[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 46 (Tuesday, March 23, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E517]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   CONGRATULATING STUDENTS OF BYRD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL FOR THEIR ANTI-
                            SMOKING PROGRAM

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. MARGE ROUKEMA

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 23, 1999

  Mrs. ROUKEMA. Mr. Speaker, I rise to congratulate the students of 
Byrd Elementary School in Glen Rock, New Jersey, on their efforts to 
spread the word about the dangers of smoking. The students, assisted by 
representatives of the New Jersey Breathes program, are conducting a 
week-long tobacco awareness program, including a school-wide assembly, 
demonstrations, a poster contest and a composition contest. In 
addition, the school nurse, Ms. Judy Mullane, has visited each class to 
discuss smoking and health. The initiatives taken by these students, 
their teachers and the school district should be commended and mirrored 
in schools across our nation. As a former teacher myself, I know how 
extremely important it is to teach children to say no to tobacco. This 
is a problem that adds thousands of children to the tobacco addiction 
rolls every day. One of the most effective ways to stop it is through 
educational initiatives similar to the one we are seeing at Byrd 
Elementary School.
  As a Member of Congress, I have long supported legislation that would 
limit the spread of tobacco addiction to young people. It is essential 
that we stand up for the health of our children and help keep them from 
becoming addicted to the most widespread drug threatening our society--
tobacco. The average smoker takes his or her first puff of a cigarette 
at age 11. If adults choose to smoke, that's a poor decision but one 
they are allowed to make for themselves. But if children are lured into 
smoking, that is a moral crime and should be a statutory crime.
  Last year, I was a co-sponsor of the NOT for Kids Act, which would 
raise the price of a pack of cigarettes by $1.50 over 3 years. Raising 
the price of cigarettes has a direct and measurable impact on reducing 
smoking among children. From 1982 to 1992, the price of cigarettes went 
up 50 percent and the percentage of teen-agers who smoke steadily 
dropped. Cigarette prices leveled off in 1992 and we've seen an 
increase since.
  I have also supported the national settlement of tobacco lawsuits. 
First, we must be certain that none of the settlement money is diverted 
by the federal government. To ensure that, I have co-sponsored H.R. 
351. At least part of the money from these settlements should be used 
for public education programs about the dangers of smoking to young 
people. These programs should be directed at our young people through 
their schools so that we can reach them before it is too late. It is 
far more effective to prevent tobacco addiction that to stop it once it 
has begun.
  It is important to note that the anti-smoking effort in Glen Rock 
goes beyond the school system. Matthew Kopacki, owner of Rock Ridge 
Pharmacy, has stopped selling cigarettes in his pharmacy after the 
death of one of his employees from lung cancer. Mayor Jacquelyn Kort is 
among those speaking at Byrd Elementary School. And the New Jersey 
Breathes program is being supported by the Robert Wood Johnson 
Foundation.
  I would like to ask all my colleagues in the U.S. House of 
Representatives to join me in thanking Principal Hal Knapp, Mayor Kort, 
Nurse Mullane, Mr. Kopacki, New Jersey Breathes Director Dr. Larry 
Downs and all the teachers and other staff involved in this important 
project. But beyond this group, I want to make a special appeal to the 
parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, big sisters and brothers and all 
other adults who play an influential role in the lives of the students 
of Byrd Elementary School. We all know that children imitate the 
behavior of adults. Please set a good example for these and all 
children by not smoking.

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