[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 137 (Saturday, September 28, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1810]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




AUTHORIZING STATES TO DENY PUBLIC EDUCATION BENEFITS TO CERTAIN ALIENS 
               NOT LAWFULLY PRESENT IN THE UNITED STATES

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                               speech of

                        HON. WILLIAM (BILL) CLAY

                              of missouri

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 25, 1996

  Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I oppose H.R. 4134 as an outrageous attempt to 
punish children for the illegal conduct of their parents. The sentence 
to be meted on these innocent children is ignorance, imposed by the 
States with the express explicit encouragement of the Federal 
Government. H.R. 4134 is below the dignity of this Nation and should be 
rejected.
  One of the sad legacies of this Congress will be the contemptuous 
disregard of the Republican majority for legislative integrity in this 
institution. Once again, with this bill, the Republican majority rushed 
legislation to the floor without careful consideration.
  As ranking Democrat on the Committee on Economic and Educational 
Opportunities, I would have appreciated an opportunity to have that 
committee analyze the enormous impact of this bill on local, State, and 
Federal education policy. I am very disappointed that the Republican 
leadership of the Opportunities Committee failed to assert its clear 
jurisdiction over this bill.
  Grave questions haunt this bill. And because no hearing or markup was 
held on this legislation, major concerns have been left unresolved. For 
instance, how will public school administrators and teachers carry out 
the enormous mandate this bill will generate? Is it fair, moral, or 
even practical to expect teachers to identify and expel from the 
classroom children who are not lawfully present in the United States? 
What effect will the bill have on administration, planning, and 
classroom decorum and order? And perhaps of greatest concern to me is 
this question: What emotional harm will children suffer as they try to 
learn in an environment fraught with suspicion, discrimination, and 
finger-pointing?
  Without sufficient consideration of these and many other questions, 
both the process and substance relevant to H.R. 4134 are deeply flawed. 
I urge its defeat.

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