[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 36 (Friday, March 2, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2560-S2562]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

      By Mr. ALLARD (for himself, Mr. Hagel, Mr. Brownback, Mr. Baucus, 
        Mr. Durbin, and Mr. Harkin):
  S. 746. A bill to establish a competitive grant program to build 
capacity in veterinary medical education and expand the workforce of 
veterinarians engaged in public health practice and biomedical 
research; to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
  Mr. ALLARD. Mr. President, today I come to the floor to discuss an 
important piece of legislation that I am introducing to address a major 
public health need.
  I am pleased to be joined by Senators Hagel, Brownback, and Baucus.
  Today, I am introducing the Veterinary Public Health Workforce 
Expansion Act, to address the growing shortage of veterinarians in the 
public health sector.
  Over the past decade, the world has faced a significant increase of 
newly emerging infectious disease outbreaks, including West Nile virus; 
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, SARS; monkeypox; and avian 
influenza.
  In addition to their ability to cause severe illness, and even death, 
these diseases share another important characteristic: they are all 
transmitted from animals to man.
  Veterinary medicine is an integral and indispensable component of our 
Nation's public health system.
  Veterinarians protect human health by preventing and controlling 
infectious diseases, ensuring the safety and security of the Nation's 
food supply, promoting healthy environments, and providing health care 
for animals.
  Veterinarians are essential for early detection and response to 
unusual disease events that could be linked to newly emerging 
infectious diseases, or other biothreat agents of concern.
  In fact, it was a veterinarian who first diagnosed West Nile virus in 
the United States and a veterinarian who first notified health 
authonties of the introduction of monkeypox to the United States.
  A veterinarian's prompt diagnosis and reporting of screwworm 
infestation prevent this disease from becoming reestablished in the 
United States, thus saving hundreds of millions of dollars in expensive 
eradication programs.
  There is a need to build national capacity in research and training 
in the prevention, surveillance, diagnosis, and control of newly 
emerging and reemerging infectious diseases.
  Veterinarians are uniquely qualified to address these high-priority 
public health issues because of their extensive professional training 
in basic biomedical sciences, population medicine, and broad, multi-
species, comparative medical approach to disease prevention and 
control.
  There is a shortage of veterinarians working in public health 
practice. As used in the preceding sentence, the term ``public health 
practice'' includes bioterrorism and emergency preparedness, 
environmental health, food safety and food security, regulatory 
medicine, diagnostic laboratory medicine, and biomedical research.
  The Bureau of Labor Statistics expects there to be 28,000 job 
openings in the veterinary medical profession by 2012 due to growth and 
net replacements, a turnover of nearly 38 percent.
  The Nation's veterinary medical colleges do not have the capacity to 
satisfy the current and future demand for veterinarians and veterinary 
expertise that is vital to maintain public health preparedness.
  Veterinary colleges also provide a broad, multi-species, comparative 
medical approach to disease prevention and control, which is 
fundamental to understanding the transmission and life cycle of 
infectious disease agents, especially those that are shared with 
animals.
  Veterinarians have special expertise in preventing and controlling 
these types of diseases, but there is a critical shortage of 
veterinarians working in public health practice, and the Nation's 
veterinary medical colleges do not have enough capacity to meet the 
demand.
  In order to meet the critical shortages of veterinarians today I am 
introducing the Veterinary Public Health Workforce Expansion Act, which 
will allow veterinary medical colleges to expand their training 
programs for veterinary public health professionals.
  The Veterinary Public Health Workforce Expansion Act will create a 
new competitive grant program for capital improvements to allow 
veterinary medical colleges to expand their training programs for 
public health professionals.
  There are critical shortages of veterinarians across the United 
States, and the Nation's veterinary medical colleges do not have enough 
capacity to meet the demand.
  The Veterinary Public Health Workforce Expansion Act will build 
infrastructure, research laboratories, and classroom space to provide 
training for veterinary students in public health, food safety, 
infectious diseases, global health, and environmental quality.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. ISAKSON (for himself, Mr. Allard, Mr. Chambliss, Mr. 
        Crapo, and Mr. Graham):
  S. 747. A bill to terminate the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, and 
for other purposes; to the Committee on Finance.
  Mr. ISAKSON. Mr. President, back in Georgia, we have a saying. When 
people are treating the symptoms and never treating the cause, we say 
they are avoiding the 800-pound gorilla in the living room. I wish to 
talk for a minute about a 6-pound gorilla that is in the United States 
Capitol. It is called the U.S. Tax Code.
  Printed in the 8-point font type, the U.S. Tax Code weighs 6 pounds, 
but the

[[Page S2561]]

burden is equal to that or more of an 800-pound gorilla on the backs of 
American business and American families. To that end, I am joined by 
Senators Vitter, Chambliss, Allard, Graham, and others in the 
introduction of Tax Code simplification legislation to finally address 
the 800-pound gorilla in the living room and the 6-pound gorilla on the 
back of every American.
  This bill simply calls on the Congress to establish a tax review 
commission which will be required to report back to the Congress on 
July 4, 2010. Its job will be to analyze all options for revenue for 
the United States. Consumption taxes or sales taxes, flat taxes, income 
taxes, productivity taxes, whatever it might be, wipe the slate clean 
and say: If we could do it all over again, what would be the best way 
to finance this great country of ours.
  Second, once they have made those determinations, they make the 
recommendations back to the Congress. Then it is the Congress's 
responsibility to either adopt the commission's recommendations, much 
as we do with BRAC, or to reject them and affirmatively ratify the Tax 
Code of 1986, amended thousands of times, now weighing 6 pounds on the 
back of every single American.
  All of us have different ideas over what is the right way to do 
things. All of us know the United States of America needs revenue to 
operate. All of us know that. But since 1986 and the major rewrite of 
the Tax Code, every year all we have done is decorate it like a 
Christmas tree, amend it here, lower it there, raise it somewhere 
else--until it has become an absolute burden.
  We all know--I know the Presiding Officer deals with it in his State, 
as I do--the tremendous upheaval over the alternative minimum tax which 
passed in the 1960s to address the 169 taxpayers who made over a 
million dollars who did not pay any taxes. Today, the AMT affects 
everybody, including a family of four making $50,000 a year, if they 
own their own home, deduct interest, and itemize their deductions. That 
is just wrong.
  So rather than take individual Senators--I respect every one of us in 
the Chamber, including, obviously, myself--take our ideas and try to 
volley them back and forth, why not get a distinguished commission of 
learned people to sit down for a protracted period of time, analyze 
what is right for this country, and make recommendations to us?
  We solved the political disability in terms of reforming the military 
when we passed BRAC. Why not take the greatest disability on the 
American people--and that is the Tax Code--and approach it the same 
way: have thoughtful people who are knowledgeable and understand the 
Tax Code as it is make the recommendations on what might make it 
better? It may be a sales tax or a consumption tax. It may be a flat 
income tax. It may be a series of fees or other revenue streams. It may 
be a combination.
  But what we need most importantly is simplicity, fairness, equity, 
and I would submit one other thing--participation by all Americans. 
Everybody has a stake in this country, and everybody should contribute 
something. I think if we open up the Tax Code to scrutiny, we give this 
group 3 solid years to look and make their determination, we get the 
recommendation back by July 4, and then we debate it in this Congress, 
then, by the end of 2010, we have two choices: We ratify what we have 
today, which is the 600-pound gorilla on the back of every American 
citizen, or we look to a vision for the future and adopt a fair and a 
simpler and a more equitable tax system for every citizen of the United 
States of America.
  I urge my colleagues to join us on this legislation, help bring about 
and make it a reality, and, for the first time since 1986, address the 
cause and not the symptom of the cumbersome nature of the American Tax 
Code.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. DOMENICI (for himself and Mr. Bingaman):
  S. 750. A bill to authorize to be appropriated $1,800,000 for fiscal 
year 2008 to acquire real property and carry out a military 
construction project at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico; to the 
Committee on Armed Services.
  Mr. DOMENICI. Mr. President, I rise today with Senator Bingaman to 
introduce legislation authorizing new construction at Kirtland Air 
Force Base, NM.
  Kirtland Air Force Base serves many roles for the Department of 
Defense and the U.S. Air Force. The Nuclear Weapons Center, Air Force 
Research Laboratories, the New Mexico Air National Guard, and a 
Department of Energy National Nuclear Security Administration national 
laboratory are some of the many Federal entities doing work at 
Kirtland. As such, Kirtland's construction needs are many.
  Therefore, I am proud to offer this bill to authorize replacement of 
a fuel unloading facility at Kirtland Air Force Base. The President's 
fiscal year 2008 budget requests $1.8 million for this work, and in 
keeping with that request my legislation authorizes $1.8 million for 
the work.
  Our Armed Forces deserve our full support. I am proud to offer my 
support for the personnel at Kirtland Air Force Base by introducing 
this bill.
  I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the 
Record.
  There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be 
printed in the Record, as follows:

                                 S. 750

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

     SECTION 1. AUTHORITY TO CARRY OUT MILITARY CONSTRUCTION 
                   PROJECT AT KIRTLAND AIR FORCE BASE, NEW MEXICO.

       (a) Authority.--Using amounts appropriated pursuant to the 
     authorization of appropriations under subsection (b), the 
     Secretary of the Air Force may acquire real property and 
     carry out a military construction project at Kirtland Air 
     Force Base, New Mexico, as specified under such subsection.
       (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized 
     to be appropriated for fiscal year 2008 for military 
     construction and land acquisition for the Department of the 
     Air Force for the replacement of a fuel unloading facility at 
     Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico, $1,800,000.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. GRASSLEY:
  S. 751. A bill to amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to 
modify certain administrative eligibility rules relating to children 
born in the United States to Medicaid-eligible mothers; to the 
Committee on Finance.
  Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I am pleased today to introduce the 
Guaranteed Access to Medicaid for Newborns Act. This bill corrects a 
problem that has arisen during the implementation of the Deficit 
Reduction Act, DRA, of 2005. Through this act, we will guarantee that 
children born in America who are eligible for Medicaid can seamlessly 
get Medicaid coverage.
  For the last two decades, Medicaid recipients have been required to 
be a U.S. citizen or qualified alien who has been in the country for at 
least 5 years. In a July 2005 report, the HHS Office of Inspector 
General found that 47 States allowed individuals to ``self attest'' 
their citizenship status to qualify for Medicaid benefits. In short, 
the State simply asked a Medicaid applicant if they were a citizen. The 
applicant need only respond, ``Yes, I am an American.'' No documents 
necessary. And of those 47 States, 27 did no followup verification such 
as checking with the Social Security Administration. In response to 
this report, the DRA included a House-led provision that I supported to 
require States to more carefully document the citizenship of Medicaid 
recipients and applicants.
  Implementation of this provision, as is often the case with 
legislation, has not been without its challenges. The interim final 
rule that was issued by CMS effective July 6, 2006, did make many 
improvements so that the new statute could be implemented consistent 
with legislative intent. I think, on the whole, CMS did a good job. 
However, there was one specific provision in the interim final rule 
that I do not think is consistent with congressional intent: the 
provision that makes it more difficult for children born to 
undocumented mothers to gain Medicaid eligibility.
  In section 1903(v) of the Social Security Act, the Medicaid statute 
makes available payment to States for treatment of an alien who is not 
otherwise eligible for Medicaid in the case of an emergency medical 
condition. A woman who is undocumented or not

[[Page S2562]]

otherwise eligible for Medicaid is covered under Medicaid for labor and 
delivery. Nothing in the DRA changed that nor was anything in the DRA 
intended to change that.
  Under section 1902(e)(4) of the Social Security Act, a child born to 
a woman receiving Medicaid at the time of the child's birth is deemed 
onto Medicaid for a year. States had been interpreting that to mean the 
child of a woman who was undocumented could be deemed onto Medicaid for 
a year since the mother, under 1903(v), was eligible for Medicaid at 
the time of the child's birth. The interim final rule now specifically 
prevents a State from deeming the child of an undocumented mother onto 
the State Medicaid program without properly documenting the child's 
citizenship first.
  In this case, I believe CMS has gone too far. A child born in the 
United States of America is a citizen. Before the DRA, children born to 
mothers on Medicaid were deemed onto Medicaid, and I think that is 
absolutely in the best interest of that newborn child. The DRA did not 
change two fundamental facts: First, the mother, regardless 
of documentation status, was eligible for Medicaid at the time of the 
child's birth and, second, the child is a citizen. In my mind, there is 
no reason then to have any new documentation requirement for the child.

  The legislation I am introducing today reinstitutes the pre-DRA 
policy with one notable exception. Under the old rule, a State could 
issue a temporary Medicaid identification number to the mother which 
served as the identification number for the child for up to a year. I 
don't think that it's necessary or appropriate for a State to provide a 
child Medicaid benefits by issuing the mother a Medicaid card. This 
especially problematic in cases where the mother may not be in the 
country legally nor eligible for Medicaid after delivery. My 
legislation changes the old policy by requiring the State to issue an 
identification number to the child of the undocumented mother. This 
does not in any way change the States' responsibility to provide the 
mother benefits when she comes to the emergency room in labor.
  The legislation makes one further change to the statute to benefit 
newborns. Under the interim final rule, all children born to mothers on 
Medicaid are required to document their citizenship within 1 year of 
birth. I do not think that is necessary. Medicaid paid for the birth of 
an American citizen. It is simple common sense that the child is a 
citizen and requiring any further documentation is redundant and 
counter-intuitive.
  I want to be clear that I support the requirement that a State more 
fully document the citizenship of applicants for Medicaid. Given what 
the Congressional Budget Office has told us would be the cost of making 
undocumented aliens eligible for public programs, the Deficit Reduction 
Act addressed a real concern by requiring documentation. I want the new 
statutory provision to go forward to ensure that the people getting the 
benefits are actually eligible for the benefits. However, CMS and the 
States should recognize what is to me, common sense: A child born in 
the United States whose birth was paid for by Medicaid is a citizen 
under current law. No further documentation necessary.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. ROCKEFELLER (for himself, Ms. Snowe, Mr. Reed, Mr. Hagel, 
        Mr. Baucus, Mr. Roberts, and Mr. Cochran):
  S. 753. A bill to enhance scientific research and competitiveness 
through the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research, and 
for other purposes; to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and 
Pensions.
  Mr. ROCKEFELLER. Mr. President, today, I introduce the EPSCoR 
Research and Competitive Act of 2007, and I am proud to have the 
bipartisan support of my colleagues, Senators Snowe, Reed, Hagel, 
Baucus, Roberts, and Cochran.
  The Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research, EPSCoR, 
is part of the National Science Foundation and is intended to assist 
smaller States competing for research grants that historically have not 
received as much funding from the NSF as larger States. Twenty-six 
States, representing 20 percent of our Nation's population and 25 
percent of our doctoral and research institutions are currently 
eligible for the EPSCoR program yet receive only 10 percent of the 
total NSF research funding. EPSCoR funding provides valuable research 
opportunities in States with unique scientific features. States such as 
West Virginia, Alaska, Hawaii, Montana and New Mexico all stand to gain 
from EPSCoR funding, and our country will gain from the scientists and 
innovations made in our States.
  EPSCoR has the additional bonus of having a proven track record. Over 
50 percent of researchers supported by EPSCoR funds have successfully 
competed for non-EPSCoR funding. EPSCoR is also helping drive the 
economy in active States by providing cutting edge job opportunities. 
Seventy-five percent of new technology companies started by university 
research are based in the States where the original research was done.
  In order for our Nation to remain competitive in the global 
marketplace, EPSCoR will play an important role in promoting science 
nationwide. This legislation provides some specifics to meet that goal. 
First off, this bill proposes that the Research Infrastructure 
Improvements Grant increase to $75 million beginning in fiscal year 
2009 and remain at that level through 2012. Secondly, it seeks 20 
percent of the EPSCoR budget for the cofunding program, an innovative 
initiative to help encourage each of the NSF directorates to 
collaborate and fund meritorious projects from the EPSCoR States. 
Thirdly, it encourages the NSF Director to develop creative ways to 
ensure that the EPSCoR States are part of the new major initiatives of 
the foundation, including cyberinfrastructure and major research 
instrumentation.
  The citizens of West Virginia have benefited tremendously as a result 
of this program. Competitive Federal research has increased 68 percent 
in West Virginia since 2001. In 2005 alone, research created more than 
$147 million in economic activity and supported 4,432 jobs. Much like 
other States involved, EPSCoR has been a tremendous boon to our 
flagship higher institutions with West Virginia University and Marshall 
University having worked together through this program to come up with 
innovate solutions like never before. To help ensure that EPSCoR States 
remain competitive, this legislation suggests that EPSCoR grow 
proportionately with the foundation. To achieve our competitiveness 
goals and to increase the numbers of engineers and scientists, every 
State needs to play a role. It is encouraging to note that the 
administration's budget request for this year seeks a $7 million 
increase in EPSCoR.
  Ensuring the economic well-being of all our States is an essential 
part of keeping our entire Nation competitive and EPSCoR is an 
important step in that direction. EPSCoR States are the home for 25 
percent of the doctoral and research universities, and our States train 
nearly 20 percent of our science and engineering graduate students. 
This legislation will help encourage and promote competitiveness.

                          ____________________