[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 48 (Tuesday, March 25, 2003)]
[House]
[Page H2279]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       MAKING OUR CHILDREN SAFER

  Mr. DeLAY. Mr. Speaker, this week is Children's Week, and the House 
will consider four bills designed to make our children safer. We are 
reminded this week that a society that does not keep its children safe 
is failing its most basic duty.

  A reading of the titles of the bills before the House reveals the 
circumstances experienced by too many American children today: The 
prevalence of child abuse and neglect, the significance of runaway 
prevention, and the importance of preventing child abductions and 
sexual exploitation.

  These bills stand as a stark reminder that our children need special 
protection because they are children and therefore simply vulnerable to 
abuse and exploitation.

  We will have two bills on the suspension calendar that are designed 
to increase public awareness of the problems of child abuse and runaway 
prevention.

  Mr. Speaker, the problems of child abuse are staggering. It is 
estimated that every year in our country more than 1,200 children die 
as a direct result of being abused and neglected. Some studies suggest 
that as many as 2.8 million children run away from home to escape 
abuse, age out of foster care or are thrown out of their homes and live 
on the streets.

  Both the Keeping Children and Families Safe Act of 2003 and the Child 
Abduction Prevention Act will be the subject of debate and floor 
consideration this week.

  The Keeping Children and Families Safe Act reauthorizes and modifies 
the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act and related measures to 
prevent family violence, to assist abandoned babies and to promote 
adoption.

  The bill emphasizes the prevention of child maltreatment and family 
violence before it occurs, puts in place procedures to care for infants 
born drug-exposed, and ensures that parents investigated for child 
abuse be fully informed of the specific allegations made against them.

  Finally, the House will consider the Child Abduction Prevention Act 
with the purpose of preventing child abductions and putting in place 
the necessary enforcement tools to assure that child abductors will not 
escape justice.

  This bill offers a comprehensive package of child abduction 
prevention tools that make severe child abuse and torture a capital 
crime, that provides stronger penalties against kidnapping and sexual 
trafficking, that keeps child kidnappers behind bars until trial and 
that puts a ``two strikes you're out'' law in place.

  After all, how many children's lives do you have to ruin before you 
should be locked up for life?

  Additionally, it keeps all the safeguards in place for wiretapping, 
but creates four new circumstances to allow better monitoring of 
criminals' abuse of children's chat rooms. We used to be able to keep 
an eye on our children at the playground in order to keep them safe. 
Chat rooms pose a dangerous new challenge that we must confront.

  In addition, the bill would extend the Justice Department's Amber 
Alert system to a nationwide program and authorizes funds to enhance 
communication systems along highways to support the Amber Alert 
communications plans.

  Mr. Speaker, I believe that the child-related legislation that the 
House is set to move this week shows the American people that our 
children are vulnerable to abuse and exploitation and that the House is 
committed to ensuring that more of our children are protected and made 
safe.




                          ____________________