[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 79 (Monday, June 19, 2006)]
[House]
[Pages H4196-H4197]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES THAT A NATIONAL 
                YOUTH SPORTS WEEK SHOULD BE ESTABLISHED

  Ms. FOXX. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the 
resolution (H. Res. 826) expressing the sense of the House of 
Representatives that a National Youth Sports Week should be 
established.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                              H. Res. 826

       Whereas about 42 million children participate in organized 
     sports each year;
       Whereas children participating in organized sports tend to 
     perform better in school, develop excellent interpersonal 
     skills, and lead healthier lives;
       Whereas organized youth sports help children increase their 
     self-esteem, develop an appreciation of health and fitness, 
     and become leaders within the community;
       Whereas organized youth sports provide for regular physical 
     activity and help combat increasing rates of childhood 
     obesity;
       Whereas the Congressional Caucus on Youth Sports was 
     created, with great help and support from the Citizenship 
     Through Sports Alliance, Positive Coaching Alliance, and 
     National Recreation and Park Association, to restore the 
     focus in youth sports on the child's experience and character 
     development;
       Whereas far too many children quit participating in youth 
     sports at a young age, many telling coaches and parents, ``It 
     just wasn't fun anymore'';
       Whereas the National Recreation and Park Association has 
     designated July as Parks and Recreation Month;
       Whereas many youth sports organizations gather at local 
     parks and recreation facilities across the country; and
       Whereas designating the second week in July as National 
     Youth Sports Week would raise awareness of the important 
     physical and emotional benefits of participating in youth 
     sports and the need to promote sportsmanship among players, 
     parents, coaches, and officials: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved,  That it is the sense of the House of 
     Representatives that a National Youth Sports Week should be 
     established to promote awareness of the importance of youth 
     sports and the need to restore the focus in youth sports on 
     the child's experience and character development.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
North Carolina (Ms. Foxx) and the gentlewoman from the District of 
Columbia (Ms. Norton) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from North Carolina.


                             General Leave

  Ms. FOXX. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks 
and include extraneous material on the resolution under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from North Carolina?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. FOXX. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H. Res. 826, offered by the distinguished gentleman from 
North Carolina (Mr. McIntyre), would express the sense of the House 
that a National Youth Sports Week should be established.
  Because children are our country's most valuable resource, it is 
important that we do all we can to provide them with positive learning 
experiences, quality role models, and all the enjoyment that comes with 
participating in organized sports.
  Statistics show that approximately 42 million kids play youth sports 
each year. Children that partake in these activities tend to have 
better personal skills, lead healthier lives, and are more successful 
in school. The competitive spirit and character-building camaraderie 
that sports provide are essential for teaching our children to follow 
their dreams while working with others to build lasting relationships.
  It is important that we all do our part to encourage our children to 
embrace the experience of teamwork; and for that reason, I urge all 
Members to come together to support H. Res. 826.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. NORTON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge support of H. Res. 826. Youth sports are much 
more than just an afterschool activity or a great way for young people 
to spend their energy and free time. Youth sports can help enrich a 
child's life; and, Mr. Speaker, they serve a much more important role 
today when so many youth have become voyeurs of sports and not 
participants in sports. H. Res. 826 is sponsored by Representative Mike 
McIntyre.
  Youth sporting leagues and activities, when combined with healthy 
parenting and responsible coaching, help children to grow emotionally, 
socially, and physically. Teamwork, discipline, and the value of hard 
work that goes with them are important lessons for children to learn. 
In addition, there are clear physical and health benefits for children 
who participate in youth sports.
  Mr. Speaker, obesity has become a major problem of young people in 
the United States. This week I am introducing a bill that would allow 
the FCC to regulate junk food advertising on TV which is so out of hand 
that physicians and other health care providers have focused in on this 
advertising in particular.
  I am pleased that before Representative Jon Porter, former chair of 
the HHS subcommittee, left, I was a cosponsor of a bill that has been 
funded now for the last 5 years with him to establish a program that 
was extraordinarily successful, as it turns out and according to 
studies, in getting young people out and active. It was the VERB 
program. I regret very much that thus far this program has not been 
funded this year by the committee. I am hoping that it will be funded 
by Congress before we go home.
  No health issue is more pervasive among young people than obesity and 
being overweight. We appear to be raising a generation that is losing 
interest in physical activity and, in addition, is consuming 
nutritionally deficient foods that will guarantee that they have health 
problems for the rest of their lives.
  We have an epidemic of the type II diabetes for the first time in the 
history of this country. This is not the kind of diabetes people are 
born with. This is the kind of diabetes people get as a result of 
lifestyle, and the notion that youngsters now are the fastest growing 
group of those with type II diabetes should concern all of us and 
should get us to doing whatever we can to bring this matter to the 
attention of their parents and their communities. What Representative 
Mike McIntyre's resolution does in this regard may seem small, but 
everything we can do we should now be doing.
  Children who are not active and maintain poor diets develop health 
problems that we now know will be with them for their entire lives. The 
notion that high blood pressure, pediatricians tell us, now starts for 
many children when they are in elementary school, for example.

                              {time}  1430

  Youth sports helps counteract this behavior by encouraging physical 
activity and healthier diets.
  Internationally, many organizations use youth sports to help remove 
barriers between culturally diverse communities. Basketball and soccer 
leagues have been successfully used in South America and Northern 
Ireland to foster reconciliation among troubled youth. Youth sports 
help train children to become productive citizens and future leaders.
  Youth Sports Week, which will be celebrated during the second week of 
July, will raise awareness of the existence of sports leagues around 
the country and promote sportsmanship among players, parents, coaches, 
and officials. I very much urge Members to support this resolution.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. FOXX. Mr. Speaker, I can share many of the concerns and feelings 
that my colleague from across the aisle has expressed. When we were 
growing up, we didn't need a lot of organized sports

[[Page H4197]]

to keep us busy, it did not seem. There were plenty of activities in 
the summer to keep us active; and when we were in school during the 
year, there were activities to keep us active.
  But nowadays it seems it is very difficult to keep children active in 
sports-related activities unless those are around organized activities. 
As the grandparent of two who are involved in lots of activities 
themselves, I see very much the benefits to them from being involved in 
baseball and in basketball and in Kung Fu and other things that teach 
them skills that will be useful to them all their lives, including 
team-building skills.
  It is very important, I think, that we keep our young people active 
and that we do all that we can to help them fight against the trends 
toward obesity that we are seeing in our culture and the trends toward 
inactivity, with children being drawn to watching television and 
playing on computers instead of getting outside and being involved in 
great activities that could help them in all manners of their lives.
  So I very much support this resolution, and I urge all Members to 
support the adoption of H. Res. 826.
  Mr. McINTYRE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H. Res. 826, 
legislation to designate the second week of July as ``National Youth 
Sports Week.''
  Many thanks to the cochair of the Youth Sports Caucus, Congressman 
Kenny Hulshof, and all of the Members of the Youth Sports Caucus for 
their work on this bill.
  Additionally, I would also like to thank the Government Reform 
Committee, particularly Chairman Davis and Ranking Member Waxman for 
their swift support in bringing this bill to the House floor.
  Having coached youth sports for 7 years as a volunteer coach in my 
hometown of Lumberton, NC, I recently created the Congressional Caucus 
on Youth Sports in response to the release of the first-ever Report 
Card on Youth Sports in America.
  The report card, compiled by the Citizenship Through Sports Alliance, 
revealed alarming deficiencies in child-centered philosophy, coaching, 
health and safety, officiating and parental behavior and involvement in 
youth sports in America.
  Youth sports are the largest youth organization in the United States. 
In fact, more than 42 million children play sports each year with tens 
of thousands of volunteers, parents, coaches, and officials joining in 
to help.
  Therefore, we must ensure that our Nation's children have a positive 
experience playing youth sports, and we must restore the focus of youth 
sports on character development.
  The benefits of children's involvement in youth sports go far beyond 
the playing field. Children who participate in organized sports tend to 
achieve better results in school, develop excellent interpersonal 
skills and increased self-esteem.
  During my years as a youth sports coach with my sons, Joshua and 
Stephen, I saw the positive impact of sports on our youth and in our 
community, as well as in other communities. I know first-head the 
positive impact youth sports have had on my life growing up and not 
only on my sons' lives but also on the lives of countless other young 
people--both boys and girls--across America.
  H. Res. 826 raises awareness about the important and long-term 
physical and emotion benefits of participating in youth sports and the 
need to promote sportsmanship among players, parents, coaches and 
officials.
  This bill is supported by the Citizenship Through Sports Alliance, 
Positive Coaching Alliance, and the National Recreation and Park 
Association. The month of July has been designated by the National 
Recreation and Park Association as Parks and Recreation month, and the 
second week of July to celebrate youth sports would complement this 
celebration.
  Please join me in passing this legislation and helping to ensure that 
our Nation's children reap the positive affects of involvement in youth 
sports, and that this crucial part of children's lives remains a source 
of enjoyment and character-building.

                                                    June 19, 2006.
     Re National Youth Sports Week Resolution (H. Res. 826)

     Hon. Mike McIntyre,
     Rayburn House Office Building, House of Representatives, 
         Washington, DC.
       I am writing this letter to offer you the full support and 
     endorsement of the National Recreation and Park Association 
     (NRPA) as you seek passage of the National Youth Sports Week 
     Resolution.
       Public park and recreation agencies are the largest 
     provider and facilitator of community based youth sport 
     opportunities in America. Not only do park and recreation 
     agencies provide instructional programs and coordinate youth 
     sport leagues, they manage an estimated 500,000 facilities 
     that are permitted to independent youth sport organizations 
     to conduct their own programs and leagues. Public park and 
     recreation agencies lead the way in identifying needs and 
     offering solutions to improve youth sports. Our collective 
     influence regarding public policy associated with quality 
     sports, development of practice standards and leadership 
     around improving the quality of youth sports reflect our 
     commitment to the work of the Congressional Youth Sports 
     Caucus.
       Since 1998, the National Recreation and Park Association 
     (NRPA) has engaged national partners and local park and 
     recreation agencies to improve the quality of youth sports 
     nationwide. NRPA partnerships have focused on expanding and 
     improving programming in tennis, basketball, baseball, 
     football as well as many other sports to increase 
     participation among youth and adults.
       NRPA was selected by Sports Illustrated in 2002 to 
     celebrate its 50th Anniversary by designating one community 
     in each state as the Sports Illustrated 50th Anniversary 
     Sportstown. This nationwide competition attracted 
     applications from 250 communities in all 50 states. The 
     National Football League Youth Football Fund allowed us to 
     take this project to the next level by engaging thirty-eight 
     communities to demonstrate a new leadership model for 
     improving the quality of youth sports.
       At the conclusion of the demonstration project, NRPA 
     launched the Sports Illustrated GOOD SPORTS TM 
     initiative in 2005. Over 1,400 communities joined the 
     initiative to improve youth sports through the following 
     elements:
       Teach life skills through sports;
       Empower success among youth through sports;
       Promote physical activity and healthy lifestyles through 
     sports; and
       Strengthen communities through youth sports.
       NRPA brought our expertise in the field and our community 
     perspective to assist in the development of the Citizenship 
     through Sports Alliance's (CTSA) National Youth Sports Report 
     Card. We recently moved this partnership forward by working 
     with CTSA to conduct a Grassroots Report Card of Youth Sports 
     in America in coordination with the Congressional Caucus on 
     Youth Sports. We are currently assisting local community 
     efforts to benchmark their grassroots report card against the 
     national findings.
       NRPA looks forward to collaborating with the Congressional 
     Youth Sports Caucus to work in a bi-partisan fashion to 
     promote the values of sportsmanship, civility, respect, 
     health, safety, fun and physical activity among players and 
     leaders, including coaches, parents and officials. We are 
     pleased that the National Youth Sports Week will take place 
     during the second week of July to coincide and compliment 
     National Recreation and Parks month.
       The leadership role of parks and recreation in advancing 
     child-centered youth sports is increasingly evident. 
     Convening community stakeholders and engaging partners to 
     improve programs, policies and practices around all of youth 
     sports is imperative. Park and recreation agencies sit at the 
     crossroads of responsibility and opportunity to elevate the 
     practice and to develop new standards for the benefit of all 
     children. NRPA will continue to develop public policy 
     recommendations to support the leadership role of parks and 
     recreation to improve the quality of youth sports nationwide.
       We applaud your leadership and dedication and that of the 
     co-sponsors to the improvement of youth sports in America by 
     designating a National Youth Sports Week.
           Sincerely,

                                                 John Thorner,

                                               Executive Director,
                 National Recreation and Park Assoc., Ashburn, VA.
  Ms. FOXX. I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from North Carolina (Ms. Foxx) that the House suspend the 
rules and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 826.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds of 
those present have voted in the affirmative.
  Ms. FOXX. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the 
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this question will 
be postponed.

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