[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 92 (Monday, June 18, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4240-S4243]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

      By Mr. McCAIN (for himself and Mr. Reid):
  S. 3306. A bill to establish a United States Boxing Commission to 
administer the Professional Boxing Safety Act of 1996, and for other 
purposes; to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
  Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, today I am pleased to be joined by Senator 
Reid of Nevada, our distinguished majority leader, to introduce the 
Professional Boxing Amendments Act of 2012. This legislation is 
virtually identical to a measure reported by the Commerce Committee 
during the 111th Congress, after being approved unanimously by the 
Senate in 2005. Simply put, this legislation would better protect 
professional boxing from the fraud, corruption, and ineffective 
regulation that has plagued the sport for too many years, and that has 
devastated physically and financially many of our Nation's professional 
boxers.
  My involvement with boxing goes back a long way, first as a fan in my 
youth--in what many view as the golden age of boxing in America: in the 
days of Joe Louis and Billy Conn and Floyd Patterson and Sugar Ray 
Robinson--probably the greatest boxer in history--and Kid Gavilan and 
Joey Giardello, the names I still remember because of the incredible 
acts of sportsmanship and courage and tenacity in the ring that they 
displayed, which made boxing one of the most popular sports in all of 
the United States, then with my undistinguished record as a boxer at 
the U.S. Naval Academy, and then over my time here in Congress, where I 
have been involved in legislation related to boxing since the mid-
1990s.
  The 19th century sportswriter Pierce Egan called the sport of boxing 
the ``sweet science.'' Long-time boxing reporter Jimmy Cannon called it 
the ``red light district of sports.'' In truth, it is both. I have 
always believed that at its best, professional boxing is a riveting and 
honorable contest of courageous and highly skilled athletes. 
Unfortunately, the last few decades of boxing history have--through 
countless examples of conflicts of interest, improper financial 
arrangements, and inadequate or nonexistent oversight--led most to 
believe that Cannon's words--that boxing is the ``red light district of 
sports''--were more appropriate than that of Pierce Egan's words, who 
called it the ``sweet science.''
  The most recent controversy surrounding the Pacquiao-Bradley fight is 
the latest example of the legitimate distrust boxing fans have for the 
integrity of the sport. After the Pacquiao-Bradley decision was 
announced, understandably fans were clearly apoplectic and many 
commentators found the decision astonishing.
  Bob Arum, the promoter of the fight--and he represented both Pacquiao 
and Bradley--said:

       What the hell were these people watching?. . . . How can 
     you watch a sport where you don't see any motive for any 
     malfeasance and yet come up with a result like we came up 
     with tonight? How do you explain it to anybody?. . . . 
     Something like this is so outlandish, it's a death knell for 
     the sport.

  Those words came from the promoter of the fight, long-time promoter 
Bob Arum.
  ESPN boxing analyst Dan Rafael--who scored the fight 119 to 109 for 
Pacquiao--called the decision an ``absolute absurdity.'' And he said:

       I could watch the fight 1,000 times and not find seven 
     rounds to give to Timothy Bradley.

  Additionally, following the fight, HBO's Max Kellerman--a guy I have 
always enjoyed--was ringside, where he said:

       This is baffling, punch stat had Pacquiao landing many more 
     punches, landing at a higher connect percentage, landing more 
     power punches. Ringside, virtually every reporter had 
     Pacquiao winning by a wide margin. . . . I can't understand 
     how Bradley gets this decision. There were times in that 
     fight where I felt a little bit embarrassed for Bradley.

  Clearly, the conspiracy theories and speculation surrounding the 
fight are given life because there are so many questions surrounding 
the integrity of the sport and how it is managed in multiple 
jurisdictions. Professional boxing remains the only major sport in the 
United States that does not have a strong centralized association, 
league, or other regulatory body to establish and enforce uniform rules 
and practices. Because a powerful few benefit

[[Page S4241]]

greatly from the current system of patchwork compliance and enforcement 
of Federal boxing law, a national self-regulating organization--though 
preferable to government oversight--is not a realistic option.
  What has happened to the meaning of the word champion? There is an 
alphabet soup of organizations today, some of them--or many of them--
based outside of the United States of America, that clearly manipulates 
the rankings in order to set up a fight which has a ``championship'' 
associated with it.
  Ineffective oversight of professional boxing will continue to result 
in scandals, controversies, unethical practices, a lack of trust in the 
integrity of judged outcomes and, most tragic of all, unnecessary 
deaths in the sport. These problems have led many in professional 
boxing to conclude that the only solution is an effective 
and accountable Federal boxing commission.

  The legislation that Senator Reid and I are introducing would 
establish the United States Boxing Commission--the USBC or Commission--
providing the much-needed oversight to ensure integrity within this 
profession through better reporting and disclosure, requiring that the 
sport avoid the conflicts of interest which cause fans to question the 
outcome of bouts, which hurts the sport.
  If enacted, the commission would administer Federal boxing law and 
coordinate with other Federal regulatory agencies to ensure that this 
law is enforced, oversee all professional boxing matches in the United 
States, and work with the boxing industry and local commissions to 
improve the safety, integrity, and professionalism of professional 
boxing in the United States.
  More specifically, this legislation would require that all referees 
and judges participating in a championship or a professional bout 
lasting 10 rounds or more be fully registered and licensed by the 
commission. Further, while a sanctioning organization could provide a 
list of judges and referees deemed qualified, only the boxing 
commission will appoint the judges and referees participating in these 
matches.
  Additionally, the commission would license boxers, promoters, 
managers, and sanctioning organizations. The commission would have the 
authority to revoke such a license for violations of Federal boxing 
law, to stop unethical or illegal conduct, to protect the health and 
safety of a boxer or if the revocation is otherwise in the public 
interest.
  The Professional Boxing Amendments Act would strengthen existing 
Federal boxing law by improving the basic health and safety standards 
for professional boxers, establishing a centralized medical registry to 
be used by local commissions to protect boxers, reducing the arbitrary 
practices of sanctioning organizations, and enhancing the uniformity 
and basic standards for professional boxing contracts. Most 
importantly, this legislation would establish a Federal regulatory 
entity to oversee professional boxing and set basic uniform standards 
for certain aspects of the sport.
  Thankfully, current law--which we passed in the 1990s--has already 
improved some aspects of the state of professional boxing. However, 
like me, many others remain concerned the sport continues to be at 
serious risk. In 2003, the Government Accountability Office spent more 
than 6 months studying 10 of the country's busiest State and tribal 
boxing commissions. Government auditors found that many of these 
commissions do not comply with Federal boxing law, and that there is a 
disturbing lack of enforcement by both Federal and State officials.
  It is important to state clearly and plainly for the record that the 
purpose of the commission created by this bill is not to interfere with 
the daily operations of State and tribal boxing commissions. Instead, 
it would work in consultation with local commissions, and it would only 
exercise its authority when reasonable grounds exist for such 
intervention. In fact, this bill states explicitly that it would not 
prohibit any boxing commission from exercising any of its powers, 
duties, or functions with respect to the regulation or supervision of 
professional boxing to the extent consistent with the provisions of 
Federal boxing law.
  With respect to costs associated with this legislation, the pricetag 
for this legislation should not fall on the shoulders of the American 
taxpayer, especially during a time of crushing debt and deficits. As 
such, to recover the costs, the bill authorizes the commission to 
assess fees on promoters, sanctioning organizations, and boxers, 
ensuring that boxers pay the smallest portion of what is, in fact, 
collected.
  Let there be no doubt, however, of the very basic and pressing need 
in professional boxing for a Federal boxing commission. The 
establishment of the USBC would address that need. The problems that 
have plagued the sport of professional boxing for many years continue 
to undermine the credibility of this sport in the eyes of the public 
and, more importantly, compromise the safety of boxers. This bill 
provides an effective approach to curbing these problems.
  I take a back seat to no one in my desire for smaller government and 
less regulation. It is a crying need today, not only for the integrity 
of the sport but the health of boxers. We are finding more and more, 
especially in the sport of professional football lately, the effect of 
blows to the head. Anyone who has had the honor of knowing Muhammad 
Ali, as I have over the years, recognizes that this is a very brutal 
sport. There is no doubt that if in professional football blows to the 
head can be damaging to one's health, clearly it can be in the sport of 
boxing. I regret to tell my colleagues that there are not sufficient 
protections for the safety of the boxers engaged in the sport today.
  The Pacquiao-Bradley fight is only the latest example, and its 
outrage is spread because of the size of the fight. Unfortunately, over 
the years, there have been a series of fights--some of them I will add 
for the Record at the appropriate time--where the wrong decision has 
been announced.
  This is a great sport. It has given an opportunity, for young men 
particularly, to rise from the depths of poverty to pinnacles of 
greatness in the sport--and wealth beyond their imagining at the time 
they entered the sport. So we need to protect these people. We need to 
give them a fair and legitimate playing field in which to compete.
  I urge the support of my colleagues and again thank my friend the 
majority leader, Senator Harry Reid, who was a boxer of great skill and 
ability himself in his younger days. Some of those traits he has 
displayed very prominently here on the floor of the Senate, and I 
respect him greatly.
                                 ______
                                 
      By Mrs. MURRAY:
  S. 3309. A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to improve the 
assistance provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs to homeless 
veterans, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Veterans' 
Affairs.
  Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, today, as Chairman of the Senate 
Committee on Veterans' Affairs, I am pleased to introduce the Homeless 
Veterans Assistance Improvement Act of 2012. No one who has made 
sacrifices to serve our Nation should ever be homeless, and this 
problem should never be ignored. The bill I am introducing today would 
allow the Department of Veterans Affairs, VA, to continue the important 
work of ending veteran homelessness.
  The administration reported that on any given night in January 2011, 
an estimated 67,500 veterans were homeless. I want to commend the VA 
for its efforts to reduce the number of veterans sleeping in the 
streets. Between 2010 and 2011 the number of homeless veterans 
decreased by 12 percent, but the number of homeless women veterans has 
continued to increase. We are making great progress, in large part due 
to interagency collaborations, but there is still more work to be done.
  In light of recent reports from VA's Office of Inspector General and 
the Government Accountability Office, VA must do more to make its 
homeless veterans programs more welcoming to women and veterans with 
families. The reports highlighted limitations in available housing 
options for women veterans with children. Additionally, infrastructure 
needs such as private and secure rooms and showering facilities are 
often lacking placing women veterans in uncomfortable and potentially 
unsafe situations. We can and should do better.
  The Homeless Veterans Assistance Improvement Act of 2012 helps 
achieve this goal by allowing VA to provide

[[Page S4242]]

transitional housing services to the children of homeless veterans, 
where it is appropriate to do so. It also requires grantees who receive 
funding for transitional housing to meet the privacy, safety, and 
security needs of women veterans and veterans with families. No veteran 
should have to choose between housing and their safety or between 
housing and remaining with their family.
  Other provisions in this legislation help VA to meet the self-
identified, unmet needs of homeless veterans. VA conducts an annual 
assessment of homeless veterans, homeless programs staff, and grantees 
that ranks the top ten unmet needs of homeless veterans. The most 
recent report, which was from fiscal year 2010, highlights the fact 
that many homeless veterans ranked legal assistance among their top ten 
unmet needs for the last several years. Among the top-ranked needs for 
the last several years have been legal services and dental care. My 
legislation makes veterans in the HUD-VASH program eligible to 
participate in the Homeless Veterans Dental Program. It also ensures 
that a percentage of the funding available for homelessness prevention 
and rapid re-housing will be used for legal services to remove some of 
the barriers to obtaining or maintaining stable housing for homeless 
veterans.
  This is not a full summary of all the provisions within this 
legislation. However, I hope that I have provided an appropriate 
overview of the major benefits this legislation would provide.
  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. 3309

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

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

       (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Homeless 
     Veterans Assistance Improvement Act of 2012''.
       (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act 
     is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Requirement that recipients of grants from Department of 
              Veterans Affairs for comprehensive service programs for 
              homeless veterans meet physical privacy, safety, and 
              security needs of such veterans.
Sec. 3. Modification of authority of Department of Veteran Affairs to 
              provide capital improvement grants for comprehensive 
              service programs that assist homeless veterans.
Sec. 4. Funding for furnishing legal services to very low-income 
              veteran families in permanent housing.
Sec. 5. Modifications to requirements relating to per diem payments for 
              services furnished to homeless veterans.
Sec. 6. Authorization of grants by Department of Veterans Affairs to 
              centers that provide services to homeless veterans for 
              operational expenses.
Sec. 7. Expansion of Department of Veterans Affairs authority to 
              provide dental care to homeless veterans.
Sec. 8. Extensions of authorities and programs affecting homeless 
              veterans.

     SEC. 2. REQUIREMENT THAT RECIPIENTS OF GRANTS FROM DEPARTMENT 
                   OF VETERANS AFFAIRS FOR COMPREHENSIVE SERVICE 
                   PROGRAMS FOR HOMELESS VETERANS MEET PHYSICAL 
                   PRIVACY, SAFETY, AND SECURITY NEEDS OF SUCH 
                   VETERANS.

       Section 2011(f) of title 38, United States Code, is amended 
     by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
       ``(6) To meet the physical privacy, safety, and security 
     needs of homeless veterans receiving services through the 
     project.''.

     SEC. 3. MODIFICATION OF AUTHORITY OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERAN 
                   AFFAIRS TO PROVIDE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT GRANTS 
                   FOR COMPREHENSIVE SERVICE PROGRAMS THAT ASSIST 
                   HOMELESS VETERANS.

       Section 2011(a) of title 38, United States Code, is 
     amended, in the matter before paragraph (1), by inserting 
     ``and maintaining'' after ``in establishing''.

     SEC. 4. FUNDING FOR FURNISHING LEGAL SERVICES TO VERY LOW-
                   INCOME VETERAN FAMILIES IN PERMANENT HOUSING.

       Section 2044(e) of title 38, United States Code, is 
     amended--
       (1) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) as paragraphs 
     (3) and (4), respectively; and
       (2) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following new 
     paragraph (2):
       ``(2) Of amounts made available under paragraph (1), not 
     less than one percent shall be available for the furnishing 
     of services described in subsection (b)(1)(D)(vii).''.

     SEC. 5. MODIFICATIONS TO REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO PER DIEM 
                   PAYMENTS FOR SERVICES FURNISHED TO HOMELESS 
                   VETERANS.

       (a) Authorization of Per Diem Payments for Furnishing Care 
     to Dependents of Certain Homeless Veterans.--Section 2012(a) 
     of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 
     end the following new paragraph:
       ``(4) Services for which a recipient of a grant under 
     section 2011 of this title (or an entity described in 
     paragraph (1)) may receive per diem payments under this 
     subsection may include furnishing care for a dependent of a 
     homeless veteran who is under the care of such homeless 
     veteran while such homeless veteran receives services from 
     the grant recipient (or entity).''.
       (b) Provision of Funds for Per Diem Payments for 
     Nonconforming Entities.--
       (1) In general.--Section 2012(d)(1) of such title is 
     amended, in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by 
     striking ``may make'' and inserting ``shall make''.
       (2) Regulations required.--Not later than one year after 
     the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of 
     Veterans Affairs shall prescribe such regulations as may be 
     necessary to implement the amendment made by paragraph (1).

     SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF GRANTS BY DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 
                   AFFAIRS TO CENTERS THAT PROVIDE SERVICES TO 
                   HOMELESS VETERANS FOR OPERATIONAL EXPENSES.

       (a) In General.--Subchapter II of chapter 20 of title 38, 
     United States Code, is amended by inserting after section 
     2012 the following new section:

     ``Sec.  2012A. Service center operational grants

       ``(a) In General.--Subject to the availability of 
     appropriations provided for such purpose, the Secretary may 
     award to a recipient of a grant under section 2011 of this 
     title for the establishment of a service center described in 
     subsection (g) of such section a grant for the operational 
     expenses of such service center not otherwise covered by the 
     receipt of per diem payments under section 2012 of this 
     section.
       ``(b) Limitation.--The aggregate amount of all grants 
     awarded under subsection (a) in any fiscal year may not 
     exceed $500,000.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after the 
     item relating to section 2012 the following new item:

``2012A. Service center operational grants.''.

       (c) Regulations.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
     promulgate regulations to carry out section 2012A of title 
     38, United States Code, as added by subsection (a), not later 
     than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act.

     SEC. 7. EXPANSION OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS AUTHORITY 
                   TO PROVIDE DENTAL CARE TO HOMELESS VETERANS.

       Subsection (b) of section 2062 of title 38, United States 
     Code, is amended to read as follows:
       ``(a) Eligible Veterans.--(1) Subsection (a) applies to a 
     veteran who--
       ``(A) is enrolled for care under section 1705(a) of this 
     title; and
       ``(B) for a period of 60 consecutive days, is receiving--
       ``(i) assistance under section 8(o) of the United States 
     Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(o)); or
       ``(ii) care (directly or by contract) in any of the 
     following settings:
       ``(I) A domiciliary under section 1710 of this title.
       ``(II) A therapeutic residence under section 2032 of this 
     title.
       ``(III) Community residential care coordinated by the 
     Secretary under section 1730 of this title.
       ``(IV) A setting for which the Secretary provides funds for 
     a grant and per diem provider.
       ``(2) For purposes of paragraph (1), in determining whether 
     a veteran has received assistance or care for a period of 60 
     consecutive days, the Secretary may disregard breaks in the 
     continuity of assistance or care for which the veteran is not 
     responsible.''.

     SEC. 8. EXTENSIONS OF AUTHORITIES AND PROGRAMS AFFECTING 
                   HOMELESS VETERANS.

       (a) Comprehensive Service Programs.--Section 2013 of title 
     38, United States Code, is amended by striking paragraph (5) 
     and inserting the following new paragraphs:
       ``(5) $250,000,000 for fiscal year 2013.
       ``(6) $150,000,000 for fiscal year 2014 and each subsequent 
     fiscal year.''.
       (b) Homeless Veterans Reintegration Programs.--Section 
     2021(e)(1)(F) of such title is amended by striking ``2012'' 
     and inserting ``2013''.
       (c) Outreach, Care, Treatment, Rehabilitation, and 
     Therapeutic Transitional Housing for Veterans Suffering From 
     Serious Mental Illness.--Section 2031(b) of such title is 
     amended by striking ``December 31, 2012'' and inserting 
     ``December 31, 2014''.
       (d) Program to Expand and Improve Provision of Benefits and 
     Services by Department of Veterans Affairs to Homeless 
     Veterans.--Section 2033(d) of such title is amended by 
     striking ``December 31, 2012'' and inserting ``December 31, 
     2014''.
       (e) Housing Assistance for Homeless Veterans.--Section 
     2041(c) of such title is amended by striking ``December 31, 
     2012'' and inserting ``December 31, 2013''.
       (f) Financial Assistance for Supportive Services for Very 
     Low-income Veteran

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     Families in Permanent Housing.--Section 2044(e)(1) of such 
     title is amended by adding at the end the following new 
     subparagraph:
       ``(E) $300,000,000 for fiscal year 2013.''.
       (g) Grant Program for Homeless Veterans With Special 
     Needs.--Section 2061(c)(1) of such title is amended by 
     striking ``through 2012'' and inserting ``through 2015''.
       (h) Advisory Committee on Homeless Veterans.--Section 
     2066(d) of such title is amended by striking ``December 31, 
     2012'' and inserting ``December 31, 2014''.

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