed. I gratefully signed the papers that allowed the 
     (IOPO) to take all organs, bones, eyes and skin. I found out 
     that the IOPO pays for all bills after the declaration of 
     brain death. I learned the hospital's procedure for 
     determining brain death and was allowed to watch the testing. 
     Ice water was injected in my son's ear while the medical 
     staff looked for any reaction in the eyes. Believe me, if 
     Andy was alive, he would have reacted. Scott had his own way 
     of knowing Andy was brain dead. It had to do with your pretty 
     blonde nurse bending close to Andy's face.
       ``Andy would have reacted to her, Mon, if he was alive.'' 
     This, of course, we didn't tell Lisa.


                            a long day ends

       Other tests to determine brain death were done late in the 
     afternoon. One checked if Andy could breathe without a 
     ventilator. He could. This meant there was still enough blood 
     getting to his brain stem to keep his body going. I had mixed 
     emotions. I didn't want to see my son die, but life without 
     movement, without being able to hold his girlfriend or hug 
     his mom, would not be the kind of life my very intense son 
     would want.
       At 11:30 that night, the problem was resolved. Andy did not 
     breathe when removed from the respirator. My son, Michael 
     Andrew Rawlings, lover of the sea, all animals (including the 
     slithery kind); the theater, and life was dead.
       We were encouraged to say our ``good-byes,'' and we wearily 
     left. The nursing staff kept me posted throughout the next 
     day. In the middle of the night, IOPO came and started the 
     long process of matching Andy's organs to recipients. The 
     next evening, it was all over. The burial was two days later, 
     allowing Lisa to come home.
       At least it was over for Andy. The story would continue at 
     the Indiana transplant centers where the recipients of his 
     organs underwent long surgeries that would offer them a 
     chance for life.
       Andy donated his heart, both lungs, both kidney's, leg 
     bones, bone marrow, every other rib, skin and corneas. We 
     still were able to have an open casket.
       Nine days later, I received a letter from IOPO. Andy's 
     heart went to a young mother of two boys. She got heart 
     disease when she was pregnant with her youngest. In the last 
     year, since her transplant, she received her college degree. 
     His lungs went to two older women who were both on oxygen. 
     Unfortunately, they died in December--not from organ 
     rejection--but from other complications. At least they were 
     given five more months of life. One of my son's kidneys went 
     to a man who lived to race cars. He has now been approved to 
     return to work and, I'm sure, is looking forward to going to 
     the racetrack.
       Andy's other kidney went to a 15-year-old boy who had been 
     on dialysis for five years. Our hearts went out to this young 
     man. At first, doctors feared it would be rejected. My 
     November letter from IOPO said he made it through! That news 
     brightened what was still a dreary period. The bones went to 
     orthopedic centers and skin to burn centers across Indiana. I 
     was sorry Andy could not donate his liver or pancreas for 
     whatever reason, but I concentrated on the ``gift of life'' 
     that he gave to so many others.
       You see, as a scuba diver, Andy wanted to go into the Coast 
     Guard either in drug enforcement (every mother's dream!) or 
     search and rescue. He always wanted to save people's lives.
       Yes, my son is dead. But I feel this is a fitting end for 
     him. He saved three lives, gave additional time to two 
     others, gave sight to some who could not see, helped broken 
     bones heal, and eliminated some pain and disfigurement in 
     burn patients.


                            staying focused

       That's Andy's story. How did I handle all of this? 
     Naturally, I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy, but the 
     entire process of organ donation kept me focused on a more 
     acceptable horizon than my son's death. On that terrible day, 
     I learned there had been only four organ donors in the city 
     in two years. I expected thousands--well at least, hundreds! 
     Organ donation became my banner.
       I was directed to a group, Organ Donation Awareness 
     Council, that included mostly transplant recipients and 
     medical staff. I became, I hope, the first of many Donor 
     Moms. The Council's purpose is awareness and education. 
     Perfect! I was more than ready to start what later would 
     become my life.
       Five weeks after the accident, I started speaking to 
     community and professional groups. The first program was very 
     difficult. My eyes were watery, nose dripping, I couldn't 
     swallow, and my voice was three octaves higher than usual. 
     However, I could feel Andy in the background applauding my 
     efforts. The cause he initiated, I continued gratefully.
                                  ____

                                                Life Alaska, Inc.,


                                  Tissue Procurement Services,

                                     Anchorage, AK, April 5, 1994.
     Hon. Frank Murkowski,
     U.S. Senate,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator Murkowski: Life Alaska, Inc., Alaska's only 
     non-profit tissue donation agency has now been in operation 
     for two years and has supplied over 250 transplant grafts in 
     Alaska. We have had over 130 tissue donors from all over the 
     State, and will continue to provide this precious tissue with 
     priority to the Alaskan community. Thank you for your early 
     support of this worthwhile endeavor.
       Life Alaska was just made aware of H.R. 1012 introduced in 
     the House in Feb. of 1993 by Mr. Stark. This Bill is to 
     establish a congressional medal for organ donors and their 
     families. On behalf of Life Alaska, Inc., and as a member of 
     the Public and Professional Donation Committee of the 
     American Association of Tissue Banks (AATB), we request you 
     to help expand this bill to include families of tissue donors 
     as well.
       The current Bill was drafted without input from any organ 
     or tissue donation agency that we are aware of on a local or 
     national basis. While the purpose of the Bill is altruistic 
     and commendable, it does not address the majority of donor 
     families. Every year, there are approximately twice as many 
     tissue donors, and four times as many eye donors as there are 
     organ donors. All of these families have made a compassionate 
     and courageous decision at a tragic time. It seems 
     inappropriate to treat donor families differently in thanking 
     them when the family has no control over the manner of death 
     that decides what donation options can be presented. Each 
     family gave all they could in order to help save the life or 
     livelihood of another human being. A medal of thanks would be 
     a way of honoring these wonderful gifts.
       Life Alaska, Inc. would be very willing to pay the expenses 
     related to issuance of the medals we request for Alaska's 
     tissue donor families. I believe that other tissue banks 
     would also be willing to purchase the commemorative medals. 
     The responsibility for obtaining and presenting the medal is 
     also best handled by the involved procurement agency.


                           possible amendment

       Insert ``organ and tissue'' wherever the word ``organ'' 
     appears.

     SEC. 3. ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS.

       (a) In General.--Any organ or tissue donor, or the family 
     of any organ or tissue donor, shall be eligible for a bronze 
     medal referred to in section 2.
       (b) Documentation.--The Secretary of Health and Human 
     Services shall establish an application procedure requiring 
     an individual or family, or an organ or tissue procurement 
     agency on the family's behalf, to submit to the Secretary 
     documentation to support the eligibility . . .

     SEC. 9. ORGANS AND TISSUES DEFINED.

       For purposes of this Act, the term ``organ'' means the 
     human kidney, liver, heart, lung, pancreas, and any other 
     human organ (other than corneas and eyes) specified by the 
     Secretary of Human Services by regulation. The term 
     ``tissue'' refers to human tissues including corneas, eyes, 
     bone, tendons, vein, skin, and heart-valves.
       The inclusion of tissue donor families to this Bill will 
     give well deserved thanks to the 50,000 cornea and tissue 
     donor families not currently mentioned. An added benefit is 
     that inclusion would be a major step in informing the donor 
     family friends and communities about the donation option. The 
     end result is sure to be an increase in the number of 
     families that are willing to give the special gift of organ 
     and tissue donation.
       H.R. 1012 is currently stalled in the House Banking, 
     Finance & Urban Affairs Subcommittee on Consumer Credit and 
     Insurance. Another 68 co-sponsors are needed before the 
     subcommittee will take action. Any efforts to move this Bill 
     ahead and include tissues would be greatly appreciated. Thank 
     you for your time and efforts.
           Sincerely,
     Jens Saakvitne,
       Director.
     David A. McGuire, MD,
       Medical Director.
                                  ____

                                     Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,


                                       Office of the Governor,

                                        Harrisburg, July 18, 1994.
     Mr. Stephen McCarthy,
     Office of Senator Murkowski,
     U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
       Dear Mr. McCarthy: Thank you for your recent letter 
     requesting support for Senator Murkowski's legislation 
     regarding a congressional commemorative medal for organ and 
     tissue donors and their families. Any proposal that increases 
     public awareness of the importance of organ donation is 
     worthy of my endorsement.
       More than 34,000 people are waiting for organ transplants 
     in the United States today. Tragically, seven people die each 
     day without receiving a transplant since the donor shortage 
     is so severe. To address this crisis we have dramatically 
     increased our outreach efforts. We have distributed organ 
     donor cards in the paycheck of every state employee, placed 
     organ donor brochures in every welcome center along 
     Pennsylvania highways and provided organ donor information 
     and stickers with each driver's license renewal form. In 
     addition, I have supported legislation that is pending before 
     our General Assembly that will encourage greater voluntary 
     consent for organ donations and increase educational programs 
     for high school students throughout the state.
       Senator Murkowski's efforts are commendable and I am 
     honored to be asked to support his legislation. My family and 
     I have personally experienced the miracle of organ donation 
     and we will never forget the organ donor and his family who 
     granted me a second chance at life. A commemorative medal 
     would be a tremendous expression of appreciation for their 
     sacrifice.
           Sincerely,
                                                  Robert P. Casey,
     Governor.
                                  ____



                           Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions,

                                     Baltimore, MD, July 14, 1994.
     Re Gift of Life Congressional Medal.

     Hon. Frank H. Murkowski,
     U.S. Senate,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator Murkowski: It is my pleasure to write to you 
     in support of your proposed bill establishing a ``Gift of 
     Life Congressional Medal'' to be awarded to families of organ 
     and tissue donors. In this country we are presently 
     experiencing a critical shortage of organs and tissues for 
     transplantation. As the chief of transplantation at Johns 
     Hopkins and director of our liver transplant program, I am 
     painfully aware of the fact that 15-20% of patients awaiting 
     a potentially life-saving liver transplant will die because a 
     replacement liver cannot be identified for them. This is 
     especially upsetting when we realize that, had we been able 
     to find an organ for them, 80% of these people would recover 
     fully and return to active and productive lives. I 
     enthusiastically support the efforts of people such as 
     yourself who are obviously committed to promoting organ and 
     tissue donation in the United States. I believe that the 
     ``Gift of Life Congressional Medal'' which recognizes the 
     generosity and compassion of families who have suffered the 
     loss of a loved one will be an effective means of heightening 
     donor awareness. I wholeheartedly endorse your efforts in 
     this area.
           Very sincerely,
     Andrew S. Klein, M.D.

                          ____________________