[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 89 (Monday, June 25, 2001)]
[House]
[Pages H3479-H3481]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
AUTHORIZING FUNDING FOR NATIONAL 4-H PROGRAM CENTENNIAL INITIATIVE
Mr. LUCAS of Oklahoma. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and
pass the Senate bill (S. 657) to authorize funding for the National 4-H
Program Centennial Initiative.
The Clerk read as follows:
S. 657
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. NATIONAL 4-H PROGRAM CENTENNIAL INITIATIVE.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
(1) the 4-H Program is 1 of the largest youth development
organizations operating in each of the 50 States and over
3,000 counties;
(2) the 4-H Program is promoted by the Secretary of
Agriculture through the Cooperative State Research,
Education, and Extension Service and land-grant colleges and
universities;
(3) the 4-H Program is supported by public and private
resources, including the National 4-H Council; and
(4) in celebration of the centennial of the 4-H Program in
2002, the National 4-H Council has proposed a public-private
partnership to develop new strategies for youth development
for the next century in light of an increasingly global and
technology-oriented economy and ever-changing demands and
challenges facing youth in widely diverse communities.
(b) Grant.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of Agriculture may provide a
grant to the National 4-H Council to pay the Federal share of
the cost of--
(A) conducting a program of discussions through meetings,
seminars, and listening sessions on the National, State, and
local levels regarding strategies for youth development; and
(B) preparing a report that--
(i) summarizes and analyzes the discussions;
(ii) makes specific recommendations of strategies for youth
development; and
(iii) proposes a plan of action for carrying out those
strategies.
(2) Cost sharing.--
(A) In general.--The Federal share of the cost of the
program under paragraph (1) shall be 50 percent.
(B) Form of non-federal share.--The non-Federal share of
the cost of the program under paragraph (1) may be paid in
the form of cash or the provision of services, material, or
other in-kind contributions.
(3) Amount.--The grant made under this subsection shall not
exceed $5,000,000.
(c) Report.--The National 4-H Council shall submit any
report prepared under subsection (b) to the President, the
Secretary of Agriculture, the Committee on Agriculture of the
House of Representatives, and the Committee on Agriculture,
Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate.
(d) Funding.--The Secretary may fund the grant authorized
by this section from--
(1) funds made available under subsection (e); and
(2) notwithstanding subsections (c) and (d) of section 793
of the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996
(7 U.S.C. 2204f), funds from the Account established under
section 793(a) of that Act.
(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this section $5,000,000.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
[[Page H3480]]
Oklahoma (Mr. Lucas) and the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Mrs.
Clayton) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Lucas).
Mr. LUCAS of Oklahoma. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
I rise today to urge my colleagues to support S. 657, a bill that
authorizes funding for the National 4-H Program Centennial Initiative.
4-H has been a guiding force for America's youth for over the past
century. It has taught countless numbers of youth responsibility and a
sense of community.
This bill is identical to a House version, H.R. 1388, that the
gentleman from Iowa (Mr. Ganske) and the gentlewoman from North
Carolina (Mrs. Clayton) and I strongly support. S. 657 will provide the
money for the 4-H programs in all 50 States to conduct meetings,
seminars, and listening sessions on the national, State and local
levels regarding strategies for youth development. Most importantly, it
requires a report that Congress and the President can use to help
determine what avenues and programs are best suited to helping the
youth of this country.
S. 657 will allow the Secretary of Agriculture to provide a $5
million grant to the National 4-H Council. The bill sets up a cost-
share structure so that the private sector will match the grant up to
$5 million.
For those of my colleagues that are wondering why my Subcommittee on
Conservation, Credit, Rural Development and Research is so concerned,
let me get right to the point. The rural development and research
programs that my subcommittee is responsible for overseeing are
stretched very thin, and the loss of young people in our rural areas is
extremely disturbing. The best thing about the 4-H youth program is
that it not only helps youth in rural communities but urban and
suburban communities as well, because 4-H programs are present in over
3,000 counties in the United States.
The National 4-H Program Centennial Initiative is good for America's
youth and for America's future. I urge my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on
this important piece of legislation.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mrs. CLAYTON. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
I also rise in support of this bill, S. 657, which provides funding
to support the National 4-H Program Centennial Initiative. For 100
years, the 4-H program has served the youth of this Nation by providing
leadership training and education in a wide array of life skills. Our
Nation has changed. The 4-H program has changed as well. While many may
think that the 4-H program is for rural youth only, the fact is that
now over 35 percent of the programs for youth are really, indeed, in
urban and suburban areas. Without abandoning their original core
constituency, the 4-H program and its thousands of volunteers have
expanded their program throughout our Nation.
So as the 4-H program celebrates its 100 years of service to American
youth, this bill will play an important part. S. 657 will authorize
funding for a grant, as has been mentioned, which will be administered
by the USDA to help the National 4-H Council plan a national convention
to develop critical youth-development strategies for the next century.
The $5 million provided by this act will be paid out in a 50-50
Federal-private matching grant, so it will also be a tool to leverage
additional private resources or resources from non-Federal sources.
Helping to shape the future of our Nation's youth is one of the most
important investments this Congress can make. This is one good effort
we can make in that regard. I thank the gentleman for bringing this
bill to the floor, and I am delighted to encourage my colleagues to
support its passage.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. LUCAS of Oklahoma. Madam Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the
gentleman from Iowa (Mr. Ganske).
{time} 1515
Mr. GANSKE. Madam Speaker, I am thankful that the House is taking up
this legislation today which is the companion bill to the Ganske 4-H
bill, H.R. 1388, which has wide bipartisan support.
In April, a group of 4-H'ers from Iowa asked me to introduce this
legislation in the House of Representatives. Since 4-H has been working
to serve both rural and urban kids for over 100 years, I was proud to
help them.
Madam Speaker, this is the 4-H logo. It stands for head, heart, hands
and health: Head for clearer thinking, heart for greater loyalty, hands
for larger service, and health for better living. These are goals that
are laudatory.
4-H is active in all 50 States and the District of Columbia. It has
chapters in over 3,000 counties, and has almost 7 million members.
There are over 600,000 4-H volunteer leaders around the country, and I
want to thank them for their efforts and for the countless hours they
have put in. I know that those volunteers also recognize that their own
lives are enriched by the time they spend with kids in 4-H.
Madam Speaker, 4-H is often seen as a rural organization, and it has
served rural areas very successfully through its history. But the
organization is very active in serving youth in our urban areas and
cities. Over a third of its members are from the suburbs and cities.
Madam Speaker, 4-H is undertaking an ambitious plan to use the
celebration of its 100th anniversary to foster a new initiative in
youth development, culminating in a plan of action for families,
communities and youth leaders around America to implement strategies
for youth development to lead us into the next century. I strongly
encourage my colleagues to support 4-H by voting for this legislation.
I am honored that I was able to play a role in bringing this
legislation forward, and I thank the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr.
Lucas) and the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Mrs. Clayton) for their
important contributions as well. Vote for this legislation.
Mrs. CLAYTON. Madam Speaker, I do not have any additional requests
for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. LUCAS of Oklahoma. Madam Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the
gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Pence).
Mr. PENCE. Madam Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding me this
time.
Madam Speaker, as a proud Hoosier representing proud 4-H'ers across
Indiana, and as a former 4-H'er myself, I am proud to stand in favor of
S. 657 to authorize funding for the National 4-H Program Centennial
Initiative. I want to thank the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Lucas),
the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Mrs. Clayton) and the gentleman
from Iowa (Mr. Ganske) for their seminal work on this project, and for
their efforts to raise the national profile of 4-H through this study.
Madam Speaker, think of it: 50 States, 3,000 counties, and just as
many county fairs, 4-H is making a difference in the lives of America's
youth. In the year 2002, 4-H will celebrate 100 years of having fun and
making a difference for kids in both rural areas and, in increasing
measure, in urban areas around the United States of America.
The grant authorized by this legislation for the Secretary of
Agriculture will not only provide the opportunity to study strategies
for youth development, but as the gentleman from Oklahoma stated, it
will require a report to the President. It will require leadership in
4-H, both public and private, to think clearly about the next 100 years
of youth development in 4-H.
Madam Speaker, $5 million may not seem like a lot of money in this
town, but all across America $5 million is very serious money. It gives
us a genuine opportunity to assist 4-H in developing new strategies to
face the new horizons for America's youth increasingly beset by
distractions of a destructive nature that lead them down a path of
unproductive lives.
Madam Speaker, 4-H is fun. But as the gentleman from Iowa (Mr.
Ganske) stated so eloquently, it is much more than just fun. It is
head, heart, hands and health. It is teaching the habits of good living
to young boys and girls across America.
Madam Speaker, 4-H makes a difference, and so I stand in strong
support and urge all of my colleagues to support this bill to authorize
funding for the National 4-H Program Centennial Initiative.
Mr. LUCAS of Oklahoma. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
[[Page H3481]]
Madam Speaker, this is one of those occasions where as a Member of
Congress, we have an opportunity to return something to one of the
organizations that gave us the opportunities that we now enjoy.
I think back to my days at Crawford Public School as a member of the
Crawford Junior 4-H Club when I had my first opportunity to participate
in leadership experience, my first opportunity to be a president of
anything. This is my opportunity to return to 4-H, this body's
opportunity to return to 4-H, part of what it has provided all of us
with.
Mr. CHAMBLISS. Madam Speaker, I support this bill to authorize
funding for the National 4-H Program Centennial Initiative. From its
beginnings as the Corn Club for Boys and Tomato Canning Club for Girls,
the 4-H program has grown to one of the largest youth organizations in
the United States with more than 6.8 million participants. Today 4-
H'ers can be found building model rockets, organizing canned food
drives for the needy, showing livestock, delivering a speech before
local government officials on issues critical to youth, and much more.
In celebration of the centennial of the 4-H Program in 2002, the
National 4-H Council has proposed a public-private partnership, to
develop new strategies for youth development for the next century. As
our world becomes increasingly global and technology-oriented, the
demands and challenges facing youth continue to change. This bill will
allow the program to change as well. The bill calls for the federal
government to provide a $5 million federal grant that may be matched by
non-federal sources.
Today, as a former 4-H member I ask for your support of the youth of
America by passing this bill and allowing this great youth organization
to evolve into the next century.
Mr. MORAN of Kansas. Madam Speaker, on behalf of over 94,101 Kansas
youth involved in the 4-H program, I rise today in support of the
National 4-H Program Centennial Initiative. 2002 marks the 100th
anniversary of 4-H and it is only fitting that today we take action to
recognize the important contributions that this organization has made
in the development of our youth.
In my home state of Kansas, 4-H is the largest youth organization
outside of school. Almost 100,000 youth between the ages of 7-19 are
involved in 3,065 4-H clubs and groups. 4-H reaches 1 in 7 Kansas
youth, helping them develop important life skills such as teamwork,
cooperation, time management, and communication.
4-H is a diverse organization, in both its membership and
programming. 4-H is traditionally thought of as being targeted to
``farm kids.'' Yet 55% of 4-Her's in Kansas, a very rural state, reside
in suburban and urban areas. Of the 6.8 million youth in 4-H
nationwide, 30% represent minority racial, cultural, and ethnic
populations. In fact, minority youth are the fastest growing segment of
4-H membership.
While 4-H has expanded to meet the needs and interests of youth with
diverse backgrounds in all types of communities, at the same time it
continues to honor its historic connection with America's rural
communities. In Kansas, 45% of 4-H participants live on farms or in
rural areas. As a member of the Agriculture Committee and the
Congressional Rural caucus, I understand and appreciate the leadership
and opportunity 4-H has provided to millions of our rural youth over
the past century.
The purpose of 4-H is illustrated in the 4 H's--head, heart, hands
and health--which make up the symbolic 4-H clover. As the pledge
states, 4-H does indeed teach youth to think more clearly, to value
loyalty, to engage in service, and to follow a healthy lifestyle so
that they may become better citizens who will enrich the lives of
others and improve our society.
The occasion of a centennial is a significant milestone for any
organization, and I am proud of the century of service 4-H has given to
our nation. I encourage my colleagues to recognize the contributions
and value of 4-H youth development by supporting the National 4-H
Program Centennial Initiative.
Mr. HAYES. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of House bill 1388 to
authorize funding for the National 4-H Program Centennial Initiative.
For 100 years 4-H programs across the United States have been producing
exemplary citizens. I believe that programs such as 4-H that promote
healthy lifestyles, good decision making skills, and loyalty to one's
self, community, country and world are vital to the development of our
nation's youth. The program has successfully reached our youth in over
3,000 counties in all 50 states. Through conferences, exchanges, and
camps in North Carolina, 4-H is making a difference in the lives of
young people.
Through federally-funded grants, this bill will make it possible to
conduct meetings and seminars to determine what youth development
programs are needed and/or currently working and allow this important
program to succeed another one hundred years.
4-H participants in North Carolina and across the country benefit
from the relationships formed and the timeless values taught through
the program. The 4-H program teaches young people skills that will last
a lifetime, and reaches students in both rural and urban areas, while
not misplacing the values the organization was founded upon. Thank you
and I urge my colleagues to support this bill.
Mr. RODRIGUEZ. Madam Speaker, I rise this evening to offer my full
support of funding for the National 4-H Program Centennial Initiative.
4-H is the youth education branch of the Cooperative Extension Service,
which is also a program of the United States Department of Agriculture.
The 4-H program is one of the nation's largest youth development
organizations operating in over 3,000 counties throughout each of the
fifty states. Texas has one of the largest memberships which includes
more than 1.1 million children and teenagers. In and around the
district I am privileged to represent, the 28th District of Texas, more
than 72,000 young people are enrolled in the 4-H program.
In anticipation of its centennial in 2002, the National 4-H Council
has proposed the creation of a public-private partnership to develop
new strategies for youth development that will reflect the fast-
changing realities of life in the 21st Century. Among other things, 4-H
hopes to examine the impact of expanding globalization and the role of
emerging high technology businesses.
The National 4-H Program Centennial Initiative will promote program
discussions on the national, state, and local levels. These programs,
whether meetings, seminars, or listening sessions, will promote new
strategies for youth development and education. This legislation will
provide grants up to $5 million to the National 4-H Council to federal
share of program costs. Funding for these planning strategies will help
address the issues facing millions of youth all across America.
During these sessions, which will begin at the county level,
interested young people will be able to raise issues or questions that
face them and their future, such as how the 4-H program can best use
emerging technologies to meet tomorrow's challenges. The results of
these county sessions will form the foundation of a national strategic
plan to implement changes and better prepare for the future. The
diverse backgrounds and needs of Texas' counties will be reflected in
these reports, helping 4-H members all across the nation understand and
adapt to our changing world.
Funding for this program will greatly benefit America's future by
helping today's youth. We always say that our children are our future.
Let's give them the chance to speak out and address the concerns of our
changing world.
Mr. LUCAS of Oklahoma. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my
time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mrs. Biggert). The question is on the motion
offered by the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Lucas) that the House
suspend the rules and pass the Senate bill, S. 657.
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.
____________________