[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 28 (Monday, February 13, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H1679-H1680]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 REPUBLICAN CRIME BILL GOOD FOR AMERICA

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Pennsylvania [Mr. Fox] is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. FOX of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, the Contract With America crime 
bill was introduced as H.R. No. 3, the Taking Back Our Streets Act. The 
bill strikes at the heart of the violent crime problem by fixing 
countless problems with the Clinton crime bill and fixing larger 
problems with the criminal justice system.
  The Clinton crime bill addressed the crime problem through more 
questionable social spending and sleight-of-hand changes in the 
criminal justice system. The Taking Back Our Streets Act, however, 
sends a tough warning to would-be criminals, do the crime, serve 
[[Page H1680]] the time. To facilitate the consideration of the crime 
bills on the House floor, H.R. 3 was divided into six bills: The Victim 
Restitution Act, which was passed; the Exclusionary Rule Reform Act, 
which was passed; the Violent Criminal Incarceration Act, which was 
passed; the Criminal Alien Deportation Act, which was passed; and the 
Effective Death Penalty Act.
  Now before the Congress is the Local Government Law Enforcement Block 
Grant. Today we continue to solidify the Republican approach to 
battling crime by considering that H.R. 728 measure, which is designed 
to place control of Federal anticrime dollars where it belongs, in the 
hands of the local law enforcement officials who are at the front line 
in the battle against crime, to decide for themselves where the funds 
should go for local programs.
  H.R. 728 replaces major portions of the President's crime package 
which passed last year. While the Clinton bill set up categorical 
grants with no local flexibility, this new legislation solves that 
problem by establishing block grants to help units of local government 
improve public safety.
  Use of funds under H.R. 728 can include the hiring of police 
officers, training and equipping law enforcement officers and support 
personnel. It can also be used to enhance local school security or 
establish crime prevention programs which directly involve law 
enforcement personnel such as community policing, town watch, drug 
courts, special programs to
 stop crimes against senior citizens, or prevention programs to stop 
abductions and exploitation of our children. This new bill does not 
affect in any way the police funding already established in the 1994 
crime bill.

  The bill authorizes $10 billion for law enforcement block grants over 
5 years with $2 billion to be distributed each year from 1996 through 
the year 2000. Most importantly, this bill allows localities greater 
flexibility responding to their own crime problems. Our own Chief 
William Kelly of Montgomery County, PA, has had programs instituted 
with community policing, which are really the outstanding ones of 
Pennsylvania and the country, I believe. District Attorney Mike 
Marino's outstanding community program with DUI offenders that pick up 
the litter all across the county have been the model for Pennsylvania. 
While crime statistics show that crime has been on the upswing, we know 
that we can with this bill make a real difference.
  The overwhelming incidence of crime occurs within State-level 
jurisdictions, so these authorities bear the primary responsibility for 
combating this mounting crisis. However, the Federal Government cannot 
abrogate its responsibility. Through the Contract With America, 
Republicans recognize that the best thing we can do is to allow the 
local authorities, through block grants, the opportunity and 
flexibility to fight crime in the manner best for each community by 
providing them with those block grants.
  The Clinton approach to battling crime was very different. After 
nearly a year of congressional hearings, markups, and floor votes, a 
delayed recess and weekend votes, the best the previous Congress could 
do was come up with expensive, Great-Society-type programs. In this new 
bill before the House it repeals many of the social experiments and 
replaces them with solid funding which can be used by the local 
authorities in the manner they think best to fit their needs. This 
represents a commonsense approach to battling crime on this Nation's 
streets.
  Finally, Congress is listening to the experts in law enforcement and 
have given them the tools they need to fight crime at home.
  Back in my home district of Montgomery County, PA, I have an 
anticrime advisory board which advises me on the best ways to battle 
crime locally. They have counseled me on how the Federal Government can 
assist them in their efforts without bankrupting this country. When 
they spoke, I listened, because they are the ones who are putting their 
lives on the line every day. They are the ones that see the damage that 
crime can cause.
  I applaud this new effort on crime as we set forth in our Contract 
With America. We may face criticism from those who are naysayers, who 
would rather keep this massive bureaucracy in Washington, which has 
actually hindered some of our anticrime efforts. But as long as I 
represent the people of Montgomery County, I will take my directions 
from them, not from the bureaucrats in Washington.

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