[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 4 (Tuesday, January 21, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S134]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   SENATE DEMOCRATS' LEADERSHIP BILLS

  Mr. KERRY. Mr. President, I want to commend the Democratic leader for 
the package of initiatives he has developed on behalf of Senate 
Democrats. Most of these proposals came out of the 1996 Families First 
agenda. I was proud to be involved in that attempt to meet the real 
needs of everyday Americans and I am proud to be a cosponsor of these 
bills today.
  The Education for the 21st Century Act, S. 12, continues Democrats' 
historic commitment to education. Federal support for education is one 
of the best investments our Nation can make to ensure a prosperous 
future. The bill would provide tuition assistance, restore the student 
loan interest deduction, subsidize State and local bond issues used to 
finance school construction and repair, fund the Parents as Teachers 
Program to assist parents who want to help their children become 
successful readers, and create a technology literacy challenge fund to 
catalyze and leverage State, local, and private efforts to increase 
technology literacy among our Nation's schoolchildren.
  The Children's Health Coverage Act, S. 13, would help working 
families purchase private health insurance for their children. Although 
Senator Kennedy and I have a bill which uses a subsidy approach rather 
than a tax credit approach, our bills are fundamentally similar. Both 
would provide assistance to children 18 and under and pregnant women to 
purchase private health insurance, both would provide a comprehensive 
benefits package, and both would provide assistance on a sliding scale 
to the working parents of uninsured children. I look forward to working 
with Senator Daschle, my fellow Democrats, and my Republican colleagues 
to pass a bill this year to provide children the health insurance they 
need and working parents the peace of mind they deserve.
  The Retirement Security Act, S. 14, includes a wide range of 
proposals designed to help Americans prepare for a secure retirement. 
These would address the fact that too many Americans lack pension 
coverage by covering more workers under existing plans, creating new 
retirement savings options for millions of Americans, and encouraging 
more businesses to establish plans and more employees to participate in 
them. The bill would improve pension access and coverage, strengthen 
pension security, promote pension portability, and increase equity for 
women.
  The Youth Violence, Crime and Drug Abuse Control Act, S. 15, would 
build on the success of the 1994 Crime Act and other crime fighting 
initiatives enacted during President Clinton's first term. I am proud 
to have been a leader in securing funding in the 1994 Crime Act for 
placing 100,000 new cops on the streets of America's communities. 
Thanks to the presence of the newly funded police officers, a fully 
funded Violence Against Women Act, and the Brady law--which has 
prevented more than 60,000 felons, fugitives, and stalkers from 
purchasing handguns, violent crime is lower than at any time since 
1990. This bill balances the need to target and punish violent, young 
criminals with proven drug prevention programs. We would put 25,000 
more police officers on the streets by extending the COPS Program for 2 
years, and we would extend the Violence Against Women Act to provide 
shelter for 400,000 more battered women and their children, increase 
Federal penalties for juveniles by raising the mandatory release age 
from 21 to 26, increase penalties for gang violence, and reauthorize 
the Safe and Drug Free Schools Program.
  Senator Daschle deserves our thanks for his leadership in 
spotlighting these issues of education, children's health care, 
retirement security, and youth violence that are so critical to the 
future of our Nation and to the well-being of the American people. He 
and his staff are to be commended for drafting these bills to address 
the issues. I look forward to working with Senator Daschle and other 
Senators on both sides of the aisle to pass legislation to meet these 
compelling needs.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, I thank the Chair.
  (The remarks of Mr. Dorgan pertaining to the introduction of 
legislation are located in today's Record under ``Statements on 
Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions.'')

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