[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 149 (Thursday, November 10, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Page S12679]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        LABOR-HHS APPROPRIATIONS


                 Enhanced Study and Exchange Activities

  Mr. COLEMAN. Mr. President, I want to bring the attention of my 
colleague from Kentucky to a provision Senator Bingaman and I offered 
to the Labor-HHS appropriations bill regarding a strategic plan for 
enhancing access of legitimate foreign students, scholars, scientists, 
and exchange visitors in the United States for study and exchange 
activates. Since September 11, restrictive visa policies and negative 
perceptions of the United States have led to a drastic decline in the 
number of foreign students studying in the United States, a development 
which has a negative consequences for both American foreign policy and 
economic competitiveness. A strategy is needed to pro-actively counter 
negative perceptions about America as unwelcoming to foreign students, 
and to enable us to successfully compete with places like the EU, the 
UK, and Australia, which have developed strategies to recruit the 
world's best and brightest. In my amendment to the Labor-HHS bill, I 
initially requested the Secretary of Education, in consultation with 
the Secretaries of State, Commerce, Homeland Security and Energy and 
others, to prepare this plan.
  Mr. McCONNELL. I am aware of this provision and have been alerted by 
the State Department that they would prefer that the Secretary of State 
take the lead in coordinating this strategic plan, given Secretary 
Rice's jurisdiction over this matter. Had this provision been offered 
to the fiscal year 2006 Foreign Operations Appropriations Act, I can 
assure my friend that it would have been included as a requirement for 
the State Department to fulfill.
  Mr. COLEMAN. I, too, have been informed of the State Department's 
jurisdictional concern. Given that this issue is more appropriate to 
the Foreign Operations bill, I wonder if my friend from Kentucky will 
work with me and the State Department to ensure that this provision is 
fulfilled, specifically that within 180 days of enactment of the 
foreign aid bill the Department provide the relevant congressional 
committees with a report detailing this strategic plan, in consultation 
with the Departments of Education, Commerce, Homeland Security, and 
Energy, as well as institutions and organizations involved in 
international education. The strategy should seek to use innovative 
media like the Internet to develop a marketing strategy. It should also 
include policy recommendations for streamlining the procedures related 
to international student access.
  Mr. McCONNELL. My staff has already discussed this matter with the 
State Department and they have committed to providing such a plan 
within that timeframe.
  Mr. COLEMAN. I thank the chairman of the State, Foreign Operations, 
and Related Programs Subcommittee.

                          ____________________