[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 203 (Monday, December 18, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H14975-H14976]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     EXTENSION OF AU PAIR PROGRAMS

  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and 
pass the Senate bill (S. 1465) to extend au pair programs.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                                S. 1465

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. EXTENSION OF AU PAIR PROGRAMS.

       (A) Repeal.--Section 8 of the Eisenhower Exchange 
     Fellowship Act of 1990 (Public Law 101-454) is repealed.
       (b) Authority for Au Pair Programs.--The Director of the 
     United States Information Agency is authorized to continue to 
     administer an au pair program, operating on a world-wide 
     basis, through fiscal year 1997.
       (c) Report.--Not later than October 1, 1996, the Director 
     of the United States Information Agency shall submit a report 
     regarding the continued extension of au pair programs to the 
     Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the 
     Committee on International Relations of the House of 
     Representatives. This report shall specifically detail the 
     compliance of all au pair organizations with regulations 
     governing au pair programs as published on February 15, 1995.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New 
Jersey [Mr. Smith] will be recognized for 20 minutes, and the gentleman 
from Maryland [Mr. Wynn] will be recognized for 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey [Mr. Smith].
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  The au pair program, which is reauthorized by S. 1465, is 
administered by the United States Information Agency, USIA, and it has 
been an effective means of giving young people from overseas an 
educational year in the United States and also providing hardworking 
American families with many hours per week of high-quality child care.
  The au pair program is a win-win situation, and I believe it deserves 
to be reauthorized.
  Several of our colleagues, Mr. Speaker, deserve very special credit 
for their persistent efforts to get this bill before us. I speak 
especially of the gentleman from California [Mr. Baker], who earlier 
this year appeared before our Subcommittee on International Operations 
and Human Rights and gave compelling testimony as to the value of this 
important program. I would also like to single out other strong 
proponents, including the gentleman from Virginia [Mr. Wolf], the 
gentleman from Virginia [Mr. Davis], and the gentleman from Virginia 
[Mr. Moran], and, of course, the gentleman from New York 

[[Page H14976]]
[Mr. Gilman], the chairman, and the ranking Democratic member, the 
gentleman from Indiana [Mr. Hamilton], who are also strong proponents 
of this as well.
  Mr. Speaker, this Congress has voted three times so far this year to 
reauthorize the au pair program, in the American Overseas Interests 
Act, which passed the House in June, the Foreign Operations 
Appropriations Act, and the Commerce, Justice and State Appropriations 
Act. Unfortunately, all three of these bills have been held up in the 
Senate or by the White House because of other issues, critically 
important issues, to be sure, but issues having nothing whatsoever to 
do with the au pair program.
  The solution clearly is to pass a freestanding au pair 
reauthorization bill.
  Mr. Speaker, the bill we are about to vote on has already been passed 
by the other body, and we are presenting this bill instead of an 
identical House bill so that we can get it to the President's desk 
immediately. The House bill was marked up Thursday in the Subcommittee 
on International Operations, and then the full Committee on 
International Relations took it up with a favorable recommendation 
later on the same day.
  The bill has bipartisan support, and I hope it will have unanimous 
support of this Chamber.
  Mr. Speaker, as I indicated, the Senate has already passed an 
identical bill. Hundreds of American families have been inconvenienced 
during the period since September 30 when the authorization for the au 
pair program inadvertently expired. This is a program we can fix today, 
and, as I said, the Senate has passed it, and I hope the President will 
sign it as soon as it crosses his desk.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. WYNN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  (Mr. WYNN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)

                              {time}  1315

  Mr. WYNN. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased that the gentleman from New York, 
Chairman Gilman, and our ranking member, the gentleman from Indiana, 
Mr. Hamilton, were able to work together on this bill to extend the 
authority of USIA to run the au pair program for another 2 years.
  The bill before us would change the existing program in two respects. 
First, it would open the program to applicants from countries around 
the world; and, second, it would allow the program to be run by any 
qualifying organization.
  I understand the au pair program brings many positive experiences 
both to au pairs and to their host families. The bill before us takes a 
prudent and practical approach to the extension of the program at this 
time, and on that basis I urge the adoption of the bill.
  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, I want to acknowledge the leadership which 
our colleague from New Jersey, Chris Smith, the chairman of the 
Subcommittee on International Operations and Human Rights. He has 
played a key role in the effort to resolve the future of the au pair 
program. I also want to recognize the chairman of the full Committee on 
International Relations, Congressman Ben Gilman of New York, and our 
the ranking Democratic member of the committee, Congressman Lee 
Hamilton of Indiana. They have also played a critical role in dealing 
with this issue.
  The au pair program has been in a state of uncertainty for a number 
of years, and it has been extended temporarily several times. The 
authorization for the operation of this program expired on September 30 
of this year, and the legislation which we approved in this House to 
extend the program has not yet passed both houses of the Congress. For 
this reason, it is important that we act to resolve, at least 
temporarily again, this uncertainty for a specified period of time.
  Our legislation today simply extends the program for another 2 
years--until September 30, 1997--without resolving the question of its 
ultimate fate or ultimate future structure and existence. The 
legislation, however, does require a report from USIA, which should 
provide a basis for us to take more permanent action in 2 years.
  This legislation does make improvements, and I welcome those changes. 
In the past the au pair program has been limited to young people from 
European countries. This legislation broadens the program to include 
other countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America. This expansion will 
create additional problems for those who administer the program, but 
the extension of the program to all countries is a positive step.
  Mr. Speaker, I strongly support international educational exchange 
programs, including this one for au pairs. As the founder of the 
California State Universities' study abroad program, I have long 
supported and promoted efforts to encourage young women and men to 
travel and learn about other countries, other languages, and other 
cultures. The au pair program provides an important opportunity for 
young people from other countries to experience American culture 
firsthand. These are young people who generally come from families 
which do not have the resources to permit them to travel independently 
or to study at an American university. It is important that they have 
this personal experience of our country.
  It is extremely important, however, that the USIA and those who 
administer this program understand that this is an educational 
program--its purpose is to give young people experience with our 
country and its culture. Families who provide a home and food for 
foreign young people while they are here reasonably expect some 
assistance with household tasks. But this is not a program to 
circumvent our Nation's labor and immigration laws relating to 
employment in the United States by foreign citizens. This is not a 
program to provide free child care for upper-middle class Americans.
  It is not a program to get around our Nation's labor laws. Those laws 
have been written for specific policy objectives, and the au pair 
program must be consistent with our labor laws. It is extremely 
important that the international educational exchange component of this 
program be recognized and acknowledged as being central to this 
legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the motion to suspend 
the rules and pass H.R. 2767, a bill to extend the authorization for 
the au pair program for 2 years, through the end of fiscal year 1997.
  I was pleased to introduce this measure because the authority for the 
program expired on September 30. Many families have been highly 
inconvenienced and child care plans have been turned upside down by the 
delay in the extending this program. Therefore, it is incumbent upon us 
to pass this extension and enable the program to continue to operate.
  This is a bipartisan bill, and I want to acknowledge the key role the 
distinguished ranking member on our committee, my good friend from 
Indiana, Mr. Hamilton, has played in drafting the bill and moving it 
through the committee.
  A key element of this measure is to greatly broaden the regions of 
participation by repealing a section of the Eisenhower Exchange 
Fellowship Act that froze the au pair program as it existed in 1990.
  In 1990 there were eight agencies administering an au pair program 
and it was limited to participants from Western Europe. Repealing this 
provision allows more agencies to run au pair programs, and opens it up 
to world-wide participation.
  We also require the U.S. Information Agency to submit a report to 
Congress regarding a further extension of the program. The report must 
specifically address the compliance of the au pair organizations with 
new regulations governing the program.
  I urge my colleagues to support this important extension.
  Mr. WYNN. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for 
time, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Hayworth). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from New Jersey [Mr. Smith] that the House 
suspend the rules and pass the Senate bill, S. 1465.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the Senate bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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