[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 65 (Tuesday, May 23, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4318-S4321]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. KENNEDY (for himself and Mrs. Hutchison):
  S. 2615. A bill to establish a program to promote child literacy by 
making books available through early learning and other child care 
programs, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Health, 
Education, Labor, and Pensions.


                           the book stamp act

 Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, literacy is the foundation of 
learning, but too many Americans today are not able to read a single 
sentence. Nearly 40 percent of the nation's children are unable to read 
at grade-level by the end of the third grade. In communities with high 
concentrations of at-risk children, the failure rate is an astonishing 
60 percent. As a result, their entire education is likely to be 
derailed.
  In the battle against literacy, it is not enough to reach out more 
effectively to school-aged children. We must start earlier--and reach 
children before they reach school. Pediatricians like Dr. Barry 
Zuckerman at the Boston Medical Center have been telling us for years 
that reading to children from birth through school age is a medical 
issue that should be raised at every well child visit, since a child's 
brain needs this kind of stimulation to grow to its full potential. 
Reading to young children in the years before age 5 has a profound 
effect on their ability

[[Page S4319]]

to learn to read. But too often the problem is that young children do 
not have access to books appropriate to their age. A recent study found 
that 60 percent of the kindergarten children who performed poorly in 
school did not own a single book.
  The Book Stamp Act that Senator Hutchison and I are introducing today 
is a step to cure that problem. Our goal is to see that all children in 
this country have books of their own before they enter school.
  Regardless of culture or wealth, one of the most important factors in 
the development of literacy is home access to books. Students from 
homes with an abundance of reading materials are substantially better 
readers than those with few or no reading materials available.
  But it is not enough to just dump a book into a family's home. Since 
young children cannot read to themselves, we must make sure that an 
adult is available who interacts with the child and will read to the 
child.
  In this day of two-parent working families, young children spend 
substantial time in child care and family care facilities, which 
provide realistic opportunities for promoting literacy. Progress is 
already being made on this approach. Child Care READS!, for example, is 
a national communications campaign aimed at raising the awareness of 
the importance of reading in child care settings.
  The Book Stamp Act will make books available to children and parents 
through these child care and early childhood education programs.
  The act authorizes an appropriation of $50 million a year for this 
purpose. It also creates a special postage stamp, similar to the Breast 
Cancer Stamp, which will feature an early learning character, and will 
sell at a slightly higher rate than the normal 33 cents, with the 
additional revenues designated for the Book Stamp Program.
  The resources will be distributed through the Child Care and 
Development Block Grant to the state child care agency in each state. 
The state agency then will allocate its funds to local child care 
research and referral agencies throughout the state on the basis of 
local need.
  There are 610 such agencies in the country, with at least one in 
every state. These non-profit agencies, offer referral services for 
parents seeking child care, and also provide training for child care 
workers. The agencies will work with established book distribution 
programs such as First Book, Reading is Fundamental, and Reach Out and 
Read to coordinate the buying of discounted books and the distribution 
of the books to children.
  Also, to help parents and child care providers become well informed 
about the best ways to read to children and the most effective use of 
books with children at various stages of development, the agencies will 
provide training and technical assistance on these issues.
  Our goal is to work closely with parents, children, child care 
providers and publishers to put at least one book in the hands of every 
needy child in America. Together, we can make significant progress in 
early childhood literacy, and I believe we can make it quickly.
  We know what works to combat illiteracy. We owe it to the nation's 
children and the nation's future to do all we can to win this battle.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the full text of the bill 
and the accompanying letters of support be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                                S. 2615

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

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Book Stamp Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds the following:
       (1) Literacy is fundamental to all learning.
       (2) Between 40 and 60 percent of the Nation's children do 
     not read at grade level, particularly children in families or 
     school districts that are challenged by significant financial 
     or social instability.
       (3) Increased investments in child literacy are needed to 
     improve opportunities for children and the efficacy of the 
     Nation's education investments.
       (4) Increasing access to books in the home is an important 
     means of improving child literacy, which can be accomplished 
     nationally at modest cost.
       (5) Effective channels for book distribution already exist 
     through child care providers.

     SEC. 3. DEFINITION.

       In this Act:
       (1) Early learning program.--The term ``early learning'', 
     used with respect to a program, means a program of activities 
     designed to facilitate development of cognitive, language, 
     motor, and social-emotional skills in children under age 6 as 
     a means of enabling the children to enter school ready to 
     learn, such as a Head Start or Early Head Start program 
     carried out under the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9831 et 
     seq.), or a State pre-kindergarten program.
       (2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
     of Health and Human Services.
       (3) State.--The term ``State'' means the 50 States, the 
     District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, 
     the United States Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and the 
     Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
       (4) State agency.--The term ``State agency'' means an 
     agency designated under section 658D of the Child Care and 
     Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858b).

     SEC. 4. GRANTS TO STATE AGENCIES.

       (a) Establishment of Program.--The Secretary shall 
     establish and carry out a program to promote child literacy 
     and improve children's access to books at home and in early 
     learning and other child care programs, by making books 
     available through early learning and other child care 
     programs.
       (b) Grants.--
       (1) In general.--In carrying out the program, the Secretary 
     shall make grants to State agencies from allotments 
     determined under paragraph (2).
       (2) Allotments.--For each fiscal year, the Secretary shall 
     allot to each State an amount that bears the same ratio to 
     the total of the available funds for the fiscal year as the 
     amount the State receives under section 658O(b) of the Child 
     Care and Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 
     9858m(b)) for the fiscal year bears to the total amount 
     received by all States under that section for the fiscal 
     year.
       (c) Applications.--To be eligible to receive an allotment 
     under this section, a State shall submit an application to 
     the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and containing 
     such information as the Secretary may require.
       (d) Accountability.--The provisions of sections 658I(b) and 
     658K(b) of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act of 
     1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858g(b), 9858i(b)) shall apply to States 
     receiving grants under this Act, except that references in 
     those sections--
       (1) to a subchapter shall be considered to be references to 
     this Act; and
       (2) to a plan or application shall be considered to be 
     references to an application submitted under subsection (c).
       (e) Definition.--In this section, the term ``available 
     funds'', used with respect to a fiscal year, means the total 
     of--
       (1) the funds made available under section 416(c)(1) of 
     title 39, United States Code for the fiscal year; and
       (2) the amounts appropriated under section 9 for the fiscal 
     year.

     SEC. 5. CONTRACTS TO CHILD CARE RESOURCE AND REFERRAL 
                   AGENCIES.

       A State agency that receives a grant under section 4 shall 
     use funds made available through the grant to enter into 
     contracts with local child care resource and referral 
     agencies to carry out the activities described in section 6. 
     The State agency may reserve not more than 3 percent of the 
     funds made available through the grant to support a public 
     awareness campaign relating to the activities.

     SEC. 6. USE OF FUNDS.

       (a) Activities.--
       (1) Book payments for eligible providers.--A child care 
     resource and referral agency that receives a contract under 
     section 5 shall use the funds made available through the 
     grant to provide payments for eligible early learning program 
     and other child care providers, on the basis of local needs, 
     to enable the providers to make books available, to promote 
     child literacy and improve children's access to books at home 
     and in early learning and other child care programs.
       (2) Eligible providers.--To be eligible to receive a 
     payment under paragraph (1), a provider shall--
       (A)(i) be a center-based child care provider, a group home 
     child care provider, or a family child care provider, 
     described in section 658P(5)(A) of the Child Care and 
     Development Block Grant Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 9858n(5)(A)); 
     or
       (ii) be a Head Start agency designated under section 641 of 
     the Head Start Act (42 U.S.C. 9836), an entity that receives 
     assistance under section 645A of such Act to carry out an 
     Early Head Start program or another provider of an early 
     learning program; and
       (B) provide services in an area where children face high 
     risks of literacy difficulties, as defined by the Secretary.
       (b) Responsibilities.--A child care resource and referral 
     agency that receives a contract under section 5 to provide 
     payments to eligible providers shall--
       (1) consult with local individuals and organizations 
     concerned with early literacy (including parents and 
     organizations carrying out the Reach Out and Read, First 
     Book, and

[[Page S4320]]

     Reading Is Fundamental programs) regarding local book 
     distribution needs;
       (2) make reasonable efforts to learn public demographic and 
     other information about local families and child literacy 
     programs carried out by the eligible providers, as needed to 
     inform the agency's decisions as the agency carries out the 
     contract;
       (3) coordinate local orders of the books made available 
     under this Act;
       (4) distribute, to each eligible provider that receives a 
     payment under this Act, not fewer than 1 book every 6 months 
     for each child served by the provider for more than 3 of the 
     preceding 6 months;
       (5) use not more than 5 percent of the funds made available 
     through the contract to provide training and technical 
     assistance to the eligible providers on the effective use of 
     books with young children at different stages of development; 
     and
       (6) be a training resource for eligible providers that want 
     to offer parent workshops on developing reading readiness.
       (c) Discounts.--
       (1) In general.--Federal funds made available under this 
     Act for the purchase of books may only be used to purchase 
     books on the same terms as are customarily available in the 
     book industry to entities carrying out nonprofit bulk book 
     purchase and distribution programs.
       (2) Terms.--An entity offering books for purchase under 
     this Act shall be present to have met the requirements of 
     paragraph (1), absent contrary evidence, if the terms include 
     a discount of 43 percent off the catalogue price of the 
     books, with no additional charge for shipping and handling of 
     the books.
       (d) Administration.--The child care resource and referral 
     agency may not use more than 6 percent of the funds made 
     available through the contract for administrative costs.

     SEC. 7. REPORT TO CONGRESS.

       Not later than 2 years of the date of enactment of this 
     Act, the Secretary shall prepare and submit to Congress a 
     report on the implementation of the activities carried out 
     under this Act.

     SEC. 8. SPECIAL POSTAGE STAMPS FOR CHILD LITERACY.

       Chapter 4 of title 39, United States Code is amended by 
     adding at the end the following:

     ``Sec. 416. Special postage stamps for child literacy

       ``(a) In order to afford the public a convenient way to 
     contribute to funding for child literacy, the Postal Service 
     shall establish a special rate of postage for first-class 
     mail under this section. The stamps that bear the special 
     rate of postage shall promote childhood literacy and shall, 
     to the extent practicable, contain an image relating to a 
     character in a children's book or cartoon.
       ``(b)(1) The rate of postage established under this 
     section--
       ``(A) shall be equal to the regular first-class rate of 
     postage, plus a differential of not to exceed 25 percent;
       ``(B) shall be set by the Governors in accordance with such 
     procedures as the Governors shall by regulation prescribe (in 
     lieu of the procedures described in chapter 36); and
       ``(C) shall be offered as an alternative to the regular 
     first-class rate of postage.
       ``(2) The use of the special rate of postage established 
     under this section shall be voluntary on the part of postal 
     patrons.
       ``(c)(1) Of the amounts becoming available for child 
     literacy pursuant to this section, the Postal Service shall 
     pay 100 percent to the Department of Health and Human 
     Services.
       ``(2) Payments made under this subsection to the Department 
     shall be made under such arrangements as the Postal Service 
     shall by mutual agreement with such Department establish in 
     order to carry out the objectives of this section, except 
     that, under those arrangements, payments to such agency shall 
     be made at least twice a year.
       ``(3) In this section, the term `amounts becoming available 
     for child literacy pursuant to this section' means--
       ``(A) the total amounts received by the Postal Service that 
     the Postal Service would not have received but for the 
     enactment of this section; reduced by
       ``(B) an amount sufficient to cover reasonable costs 
     incurred by the Postal Service in carrying out this section, 
     including costs attributable to the printing, sale, and 
     distribution of stamps under this section,
     as determined by the Postal Service under regulations that 
     the Postal Service shall prescribe.
       ``(d) It is the sense of Congress that nothing in this 
     section should--
       ``(1) directly or indirectly cause a net decrease in total 
     funds received by the Department of Health and Human 
     Services, or any other agency of the Government (or any 
     component or program of the Government), below the level that 
     would otherwise have been received but for the enactment of 
     this section; or
       ``(2) affect regular first-class rates of postage or any 
     other regular rates of postage.
       ``(e) Special postage stamps made available under this 
     section shall be made available to the public beginning on 
     such date as the Postal Service shall by regulation 
     prescribe, but in no event later than 12 months after the 
     date of enactment of this section.
       ``(f) The Postmaster General shall include in each report 
     provided under section 2402, with respect to any period 
     during any portion of which this section is in effect, 
     information concerning the operation of this section, except 
     that, at a minimum, each report shall include information 
     on--
       ``(1) the total amounts described in subsection (c)(3)(A) 
     that were received by the Postal Service during the period 
     covered by such report; and
       ``(2) of the amounts described in paragraph (1), how much 
     (in the aggregate and by category) was required for the 
     purposes described in subsection (c)(3)(B).
       ``(g) This section shall cease to be effective at the end 
     of the 2-year period beginning on the date on which special 
     postage stamps made available under this section are first 
     made available to the public.''.

     SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this 
     Act $50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2001 through 2005.
                                  ____

                                          Children's Defense Fund,


                                                E. Street, NW,

                                     Washington, DC, May 23, 2000.
     Hon. Edward Kennedy,
     U.S. Senate,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator Kennedy: The Children's Defense Fund welcomes 
     the introduction of the Book Stamp Act. This legislation make 
     books available in early learning/child care programs for 
     young children and their parents. Reading to young children 
     on a regular basis is a first step to ensure that they become 
     strong readers. This bill gives parents access to books to 
     make it more likely for them to read to their children. Thank 
     you for recognizing how important reading is for our youngest 
     children.
           Sincerely yours,
     Marian Wright Edelman.
                                  ____

                                                      4 To 14.Com,


                                                     Broadway,

                                       New York, NY, May 23, 2000.
     Senator Edward M. Kennedy,
     U.S. Senate,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Senator: I sincerely commend you on your sponsoring 
     the ``Book Stamp'' legislation.
       As the CEO of a dot-com designed to help children learn, I 
     am very aware of the ``digital divide'' that separates 
     children from wealthier families from those growing up in 
     poorer households. That disparity--that difference in 
     opportunity--doesn't begin when children start using the 
     computer and exploring the Internet. Rather, it starts much 
     earlier, when very young children should have their first 
     exposure and access exposed to books.
       Unfortunately, far too many children--particularly children 
     from lower income families--simply do not have books to call 
     their own. They need books, lots of them, for brain 
     development, to develop the basis and ``habit'' of reading, 
     and to share in one of the true joys of childhood.
       Ensuring that all children--particularly those under five 
     years of age--have access to good books that they can call 
     their own, is an essential ingredient of a healthy childhood. 
     This legislation will help make that a reality.
       As Susan Roman of the ALA once pointed out, ``Books are the 
     on-ramp to the information super-highway.''
       I commend you and Senator Hutchison for being real leaders 
     in this crusade to make all children ready to meet the 
     challenges of the 21st century.
       Please let me know how I can help.
           Sincerely,
                                                      Steve Cohen,
     President.
                                  ____

                                           Association of American


                                             Publishers, Inc.,

                                     Washington, DC, May 23, 2000.
     Hon. Edward M. Kennedy,
     U.S. Senate,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Ted: The American publishing industry enthusiastically 
     supports the ``Book Stamp Act'' introduced by you and Senator 
     Hutchison today. This important and timely legislation 
     acknowledges the fact that young minds need as much 
     nourishing as young bodies.
       Every September, some 40 percent of American children who 
     start school are not literacy-ready and, for most, that 
     educational gap never closes. From a growing body of 
     research, we have begun to understand how important it is for 
     very young children to have books in their lives. At BookExpo 
     America on June 3, for the first time, a distinguished group 
     of early literacy experts, pediatricians, child-development 
     professionals and children's publishers will come together to 
     explore ways of improving access to quality books for the 13 
     million pre-school-age children in daycare and early 
     education programs. The ``Book Stamp Act'' couldn't come at a 
     better time.
       We congratulate you on the introduction of the ``Book Stamp 
     Act,'' and look forward to working with you to ensure its 
     passage.
       With warmest regards,
           Sincerely,
     Patricia S. Schroeder.
                                  ____

                                      National Association for the


                                  Education of Young Children,

                                     Washington, DC, May 23, 2000.
     Hon. Edward M. Kennedy,
     Hon. Kay Bailey Hutchison,
     U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
       Dear Senators Kennedy and Hutchison: The National 
     Association for the Education

[[Page S4321]]

     of Young Children (NAEYC), representing over 100,000 
     individuals dedicated to excellence in early childhood 
     education, commends you for your leadership in promoting 
     early childhood literacy through the Book Stamps legislation 
     you will introduce today.
       Learning to read and write is critical to a child's success 
     in school and later in life. One of the best predictors of 
     whether a child will function competently in school and go on 
     to contribute actively in our increasingly literate society 
     is the level to which the child progresses in reading and 
     writing. Although reading and writing abilities continue to 
     develop throughout the life span, the early childhood years--
     from birth through age eight--are the most important period 
     for literacy development. It is for this reason that the 
     International Reading Association (IRA) and NAEYC joined 
     together to formulate a position statement regarding early 
     literacy development.
       We are pleased that this bipartisan legislation will expand 
     young children's access to books and support parent 
     involvement in early literacy. By making books more 
     affordable and accessible to young children in Head Start, in 
     child care settings, and in their homes, we can help them not 
     only learn to read and write, but also foster and sustain 
     their interest in reading for their own enjoyment, 
     information, and communication.
           Sincerely,
                                                   Adele Robinson,
     Director of Policy Development.
                                  ____



                                 Reading Is Fundamental, Inc.,

                                     Washington, DC, May 23, 2000.
       Dear Senator: Reading Is Fundamental's Board of Directors 
     and staff urge you to support the passage of the Kennedy-
     Hutchison Book Stamp Act to help bridge the literacy gap for 
     the nation's youngest and most at-risk children.
       Educators, researchers and practitioners in the literacy 
     arena have increasing focused on the 0-5 age range as the key 
     to helping the nation's neediest children enter school ready 
     to read and learn. We know that focus and attention will give 
     them a far better chance at succeeding in life than many of 
     their parents and older siblings had.
       At RIF, we have increased our focus on providing books and 
     literacy enhancing programs and services in recent years and 
     we are actively pursuing working relationships and 
     partnerships with the childcare community. We have launched a 
     pilot program to create effective training system, called 
     Care to Read for childcare providers and other early 
     childhood caregivers. That program is now ready to help these 
     caregivers provide appropriate environmental and literacy 
     enhancing experiences for children. We are anxious to engage 
     with NACCRA in working out ways to link this training with 
     the Book Stamp Act initiative and share RIF's resources to 
     help make this program effective.
       RIF now provides books and essential literacy services to 
     nearly 1,000,000 children and we know the need is critical 
     for significant infusions of books and services to help 
     reduce illiteracy among this at-risk population. We urge your 
     strong support.
           Yours truly,
                                                 Richard E. Sells,
     Senior VP and Chief Operating Officer.

                          ____________________