[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 73 (Wednesday, May 25, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3341-S3345]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS
By Mr. BLUMENTHAL:
S. 1060. A bill to improve education, employment, independent living
services, and health care for veterans, to improve assistance for
homeless veterans, and to improve the administration of the Department
of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes; to the Committee on
Veterans' Affairs.
Mr. BLUMENTHAL. Mr. President, we all have a shared commitment to our
Nation's veterans. That shared commitment is reflected in many of the
programs that are supported by yourself and my other colleagues in this
body every year. I deeply respect the knowledge and dedication that my
fellow Senators have brought to this critical issue. Each of my
colleagues, almost without exception, has supported measures that have
helped our veterans over the years.
I rise to introduce my first piece of legislation, a bill to help our
Nation's veterans.
Our Nation must keep faith with the men and women who have served and
sacrificed for our freedom. Unfortunately, and unconscionably, America
is still failing them and their families by tolerating unemployment,
homelessness, and inadequate health care. We must renew our commitment
to the more than 250,000 veterans in Connecticut and 22 million across
the country to ensure that no veteran is left behind.
Our commitment to veterans must be unwavering. Despite our best
intentions, we fail all too often to accord our veterans the support
they have earned. Unfortunately, according to the Department of
Veterans Affairs, more than 76,000 veterans are homeless on any given
night and nearly twice that number will be homeless at some point
during the year. The unemployment rate among veterans has doubled over
the past 3 years. Twenty-seven percent of veterans in their early
twenties are unemployed. That number is almost twice the unemployment
rate of their peers who have not served in the military. The Bureau of
Labor Statistics recently reported that unemployment for veterans who
served their country after September 2001 to be 11.5 percent, again, a
figure far higher than the national unemployment rate.
Twenty percent of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans are estimated to
suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder. When veterans return home,
they must wait at least half a year, on average, for a claims decision
by the Department of Veterans Affairs before they can receive benefits.
Those numbers are simply unacceptable. As I speak today, America's
longest war continues, with less than 1 percent of the Nation in
uniform. Never in the history of the country have so few fought for so
long, at such great personal cost and sacrifice.
Under the leadership of Secretary Shinseki, the Department of
Veterans Affairs has taken strong steps toward the goal of building a
21st century system that supports caregivers of seriously injured Iraq
and Afghanistan veterans, improving services to women veterans,
expanding the availability of health care, and preventing veteran
homelessness.
Gaps in the system remain, and they are debilitating, destructive,
and devastating for many veterans. We can do better and we must do
more. The legislation I introduce today is entitled Honoring All
Veterans Act of 2011. Its 16 comprehensive provisions are only the
first phase of my efforts.
This legislative proposal is a comprehensive package but only an
opening salvo in a sustained, unceasing campaign to ensure that no
veteran is left behind. It is a downpayment on a larger debt. The goal
is to give all veterans the homecoming and the services they need and
deserve. Our military men and women have kept their promise to serve
and sacrifice for this country, and we must now keep faith with them.
Our commitment to veterans should reflect the depth of their sacrifice.
This measure is entitled Honoring All Veterans Act because all veterans
are brave service men and women, serving today in places we can barely
pronounce the names of. They are deployed around the globe, and they
deserve to be honored for defending our freedom and democracy. We must
honor that service not only in words but in deed.
This legislation comes from veterans and their families--seeing and
hearing their struggles and dreams, their achievements and defeats as I
have worked for them during my 20 years as attorney general and 4-plus
months as a Senator.
In the VFW and American Legion halls, in living rooms, in school
auditoriums, and in countless gatherings across the State of
Connecticut, I have been privileged to listen and learn from veterans
and their families who have shared their personal stories and insights.
This legislation simply continues the work I have done as attorney
general. I worked to make the Department of Defense release information
on those who may have been improperly separated from military service,
and urged the Department of Veterans Affairs to update its obsolete
database systems that were preventing tens of thousands of disabled
veterans from obtaining deserved tax benefits. In 2007, I worked with
the Connecticut congressional delegation to make the Department of
Defense provide accurate information about educational benefits to
veterans. I have fought for them individually when they encountered
bureaucratic resistance and red tape from an unresponsive system. I am
proud of that work and proud, most important, of my partnership with
veterans in Connecticut in proposing this legislation. My goal then,
and it has been continuously, is to keep faith with our veterans, to
honor our promises to them.
This Honoring All Veterans Act of 2011 will address four key areas:
first, expanding job opportunities for veterans; second, assisting
homeless veterans; third, improving veterans health care, with a
special emphasis on mental health services; fourth, modernizing the
Department of Veterans Affairs.
On expanding job opportunities to honor all veterans and give them
the welcome home they deserve, we need to focus first on jobs. Like all
Americans, veterans are striving to provide for their families and
participate in the economic recovery to find jobs in our slowly
recovering economy. Good jobs require education and training, as well
[[Page S3342]]
as independent living services for veterans. Our Nation has done much
to address this issue, such as the expanded post-9/11 GI bill, but gaps
in the system remain. They are all too glaring. My legislation will
expand job opportunities in five significant ways.
First, the legislation raises the statutory cap for the Vocational
Rehabilitation and Employment Independent Living Program to welcome
hundreds of additional veterans. This vital program helps veterans with
severe service-connected disabilities, enabling them to live
independently. It helps veterans with those kinds of disabilities to
participate in family and community life and increases their potential
to return to work. There is a strong case for removing the cap on
participation in the program. I would like to recognize the
distinguished junior Senator from Hawaii for the work that he has done
in this regard. I hope that my legislation will ensure the program can
continue to assist veterans coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan,
while Congress works to find funding to remove the cap completely.
Second, the legislation authorizes veterans to reuse the Department
of Defense Transition Assistance Program, known as TAP, and meet with
counselors at any military installation for up to 1 year after their
separation. This program was developed to assist military personnel
leaving the service with information about jobs, education, and career
development. Veterans returning to Connecticut wishing to participate
again in the Transition Assistance Program should have that opportunity
to participate for a second time, maybe even a third time. Coming back
from deployment, servicemembers are often focused on other important
aspects of the transition process, rather than how to find a job. They
may have never written a resume before or attended a job interview.
Having started the job search they have specific areas where they
realize they need help. I discussed this idea at a recent Senate Armed
Services Committee hearing with the Assistant Secretary of the Navy for
Manpower and Reserve Affairs. He testified that the military is right
now in the process of redesigning the TAP program. I am going to work
toward having this provision included in the redesign of the TAP
program so that TAP continues to be an opportunity once a servicemember
returns home.
Third, the legislation authorizes a study of how best to ensure that
civilian employers and educational institutions recognize veterans'
military training. The military recruits the most talented men and
women in America to serve, and then it invests heavily in their
professional development. Yet when they trade their uniforms in for
civilian clothes, employers and others such as professional accrediting
organizations often refuse to recognize or understand how to make use
of their military experience and the expertise they have gained.
The Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America reported that 61 percent
of employers do not believe they have ``a complete understanding of the
qualifications ex-servicemembers offer,'' and recently separated
servicemembers with college degrees earn on average almost $10,000 less
per year than their nonveteran counterparts.
One way to close this gap is to have the Department of Defense review
the list of military occupations specialties, such as the 22 MOS's in
Army engineering or 16 MOS's in Army communications, and ensure that
completing MOS qualifications will provide those servicemembers with
credentials recognized by civilian employers.
The study authorized in this legislation will start that process. I
am committed to working in the Senate to see this problem resolved.
Fourth, the legislation reauthorizes the Veterans Education Outreach
Program to provide money for campus-based outreach services to
veterans. This program was first established in 1972 to provide
colleges with a significant number of veterans on campus with
additional resources to make sure those students get the most out of
their educational experience and use VA benefits available to assist
them. I believe that the return of veterans from deployments during the
Global War on Terror requires the same kind of on-campus support. While
there are other programs helping veterans pay the cost of tuition and
many colleges have great veterans services on-campus, the Veterans
Education Outreach Program is the missing link to ensuring veterans are
informed about their VA benefits and maximizing the opportunity to
study and obtain employment.
Fifth, the legislation authorizes a comprehensive program at the
Department of Labor to assist veterans with TBI or PTSD in the
workplace. It provides technical assistance to employers of veterans
living with those conditions and provides best practices relating to
helping those employees develop successful strategies for on-the-job
success. The legislation requires the Office of Disability Employment
Policy to coordinate an inter-agency working group which will produce a
federal homecoming plan for reintegration of these veterans. These
tasks have been conducted to a limited degree by the Department of
Labor through the America's Heroes at Work program and the Veterans
Employment & Training Services and they are to be commended for their
efforts to date. However, by defining these requirements in statute, it
is my hope that these programs will expand to reach all veterans that
need help.
This legislation also reaches veterans in a variety of other key
areas. Recently, a female veteran visited my office. She and her two
children were homeless and needed help. In their case, we could find
temporary shelter. But on the issue of homelessness, many veterans do
not know where to turn or are hesitant to do so. The current per diem
given to homeless veterans does not address rising costs and regional
variations in helping homeless veterans. Women are particularly
underserved now, and my hope is that new housing projects take care of
female veterans. For example, the Newington Mission Homeless Project in
my state will help forgotten heroes find shelter. The Honoring All
Veterans Act reforms the per diem program and helps military families
avoid homelessness by permanently extending their foreclosure
protection for servicemembers.
On improving veteran health care and mental health services, as I
have traveled Connecticut meeting with veterans, I have seen firsthand
how veterans with traumatic brain injury or post-traumatic stress
disorder face unique challenges in accessing the Department of Veterans
Affairs for benefits and medical assistance. Veterans deserve the best
possible medical care, particularly when it comes to treating TBI or
post-traumatic stress. These are the signature wounds of the conflicts
in Afghanistan and Iraq. More than a quarter of these injuries are
undiagnosed, according to the military itself. Then too often, even if
they are diagnosed, servicemembers are screened but do not receive a
full course of treatment.
To address this issue, my legislation requires the Department of
Defense to identify and then close the gap between screenings and
treatment. Simply diagnosing a soldier or a marine with symptoms of
PTSD or TBI does not heal them.
This legislation also addresses the problem of finding qualified
psychiatrists, psychologists, and nursing professionals to work in VA
medical hospitals and outpatient clinics by accessing graduates from
the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. This
university trains outstanding medical professionals for military
service. Under existing law the Secretary may exempt graduates from
working in a military hospital after graduation, based upon forecast
demand. The Honoring All Veterans Act allows those graduates identified
by the Secretary as excess to military requirements to serve out their
commitment in the VA medical systems, rather than releasing them to
private hospitals. This provision is just one example of how the
legislation is crafted to better utilize the existing resources of the
DOD and VA medical systems.
Modernizing the Department of Veterans Affairs is the final section
of this legislation. It addresses the DOD and VA transition process
through improved monitoring and oversight. It increases pension
benefits and gives veterans grounds for appeal at the Board of Veterans
Appeals if the VA has misplaced or misfiled their documents.
I hear about this problem, as my colleagues do, again and again as I
listen to veterans. Recently, a veteran visited
[[Page S3343]]
my office. He has been waiting on a hearing date with the Board of
Veterans Appeals for over a year.
His story is typical.
This legislation provides much needed improvement to the Board of
Veterans Appeals. I look forward to working with my colleagues to
address other much needed improvements.
We can honor our veterans whose claims are stuck in the Board of
Veterans Appeals by confirming judges to the court that reviews them.
Three of those nine seats are now vacant, and each judge must preside
over 600 cases per year, far more than any other Federal appellate
court.
Finally, in closing, let me recognize the many veterans throughout
the State of Connecticut who helped me craft this measure.
I thank CDR Richard DiFederico of the VFW and CDR Daniel Thurston of
the American Legion for their very dedicated work, not only in
assisting me but day in and day out on behalf of veterans.
I thank Bob Janicki, who has spent recent years after serving this
country in the U.S. Marine Corps during the Vietnam era, for providing
help to homeless veterans and veterans seeking jobs.
Paul ``Bud'' Bucha is a veteran and friend with the most
distinguished service record possible in winning the Medal of Honor.
His life after military service, giving back to other veterans and
managing several successful companies, has been an example of how
veterans continue to provide leadership with courage and vision.
MSG Frank Alvarado has made a number of very helpful suggestions,
including, for example, reauthorizing the Veterans Education Outreach
Program.
I would also like to acknowledge my deep respect to Dr. Linda
Schwartz, who has been a tireless advocate for all veterans.
Connecticut is blessed to have the leadership of veterans who help
each other, care for each other, look out for each other. I look
forward to working with them in ensuring that this legislation is
passed. I have no illusions that accomplishing passage of these kinds
of measures will be easy, but I hope for support across the aisle. This
kind of goal certainly ought to unite us, not divide us. We have so
much more in common on this issue than in conflict. I am hoping we can
work together to ensure that we keep faith with our veterans, that we
honor their service, ensure that we welcome them home with the kind of
services they need and deserve so that no veteran will be left behind.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record
a summary of this legislation.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
The Honoring All Veterans Act of 2011
Section by Section Analysis
Title 1--Education, Employment, and Independent Living Services for
Veterans
1. Raises the statutory cap for Vocational Rehabilitation
and Employment Independent Living program participants from
2,700 new, per annum, to 3,000.
2. Authorizes veterans to retake the Transition Assistance
Program (TAP) and meet with counselors at any military
installation again up to 1 year after separation.
3. Authorizes a study of how best to ensure the recognition
of military training and qualifications that veterans have by
civilian employers and education institutions.
4. Reauthorizes the Veterans Education Outreach Program to
provide $6 million for campus-based outreach services to
veterans.
5. Directs the Secretary of Labor to provide technical
assistance to employers of veterans living with Traumatic
Brain Injury (TBI) and/or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
(PTSD) as they transition to the civilian workplace. Directs
the Secretary of Labor to provide best practices related to
helping employees with TBI and/or PTSD find and develop
successful strategies for on-the-job success. Directs the
Office of Disability Employment Policy to coordinate inter-
agency working group ``federal roundtables'' on TBI and PTSD
to produce a national homecoming plan that identifies the
role of each federal agency in the reintegration of these
veterans.
Title 2--Assistance for Homeless Veterans
1. Permanently extends foreclosure protection for service
members under the Service Members Civil Relief Act.
2. Reforms the daily Homeless Housing per diem voucher
program to take account of service costs and geographic
disparities. Allows use of other funds (such as those
authorized under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance
Grant) without offset.
Title 3--Health Care and Mental Health Services for Veterans
1. Directs DOD and VA to monitor referrals for mental
health care to ensure that individuals receive care.
2. Directs to VA to ensure that all TBI and PTSD patients
leave VA medical treatment with a plan for their long-term
care needs that utilizes a ``one-VA'' approach to capture and
employment and vocational services that can assist in long-
term care and rehabilitation.
3. Authorizes VA medical facilities to provide counseling
to family members of deployed service members.
4. Authorizes the VA medical system to receive graduates of
the Uniformed Services University of Health Sciences (USU) to
serve veterans in Community-Based Outpatient Clinics and
readjustment counseling Vet Centers of the Department of
Veterans Affairs.
5. Authorizes the VA to Access State Prescription
Monitoring Programs to address substance abuse.
Title 4--Administration of the Department of Veterans Affairs
1. Directs the DOD and VA to establish a monitoring
mechanism to identify and address challenges as they arise in
all DOD and VA facilities and offices involved in the single
separation physical process.
2. Authorizes an independent review board on the DOD to VA
transition process that includes the Inspector General from
each Agency and the GAO.
3. Reforms the Board of Veterans Appeals process to help
veterans with misfiled documents.
4. Increases the pension for disabled veterans married to
one another who require aid and attendance.
______
By Ms. MURKOWSKI (for herself and Mr. Begich):
S. 1063. A bill to allow for the harvest of gull eggs by the Huna
Tlingit people within Glacier Bay National Park in the State of Alaska;
to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
Ms. MURKOWSKI. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce legislation,
the Huna Tlingit Traditional Gull Egg Use Act of 2011, cosponsored by
my colleague Mark Begich from Alaska, which represents an important
step forward in allowing the Huna Tlingit people access to enjoy their
traditional subsistence activity of gull egg collection.
The collection and consumption of gull eggs is an integral part of
the culture of the Tlingit people of Southeast Alaska, and eggs were
gathered at rookeries long before Glacier Bay National Park and
Preserve's establishment in 1925. A Legislative Environmental Impact
Statement was completed in 2010 regarding this proposal to allow
limited harvests of gull eggs in Glacier Bay National Park and
Preserve, and the preferred alternative authorized the implementation
of a cooperative management program for gull egg collection and
emphasized a traditional harvest strategy for the collections.
My bill will authorize this harvest of gull eggs at five nesting
areas on two separate days each calendar year within the Park. This
would allow a large number of tribal members to interact with their
traditional homeland and provide an opportunity for as many as 12 young
people to participate annually and spend time with elders learning
about traditional egg harvest practices in addition to other aspects
Tlingit culture
This bill is widely supported throughout the environmental and
conservation communities, as well as the Alaska Native community. The
harvesting of gull eggs would only have minor effects on the gulls, but
the cultural benefits that would be realized by the Native community
would be great.
I would like to thank Senator Begich, an original co-sponsor of this
bill, for his and his staff's hard work in moving this bill forward. It
is our hope that this bill will receive quick but careful consideration
as the local tribe members have been eagerly awaiting passage of this
measure for quite a long time.
______
By Mr. REED (for himself, Mr. Schumer, Mr. Kerry, Mr. Leahy, and
Mr. Franken):
S. 1064. A bill to make effective the proposed rule of the Food and
Drug Administration relating to sunscreen drug products, and for other
purposes; to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Mr. REED. Mr. President, as families prepare for Memorial Day
festivities, and plan outings this summer, most will be outdoors
without adequate sun protection, even if they use sunscreen.
[[Page S3344]]
This is because there are currently no rules that sunscreen makers must
follow when making claims about the level of protection their products
provide.
Currently, sunscreen products are only required to protect against
UVB rays, the rays that cause tans and sunburns and the level of
protection is documented with a Sun Protection Factor, SPF.
Unfortunately, even these numbers can be misleading or worse,
inaccurate. Researchers have found that a sunscreen product with a SPF
of 30 protects against 98 percent of the sun's UVB rays, while a
sunscreen labeled with a SPF of 100 protects against 99 percent of the
sun's UVB rays. The larger the SPF number doesn't always result in
significantly better protection.
Moreover, sunscreen products are not required to protect against
cancer-causing UVA rays. UVA rays actually penetrate deeper into the
skin and can cause more damage. Some sunscreens and products containing
sun protection claim to protect against these rays, but there are no
scientific standards by which to measure their validity.
We have seen the effects that a lack of reliable sun protection can
have in the rising rates of melanoma in this country, which has doubled
in the past 30 years. This year alone, over 2 million people will be
informed that they have a preventable form of skin cancer. My state of
Rhode Island is among the top ten for reported melanoma diagnoses.
After years of working with my colleagues to press the Food and Drug
Administration to act, in August of 2007, the FDA finally proposed a
rule that would require sunscreen labels to disclose the level of UVA
protection in a standard format that appears near the sun protection
factor rating, and ensure that the SPF rating actually corresponds to a
product's protection against UVB rays. This was a step in the right
direction. The downside is that nearly 4 years later this proposal has
still not been finalized.
For this reason, today I am introducing the Sunscreen Labeling
Protection Act, the SUN Act, along with my colleagues, Senators
Schumer, Kerry, Leahy, and Franken. This legislation would require the
FDA to finalize the sunscreen labeling monograph. If the FDA fails to
finalize its proposed monograph of August 27, 2007 within 180 days of
enactment of the SUN Act, the monograph, as proposed, would become
effective. I look forward to a summer when Americans can finally feel
protected from the sun's harmful rays.
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. 1064
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 ``Sunscreen Labeling
Protection Act of 2011'' or the ``SUN Act''.
SEC. 2. EFFECTIVE DATE FOR RULE RELATING TO SUNSCREEN DRUG
PRODUCTS FOR OVER-THE-COUNTER HUMAN USE.
Notwithstanding subchapter II of chapter 5, and chapter 7,
of title 5, United States Code (commonly known as the
``Administrative Procedure Act'') and any other provision of
law, the proposed rule issued by the Commissioner of Food and
Drugs entitled ``Sunscreen Drug Products for Over-the-Counter
Human Use; Proposed Amendment of Final Monograph'', 72 Fed.
Reg. 49070 (August 27, 2007), shall take effect on the date
that is 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act,
unless such Commissioner issues the final rule, which
includes formulation, labeling, and testing requirements for
both ultraviolet B (UVB) and ultraviolet A (UVA) radiation
protection, before such effective date.
______
By Mr. UDALL of Colorado (for himself, Mr. Bingaman, and Ms.
Murkowski):
S. 1067. A bill to amend the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to require the
Secretary of Energy to carry out a research and development and
demonstration program to reduce manufacturing and construction costs
relating to nuclear reactors, and for other purposes; to the Committee
on Energy and Natural Resources.
Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. President, I rise today to speak about the
role safe nuclear energy can play in moving our country toward a more
secure energy future.
Given the economic, national security, and environmental threats that
we face, we need a comprehensive energy policy. In this regard, safe
nuclear energy clearly has emerged as an important player in our search
for stable and domestic energy sources with fewer greenhouse gas
emissions.
A cleaner energy economy will spur innovation in, and accelerate the
shift to, clean and domestic energy sources. It will create a new
industrial sector employing millions of Americans in the research,
development, and commercialization of new energy technologies. And it
will help reduce our dependence on foreign oil from unstable regions of
the world and cleaner energy technologies will help us get there.
Finally, as we try to emerge from perhaps our greatest economic
crisis since the Great Depression, we need an ``all of the above''
solution to jump-start our economy and create new jobs. Beyond
renewables and natural gas, this also means next generation nuclear
energy.
That is why I am introducing the bipartisan Nuclear Energy Research
Initiative Improvement Act today. This bill would authorize the
Department of Energy to carry out a research, development, and
demonstration program to reduce manufacturing and construction costs of
safe nuclear reactors. It would support research in areas critical for
us to achieve these goals, while also protecting national security. For
example, it would support research into: modular and small-scale
reactors, balance-of-plant issues, cost-efficient manufacturing,
licensing issues, and enhanced proliferation controls.
In light of the disaster at the Daiichi nuclear facility in Japan, it
is evident a new era of safe nuclear energy development is needed: one
with enhanced safeguards and more agile manufacturing and operating
capabilities. My bill seeks to achieve those objectives.
Nuclear power's energy security and environmental benefits have
earned this industry an important place at the table. It is my hope
that we can build new, safe nuclear plants over the next decade to
create jobs and build a cleaner, more secure tomorrow. My bill would
help us accomplish these goals.
I would like to thank Senator Bingaman and Senator Murkowski for
joining me in introducing 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. 1067
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 ``Nuclear Energy Research
Initiative Improvement Act of 2011''.
SEC. 2. NUCLEAR ENERGY RESEARCH INITIATIVE.
Section 952(a) of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (42 U.S.C.
16272(a)) is amended--
(1) by striking ``The Secretary'' and inserting the
following:
``(1) In general.--The Secretary;''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(2) Authorized research initiatives.--In carrying out the
program under this subsection, the Secretary shall conduct
research to lower the cost of nuclear reactor systems,
including research regarding--
``(A) modular and small-scale reactors;
``(B) balance-of-plant issues;
``(C) cost-efficient manufacturing and construction;
``(D) licensing issues; and
``(E) enhanced proliferation controls.
``(3) Consultation requirement.--In carrying out
initiatives under paragraph (2), the Secretary shall consult
with--
``(A) the Secretary of Commerce;
``(B) the Secretary of the Treasury;
``(C) the Nuclear Regulatory Commission; and
``(D) any other individual who the Secretary determines to
be necessary.
``(4) Schedule.--
``(A) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date
of enactment of this paragraph, the Secretary shall develop
and publish on the website of the Department of Energy a
schedule that contains an outline of a 5-year strategy to
lower effectively the costs of nuclear reactors.
``(B) Public workshops.--In developing the schedule under
subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall conduct public
workshops to provide an opportunity for public comment.
``(C) Review.--Before the date on which the Secretary
publishes the schedule under subparagraph (A), the Nuclear
Energy Advisory Committee shall conduct a review of the
schedule.
``(D) Annual updates.--
[[Page S3345]]
``(i) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date
on which the Secretary publishes the schedule under
subparagraph (A) and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall
update the schedule.
``(ii) Public workshops.--In updating the schedule under
clause (i), the Secretary shall conduct public workshops in
accordance with subparagraph (B).
``(5) Cost sharing.--Section 988 shall apply to initiatives
carried out under this section.
``(6) Authorization of appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this section $50,000,000 for
each of fiscal years 2012 through 2016.''.
______
By Mr. BROWN of Ohio (for himself and Mr. Franken):
S. 1068. A bill to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide
for temporary student loan debt conversion authority; to the Committee
on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Mr. BROWN of Ohio. Mr. President, this month marks commencement
season at our great colleges and universities across Ohio and the
Nation. I have had the honor of speaking at a few this year--Owens
Community College, Ashland University, Cleveland Marshall College of
Law, and Ohio Northern University.
It is a day of achievement and accomplishment, a reaffirmation of why
education is a key to our economic prosperity. But it is also a day of
anxiety. Graduates are leaving campuses to enter a difficult job market
saddled with student debt.
Approximately 2/3 of Ohioans who attend a private or public 4-year
college or university graduate with an average of nearly $26,000 in
student loan debt. Unfortunately, as student loan debt levels continue
to grow, the Nation's hiring climate remains sluggish. This has led to
limited employment opportunities for recent graduates; nearly half of
the 2009 graduating class is currently unemployed or employed in a
position that does not require a college degree.
Such circumstances are leading to undue personal stress and
potentially, a lifetime of financial challenges. Far too often,
individuals and families are becoming part of the ``sandwich
generation'' where families are paying for the cost of their children's
education while also taking care of their aging parents.
That is why last year I supported--and the President signed into law,
the Health and Education Reconciliation Act, the single largest federal
investment in student aid in generations. The law ends wasteful
subsidies to private lenders through the Federal Family Education Loan,
FFEL, Program. In doing so, we cut out the middleman and loans are now
not only originated, but also serviced, by the U.S. Department of
Education.
By ending subsidies to private banks, we saved billions of dollars,
and used the savings to allow the maximum Pell Grant award to reach a
historic level. We made it easier for students to repay loans through
the Income-Based Repayment Program. We did this all at no cost to the
taxpayer.
For many colleges and universities, the transition from FFEL to the
Direct Loan program has been a resounding success as there has been no
disruption to borrowers or financial aid administrators.
For those borrowers who are in the middle of the transition period,
I, along with my good colleague Senator Franken, am introducing the
Student Loan Simplification and Opportunity Act. This legislation, by
simplifying loan repayment and reducing the loan amount, benefits
college graduates. And this legislation, by removing costly subsidies
provided to private lenders, saves 1.8 billion dollars that will be
reinvested in the Pell Grant Program, thereby ensuring that other
deserving students can afford to attend college.
The Student Loan Simplification and Opportunity Act would allow
students with both FFEL loans and Direct Loans to voluntarily transfer
their FFEL debt to a Direct Loan servicer over a nine-month period.
By converting loans, the likelihood that a borrower may miss a
payment and end up further in debt would decrease. On average, a
borrower with multiple loan servicers has a 20 percent higher chance of
defaulting on their loan payments. Yet, this program not only
simplifies a borrower's loan repayment, it reduces the amount owed.
Borrowers who transferred their debt would be rewarded with up to a 2
percent reduction in the principal amount of their FFEL loan.
I am proud to introduce the Student Loan Simplification and
Opportunity Act, as this legislation will benefit both borrowers and
taxpayers.
______
By Mrs. MURRAY (for herself and Ms. Cantwell):
S. 1079. A bill to amend title 41, United States Code, and title 10,
United States Code, to extend the number of years that multiyear
contracts may be entered into for the purchase of advanced biofuel, and
for other purposes; to the Committee on Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs.
Mrs. MURRAY. 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. 1079
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 ``Domestic Fuel for Enhancing
National Security Act of 2011''.
SEC. 2. MULTIYEAR CONTRACTS FOR ADVANCED BIOFUEL.
(a) Civilian Agency Contracts.--Subsection (a) of section
3903 of title 41, United States Code, is amended to read as
follows:
``(a) Definitions.--For the purposes of this section:
``(1) Multiyear contract.--The term `multiyear contract'--
``(A) means a contract for the purchase of property or
services for more than one, but not more than five, program
years, except as provided in subparagraph (B);
``(B) in the case of a contract for the purchase of
advanced biofuel, means a contract for the purchase of such
fuel for a period of up to 15 program years; and
``(C) may provide that performance under the contract
during the second and subsequent years of the contract is
contingent upon the appropriation of funds and (if it does so
provide) may provide for a cancellation payment to be made to
the contractor if such appropriations are not made.
``(2) Advanced biofuel.--The term `advanced biofuel' has
the meaning given such term in section 211(o)(1)(B) of the
Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7545(o)(1)(B)).''.
(b) Defense Contracts.--Subsection (k) of section 2306b of
title 10, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
``(k) Definitions.--For the purposes of this section:
``(1)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the term
`multiyear contract' means a contract for the purchase of
property or services for more than one, but not more than
five, program years.
``(B) In the case of a contract for the purchase of
advanced biofuel, the term `multiyear contract' means a
contract for the purchase of such fuel for a period of up to
15 program years.
``(C) Such a contract may provide that performance under
the contract during the second and subsequent years of the
contract is contingent upon the appropriation of funds and
(if it does so provide) may provide for a cancellation
payment to be made to the contractor if such appropriations
are not made.
``(2) The term `advanced biofuel' has the meaning given
such term in section 211(o)(1)(B) of the Clean Air Act (42
U.S.C. 7545(o)(1)(B)).''.
(c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section
shall apply to contracts entered into on or after the date
occurring 180 days after the date of the enactment of this
Act.
____________________