[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 39 (Tuesday, March 15, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1678-S1682]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

      By Mr. HARKIN:
  S. 576. A bill to amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
1965 to improve standards for physical education; to the Committee on 
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
  Mr. HARKIN. Mr. President, today I am introducing the FIT Kids Act. 
That first word, FIT, an acronym for Fitness Integrated with Teaching, 
an important concept that I am proud to promote today. The FIT Kids Act 
encourages schools to provide children with quality physical education 
in an effort to promote health and wellness throughout their lives.
  Since the 1970s, the incidence of obesity has more than doubled for 
preschool children aged 2-5 years and for young people aged 12-19 
years; for children aged 6-11 years, it has more than tripled. Since 
there are many reasons for this public health crisis, we know that 
addressing it will require multiple solutions. An important place we 
can address childhood obesity is in our schools. The Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention has found that fewer than 10 percent of 
our public schools offer daily physical education for the entire school 
year for all students. Let me repeat that, fewer than 10 percent. Our 
kids deserve better. Research has shown that physical education not 
only promotes health and wellness, it also has a direct correlation 
with kids' academic performance in school.
  The FIT Kids Act would amend the Elementary and Secondary Education 
Act to shine a light on the availability of quality physical education 
for all public school children through grade 12, and to ensure they 
receive important health and nutritional information. As Chairman of 
the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, I have been 
working in a bipartisan way with my colleagues on the committee to 
reauthorize the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
  With the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education 
Act, we must fix the things that are not working, while protecting the 
goals of the bill, including narrowing achievement gaps. It is truly 
alarming to see the discrepancies in achievement between children in 
the United States and children abroad. Here in the U.S., despite making 
some progress, we continue to have wide and persistent achievement gaps 
that are leaving behind children of color, young people from 
disadvantaged backgrounds, and children with disabilities.
  In addition to achievement gaps, I am also concerned about the trends 
in physical education in schools across the Nation. Currently, schools 
are decreasing the amount of free play or physical activity that 
children engage in during school hours. Only about one-third of 
elementary children have daily physical education, and less than one-
fifth have extracurricular physical activity programs at their schools. 
I know that difficult resource decisions have to be made but we cannot 
short-change our children's health. This is short-sighted for two big 
reasons: One, we are fighting a childhood obesity epidemic of 
frightening proportions. And, two, as research shows, and as any 
teacher or parent knows, kids have to have time to play and burn off 
energy if they are going to be in a proper frame of mind to learn.
  The association between physical activity and academic achievement is 
an important part of why we need to continue to support physical 
education. Broad evidence suggests a positive relationship between 
physical activity and grade point average, rate of learning, memory, 
attention span, and classroom behavior, as well as cognitive, social, 
and motor skill development. Research indicates that youth who report 
engaging in physical activity at school are 20 percent more likely than 
their less active peers to earn good grades in math or English. 
Furthermore, data suggests that children who are overweight have 
greater risk for school absenteeism than their peers who are average 
weight. In order for our Nation's children to be successful students, 
we must do all that we can to ensure they are in school and ready to 
learn.
  This legislation will ensure that parents receive critical 
information regarding the time and resources devoted to their children 
for a quality physical education. Specifically, the bill will require 
schools, local educational agencies, and state educational agencies to 
publicly report on the quantity and quality of physical education 
courses provided using nationally recognized guidelines and standards. 
This will give parents the information they need to assess whether 
their children are receiving an appropriate physical education. 
Furthermore, the FIT Kids Act would give parents the tools necessary to 
encourage and support a healthy and active lifestyle, including 
increased physical activity during and outside the school day, and 
nutritious eating habits both at home and at school.
  In addition, the bill promotes professional development for teachers 
and school principals to promote healthy lifestyles and physical 
activity through evidence-based curricula, and thereby boost students' 
ability to learn more effectively. The bill also promotes physical 
activity in after-school programs and amends the school counseling 
program to take into account both students' emotional wellbeing and 
their physical wellbeing.
  Finally, this legislation authorizes research on the ways physical 
activity can be incorporated into all aspects of the school day, the 
impact of physical activity on students' readiness to learn, and the 
best ways to measure student progress in increasing physical activity.
  The FIT Kids Act shines a spotlight on children's health and how our 
schools can play a greater role in teaching our children healthy 
behaviors. As we move forward in reauthorizing the Elementary and 
Secondary Education Act, we cannot neglect the importance of proper 
physical education. We know that sedentary lifestyles that begin in 
childhood can lead to number of major chronic diseases that affect 
their health and wellbeing in adulthood. Accordingly, we owe it to 
American students to teach them healthy behaviors and the importance of 
physical activity, and how these lessons will benefit them throughout 
their lives. The FIT Kids Act provides the framework to accomplish 
this. I urge my colleagues to support this bill.
  Mr. President, 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. 576

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

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Fitness Integrated with 
     Teaching Kids Act'' or the ``FIT Kids Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress makes the following findings:

[[Page S1679]]

       (1) Childhood obesity has reached epidemic proportions in 
     the United States.
       (2) Obesity-related diseases cost the United States economy 
     more than $117,000,000,000 every year.
       (3) The prevalence of overweight in children between the 
     ages of 6 and 11 years increased from 4.0 percent in 1971-
     1974 to 17.5 percent in 2001-2004, and the prevalence of 
     overweight in adolescents between the ages of 12 and 19 years 
     increased from 6.1 percent to 17.0 percent.
       (4) More than 9,000,000 children and adolescents between 
     the ages of 6 and 19 years are considered overweight on the 
     basis of being in the 95th percentile or higher of BMI values 
     in the 2000 CDC growth chart for the United States.
       (5) If children do not become more active and healthy, one-
     third of all children born in 2000 or later will suffer from 
     diabetes at some point in their lives.
       (6) Of all United States deaths from major chronic disease, 
     23 percent are linked to sedentary lifestyles that now begin 
     at childhood.
       (7) Adolescents who are overweight have a 70-80 percent 
     chance of becoming overweight adults, increasing their risk 
     for chronic disease, disability, and death.
       (8) A recent study showed that plaque build-up in the neck 
     arteries of children who are obese or those with high 
     cholesterol is similar to those levels seen in middle-aged 
     adults.
       (9) A decline in physical activity has contributed to the 
     unprecedented epidemic of childhood obesity.
       (10) The Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans 
     recommend that children engage in 60 minutes or more of 
     physical activity each day.
       (11) In a 2005 Government Accountability Office report on 
     key strategies to include in programs designed to target 
     childhood obesity, ``increasing physical activity'' was 
     identified as the most important component in any such 
     program.
       (12) Part of the decline in physical activity has been in 
     our Nation's schools, where physical education programs have 
     been cut back in the past 2 decades.
       (13) The national standard for physical education frequency 
     is 150 minutes per week in elementary school and 225 minutes 
     per week in middle school and high school.
       (14) Only 3.8 percent of elementary school, 7.9 percent of 
     middle school, and 2.1 percent of high schools provide daily 
     physical education or its equivalent for the entire school 
     year, and 22 percent of schools do not require students to 
     take any physical education at all.
       (15) Among children ages 9 to 13, 61.5 percent do not 
     participate in any organized physical activity during out-of-
     school hours.
       (16) Regular physical activity is associated with a 
     healthier, longer life and a lower risk of cardiovascular 
     disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, and some 
     cancers.
       (17) Research suggests a strong correlation between 
     children's fitness and their academic performance as measured 
     by grades in core subjects and standardized test scores.
       (18) Approximately 81 percent of adults believe daily 
     physical education should be mandatory in schools.

     SEC. 3. REPORT CARDS.

       Section 1111(h) of the Elementary and Secondary Education 
     Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(h)) is amended--
       (1) in paragraph (1)(C)--
       (A) in clause (vii), by striking ``and'' after the 
     semicolon;
       (B) in clause (viii), by striking the period at the end and 
     inserting a semicolon; and
       (C) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(ix) the amount of time students spend in required 
     physical education as measured against the national standards 
     of 150 minutes per week of required physical education for 
     students in elementary school and 225 minutes per week of 
     required physical education for students in middle school and 
     secondary school;
       ``(x) the percentage of local educational agencies in the 
     State that have a required, age-appropriate physical 
     education curriculum for all students in elementary schools, 
     middle schools, and secondary schools that adheres to 
     national guidelines adopted by the Centers for Disease 
     Control and Prevention and State standards;
       ``(xi) the percentage of elementary school and secondary 
     school physical education teachers who are State licensed or 
     certified as physical education teachers; and
       ``(xii) the percentage of schools that have a School Health 
     Council that includes parents, students, representatives of 
     the school food authority, representatives of the school 
     board, school administrators and members of the public and 
     that meets monthly to promote a healthy school 
     environment.'';
       (2) in paragraph (2)(B)(i)--
       (A) in subclause (I), by striking ``and'' after the 
     semicolon;
       (B) in subclause (II), by striking ``and'' after the 
     semicolon; and
       (C) by adding at the end the following:

       ``(III) the percentage of elementary school and secondary 
     school physical education teachers who are State certified as 
     physical education teachers; and
       ``(IV) the amount of square feet of indoor and outdoor 
     facilities that are primarily used for physical education and 
     the amount of square feet of indoor and outdoor facilities 
     that are primarily used for physical activity; and''; and

       (3) in paragraph (2)(B)(ii)--
       (A) in subclause (I), by striking ``and'' after the 
     semicolon;
       (B) in subclause (II), by striking the period at the end 
     and inserting a semicolon; and
       (C) by adding at the end the following:

       ``(III) the percentage of elementary school and secondary 
     school physical education teachers who are State certified as 
     physical education teachers; and
       ``(IV) the number of meetings of a School Health Council 
     that includes parents, students, representatives of the 
     school food authority, representatives of the school board, 
     school administrators and members of the public during the 
     school year.''.

     SEC. 4. PROMOTING PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND ACTIVITY IN SCHOOL 
                   PROGRAMS.

       (a) Elementary and Secondary School Counseling Programs.--
     Section 5421 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
     1965 (20 U.S.C. 7245) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (b)(2)(H), by inserting ``, which design 
     and implementation shall take into consideration the overall 
     emotional and physical well-being of students'' after ``the 
     program''; and
       (2) in subsection (c)(2)(E), by inserting ``health, the 
     importance of regular physical activity,'' after 
     ``relationships,''.
       (b) Smaller Learning Communities.--Section 5441(b) of the 
     Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
     7249(b)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(14) How the local educational agency will ensure that 
     smaller learning communities support healthy lifestyles 
     including participation in physical education and physical 
     activity by all students and access to nutritious food and 
     nutrition education.''.
       (c) 21st Century Community Learning Centers.--
       (1) Purpose; definitions.--Section 4201 of the Elementary 
     and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7171) is 
     amended--
       (A) in subsection (a)(2), by inserting ``nutrition 
     education programs, structured physical activity programs,'' 
     after ``recreation programs,''; and
       (B) in subsection (b)(1)(A), by inserting ``nutrition 
     education, structured physical activity,'' after 
     ``recreation,''.
       (2) Local competitive grant program.--Section 4204(b)(2) of 
     the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
     7174(b)(2))--
       (A) in subparagraph (M), by striking ``and'' after the 
     semicolon;
       (B) by redesignating subparagraph (N) as subparagraph (O); 
     and
       (C) by inserting after subparagraph (M) the following:
       ``(N) an assurance that the proposed program is coordinated 
     with the physical education and health education programs 
     offered during the school day; and''.
       (3) Local activities.--Section 4205(a) of the Elementary 
     and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7175(a))--
       (A) in paragraph (11), by striking ``and'' after the 
     semicolon;
       (B) in paragraph (12), by striking the period at the end 
     and inserting ``; and''; and
       (C) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(13) programs that support a healthy, active lifestyle, 
     including nutritional education and regular, structured 
     physical activity programs.''.
       (d) Parental Involvement.--Section 1118 of the Elementary 
     and Secondary Education Act of 1965 is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)(2)--
       (A) in subparagraph (E), by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (B) by redesignating subparagraph (F) as subparagraph (G); 
     and
       (C) by inserting after subparagraph (E) the following:
       ``(F) involve and train parents in encouraging and 
     supporting a healthy and active lifestyle, including 
     increased physical activity during and outside the school 
     day, and nutritional eating habits in the home and at school; 
     and'';
       (2) in subsection (d)--
       (A) in the subsection heading, by inserting after 
     ``Achievement'' the following: ``by Healthy, Active 
     Students'';
       (B) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking 
     ``standards.'' and inserting ``standards and to ensure that 
     the children lead healthy, active lives.''; and
       (C) in paragraph (1)--
       (i) by inserting after ``supportive'' the following: ``, 
     healthy,'';
       (ii) by striking ``; and participating'' and inserting ``; 
     participating''; and
       (iii) by inserting after ``extracurricular time'' the 
     following: ``and supporting their children in leading a 
     healthy and active life, such as by providing healthy meals 
     and snacks, encouraging participation in physical education, 
     and sharing in physical activity outside the school day''; 
     and
       (3) in subsection (e)--
       (A) by redesignating paragraphs (6) through (14) as 
     paragraphs (7) through (15), respectively; and
       (B) by inserting after paragraph (5) the following:
       ``(6)(A) shall ensure that parents and teachers have 
     information about the importance of a healthy lifestyle, 
     including nutritional eating habits, physical education, and 
     physical activity, to an effective learning environment; and
       ``(B) shall coordinate activities with parents and teachers 
     to ensure that children are provided with nutritious meals 
     and snacks, and have ample opportunities for physical 
     education and physical activity during and outside the school 
     day;''.

[[Page S1680]]

     SEC. 5. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT FOR TEACHERS AND PRINCIPALS.

       (a) State Applications.--Section 2112(b) of the Elementary 
     and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6612(b)) is 
     amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(13) A description of how the State educational agency 
     will use funds under this part to provide professional 
     development that is directly related to the fields of 
     physical education and health education to physical education 
     teachers and health education teachers to ensure that 
     children are leading healthy, active lifestyles that are 
     conducive to effective learning.''.
       (b) State Use of Funds.--Section 2113(c)(6) of the 
     Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
     6613(c)(6)) is amended--
       (1) by striking ``, in cases in which a State educational 
     agency determines support to be appropriate,''; and
       (2) by inserting ``, physical education teachers, and 
     health education teachers'' after ``pupil services 
     personnel''.
       (c) Local Applications and Needs Assessment.--Section 
     2122(b)(9) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
     1965 (20 U.S.C. 6622(b)(9)) is amended--
       (1) in subparagraph (C), by striking ``and'' after the 
     semicolon;
       (2) in subparagraph (D), by striking the period at the end 
     and inserting ``; and''; and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(E) improve the health and eating habits of students and 
     increase rates of physical activity of students.''.
       (d) Local Use of Funds.--Section 2123(a)(3) of the 
     Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
     6623(a)(3)) is amended--
       (1) in subparagraph (A)--
       (A) in clause (i), by striking ``and'' after the semicolon; 
     and
       (B) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(iii) effective strategies for improving the healthy 
     habits of students and the rates of physical activity by 
     students that result in the ability to learn more 
     effectively; and''; and
       (2) in subparagraph (B)--
       (A) in clause (iv), by striking ``and'' after the 
     semicolon;
       (B) in clause (v), by striking the period at the end and 
     inserting ``; and''; and
       (C) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(vi) provide training, with curricula that is evidence-
     based, in how to teach physical education and health 
     education that results in the ability of students to learn 
     more effectively.''.

     SEC. 6. NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL STUDY.

       Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this 
     Act, the Secretary of Education shall enter into a contract 
     with the National Research Council of the National Academy of 
     Sciences to--
       (1) examine and make recommendations regarding--
       (A) various means that may be employed to incorporate 
     physical activity into Head Start and childcare settings, 
     elementary, middle, and high school settings, and before- and 
     after-school programs; and
       (B) innovative and effective ways to increase physical 
     activity for all students;
       (2) study the impact of health, level of physical activity, 
     and amount of physical education on students' ability to 
     learn and maximize performance in school; and
       (3) study and provide specific recommendations for--
       (A) effectively measuring the progress of students, at the 
     school level, in improving their health and well-being, 
     including improving their--
       (i) knowledge, awareness, and behavior changes, related to 
     nutrition and physical activity;
       (ii) cognitive development, and fitness improvement, in 
     physical education;
       (iii) knowledge of lifetime physical activity and health 
     promotion;
       (iv) decrease in obesity; and
       (v) levels on overall health indicators; and
       (B) effectively measuring the progress of students, at the 
     school level, in increasing physical activity.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Ms. MIKULSKI (for herself and Mr. Inouye):
  S. 583. A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to 
permit direct payment under the Medicare program for clinical social 
worker services provided to residents of skilled nursing facilities; to 
the Committee on Finance.
  Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, in honor of World Social Work Day, I 
rise today to introduce the Dorothy I. Height and Whitney M. Young, Jr. 
Social Work Reinvestment Act and the Clinical Social Work Medicare 
Equity Act of 2011. I am proud to introduce legislation that will 
reduce the shortage of social workers in our nation and properly 
reimburse social workers for the services they provide.
  Social workers play a crucial role combating the social problems 
facing our nation and are essential providers in our health care 
system. Our health care and social service needs have drastically 
increased over the past decade and will continue to do so in the next 
decade. We must have the workforce in place to make sure that our 
returning soldiers have access to mental health services, our elderly 
maintain their independence in the communities in which they live, and 
abused children are placed in safe homes. Social workers provide mental 
health therapy, caregiver and family counseling, health education, 
program coordination, and case management. In these tough economic 
times, social workers have an essential role in keeping communities 
together and helping individuals and families cope with the stresses 
they are facing. Social workers are vital to America's social safety 
net.
  The Dorothy I. Height and Whitney M. Young, Jr. Social Work 
Reinvestment Act provides grants to social workers, identifies 
workforce challenges and resource needs, and determines how any 
workforce shortage will affect the communities social workers serve. I 
am honored to introduce this bill named after two social visionaries, 
Dorothy I. Height and Whitney M. Young. Dorothy Height, who passed away 
last year, was a pioneer of the civil rights movement. Like me, she 
began her career as a case worker and continued to fight for social 
justice. Whitney Young, another trailblazer of the civil rights 
movement, also began his career transforming our social landscape as a 
social worker. He helped create President Johnson's War on Poverty and 
has served as President of the National Association of Social Workers.
  This bill is about continued investment in social work. It provides 
grants for social work education, research, and training. These grants 
will fund community-based programs of excellence and provide 
scholarships to train the next generation of social workers. This bill 
addresses the recruitment and retention of social workers and will 
result in a renewed focus on improving social worker workplace safety. 
According to the National Association of Social Workers, 44 percent of 
social workers surveyed have faced personal safety issues when on the 
job. In addition, this bill will help identify and disseminate 
evidence-based best practices in social work interventions. This bill 
also establishes a national coordination center that will allow social 
education, advocacy and research institutions to collaborate and work 
together. The coordination center will facilitate gathering and 
distributing social work research to make the most effective use of the 
information we have on how social work service improves our social 
fabric. This bill also creates a media campaign that will promote 
social work. This bill gives social work the attention it deserves.
  As a social worker, I understand the critical role social workers 
have in the overall care of our populations. Social workers can be 
found in every facet of community life--in hospitals, mental health 
clinics, senior centers, and private agencies that serve individuals 
and families in need. Social workers are there to help struggling 
students, returning soldiers, and the chronically ill. Oftentimes, 
socials workers are the only available option for mental health care in 
rural and underserved urban areas. Yet there are not enough social 
workers to meet these needs. By 2018, it is estimated an additional 
100,000 social workers will be needed. We need to get our workforce in 
place today so that we can meet the needs of our population, 
particularly our aging Americans. The first of the baby boomers turn 65 
this year. The aging tsunami will hit us. We must be prepared.
  I believe that social work is full of great opportunities, both to 
serve and to lead. Social work is about putting our values into action. 
Social workers are among our best and brightest, our most committed and 
compassionate. They are at the frontlines of providing care, often 
putting themselves in dangerous and violent situations. Social workers 
have the ability to provide psychological, emotional, and social 
support--quite simply, the ability to change lives. I think we can do 
better by our constituents including our servicemembers, seniors, and 
children. We must make sure we have the social workers in place to meet 
their needs. I'm fighting to make sure we do.
  I also stand on the Senate floor today to introduce the Clinical 
Social Work Medicare Equity Act of 2009. This bill ensures that 
clinical social workers receive Medicare reimbursement for the mental 
health services they provide in skilled nursing facilities. Under the 
current system, social workers cannot

[[Page S1681]]

bill Medicare directly for the services they provide. Psychologists and 
psychiatrists, who provide similar counseling, are able to separately 
bill Medicare for their services.
  Since my first days in Congress, I have been fighting to protect and 
strengthen the safety of our Nation's seniors. Making sure that seniors 
have access to quality, affordable mental health care is an important 
part of this fight. I know that millions of seniors do not have access 
to, or are not receiving, the mental health services they urgently 
need. Five million seniors are affected by depression, yet few ever 
receive treatment. According to the American Psychological Association, 
20 percent of people over the age of 55 have a mental health disorder 
and 2/3 of nursing home residents have a mental or behavioral health 
issue, but less than 3 percent receive treatment. These mental health 
disorders, which include severe depression and debilitating anxiety, 
interfere with a person's ability to carry out activities of daily 
living and adversely affect their quality of life. Furthermore, older 
people account for 20 percent of suicide deaths in the U.S., and white 
men age 85 or older have the highest suicide rate of any age group. 
Every year nearly 5,000 older Americans kill themselves. This is 
unacceptable and must be addressed.
  This bill helps residents of skilled nursing facilities across the 
country get the mental health and psychosocial services they need. It 
ensures that seniors living in underserved urban and rural areas, where 
clinical social workers are often the only available option for mental 
health care, continue to receive the treatment they need. Clinical 
social workers, much like psychologists and psychiatrists, diagnose and 
treat mental illnesses. In fact, clinical social workers are the 
primary mental health providers for nursing home residents and seniors 
residing in rural environments. Unlike other mental health providers, 
clinical social workers cannot bill Medicare directly for the important 
services they provide to their patients. Protecting seniors' access to 
clinical social workers ensures that our most vulnerable citizens get 
the quality, affordable mental health care they need. This bill will 
correct this inequity and make sure clinical social workers get the 
payments and respect they deserve.
  Before the Balanced Budget Act of 1997, clinical social workers 
billed Medicare Part B directly for mental health services they 
provided in nursing facilities for each patient they served. Under the 
Prospective Payment System, services provided by clinical social 
workers are lumped, or ``bundled,'' along with the services of other 
health care providers for the purposes of billing and payments. 
Psychologists and psychiatrists, who provide similar counseling, were 
exempted from this system and continue to bill Medicare directly. This 
bill would exempt clinical social workers, like their colleagues, from 
the Prospective Payment System, and would make sure that clinical 
social workers are paid for the services they provide to patients in 
skilled nursing facilities.
  This bill is about more than paperwork and payment procedures. This 
bill is about equal access to Medicare payments for the equal and 
important work done by clinical social workers. It is about making sure 
our nation's most vulnerable citizens have access to quality, 
affordable mental health care. The overarching goal we should be 
striving to achieve for our seniors is an improved quality of life. 
Without clinical social workers, many nursing home residents would 
never get the counseling they need when faced with a life threatening 
illness or the loss of a loved one. I think we can do better by our 
nation's seniors. I am fighting to make sure we do.
  As a social worker, I have been on the frontlines of helping people 
cope with issues in their everyday lives. I started off fighting for 
abused children, making sure they were placed in safe homes. I will 
continue to fight every day for our children, seniors, and families on 
the floor of the United States Senate.
  The Dorothy I. Height and Whitney M. Young, Jr. Social Work 
Reinvestment Act and the Clinical Social Work Medicare Equity Act of 
2011 are both strongly supported by the National Association of Social 
Workers. I also want to thank Senator Inouye for his cosponsorship of 
the Clinical Social Work Medicare Equity Act of 2012 and thank Senator 
Begich, Senator Cardin, and Senator Inouye for their cosponsorship of 
the Social Work Reinvestment Act. I look forward to working with my 
colleagues to enact these two important pieces of legislation.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. GRASSLEY (for himself and Mrs. McCaskill):
  S. 586. A bill to amend the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 
to apply whistleblower protections available to certain executive 
branch employees to legislative branch employees, and for other 
purposes; to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
Affairs.
  Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, today I am introducing a bill that will 
keep the Federal Government accountable.
  Whistleblowers are the key to unlocking the secrets of wrongdoing 
because they have access to information about how the frauds were 
perpetrated and can help lead authorities in the right direction to 
uncover the frauds. However, for their brave efforts, they are often 
the victims of retaliation and are removed from their jobs by 
supervisors who don't want the wrongdoing uncovered. I have often said 
whistleblowers are as welcome as skunks at a Sunday picnic, despite the 
fact that all they do is bring forward the truth. This is wrong and 
that is why I have supported strong whistleblower protection laws 
during my time in Congress.
  The landmark whistleblower law, the Whistleblower Protection Act of 
1989, WPA, provided rights and remedies to Executive Branch 
whistleblowers that are the victims of retaliation. I proudly 
cosponsored the WPA, but like many laws that are 20 years old, it needs 
to be updated. So, I cosponsored legislation introduced by Senator 
Akaka in the previous Congress to do just that. We are currently 
working to introduce similar legislation in this Congress. Despite this 
effort, there is still a critical gap in whistleblower protections for 
government employees, namely the lack of whistleblower protections for 
employees of the Legislative and Judicial branches of the Federal 
Government. I am here today to start that discussion and introduce 
legislation that will provide the same whistleblower protection rights 
currently extended to Executive Branch employees to the Legislative 
Branch.
  I am pleased to be joined by Senator McCaskill in introducing the 
Congressional Whistleblower Protection Act of 2011. This important 
legislation simply adds whistleblower protections to the Legislative 
Branch by incorporating the WPA into the Congressional Accountability 
Act of 1995, a law I authored to bring Congress in line with many labor 
laws and workplace protections. I have long believed Congress should 
practice what it preaches, and this legislation will do just that.
  A theme that has dominated this new Congress, as well as the 
elections this past November, is accountability and responsibility in 
Washington. In most instances, the only reason we discover waste or 
fraud is because employees are brave enough to stand up to the 
wrongdoers and expose their offenses. Without these whistleblowers, the 
American taxpayer would continue to foot the bill.
  This bill is long overdue. I have previously introduced similar 
legislation but, unfortunately, those bills were never brought up in 
Committee. I hope that the Homeland Security and Government Affairs 
Committee will examine this legislation closely and expeditiously 
report it to the full Senate so we can ensure employees of the 
Legislative Branch that they are protected from any reprisals related 
to protected whistleblowing.
  Now, it's been a number of years since the Congressional 
Accountability Act was signed into law by President Clinton, so I would 
like to remind my colleagues why we passed this law. It was a time very 
similar to today, the American people were demanding more from their 
elected officials in Washington and wanted accountability and 
transparency in all branches of Government. I believed then, as I do 
now, that Congress needs to put its money where its mouth is and apply 
the various labor and employment laws that we enforce on other branches 
of government

[[Page S1682]]

and businesses all across the country to ourselves. The Congressional 
Accountability Act did just that.
  It applied a number of important laws to Congress, including, the 
Fair Labor Standards Act, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 
the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Age Discrimination and 
Employment Act, the Family Medical Leave Act, the Occupational Safety 
and Health Act, the Employee Polygraph Protection Act, the Worker 
Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, the Rehabilitation Act, as 
well as some provisions of title 5 related to Federal service labor-
management relations. It also created the Office of Compliance in the 
Legislative Branch that oversees application of these important laws to 
the Legislative Branch and ensures that employee's rights under these 
laws are protected. While the Congressional Accountability Act was a 
good start, the Office of Compliance has recommended additional laws be 
applied to the Legislative Branch, including the Whistleblower 
Protection Act.
  We have already taken the steps to protect whistleblowers in the 
Executive Branch. It doesn't make sense not to extend these same 
protections to whistleblowers in our own backyard. This bill will, very 
simply, give congressional employees the same protections that workers 
in the other branches of government already possess. It does this by 
simply adding the Whistleblower Protection Act to the preexisting list 
of statutes that are applied to the Legislative Branch by the 
Congressional Accountability Act. This is a straightforward and simple 
solution to ensure that employees of the Legislative Branch are not 
without vital whistleblower protections.
  I hope my colleagues will join me and Senator McCaskill in supporting 
this bill to ensure that those who help us in the fight to hold 
government accountable are not punished for their efforts.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mr. BINGAMAN (for himself and Ms. Murkowski) (by request):
  S. 590. A bill to convey certain submerged lands to the Commonwealth 
of the North Mariana Islands in order to give that territory the same 
benefits in its submerged lands as Guam, the Virgin Islands, and 
American Samoa have in their submerged lands; to the Committee on 
Energy and Natural Resources.
  Mr. BINGAMAN. Mr. President, today I join with my colleague and the 
Ranking Member of the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, Lisa 
Murkowski, in re-introducing, by request, legislation to convey certain 
submerged lands to the Commonwealth of the North Mariana Islands, CNMI, 
that would give that territory the same benefits in its submerged lands 
as Guam, the Virgin Islands, and American Samoa have in their submerged 
lands.
  This bill is identical to H.R. 934 that was considered in the 111th 
Congress and which passed the House on July 15, 2009 and was reported 
by the Committee on May 6, 2010. Enactment of this legislation is time-
sensitive because there is currently no Federal or local administrative 
regime in place to manage the lands from the mean high-tide line out to 
3 miles surrounding the 14 islands of the CNMI. As a result, 
development and other near shore activities are on hold, or are 
conducted under a cloud of legal uncertainty.
  I refer those interested in additional information on this proposal 
to Senate Report 111-197. Included in that report, is the CBO estimate 
which states that enacting H.R. 934 would not affect direct spending or 
revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures would not apply.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that a letter of support be 
printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                                    Congress of the United States,


                                     House of Representatives,

                                   Washington, DC, March 14, 2011.
     Hon. Jeff Bingaman,
     Chairman, Energy and Natural Resources Committee, U.S. 
         Senate, Washington, DC.
     Hon. Lisa Murkowski,
     Ranking Member, Energy and Natural Resources Committee, U.S. 
         Senate, Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Bingaman and Ranking Member Murkowski: As you 
     know, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee 
     favorably reported in the last Congress H.R. 934, a bill 
     conveying submerged lands to the Commonwealth of the Northern 
     Mariana Islands. The measure had received unanimous support 
     in the House. And it was included in Majority Leader Reid's 
     amendment to S. 303, the America's Great Outdoors Act, but 
     proceeded no further in the Senate.
       I have now reintroduced the bill, exactly as reported by 
     the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, as H.R. 670 in 
     this Congress; and I would like to request that, as a 
     courtesy, you together introduce companion legislation in the 
     Senate.
       For your ready reference a copy of H.R. 670 is attached.
       Thank you for your consideration.
           Sincerely,
                                   Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan,
     Member of Congress.

                          ____________________