[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 54 (Thursday, April 3, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E681-E682]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     CHILD ABDUCTION PREVENTION ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. SHEILA JACKSON-LEE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 27, 2003

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 1104) to 
     prevent child abductions, and for other purposes:

  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Chairman, I rise in reluctant support 
of H.R. 1104, the Child Abduction Prevention Act. I support H.R. 1104 
reluctantly because while the resolution improves upon the AMBER Alert 
system, it is not a clean AMBER Alert Bill.
  The provisions of H.R. 1104 that improve the AMBER Alert system are 
critical steps in making America safer for children. The AMBER Alert 
provisions of H.R. 1104 direct

[[Page E682]]

the Attorney General to assign a National Amber Alert Coordinator. The 
Coordinator will establish minimum standards for the issuance of AMBER 
Alerts, including the extent of dissemination of alerts. The minimum 
standards will require vital information relating to the special needs 
of the child, including the child's health care needs, to be provided 
to the appropriate law enforcement and public health officials. Also, 
the dissemination of the AMBER Alert will be limited to the geographic 
area most likely to facilitate the recovery of the abducted child.
  H.R. 1104 also requires the Secretary of Transportation to provide 
grants to states for the development or improvement of AMBER Alert 
communication or notification systems along America's highways. It 
requires the Attorney General to provide grants to States for the 
development or enhancement of programs and activities for support of 
the AMBER Alert communications plans.
  I whole-heartedly support all of the AMBER Alert provisions of H.R. 
1104. These provisions improve the AMBER Alert system and help to 
reduce the likelihood that children who are kidnapped will also be 
physically abused, sexually abused, or murdered. These provisions also 
improve the chances that abducted children will be returned to their 
families.
  I have reservations about supporting H.R. 1104 because it is not a 
clean AMBER Alert bill. I believe that the Amendments to the bill 
dealing with prison sentence guidelines, pretrial release, and law 
enforcement investigation powers should be dealt with in separate 
legislation.
  More importantly, the extraneous provisions will delay the ultimate 
passage of the AMBER Alert Bill. Every day that goes by without a 
national AMBER Alert system in place puts the lives of children at 
risk. According to an October 2002 U.S. Department of Justice Report 
titled the National Incidence Studies of Missing, Abducted, Runaway, 
and Thrownaway Children (NISMART Report), 12,222 children were the 
victims of traditional kidnappings in the year 1999 alone. That amounts 
to approximately 33 children kidnapped nationwide per day.
  While the members of the House debate extraneous amendments, hundreds 
of children are being kidnapped and murdered. As the Chair of the 
Congressional Children's Caucus, I strongly believe that the best way 
to save children's lives is to vote in support of H.R. 1104, even if I 
do so reluctantly.
  That is why, Mr. Chairman, I reluctantly vote in favor of H.R. 1104.

                          ____________________