[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 76 (Thursday, June 3, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6466-S6467]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    BOYS AND GIRLS CLUBS OF AMERICA

  Mr. CRAPO. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of S. 2363, reported out earlier 
today by the Judiciary Committee.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
  The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (S. 2363) to revise and extend the Boys and Girls 
     Clubs of America.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I am pleased that the Senate is taking up 
and passing the legislation that Senator Hatch and I introduced 
together to reauthorize and expand the Department of Justice grant 
program for the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. We reported it out of 
the Judiciary Committee this morning, and I thank the Senate for moving 
our bipartisan legislation so quickly. I also thank our 30 bipartisan 
cosponsors, including the Democratic leader, Senator Daschle, the 
assistant Democratic leader, Senator Reid, and Judiciary Committee 
members Senators DeWine, Kohl, Biden, Feinstein, Craig, Sessions, 
Durbin, Edwards, Schumer and Chambliss, for supporting our legislation 
to support the Boys & Girls Clubs of America.
  Too often the public sees Republicans and Democrats disagreeing. From 
time to time, even Senator Hatch and I disagree on important issues. 
But when it comes to the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, there is no 
doubt that we see eye-to-eye. This bill shows the unified support of 
Republicans and Democrats for the good works of Boys & Girls Clubs 
across the nation.
  Children are the future of our country, and we have a responsibility 
to make sure they are safe and secure. I know firsthand how well Boys & 
Girls Clubs work and what topnotch organizations they are. When I was a 
prosecutor in Vermont, I was convinced of the great need for Boys & 
Girls Clubs because we rarely encountered children from these kinds of 
programs. In fact, after I became a U.S. Senator, a police chief was 
such a big fan that he asked me to help fund a Boys & Girls Club in his 
district rather than helping him get a couple more police officers.
  In Vermont, Boys & Girls Clubs have succeeded in preventing crime and 
supporting our children. The first club was established in Burlington 
62 years ago. Now we have 22 club sites operating throughout the State: 
seven clubs in Brattleboro, one in Springfield, two clubs in 
Burlington, one in Winooski, two clubs in Montpelier, five clubs in 
Randolph, one club in Rutland, two clubs in Vergennes, and one in 
Bristol. There are 10 additional project sites that will be on board 
and serving kids by the end of 2005: one in Bennington, two in 
Burlington, one in Duxbury, one in St. Johnsbury, one in Hardwick, 
three in Randolph, and one in Ludlow. These clubs will serve well over 
10,000 kids statewide.
  As a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I have 
pushed for more Federal funding for Boys & Girls Clubs. Since 1998, 
Congress has increased Federal support for Boys & Girls Clubs from $20 
million to $80 million in this year. Due in large part to this increase 
in funding, there now exist 3,300 Boys & Girls Clubs in all 50 States 
serving more than 3.6 million young people. Because of these successes, 
I was both surprised and disappointed to see that the President 
requested a reduction of $20 million for fiscal year 2005. That request 
will leave thousands of children and their clubs behind and we cannot 
allow such a thing to happen.
  In the 107th Congress, Senator Hatch and I worked together to pass 
the 21st Century Department of Justice Appropriations Authorization 
Act, which included a provision to reauthorize Justice Department 
grants to establish new Boys & Girls Clubs nationwide. By authorizing 
$80 million in DOJ grants for each of the fiscal years through 2005, we 
sought to establish 1,200 additional Boys & Girls Clubs nationwide. 
This was to bring the number of Boys & Girls Clubs to 4,000, serving no 
less than 5 million young people. This bill will build upon this: we 
authorize Justice Department grants at $80 million for fiscal year 
2006, $85 million for fiscal year 2007, $90 million for fiscal year 
2008, $95 million for fiscal year 2009 and $100 million for fiscal year 
2010 to Boys & Girls Clubs to help establish 1,500 additional Boys & 
Girls Clubs across the Nation with the goal of having 5,000

[[Page S6467]]

Boys & Girls Clubs in operation by December 31, 2010.
  If we had a Boys & Girls Club in every community, prosecutors in our 
country would have a lot less work to do because of the values that are 
being instilled in children from the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. 
Each time I visit a club in Vermont, I am approached by parents, 
educators, teachers, grandparents, and law enforcement officers who 
tell me ``Keep doing this! These clubs give our children the chance to 
grow up free of drugs, gangs and crime.''
  You cannot argue that these are just Democratic or Republican ideas, 
or conservative or liberal ideas--they are simply good-sense ideas. We 
need safe havens where our youth--the future of our country--can learn 
and grow up free from the influences of drugs, gangs and crime. That is 
why Boys & Girls Clubs are so important to our children.
  I thank the Senate for taking up and passing our bipartisan bill to 
expand Federal support for the Boys & Girls Clubs of America. Our 
country's strength and ultimate success lies with our children. Our 
greatest responsibility is to help them inhabit this century the best 
way possible and we can help do that by supporting the Boys & Girls 
Clubs of America.
  Mr. CRAPO. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be 
read a third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be laid upon the 
table, with no intervening action or debate, and that any statements 
relating to the bill be printed in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The bill (S. 2363) was read the third time and passed, as follows:

                                S. 2363

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

     SECTION 1. BOYS AND GIRLS CLUBS OF AMERICA.

       Section 401 of the Economic Espionage Act of 1996 (42 
     U.S.C. 13751 note) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)(2)--
       (A) by striking ``1,200'' and inserting ``1,500'';
       (B) by striking ``4,000'' and inserting ``5,000''; and
       (C) by striking ``December 31, 2005'' and inserting 
     ``December 31, 2010'';
       (2) in subsection (c)--
       (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 
     and 2006'' and inserting ``2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, and 
     2010''; and
       (B) in paragraph (2)--
       (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``1,200'' and 
     inserting ``1,500''; and
       (ii) in subparagraph (B)--

       (I) by striking ``4,000'' and inserting ``5,000''; and
       (II) by striking ``2007'' and inserting ``2010''; and

       (3) in subsection (e), by striking paragraph (1) and 
     inserting the following:
       ``(1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated 
     to carry out this section--
       ``(A) $80,000,000 for fiscal year 2006;
       ``(B) $85,000,000 for fiscal year 2007;
       ``(C) $90,000,000 for fiscal year 2008;
       ``(D) $95,000,000 for fiscal year 2009; and
       ``(E) $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2010.''.

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