[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 62 (Tuesday, April 4, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5140-S5141]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                        PETITIONS AND MEMORIALS

  The following petitions and memorials were laid before the Senate and 
were referred or ordered to lie on the table as indicated:

       POM-87. A resolution adopted by the Board of Commissioners 
     of the County of Granville, North Carolina relative to 
     tobacco; to the Committee on Labor and Human Resources.
       POM-88. A resolution adopted by the Senate of the 
     Commonwealth of Pennsylvania; to the Committee on Labor and 
     Human Resources.

                          ``Resolution No. 10

       ``Whereas, The Low-Income Energy Assistance Program 
     (LIHEAP) is a federally funded program to help low-income 
     families pay their heating bills; and
       ``Whereas, Eligibility for the program is set at 135% of 
     poverty level (maximum income of $19,900 for a family of 
     four) and LIHEAP reaches fewer than one-half of the eligible 
     households in Pennsylvania; and
       ``Whereas, Persons can receive one LIHEAP I grant a year 
     and crisis payments to a maximum amount of $250 for emergency 
     situations with the average LIHEAP I grant being $167 and 
     average crisis grant amounting to $231; and
       ``Whereas, LIHEAP serves Pennsylvania citizens with great 
     needs. Thirty-two percent of the persons receiving aid are 
     Social Security recipients, 26% are welfare recipients, 20% 
     are working poor, 11% are supplemental security income 
     recipients and 3% receive unemployment benefits; and
       ``Whereas, Due to funding reductions, the program is no 
     longer available during times of greatest need, thereby 
     exacerbating health and safety needs; and
       ``Whereas, For example, the average LIHEAP grant assisted 
     the neediest gas utility customers with 40.6% of their gas 
     bills in 1985, but only provided assistance for 17.4% of the 
     gas bills in 1994, one of the worst winters in the history of 
     the country; and
       ``Whereas, This heating season, 1994-1995, the Federal 
     appropriation for LIHEAP in Pennsylvania is 87.9 million 
     dollars, the lowest in the history of the program; and
       ``Whereas, Sources of funds used by states to supplement 
     LIHEAP such as the Energy Conservation Assistance Fund (ECAF) 
     will be exhausted in 1995; therefore, be it
       ``Resolved, That the Senate of the Commonwealth of 
     Pennsylvania urge the President of the United States to 
     maintain the 1994-1995 funding levels for LIHEAP and to 
     refrain from any further reductions; and be it further
       ``Resolved, That Congress is urged to reject any proposal 
     to reduce LIHEAP funding; and be it further
       ``Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted 
     to the President of the United States, the presiding officers 
     of each house of Congress and to each member of Congress from 
     Pennsylvania.''
                                                                    ____

       POM-89. A joint resolution adopted by the Legislature of 
     the Commonwealth of Virginia; to the Committee on Labor and 
     Human Resources.

                   ``Senate Joint Resolution No. 335

       ``Whereas, the Personal Responsibility Act, a bill 
     introduced in the United States Congress, includes provisions 
     that would consolidate all nutrition programs into block 
     grants to the states with funding reduced to 95 percent of 
     their Fiscal Year 1995 appropriation level; and
       ``Whereas, this block grant would include the food stamp 
     program, the school lunch program, the Women, Infant and 
     Children's Nutrition Program (WIC), and the Senior Nutrition 
     components of the Older Americans Act; and
       ``Whereas, the Senior Nutrition Program has two service 
     components: (1) meals at congregate sites as the base for a 
     comprehensive program of wellness and recreation activities, 
     educational programs and access to other services, and (2) 
     home delivered meals (Meals on Wheels); and
       ``Whereas, the Senior Nutrition Programs are a fundamental 
     part of a comprehensive service system aimed at keeping older 
     people at home, supporting family caregivers, and avoiding 
     unnecessary and costly institutionalization; and
       ``Whereas, although the current program is not means-
     tested, it does serve those with the greatest economic need 
     and maintains the dignity of participants by providing 
     mechanisms for participants to contribute according to their 
     ability to pay; and
       ``Whereas, Senior Nutrition Programs have been long 
     established in the community and are supported through a vast 
     network of volunteers of all ages and through case and in-
     kind support from the private sector; and
       ``Whereas, Senior Nutrition Programs are time-tested, 
     successful examples of low cost, locally managed programs; 
     and
       ``Whereas, the Senior Nutrition Program is consumer focused 
     and has broad community support due to its flexibility and 
     its role as point-of-contact and link to the broader aging 
     services system; now, therefore, be it
       [[Page S5141]] ``Resolved by the Senate, the House of 
     Delegates concurring, That the United States Congress be 
     urged to maintain the integrity of the already established 
     comprehensive aging service system by deleting the portion of 
     the bill that would remove the Senior Nutrition Programs from 
     this service system, thereby preserving the integrity of the 
     Older Americans Act; and, be it
       ``Resolved further, That the Clerk of the Senate transmit 
     copies of this resolution to the President of the United 
     States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of 
     Representatives, and the members of the Virginia 
     Congressional Delegation so that they may be apprised of the 
     sense of the General Assembly of Virginia.''
                                                                    ____

       POM-90. A joint resolution adopted by the Legislature of 
     the State of Wyoming; to the Committee on Labor and Human 
     Resources.

                   ``Enrolled Joint Resolution No. 2

       ``Whereas, there is an urgent need to modify federal 
     mandates because the implementation of these mandates by the 
     state wastes the financial resources of Wyoming school 
     districts, the citizens of Wyoming and the state and does not 
     properly respect the rights of the state, its school 
     districts and citizens; and
       ``Whereas, the Tenth Amendment to the United States 
     Constitution directs that powers not delegated to the United 
     States are reserved to the states or to the people; and
       ``Whereas, Wyoming, as one of the sovereign states within 
     the union, has constitutional authority to enact laws 
     protecting the environment of the state and safeguarding the 
     public health, safety and welfare of the citizens of Wyoming; 
     and
       ``Whereas, this authority has too often been ignored by the 
     federal government which has intruded more and more into 
     areas better left to the states; and
       ``Whereas, it is essential that the dilution of the 
     authority of state and local governments be halted and that 
     the provisions of the Tenth Amendment be accorded proper 
     respect; and
       ``Whereas, current federal mandates, as reflected in P.L. 
     103-382, often do not reflect the realities of the Rocky 
     Mountain region and federal regulators frequently do not 
     understand the needs and priorities of the citizens of 
     Wyoming; and
       ``Whereas, the citizens of this state can create and wish 
     to create innovative solutions to Wyoming's problems, but 
     Wyoming is currently denied the flexibility necessary to 
     address these problems: Now, therefore, be it
       ``Resolved by the members of the legislature of the State 
     of Wyoming:
       ``Section 1. The members of the Wyoming legislature 
     strongly request the United States Congress to repeal the 
     Gun-Free Schools Act of 1994, P.L. 103-382.
       ``Section 2. That the Secretary of State of Wyoming 
     transmit copies of this resolution to the President of the 
     United States, to the President of the Senate and the Speaker 
     of the House of Representatives of the United States 
     Congress, to United States Secretary of Education and to the 
     Wyoming Congressional Delegation.''
                                                                    ____

       POM-91. A joint resolution adopted by the Legislature of 
     the State of Wyoming; to the Committee on Labor and Human 
     Resources.

                       ``A Legislative Resolution

       ``Whereas, the people of Wyoming have benefited from the 
     development of stronger and more accessible arts activity in 
     every county of the state because of the assistance provided 
     by the Wyoming Arts Council with support from the National 
     Endowment for the Arts; and
       ``Whereas, NEA funding of $601,300 in Fiscal Year 1994 
     combined with $296,281 provided by the State helped generate 
     $12.3 million in cash from local Wyoming communities; and
       ``Whereas, the Fiscal Year 1994 audience for arts 
     activities in Wyoming exceeded 1,135,000 citizens and 
     tourists; and
       ``Whereas, beyond the intrinsic value of arts education, 
     the teaching of art in the schools develops higher order 
     thinking, creativity and problem solving in students or 
     skills that carry over into all area of study; and
       ``Whereas, thousands of Wyoming school children of all ages 
     benefit from quality arts activities assisted by NEA funding 
     awarded through the Wyoming Arts Council; and
       ``Whereas, funding by the National Endowment for the Arts 
     through the Wyoming Arts Council helps Wyoming artists gain 
     regional and national attention; and
       ``Whereas, Direct National Endowment for the Arts funding 
     assists some of Wyoming's major arts institutions who bring 
     national and international attention to the state for their 
     artistic achievements; and
       ``Whereas, National Endowment for the Arts funding in 
     Wyoming and in other parts of the nation has enabled arts 
     organizations to win matching support from private sources; 
     and
       ``Whereas, all great nations support the arts knowing the 
     arts are vital to a society's well-being and Congress in 1965 
     noted `An advanced civilization must . . . give understanding 
     of the past, a better analysis of the present, and a better 
     view of the future.': Now, therefore, be it
       ``Resolved, that the 1995 Wyoming House of Representatives 
     and the Wyoming Senate do hereby encourage the Congress of 
     the United States of America to reauthorize continuation of 
     the National Endowment for the Arts and its sister agencies, 
     the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Institute 
     for Museum Services, and to provide adequate funding to 
     enable them to continue their leadership roles in our nation 
     on behalf of our country's culture.
       ``It is further resolved, that the Secretary of State or 
     Wyoming transmit copies of this resolution to the President 
     of the United States, to the President of the Senate and the 
     Speaker of the House of Representatives of the United States 
     Congress and to the Wyoming Congressional Delegation.''
                                                                    ____

       POM-92. A resolution adopted by the Legislature of the 
     Commonwealth of Massachusetts; to the Committee on Veterans' 
     Affairs.

    ``Resolutions Memorializing Congress to Prevent the Erosion of 
                          Veterans' Benefits.

       ``Whereas, the veterans of the armed services of the United 
     States have consistently risen above and beyond the call of 
     duty to our Nation; and
       ``Whereas, in the selfless defense of democracy and the 
     rights inherent in all men and women, the veterans of our 
     Nation have made incalculable and unyielding sacrifices in 
     the face of adversity and during the hardship of military 
     conflict; and
       ``Whereas, the scars of war remain in the minds and bodies 
     of those who have served our country bravely; and
       ``Whereas, the price of democracy and freedom is eternal 
     vigilance and our Nation must always call and rely upon our 
     armed services to preserve and expand these blessings; and
       ``Whereas, today, military personnel serve our Nation 
     throughout the world in such places as Korea, the Middle 
     East, Haiti and Somalia; and
       ``Whereas, there are those in our Nation presently who 
     would propose to alter, modify or diminish our solemn 
     covenant to provide for the needs of those who perform 
     military service on our behalf; and
       ``Whereas, the Congressional Budget Office, the Concord 
     Coalition, the Bipartisan Commission on Entitlement and Tax 
     Reform and the Office of Management and Budget have all 
     recently advanced proposals before the Congress and the 
     administration to reduce, restrict or eliminate those 
     benefits provided to our veterans; and
       ``Whereas, this Nation owes a great debt to those men and 
     women who have served and continue to serve on its behalf; 
     Now, therefore, be it
       ``Resolved, That the Massachusetts General Court expresses 
     its grateful appreciation to those men and women who 
     willingly gave their last ounce of devotion to their country 
     to keep the light of freedom glowing for this and future 
     generations and in furtherance of that appreciation the 
     Massachusetts General Court urges the United States Congress 
     to recognize the sacrifices of these men and women and to 
     prevent the further erosion of those benefits provided to the 
     veterans of our Armed Forces; and be it further
       ``Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be transmitted 
     forthwith by the clerk of the Senate to the presiding 
     officers of each branch of Congress and to the Members 
     thereof from this Commonwealth.''
     

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