[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 54 (Monday, April 11, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1843-S1845]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
AMERICA'S SMALL BUSINESS TAX RELIEF ACT OF 2015
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Senate will
resume consideration of H.R. 636, which the clerk will report.
The bill clerk read as follows:
A bill (H.R. 636) to amend the Internal Revenue Code of
1986 to permanently extend increased expensing limitations,
and for other purposes.
Pending:
Thune/Nelson amendment No. 3464, in the nature of a
substitute.
Thune (for Gardner) amendment No. 3460 (to amendment No.
3464), to require the FAA Administrator to consider the
operational history of a person before authorizing the person
to operate certain unmanned aircraft systems.
Nelson (for Bennet) amendment No. 3524 (to amendment No.
3464), to improve air service for families and pregnant
women.
Cantwell amendment No. 3490 (to amendment No. 3464), to
extend protections against physical assault to air carrier
customer service representatives.
Mr. CORNYN. Mr. President, this week the Senate is continuing its
consideration of the reauthorization of the Federal Aviation
Administration and bringing important improvements in terms of aviation
infrastructure and public safety. I am glad the Senate voted--
notwithstanding the impression I think people get from the outside that
all we do is bicker and we don't actually solve any problems. I am glad
the Senate has worked in a bipartisan way to move this legislation
forward. We have a lot of heavy lifting left to do on this legislation
this week, and none of these issues is easy, but it is important we do
everything we can to demonstrate to the American people that our
interests are their interests in moving bipartisan solutions forward
for their benefit.
National Crime Victims' Rights Week
Mr. President, I wish to just take a moment and point out that this
week is also a very important week because it is National Crime
Victims' Rights Week.
Too often crime victims in our country aren't treated with the
fairness and respect they deserve. So often it seems as though we focus
our attention on those who commit the crime and not nearly enough on
those who are victims of crime they had no part in instigating but
perhaps happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. When we
don't show the proper respect for victims of crime, it can lead to
distrust in our communities between law enforcement and the public, and
it can make our country a more dangerous place.
The fact is, our law enforcement professionals work best with
community cooperation. Frequently, the community can be the eyes and
the ears for law enforcement and help give them information they need
in order to prevent crime from occurring in the first place or to make
a show of force to in fact deter the commission of a crime.
When I was Texas attorney general, I had the privilege of overseeing
our State's Crime Victims' Compensation Fund. This is an idea which
said we ought to take the fines and the penalties from people who
commit crimes and then use those funds to make grants to the victims of
crime and the people who attempt to help them heal and recover from the
consequences. Time and time again, I saw that when we don't support the
victims of crime, they and their families aren't the only ones who
suffer. It can also impede law enforcement efforts when they feel this
disjuncture or disconnection between the victims and the law
enforcement professionals. So it is important for many reasons--out of
basic fairness and compassion but also in the interests of law
enforcement, generally, to make sure we do everything we can to keep
law enforcement and the victims of crime on the same page and the
communities in which they reside.
We need to continually look for ways to improve our support for crime
victims. One way we can do this is by continuing assistance to State
and local governments in a variety of ways. We recently had a hearing
on the intersection of mental illness and law enforcement.
Unfortunately, in our society today--because of the
deinstitutionalization of people with mental illness, with no safety
net to take its place--many people who suffer from mental illness are
residing in our jails, filling our emergency rooms, or simply living on
our streets. So we need to redirect more than just the 1 percent of
funds currently directed by the Federal Government to State and local
law enforcement for support and training. We need to redirect more of
that in a targeted fashion to deal with this crisis in mental illness.
Here is an anecdote. Recently, I had the chance to meet with some
members of the Major County Sheriffs' Association. The sheriff of Bexar
County, TX, a friend of mine, said: How would you like to meet the
largest mental health provider in the United States? I said:
[[Page S1844]]
Well, sure. Who is that? She said: Meet the sheriff of Los Angeles
County.
This made a deep impression on me, and it tells me we still have a
lot to do.
Another example of where the Federal Government can play an
appropriate support role for local and State law enforcement--and I am
not suggesting the Federal Government take over State and local law
enforcement, far from it. Rather, the Federal Government should
recognize and support the important role that local and State law
enforcement play and provide that support, where possible, here at the
Federal level.
Nowhere else have I found that more important recently than our
efforts to try to audit and test the massive nationwide rape kit
backlog. It has been estimated there are 400,000 rape kits collected
from the forensic evidence from sexual assaults that remain untested.
We know these rape kits contain vital DNA evidence that can put
criminals behind bars, exonerate the falsely accused, and help detect
those who commit crimes serially--not just once but over and over and
over again until they are ultimately caught. As we know, many
communities at the local level simply do not have the resources or
expertise to test these rape kits in a timely fashion, so that is an
area where we can help. That means that while evidence is collecting
dust on a shelf for years, criminals will remain loose--unless we
continue to act--and make it impossible for the victims of these crimes
to find closure. I will give just one example.
Last year Houston had a backlog of thousands of rape kits going back
into the 1980s. Fortunately, due to resources provided by the Federal
Government under the Debbie Smith Act, and with the determination of
the local leadership, Mayor Annise Parker, the city of Houston, began
to work with the State of Texas and the Federal Government to eliminate
Houston's rape kit backlog. So far they have tested thousands of rape
kits, resulting in 850 CODIS matches. That is the DNA check system run
by the FBI, where when people have been arrested for offenses in the
past, their DNA information is recorded in this data base and then can
be matched against that collected in a rape kit or other forensic
evidence. So just as a result of the city of Houston undertaking this
massive effort--again, with the cooperation of the State and Federal
Government--to eliminate its rape kit backlog, they have gotten 850
hits in the CODIS system. In other words, by testing the evidence they
already had, Houston officials have been able to identify hundreds of
people who are perpetrators of crime--because the DNA evidence does not
lie--and to place them at the scene of a crime. Again, as we find out,
sadly, people who commit sexual assaults frequently don't do it just
once in their life. Many of them do it serially or until they get
caught, looking for victims of opportunity--sometimes even children. It
is terrible.
Fortunately, with the tools and resources provided by the Debbie
Smith Act and something called the SAFER Act, Houston will complete the
testing of all backlogged rape kits this year. This is important
because in the past, testing of these rape kits was viewed as mainly a
way of just confirming the identity of the assailant using DNA
evidence, but frequently the identity of the assailant is not an issue
in these cases, and it is expensive to test rape kits. Frequently, the
assailant is known and the question is one of consent or nonconsent.
What we have found is by testing more rape kits--even where the issue
of identity is not in question--we can literally tie these defendants
in criminal cases to other sexual assaults in a way that is a pretty
powerful and pretty revolutionary way.
I am proud of the work Houston and the State of Texas are doing,
working with the Federal Government, to end the rape kit backlog, but
it is going to take a lot more work from us on an ongoing and long-term
basis because, first, one of the things we need to do, which Congress
has already required, is an audit to make sure we know where all of
these rape kits are--whether they are sitting in an evidence locker or
whether they are still sitting in a police station in an investigation
locker. We need to make sure there is an audit done so we can get our
arms around the size and scope of the problem. Then we need to redirect
more of the resources the Federal Government has already appropriated
money for under the Debbie Smith Act to actually test these rape kits.
This is very important because we need the survivors of sexual assault
to know we continue to stand with them in their fight.
Thank goodness for brave women such as Debbie Smith and so many
others whom I have met along the way who I think demonstrate not only
their own courage but also give other people courage to stand up for
their own rights when they are, through no fault of their own, victims
of sexual assault.
The Crime Victims' Rights Week is more than just about this crime of
sexual assault. It is about respect for all victims of crime. That is
why I am proud to be working with the senior Senator from Vermont, Mr.
Leahy, and Congressman Ted Poe of Houston, TX, on the Justice for All
Reauthorization Act. This is comprehensive legislation to increase
rights and protections for crime victims across the country. It will
reauthorize the landmark Justice for All Act signed into law by
President George W. Bush in 2004.
As part of the reauthorization, it will also increase the collection
of compensation and restitution for crime victims, it will protect the
housing rights of domestic violence victims, and it will strengthen the
forensic sciences to swiftly put criminals behind bars and to improve
the integrity of the forensic testing.
Frequently, we know that both the expertise and the equipment used by
local governments and law enforcement are sometimes pretty spotty. In
order to maintain the integrity of this important and powerful type of
evidence, it is very importants we provide some guidance--perhaps best
practices--for forensic sciences. We have the ability to do that
because of the resources of the Federal Government; again, not to
commander or mandate but basically to help local and State governments
improve their forensic sciences and their testing.
This legislation will also improve access to legal and health care
resources for all victims and will ensure that we are efficiently
providing direct services for crime victims on a national basis. This
legislation is supported by more than 130 different law enforcement and
victim advocacy organizations nationwide, including the Rape, Abuse,
and Incest National Network--the so-called RAINN organization--the
National District Attorneys Association, the National Center for
Victims of Crime, the International Union of Police Organizations, the
National Network to End Domestic Violence, and the National
Organization for Women. It is a pretty broad spectrum of organizations
along the political or ideological spectrum, and they are all unified
in supporting this important bill.
This Chamber has done what it takes to help victims in the past, and
we should continue to build on the legacy of legislation like the
Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act, a law that is already making a
clear difference in the lives of victims across the country.
One of the best moments in this Chamber last year was when we passed
the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act by a vote of 99 to 0. It was
a rare and welcomed coming together of all Members, from all different
parts of the country, all across the ideological spectrum, to enact the
most important assistance for victims of human trafficking that we have
done in basically 25 years, providing for something as basic as shelter
for victims of human trafficking, when many of them had nowhere to live
or to turn.
One of the important pieces of the Justice for Victims of Trafficking
Act was something called the HERO Program. This was primarily inserted
into the legislation at the request of the Senator from Illinois, Mr.
Mark Kirk, a veteran of the U.S. Navy himself.
Just yesterday, the Army Times ran a story on a program that was
permanently authorized under the bill known as HERO, which trains
veterans to work alongside Federal law enforcement officials to go
after child predators--in other words, using some of the expertise the
veterans acquired in their training and their service in the military
to help victims of child pornography and the predation, unfortunately,
that happens too often on the most innocent.
So far, according to this article, the program has already trained
about 80 different veterans with plans to train
[[Page S1845]]
40 more this year, giving many of these veterans--some of whom have
been seriously injured during the course of their military service--a
real purpose in life. Indeed, in the Army Times story I mentioned just
a moment ago, there are some heartrending, touching stories about how,
even for people who suffered very traumatic injuries during their
military service, this gives them a new sense of purpose and focus, and
it is very, very encouraging.
I had the chance to see the HERO program in action last year in San
Antonio, and it is protecting our children and taking criminals off the
street. It is pretty clear that when we set our minds to it, we can
make a difference in the lives of crime victims. We proved that with
the passage of the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act, and we can
do it again.
I encourage all of our colleagues to consider supporting the Justice
for All Reauthorization Act. This is a bicameral, bipartisan proposal
that would help victims get the support they need and they deserve.
As advocates and survivors across the country use this week to
highlight the needs of millions of crime victims, let's also remember
that we have a responsibility and an opportunity to do something about
it right here in this Chamber.
Mr. President, I don't see anyone interested in recognition, so I
suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. NELSON. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for
the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
ZIKA VIRUS
Mr. NELSON. Mr. President, the Zika virus is getting very serious.
Today one of the officials at the Centers for Disease Control said that
``this is scarier than we initially thought.'' As to a pregnant woman
who is infected with the Zika virus, it may not only cause the fetus to
be deformed with a much smaller head, but they are finding other birth
defects as well as premature births. Normal, otherwise healthy people
who become infected with the virus usually have relatively mild flu-
like symptoms, but there are devastating consequences when the virus is
contracted by a woman who is pregnant. Today the CDC said: ``Most of
what we've learned is not reassuring.'' They also said: ``Everything we
look at with this virus seems to be a bit scarier than we initially
thought.'' That is coming straight from the experts at CDC.
When you look at where this virus is, unfortunately, there are more
people in my State of Florida who have the virus than in any other
State in the country. Nationwide, there are multiples of hundreds who
have the virus. In the State of Florida, we have identified just under
100 people who have the virus. Thankfully, of those who were infected
in Florida, none of them contracted it in Florida; they contracted the
virus someplace else.
There is a vast amount of traveling that goes on between Florida and
Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico is one source where the virus is coming from.
When that mosquito bites you, it transmits the virus, and that mosquito
is quite prevalent in Puerto Rico. So the island is having its own
trauma with the Zika virus manifesting there, but there is also a
source in other countries throughout Central America, the Caribbean,
and Latin America.
What do we need to do? Well, one little bit of good news I can give
you is that the bill we passed in the Senate before the Easter recess
is now in the House, and it will be taken up by the House tomorrow.
They should pass it and send it to the President's desk for signature.
What that bill does is give financial incentive to the drug companies
by adding Zika as a virus to the list of tropical diseases for which
the drug companies have a financial incentive to go and find a cure or
a vaccine. This bill is complicated as far as what the financial
incentives will be. I could explain that, but for purposes of
discussion here, I just wanted to share that little bit of good news.
We are going to have that bill in law, and we want to unleash the
creative potential of our pharmaceutical industry to go and find a cure
or vaccine that will take care of it.
The other side of it is what the CDC is saying is scarier than we
thought, and that is the fact that it is having such devastating
societal and medical consequences for a woman who is pregnant and gets
the virus. We can imagine the trauma to that family with a deformed
child being born as a result of the virus. We can imagine the expense
to society of a child who is severely handicapped. As a result, we are
talking about major effort.
There is something else we can do about it; that is, the President's
budgetary request has $1.9 billion specifically targeted for helping to
do the research on the Zika virus. It is my hope, and I know I have the
cooperation and, indeed, the considerable help and energy of my
colleague from Florida, Senator Rubio, in wanting to seek this and to
get successfully in the appropriations bill for the Department of HHS
the $1.9 billion to continue the research and all of the ancillary
expenses that are coming as a result of it.
Down the road, we will find a vaccine. Down the road, we will be able
to manage this problem. But, in the meantime, there is a great deal of
trauma, some extraordinary heartbreak to some families, which should
be, again, the warning: If you are pregnant, do not go anywhere
exposing the skin to a mosquito bite, particularly in those regions
with that variety of mosquito that carries the Zika virus.
So I hope by this time tomorrow night, we will say one hallelujah
that the House bill has passed, the Senate bill has passed the House,
and it is on the way to the President's desk for signature. Then, let's
take up this issue in the appropriations bill when it hits the floor in
another few weeks.
Mr. President, I yield the floor.
I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Coats). The clerk will call the roll.
The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. NELSON. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for
the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
____________________