[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 174 (Tuesday, November 25, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Pages S15981-S15982]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mrs. BOXER:
  S. 1956. A bill to provide assistance to States and nongovernmental 
entities to initiate public awareness and outreach campaigns to reduce 
teenage pregnancies; to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and 
Pensions.
  Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, today, I am proud to introduce the HOPE 
Youth Pregnancy Prevention Act.
  While teen pregnancy rates in the United States have dropped 
significantly in the last decade, we still have one of the highest 
rates among industrialized nations. American teens are twice as likely 
to become pregnant as teenagers in Great Britain and four times more 
likely than teens in Sweden and France. At the same time, the teen 
pregnancy rates for Hispanic and other minority teens in the United 
States are significantly higher than the national average.
  The HOPE Youth Pregnancy Prevention Act would provide resources to 
help prevent teen pregnancy among at-risk and minority youth.
  Specifically, my bill would provide grants to States, localities, and 
non-

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governmental organizations for teenage pregnancy prevention activities 
targeted to areas with large ethnic minorities and other at-risk youth. 
These grants could be used for a number of activities, including youth 
development, work-related interventions and other educational 
activities, parental involvement, teenage outreach and clinical 
services. The bill would authorize $30 million a year for five years 
for these grants.
  The bill would also provide grants to States and non-governmental 
organizations to establish multimedia public awareness campaigns to 
combat teenage pregnancy. These campaigns would aim to prevent teen 
pregnancy through TV, radio and print ads, billboards, posters, and the 
Internet. Priority would be given to those activities that target 
ethnic minorities and other at-risk youth. The bill would authorize $20 
million a year for 5 years.
  Over the past 10 years, we have made progress reducing teen 
pregnancy. But out work is not done. We need to strengthen our efforts, 
especially among Hispanic and other minority youth. I encourage my 
colleagues to support this effort.
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